World Cup Takes To The Links...

For those of you who don't know, I have been actively following the World Cup of Soccer. Thanks to the Spanish language network Univision, I have able to watch (or record) nearly all of the games live. Apart from being able to passionately engage in my one true fanatacism related to sports, I get to experience the games in a language--and from the point of view of a culture--that is as as wild about the sport, and this event, as I am.

If you've ever watched international soccer, especially if it's broadcast on a foreign language network, you will agree that there is a more intense energy to the way it is announced than you'll ever hear on ABC or ESPN. Announcers are enthusiastic in describing even the most mundane action and, whenever the ball gets close to the goal, the tone of the announcers rises and becomes more fervent, rising to a crescendo as the player takes the shot and, if he scores, you'll hear the most recognizable sound in international sports simultaneously on televisions and on the lips of viewers in living rooms, restaurants, bars and offices all over the world...

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!!!!!!

SiSi, my four-year old daughter, has been an eager student of soccer during this time. She has learned a great deal about soccer as a sport, and has been taken a real interest in watching the World Cup on television. She asks about why the players fall down so much and pretend to be hurt ("Did he get a pain in his leg THIS time, Papa?") and knows how to recognize when the ball goes out of bounds, what happens during a penalty kick and what to shout when the ball goes into the net...

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!!!!!!

This weekend, the U.S. Women's Open golf tournament was held in Newport, Rhode Island. The final round of this event was broadcast on network television, and Wifeness had the television tuned to it as background noise while she napped on the couch. She wasn't feeling well that day. Both girls were home, and had been playing in their bedroom. SiSi came into the living room to watch some TV just as Annika Sorenstam sank the 12th hole for birdie. She watched this happen and did what she thought she was supposed to do. She raised her arms and, in true World Cup style, announced...