Aren't there a lot of criytosporidiums in there?

I have been more busy than I can even remember, lately. Where I last left off, I had a game on the 24th at the Coverall with good old Team Gigantic, then an outdoor game with them the next day. Friday was a game for the Hurricanes, and Sunday involved an outdoor game with Team Gigantic and a practice for the Hurricanes.

I suppose the best way to go over them all would be chronologically, though being brief will be the order of the day - I've two baseball games and an indoor game later.

In the indoor game, We lost 5-2, or something akin to that. I scored one off a nice touch off the boards and a breakaway, but it was nothing special. Passing was good, defending was good, we just didn't have what it took, if I remember correctly.

By the outdoor game, I was well beat from the games earlier in the week. Everybody there had to play a full game with no subs, so that wasn't the most fun. We barely hung on to beat one of my other teams (albeit only in the winter), the Flood Minotaurs, by a score of 3-2. I played terribly because of exhaustion, and the grass being Amazon-height definitely didn't help. Somehow, the bugs were not bad at all though. Go figure. I had an assist for Jay's goal from half.

I finally saw some life from the Hurricanes, too. We beat a team of old Croatians 5-0, while I played right back. I didn't see much action in the first half because of the way they played their forwards out wide, but I made some runs in the second half that were tons of fun to do. I even popped a goal in in the 90th out of boredom. And yes, I know that fullbacks aren't supposed to be in the middle of the other team's six yard box. There was also a bit of a fleeting feeling of fame. I kicked the ball away from guy, out of bounds. Nice and high, and nice and hard. We played in the U of M indoor facility again, and so the ball hit the glass banister that (somewhat) guarded the spectators. Given my luck with these sorts of things there were three young boys standing not a foot away from where my ball had hit, and they all jumped. I said sorry, and they gasped and ohh'd. I'm not going to lie, I felt guilty at first, then just plain old special.

The break on Saturday was a well required one, I was really starting to feel fatigued. Sunday, things picked right up again with an outdoor playoff game for Team Gigantic on a really windy field outside Winnipeg with virtually no tree cover. We got absolutely beaten to a pulp, 6-1. To add insult to injury, at the end of the game, I was settling a ball and one of their team members decided to charge at me. My jaw hurt like hell at the time, but I seem to be fine now.

"I know a guy named Krebdg"

Both of last night's games have tired me out more than I can recall in recent memory, but normally indoor complexes in summer are pretty hot and muggy.

In my first game back with the Electric Shoes, we had three subs total. In spite of a lack of a formation, we played alright, but generally were unlucky. The pinnacle of our lack of luck came when I lifted the ball over two legs, had my foot stepped on and knee of my other leg kicked, and no foul was called. I also messed up a breakaway by shooting just wide. My passing was plentiful though, perhaps too plentiful. I still need to shoot more. We lost 5-2.

My competitive game was a gong show. I'm not sure why, but I was sat for the first half, then I went in and played striker. Then Right Wing. Then Striker. Then Center Midfielder (this was by my own accord, as nobody else was playing it).

I have no idea what is going on with that team. I know I can be used as a utility man, but I have played every position on the field in three games, aside from left back, left mid, and goalie. The worst part is that nobody is in shape, and no practices are willing to be had. If we go down at the end of the season, we deserve it, unless this ceases to continue.

It felt like, during the game, nobody on my team gave support, aside from certain times. I made a few good passes, but generally the other team was on top of us. We lost 1-0, against an over-35 team. It was obvious that they had played together for a while, but really, the more impressive thing was that they were in much better shape than us.

Five minutes from time, I was fouled just outside the box. I'd have liked to take the free kick, but some guy on my team came up and took it (far too lightly). The goalie was forced into a relatively easy diving save.

I really don't know what to do about these guys, I feel as though we could be a half decent team if we put the hours into it. The individual skill is most likely there, after all.

How is this a fiesta?

Early in the afternoon today, the St. James Hurricane played our second MSA cup game against a team a division higher than us. We came into the game with a mix of optimism and pessimism. I, personally, was pessimistic after what I had seen a half week earlier.

Due to the usual (again, from what I've seen) lack of defenders, I played stopper for the first half. It was a strange position to get used to, but after a while, I found my footing, and began to block shots, snuff out offenses, and that sort of stuff. While I didn't enjoy the lack of attacking freedom, I felt I played well - their first goal came from an unmarked tap in (see: not my man), three minutes into the game.

The fact that I was in the stopper position meant that this particular team funnelled their attack (usually) into me, but in the second half, things changed. I could swear their coach told them to use more over-the-top balls, because in the first fifteen minutes of the second half, they put two more in on us by using aerial through balls. I subbed out five minutes later in hopes I could get slotted into the midfield, but after a sip of water, a goal was scored against us. Shortly after that, our sweeper went down and I was back in the fold, this time playing sweeper.

Sweeper's a little stranger, but I'd say it's quite a bit easier. After some running around, a midfielder was looking for an "easier" position to play, so I made my way into the midfield. By then, we were down 5-2, and I was given no instruction on which spot to play. I asked around, but came up with "just go over there" from a few different sources.

And so the cup dream is over. This could be a blessing in disguise though, seeing as our league form needs to pick up if we don't want to get relegated.

"Go eat a sandwich"

One competitive game that I'm back for, and I'm already beaten to a pulp so much to keep me in bed for an extra two hours this morning. Part of the reason for that is how I got 80-85 minutes of playtime when I expected and asked for 45, another part is the two niggling injuries I went in with. Thankfully, my ankle's doing fine.

Take a look at my sock, though.

That lovely stain is thanks to this nice raspberry shown below, which I got from sliding in baseball. And don't ask what the black stuff is, I'm not entirely sure.

The best thing about it was that I was able to actually squeeze blood out of my shin pad after the game.

Otherwise, I took a kick to the calf on a slide tackle that reminded me of my calf contusion two years back. Thankfully, I can walk this time around, and I should be good for Sunday's game.

We played a team of old Polish folks who shirt-tugged like nobody's business, and I played right back before getting subbed out due to the kick to the calf. Our team was doing horrible up until the end of the first half, we had no offensive linking whatsoever, and the closest thing to a goal we got was (albeit pretty close) a disallowed header off a corner for pushing off. The other team simply outclassed and out-conditioned us. The closest thing to an offensive I was able to create for right back was a give and go that ended in me getting fouled, then a nice little roulette move to beat a guy, which also ended in me getting fouled. Our opposition went up two goals before the half.

In the second half, I played on the right side of midfield. From here, it felt like I could control the game much better than I was, but that might've been because my fullback partner was more involved this time around. I worked hard for every ball and had a few good link-ups, but ultimately nothing came of it. Closer to the end of the game, our goalie got injured, and our striker played in goal, so I played up front. Were it not for a few stray passes, I probably could've made some plays, but in that last 15 minutes, the only time I got the ball in their offensive third was a loose one that I chased down then crossed inside for my strike partner. It was about as on-target as you could ask for, but again, nothing was made of it. For the last 5 minutes and 10 minutes of stoppage time, I switched into midfield, but I was really too tired to do much.

We lost 2-0, playing a considerably better second half, against a team that has been together for years.

It was a good taste of all the positions that I could end up playing, though. I think our team could be pretty good if we worked on some of the passing and moving and cut some of the fat, if you know what I mean.

And by that, I mean conditioning.

And cutting players.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a repeat of a Brazil game to watch.

"That was you trying to catch up to girls"

A month and a half ago, I buggered up my ankle in a pretty nasty event at an Electric Shoes game. In stretching to win a ball that was passed, a girl kicked my leg (accidentally) right as I planted it. I landed on it with all my weight as it was bent sideways, and tore a ligament, or so I believe. Some say it was stupid to not see a doctor, I say "yes, but go to hell".

I'm almost in peak condition again, though there are definitely some things that have changed with my play style, both good and bad, in the few games I've used to get back in shape.

The Bad:

• I'm not playing with my head up as much.
• I'm not turning as fast.
• I feel like showboating more.

The Good:

• My dribbling has improved.
• I'm holding up the ball better.
• I'm playing with a greater sense of craftyness.
• I'm not longer afraid to just take it and shoot, in some cases.

And so, I need to work on keeping my head up and my turning. Everything else will come.

I played two games when I really shouldn't have, and I scored a goal in each. Otherwise, I've been keeping up my fitness with dodgeball and softball. Yesterday I started drilling in my yard.

Today's the real test though. I play with the Hurricane, and we have to turn our season around. We've scored two goals in five league games, and allowed nine. They want to play me as striker, and with some of the E-mails from my team's coach, I think they have high hopes for me to put in a few goals. We have progressed in the cup though, with a 3-0 win over another team in our division. I'm not entirely sure how they'd like me to play, the closest thing to a game I've played for them was a scrimmage tryout where I played a playmaker role. I suppose I'll try different things, it really depends on my strike partner too. I just hope the service is there, because I'm confident that even 45 minutes will be enough to throw one into the good old onion bag.

Until then, I'll just pace around my house nervously.