Soccer makes me happy. I'm not sure why or at what point this might have come to be. My earliest memories of the sport are from playing in the local Boys & Girls Club league in Chula Vista. I played in this amateurish indoor soccer league and never developed any real talent as a result. Nevertheless, I always enjoyed my time playing in that league and even practiced on my own time in the backyard of my house with my brother. I am surprised that the fence posts that I would kick the ball against were still in tact after all those years of being kicked against.
While playing a sport is always the most important factor in determining one's appreciation for it, I think that I was also able to establish an appreciation based solely on the spectator side as well. Growing up I vividly recall the soccer viewing parties that we would have with family and friends around the neighborhood. I remember the 1994 World Cup and thinking to myself how amazing it would be to go and cheer on one of my preferred teams at the stadiums. I remember everyone in the house going wild whenever that goal came, or didn't. I remember the camaraderie and solidarity amongst people from all over. I remembered how people from different parts of the world would care about a team from another part of the world, even if they normally wouldn't think twice about it. Soccer brings people together. It may sound trite to say that, but I firmly believe that this is true.
When I was in Mexico for the 1998 World Cup, I remember being completely caught up in the fervor once again. Nostalgia about the sport already pervaded my memories, but this time I was in a country with a culture that actually had a passion for it. I played soccer video games, played soccer in the streets, in the backyard, and when the time came for Mexico to play, I couldn't imagine a viewing party that could be more fun and passionate. This is probably why I love the Mexican national team.
Tomorrow "El Tri" takes on Uruguay. While I am not down in Mexico or with friends and family to enjoy what is sure to be an incredibly exciting match up, you can trust that I will wake up in the early morning to watch. Even by myself, whether I am watching the Red, White, and Blue or the Green, White, and Red, I am always brought back to those days in my child hood living room with friends and family screaming their lungs out for those very same colors.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Monday, June 14, 2010
El ebanista
I climbed a mountain the other day. The path I followed was long and arduous, but the sights at the top made the journey entirely worth it.
I decided to go along this trek with a man who I am almost certain has a mental disorder which I cannot determine. I first met him at the workers shelter that I had been staying at and initiated a conversation with him in Spanish which was very promptly overpowered by his disposition to incessant chatter. He seemed knowledgeable about a plethora of subjects, but primarily talked about fish. Since I was interested in learning about the fishing industry, I heard him out as long as I could but finally had to excuse myself. At this time I was convinced he had severe ADHD.
My second encounter with this guy was again at the shelter. This time, the conversation did begin normally but again became a scatterbrained barrage about fishing, canneries, and whatever else was on this guy's mind throughout the day. At one point in the conversation he started going through various different trigonometric formulas and applications of the formulas. He was completely unable to read the very obvious non-verbal messages that I was sending regarding my complete lack of interest in what he was talking about. I reevaluated my previous assessment and began thinking that he might actually have Asberger syndrome.
Last Sunday I ran into the man at church. I smelled a faint hint of alcohol around me and assumed that it was the old Filipino man in front of me. I´m not sure why I made that assumption but it was unfounded since it turned out to be the dude I know. I could not for the life of me, figure out why someone would drink a couple of beers before coming to church. He told me this was the only time he could drink beer because it was his only day off and he only drank in the mornings. He never takes communion as a result.
I walked back with him that day, and was invited to a lunch consisting of real Mexican mole and tortillas. His apartment was a bit untidy but uncluttered. I noticed a few papers, magazines, and a textbook on contemporary American literature. I also noticed that there were at least 6 pairs of Xtra Tuffs scattered all over the apartment.
I mentioned my intent to climb Pillar mountain (the mountain adjacent to Kodiak) that day and he proceeded to invite himself along. I didn´t mind. It was nice to have someone to talk to on the long walk, even if it was a two way conversation with no real back and forth.
The man lives frugally. I learned that he came to Alaska some 20 odd years ago. He has not been back to Mexico and very rarely goes to the lower 48. He drinks beer every once in a while, but lives a relatively austere lifestyle otherwise. I know that he has money in the bank, but I don't think he spends very much of it. Somehow he has a significant body of knowledge, but none of it connects into a coherent line of inquiry. Except for the fish. All I know is that he is single, has a niece that he would leave his life insurance policy to, and has been working in the canneries for a very long time. He appreciates education but has no ability to ever apply any of the academic knowledge that he has acquired over the years.
This man lives to work. He has somehow come all the way across the globe from the bustling metropolis of Guadalajara to the remote and mundane world of the Alaskan canneries. This man, who can recall Pi to the hundred thousandth, and talk for hours about trigonometric formulas, compounding interest rates, the price of fish, the tides, and Mexican soccer, at the end of this day is a very lonely man. I am glad I went on a walk with him that day.
I decided to go along this trek with a man who I am almost certain has a mental disorder which I cannot determine. I first met him at the workers shelter that I had been staying at and initiated a conversation with him in Spanish which was very promptly overpowered by his disposition to incessant chatter. He seemed knowledgeable about a plethora of subjects, but primarily talked about fish. Since I was interested in learning about the fishing industry, I heard him out as long as I could but finally had to excuse myself. At this time I was convinced he had severe ADHD.
My second encounter with this guy was again at the shelter. This time, the conversation did begin normally but again became a scatterbrained barrage about fishing, canneries, and whatever else was on this guy's mind throughout the day. At one point in the conversation he started going through various different trigonometric formulas and applications of the formulas. He was completely unable to read the very obvious non-verbal messages that I was sending regarding my complete lack of interest in what he was talking about. I reevaluated my previous assessment and began thinking that he might actually have Asberger syndrome.
Last Sunday I ran into the man at church. I smelled a faint hint of alcohol around me and assumed that it was the old Filipino man in front of me. I´m not sure why I made that assumption but it was unfounded since it turned out to be the dude I know. I could not for the life of me, figure out why someone would drink a couple of beers before coming to church. He told me this was the only time he could drink beer because it was his only day off and he only drank in the mornings. He never takes communion as a result.
I walked back with him that day, and was invited to a lunch consisting of real Mexican mole and tortillas. His apartment was a bit untidy but uncluttered. I noticed a few papers, magazines, and a textbook on contemporary American literature. I also noticed that there were at least 6 pairs of Xtra Tuffs scattered all over the apartment.
I mentioned my intent to climb Pillar mountain (the mountain adjacent to Kodiak) that day and he proceeded to invite himself along. I didn´t mind. It was nice to have someone to talk to on the long walk, even if it was a two way conversation with no real back and forth.
The man lives frugally. I learned that he came to Alaska some 20 odd years ago. He has not been back to Mexico and very rarely goes to the lower 48. He drinks beer every once in a while, but lives a relatively austere lifestyle otherwise. I know that he has money in the bank, but I don't think he spends very much of it. Somehow he has a significant body of knowledge, but none of it connects into a coherent line of inquiry. Except for the fish. All I know is that he is single, has a niece that he would leave his life insurance policy to, and has been working in the canneries for a very long time. He appreciates education but has no ability to ever apply any of the academic knowledge that he has acquired over the years.
This man lives to work. He has somehow come all the way across the globe from the bustling metropolis of Guadalajara to the remote and mundane world of the Alaskan canneries. This man, who can recall Pi to the hundred thousandth, and talk for hours about trigonometric formulas, compounding interest rates, the price of fish, the tides, and Mexican soccer, at the end of this day is a very lonely man. I am glad I went on a walk with him that day.
Monday, May 4, 2009
plans
The problem with going with the flow is that sometimes the source goes dry.
More to come on this point...
More to come on this point...
Monday, April 13, 2009
small town america...
So I just watched this movie titled "The Straight Story"; a heartfelt tale about an old man and his journey to rekindle his relationship with his estranged brother. Emotionally compelling and visually stunning but that's not my point.
While I was watching this movie I kept thinking back to all the small towns that I have passed through on my journeys throughout the past year and about the magnitude of the void that exists between myself and everyone in them. So my new goal, after I am able to dig myself out of this rut - which, by the way, is going really well as a result of my new perspective - is to take a trip, maybe through the northern and midwestern states this time and make a concerted effort to stop at one town per day and meet at least one person who is willing to tell me, not their entire life story, but something substantial that will help me understand where they come from.
I don't really expect anything to come from it but I think the desire to embark on said journey is borne from a romanticized notion of small town America which I seem to have recently developed. I see all these little towns on Google maps, and I am absolutely fascinated by them. Take for instance, Scobey, MT population 1,082. I look down on Main St. and 1st and can only imagine the ideal small town interactions that take place there on a daily basis. It doesn't matter if something does or doesn't happen, because life just happens in those places. People are born and they come and they go and so it goes.
I spent most of my life in suburbia and the rest in transience. I hope I am not looking for a mundane lifestyle in the midwest. I think I look at these places with the an unique mixture of intellectual curiosity and voyeuristic satisfaction that comes from the knowledge that I do not have to relegate myself to a confined existence such as that. Despite the obvious condescending tone of the previous statement, I realize that at the end of the day it can only be beneficial to reflect upon the merits of that existence as it compares to mine and I think that is all I'm looking to do.
While I was watching this movie I kept thinking back to all the small towns that I have passed through on my journeys throughout the past year and about the magnitude of the void that exists between myself and everyone in them. So my new goal, after I am able to dig myself out of this rut - which, by the way, is going really well as a result of my new perspective - is to take a trip, maybe through the northern and midwestern states this time and make a concerted effort to stop at one town per day and meet at least one person who is willing to tell me, not their entire life story, but something substantial that will help me understand where they come from.
I don't really expect anything to come from it but I think the desire to embark on said journey is borne from a romanticized notion of small town America which I seem to have recently developed. I see all these little towns on Google maps, and I am absolutely fascinated by them. Take for instance, Scobey, MT population 1,082. I look down on Main St. and 1st and can only imagine the ideal small town interactions that take place there on a daily basis. It doesn't matter if something does or doesn't happen, because life just happens in those places. People are born and they come and they go and so it goes.
I spent most of my life in suburbia and the rest in transience. I hope I am not looking for a mundane lifestyle in the midwest. I think I look at these places with the an unique mixture of intellectual curiosity and voyeuristic satisfaction that comes from the knowledge that I do not have to relegate myself to a confined existence such as that. Despite the obvious condescending tone of the previous statement, I realize that at the end of the day it can only be beneficial to reflect upon the merits of that existence as it compares to mine and I think that is all I'm looking to do.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
American Dream
The poll numbers are looking up again. Last time I paid close attention to the poll numbers things were not looking as well as they probably should have, given the recent news of Sarah Palin.
Fortunately for anyone against McCain, the presumptions of his folly in selecting Sarah Palin are slowly turning out to be more and more true. Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish outlines several the the lies that Sarah Palin has been telling.
On the ground the story you hear is more of the same. The same tired rhetoric that has been injected into the minds of many a Republican voter, the racist, the anti-liberal economic agenda (which I have tried to dispel to no avail given the obvious ideological contradictions), and anti-abortion religionists. Try as you may you will never be able to break the fortifications these individuals have built up against fact.
It seems to me that more than anything it has become a question of identity. As Bauman has previously asserted with regards to information societies, we are living in times that require constant consumption and disposal of not only material goods, but the information that is constantly being circulated around us. Personally I find it very difficult to conceive an existence that consists solely of my house, cars, family, work, and church, all situated within a relatively confined community to which I am relegated. For most people this is still the American dream.
Fortunately for anyone against McCain, the presumptions of his folly in selecting Sarah Palin are slowly turning out to be more and more true. Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish outlines several the the lies that Sarah Palin has been telling.
On the ground the story you hear is more of the same. The same tired rhetoric that has been injected into the minds of many a Republican voter, the racist, the anti-liberal economic agenda (which I have tried to dispel to no avail given the obvious ideological contradictions), and anti-abortion religionists. Try as you may you will never be able to break the fortifications these individuals have built up against fact.
It seems to me that more than anything it has become a question of identity. As Bauman has previously asserted with regards to information societies, we are living in times that require constant consumption and disposal of not only material goods, but the information that is constantly being circulated around us. Personally I find it very difficult to conceive an existence that consists solely of my house, cars, family, work, and church, all situated within a relatively confined community to which I am relegated. For most people this is still the American dream.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Driving
Driving through the southwestern United States has always emoted a romanticized narrative of the American dream. While trudging along, one is inevitably reminded of horse drawn buggies and oxen laden wagons that strewed the streets of many a town within the relatively small scope that is American history, and there is something that elicits a sense of solitude in these thoughts.
There is also something inspiring about the red and blue and pale green pastiche of color that is illuminated by the rising or setting sun in this part of the country. To stand on the high plains and look up at the soaring mountains and plateaus being piercing by the rays of the sun over an uninhabited and pristine landscape is like no other feeling I have experienced.
Maybe this is what pits this country one against the other. There is something I will never be able to call my own and it is the feeling of riding up to the top of one of these plateaus and look out onto the vastness below me and the land that has permanently blistered my hands. Although I can appreciate this feeling, it will never be something that I can own. This feeling of looking out onto the land below and knowing that there is nothing between you and the land.
But at the same time, I have my own. Looking out onto suburbia and feeling complete isolation despite the purported bonds of community that associate most people. While not as romantic as the prior, there is still a profound sense of self satisfaction in knowing that even in the mix of it all, you still have time to find yourself completely engrossed in nothing more than yourself and a personal reflection on your place within your community. The same or something similar can be said for the city dweller.
In a word, introversion comes to mind. More than that, however, it is the sense of independence which is so important to us all as Americans. This will never be taken from the American psyche, but we must also acknowledge how we were able to come about this. As the old saying goes, you can't raise a barn with only one person. The collective is an inevitability. Individualism is not a right, it is a privilege.
As I was driving through the Southwest I took some pictures from a first person perspective. I wanted to document a small portion of the ride and some of the landscapes that truly impacted my impression of this country, if only the purely aesthetic side of it.
There is also something inspiring about the red and blue and pale green pastiche of color that is illuminated by the rising or setting sun in this part of the country. To stand on the high plains and look up at the soaring mountains and plateaus being piercing by the rays of the sun over an uninhabited and pristine landscape is like no other feeling I have experienced.
Maybe this is what pits this country one against the other. There is something I will never be able to call my own and it is the feeling of riding up to the top of one of these plateaus and look out onto the vastness below me and the land that has permanently blistered my hands. Although I can appreciate this feeling, it will never be something that I can own. This feeling of looking out onto the land below and knowing that there is nothing between you and the land.
But at the same time, I have my own. Looking out onto suburbia and feeling complete isolation despite the purported bonds of community that associate most people. While not as romantic as the prior, there is still a profound sense of self satisfaction in knowing that even in the mix of it all, you still have time to find yourself completely engrossed in nothing more than yourself and a personal reflection on your place within your community. The same or something similar can be said for the city dweller.
In a word, introversion comes to mind. More than that, however, it is the sense of independence which is so important to us all as Americans. This will never be taken from the American psyche, but we must also acknowledge how we were able to come about this. As the old saying goes, you can't raise a barn with only one person. The collective is an inevitability. Individualism is not a right, it is a privilege.
As I was driving through the Southwest I took some pictures from a first person perspective. I wanted to document a small portion of the ride and some of the landscapes that truly impacted my impression of this country, if only the purely aesthetic side of it.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Conspiracy Theories
In an effort to dispel some of the myths that are being circulated by conservatives through grassroots electronic methods such as those bogus emails many have become familiar with, Media Matters has released this flowchart outlining the origins of many of those surrounding Obama:
Librarians
It has been said countless times since the announcement of Governor Sarah Palin vice presidential nomination, she is not ready.
The Daily Show recently pointed out one of the many of the inconsistencies which plague the logic of conservative punditry. With regards to Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia, Mr. Rove has this to say:
So if that's the case, how are conservatives supposed to sell Governor Palin to the American people?
Last night was an excellent example of the lacking substance in the Republican's message this time around. This ex beauty queen was very well poised in her attempts to berate the Senator, but at least she was able to auto-designate one of the possible epithets which many could now assign to her. "You know they say the only difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull is the lipstick."
I a sense, this works out great for both parties. The Republicans were able to energize their base, while further alienating the rest of America. Efforts to stress American unity by the Democrats were underscored by the divisive testimonies of most Republican speakers.
In the end, the ad homonym attacks on Obama are probably not going to do much to change the polls too much. However, it never ceases to be provide reason for disconcert and perplexity among most rational citizens who are forcibly exposed to such vitriol.
A great deal of the chatter coming off the convention floor as soon as it happened hearkened back to an earlier election, the 2000 presidential election which brought Bush to power. The word that kept being repeated aside from maverick was "character." As if character were enough to give you the fortitude to tackle the most important position in the world. We all known how well things went by going on that logic alone.
The interesting thing about this term is that it implies nothing about any of the concrete abilities we would like to see in one of the most important leadership positions. I personally like to see intelligence, charisma, wisdom, gentility, articulateness. Can all of these be lumped into the term character? For one, I don't think intelligence can be. Many intelligent people throughout history have lacked character. On a categorical basis, take computer nerds, for instance.
Furthermore, gentility goes into that as well. Gigolos behave like perfect gentlemen but may be dumb as a box of rocks beyond their knowledge of proper social etiquette when wooing a lady.
Where the hell am I going with this? Sluts. Sluts. Sluts.
Everyone is a slut; but especially conservatives.
The one thing I do appreciate about Sarah Palin is the sexy librarian look. Somewhere out there in the heartland there is some kid cultivating a librarian dominatrix fantasy, and its all thanks to John McCain.
The Daily Show recently pointed out one of the many of the inconsistencies which plague the logic of conservative punditry. With regards to Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia, Mr. Rove has this to say:
He's been a governor for three years...He's been the mayor of the 105th largest city in America...So if he were to pick Governor Kaine it would be an intensely political choice which would say, "You know what? I'm really not first and foremost concerned whether this person is ready to be President of the United States."
So if that's the case, how are conservatives supposed to sell Governor Palin to the American people?
Last night was an excellent example of the lacking substance in the Republican's message this time around. This ex beauty queen was very well poised in her attempts to berate the Senator, but at least she was able to auto-designate one of the possible epithets which many could now assign to her. "You know they say the only difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull is the lipstick."
I a sense, this works out great for both parties. The Republicans were able to energize their base, while further alienating the rest of America. Efforts to stress American unity by the Democrats were underscored by the divisive testimonies of most Republican speakers.
In the end, the ad homonym attacks on Obama are probably not going to do much to change the polls too much. However, it never ceases to be provide reason for disconcert and perplexity among most rational citizens who are forcibly exposed to such vitriol.
A great deal of the chatter coming off the convention floor as soon as it happened hearkened back to an earlier election, the 2000 presidential election which brought Bush to power. The word that kept being repeated aside from maverick was "character." As if character were enough to give you the fortitude to tackle the most important position in the world. We all known how well things went by going on that logic alone.
The interesting thing about this term is that it implies nothing about any of the concrete abilities we would like to see in one of the most important leadership positions. I personally like to see intelligence, charisma, wisdom, gentility, articulateness. Can all of these be lumped into the term character? For one, I don't think intelligence can be. Many intelligent people throughout history have lacked character. On a categorical basis, take computer nerds, for instance.
Furthermore, gentility goes into that as well. Gigolos behave like perfect gentlemen but may be dumb as a box of rocks beyond their knowledge of proper social etiquette when wooing a lady.
Where the hell am I going with this? Sluts. Sluts. Sluts.
Everyone is a slut; but especially conservatives.
The one thing I do appreciate about Sarah Palin is the sexy librarian look. Somewhere out there in the heartland there is some kid cultivating a librarian dominatrix fantasy, and its all thanks to John McCain.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Polls and the Media
Has anyone been paying attention to the latest polls? Well, the major news networks have and apparently Obama and McCain are pretty much in a dead heat. If this is true, then why are the numbers saying otherwise. In an earlier post, I expressed my delight after observing an obvious shift in poll numbers, which by my understanding of polls and statistics, showed a significant shift in public opinion. CNN, however, didn't see that shift. If they didn't see it then obviously Fox News saw the opposite. So let's see what they saw...
On August 25 the Gallup Poll General Election Trial Heat showed Obama down by two points to McCain at 44 to 46. On the 26th however, the numbers shifted in favor of Obama to 45-44. OK, I can see that as a dead heat. However, since that date the number have been climbing steadily. From the 27th onward, Obama has enjoyed at least a 6 point lead up till now: 42-48, 41-49, 41-49, 42-48, 43-49, and 42-50 on September 1.
OK, fine, that's just one poll. However, the only contradictory information to come out since the Democratic National Convention that may support the claims of the major news networks is a CNN/Opinion Research poll that shows McCain at 48 and Obama at 49. I am forced to ask myself about the methodology of a poll that comes out with these results which every single other poll shows otherwise: Diageo/Hotline, 39-48; CBS News, 40-48; USA Today/Gallup, 43-50; and American Research Group, 43-49.
All of these numbers show that the Democrats have made huge gains as a result of their efforts at the convention. Why then, is there misreporting by CNN. It is to be expected by Fox, but everyone knows that most media is largely dominated by the ideological leftist elitists right? Well the numbers are right here people. I am only posing the question, the responsibility is yours to make up your own mind.
Poll numbers provided courtesy of PollingReport.com
On August 25 the Gallup Poll General Election Trial Heat showed Obama down by two points to McCain at 44 to 46. On the 26th however, the numbers shifted in favor of Obama to 45-44. OK, I can see that as a dead heat. However, since that date the number have been climbing steadily. From the 27th onward, Obama has enjoyed at least a 6 point lead up till now: 42-48, 41-49, 41-49, 42-48, 43-49, and 42-50 on September 1.
OK, fine, that's just one poll. However, the only contradictory information to come out since the Democratic National Convention that may support the claims of the major news networks is a CNN/Opinion Research poll that shows McCain at 48 and Obama at 49. I am forced to ask myself about the methodology of a poll that comes out with these results which every single other poll shows otherwise: Diageo/Hotline, 39-48; CBS News, 40-48; USA Today/Gallup, 43-50; and American Research Group, 43-49.
All of these numbers show that the Democrats have made huge gains as a result of their efforts at the convention. Why then, is there misreporting by CNN. It is to be expected by Fox, but everyone knows that most media is largely dominated by the ideological leftist elitists right? Well the numbers are right here people. I am only posing the question, the responsibility is yours to make up your own mind.
Poll numbers provided courtesy of PollingReport.com
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