Switzerland @ MindSay

Back in 1998, I was talking with one of my old HS teachers.  He mentioned that the graduating class and some younger kids were going to Europe.  He was chaperoning, along with some other teachers and parents.  I asked if I could come along and he was thrilled that I was interested.  I saved my money, got my passport, and planned vacation from work.  I went to some of the pre-meetings to meet the people who was going.

The trip was England, France, Switzerland, and Germany.

I would be in the middle.  There would be older adults - teachers and parents, and younger students. We were going to spend 14 days during this trip - so I'd get to meet all the people.  I started out with the original teacher - we shared rooms.  I tried to be friends to everyone - show the kids that not everyone was going to suppress them.  I played the in-between - with the kids at times (15, 16, 17 years old), and adults at other times.

High School, and school in general, was all flowing back to me.  I could tell that I clicked with some of the kids, and divergently didn't click with others.  Weird kids, preppy kids, smart ones, dumb ones, popular and unpopular.  I spent time alone in England, but hooked up with two of girl students in France.  We got separated from the group at the Eiffel Tower, and made it back to the hotel alone.  Once at the hotel, we were left again as the group went to Versailles.  This is where I was impressed with students of my high school.  We all went down and talked with the desk clerk, and he assured us that we could make it to Versailles all by ourselves.

We took the subway as far as it went, and then a bus.  We arrived at Versailles - just in time to see our tour bus pulling away down another street.  So, instead of turning around to go back, we explorer it on our own.

I pretty much stayed with the kids - I could keep up with them.  They had a lot of freedom, and had more energy than the older members.  In Switzerland, we all had a snowball fight.  After all, Texas doesn't see much snow, and this was probably the first time for many of them.  They turned on me when I hit my old teacher with one - a lob that was suppose to land next to him.  "Derek did it!!".  Boy, thanks a lot!  But, because "I" wasn't a student - no repercussion for me!  That's how I played the whole trip.  I didn't have to listen to rules.  I didn't have to go where we were told.  I actually had a friend who lived in Germany that I stay with while they did "shopping"

All in all, it was a good trip.  I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

 

Thank you one and all, the members of the mindsay community who voted for my "Three Lions" post and to all of you have visted and watched it.

 

It is all very touching and welcome.

 

And a special mention to velvetturtle who if it hadn't been I wouldn't have even known that all of you had voted for it.

 

Just watching it again knowing that it was voted in at number 5 today was extra emotional.

 

Long days and pleasant nights,

 

Stephen

Blog subject sounds good as a song title, don't ya think? I do.

It's not though.

Basically, I fucked up a little earlier. Covered In Cowardice by Billy Talent isn't the worst track on Billy Talent II (which WMP interestingly flags up as being called just II. Weird). No, it's the one before that caught my attention as being the worst on the album, called Where Is The Line? That's the worst on t'album, easily.

Also, Liberation Transmission (lostprophets) is starting to grow on me. I still doubt it'll ever hit the dizzy heights of Start Something, but it's better than I originally gave it credit for.

Point #3, and a brand new one. Can I please put anybody off watching Italy vs Ukraine on Friday? Ukraine bored the hell out of me earlier against Switzerland (though to be honest, they didn't do much either). 2 hours of the worst World Cup game so far, and Switzerland got knocked out without conceding a goal (Penalties don't count as goals conceded, or goals scored). I think I was falling asleep during the wrong game.

Ah well. Brazil v Ghana, and Spain v France tomorrow. Yay.

Till whenever
-=Gav=-

So the group stages have closed and 16 teams are on their way home now leaving the reamaining 16 to fight it out. As the tension builds and there are less games now I feel inclined to give a few words of wisdom along with my expected score line.

 

Germany (2) v Sweden (1) Neither team has particulary impressed me in there group games yet Germany will progess with home support and Sweden struggling to score many goals unless they came from th weak English defence.

 

Argentina (2) v Mexico (0) Argentina have been an impressive team from the off in this year's tournament and I just can't see where Mexico are going to be able to beat them from. I think we'll be needing to give Mexico the wave, the wave goodbye!

 

England (3) v Ecuador (0) Nuff said!

 

Portugal (0) v Holland (1) In what I think will be the closest match of this round Holland will just edge it.

 

Italy (0) v Australia (1) I've got a feeling that Australia could win this game, they impressed against Brazil, if they can take there chances the Itaitans could end up with Spagetti on their faces. The Aussies will have to work hard though to cancel out the gulfing class of the Italians, the question is how long can they mantain that sort of work rate? Fatigue could set in.

 

Switzerland (0) vUkraine (2) To me this isn't a very interesting match, expect Ukraine to move on.

 

Brazil (2) v Ghana (0) I could be wrong with this one, (I have been before) but with the Brazilians dancing to the samba beat after beating Japan I think Brazil have just woken at the wrong time for Ghana but you never know.

 

Spain (4) v France (0) France have been poor all tournament and are lucky to be here having looked shaky against Toga, I'm really beginning to fancy Spain for the entire tournament.