Surrealism

Ha, ha. It makes me laugh, the excitement that surges through my veins as Sunday approaches. The adrenalin boils and I'm gripping all the slips of paper from the multiple pools I've entered despite swearing I wouldn't participate at all this season. This week feels a little less hard than attempting to make last week's picks. But nothing is written in stone and each week I'm beginning to see more and more parallels between golf and football. Ultimately, being a Colts fan, it's Manning's artistry that I admire and that makes me nervous. It always has,even when I watched him play college ball. I know he's great, accomplished, talented, surgical, studies, studies, studies like I know Picasso is all those things and Manning like Picasso approaches the canvas makes the first brush stroke then completely deviates from convention and as beautiful as the outcome is, the execution makes me nervous. No huddle, the clock ticking down, down, down. However, I believe the Colts against the Broncos in Indy should be no contest. So my money's on the artist and his multiple weapons to completely deconstruct Denver.

Kids get away with murder

I just finished reading a review of my husband's new book Black Rabbit and other stories. Reviews are reviews and as writers we take the good with the bad - as writers we have to, on every level. But there's a specific aspect of this review that rankles me. The stories in Black Rabbit at times depict a reality that many a reviewer may not relate to as they tap away on their laptops in the comfort of their cushy homes, after eating a meal, drinking a cool glass of healthy milk. In our society there are certain members of it who like to deny that shit like what graces the pages of Sal's book doesn't happen or that it happens and the perpetrators learn from their mistakes or are punished for them or somehow without support systems, healthy families, financial stability turn over a new leaf and become socially acceptable human beings - unfortunately some people's lives aren't like that and kids do get away with murder. The system is set up that way. Certain writers are effected by what goes on around them more than to them. For many, expressing this effect on the page is a way to exercise the demons and injustices of life, of the unfathomable events that are happening all around us and although fictional the honesty, the truth of the matter, is what prevails. Imagine if Jerzy Kosinsky or Isaac Bable wrote idealistic versions of The Painted Bird or The Red Cavalry - imagine if we all wrote what people wanted to hear, imagine if the world became fully devoid of empathy, and honesty, and ultimately imagination because after all what is a story? Kids, people, get away with murder and unfortunately so do reviewers.

Hey Ladies!

On my flight back to New York yesterday, the Italian Women's soccer team were on the same plane. I would have assumed that they were on their way to China, via JFK, except that Italy didn't qualify for the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup in China. Had I not gathered from the conversation the flight attendant attempted to have with them that they spoke little to no English I would have asked them a slew of questions. Of course my immediate reaction when I saw the team dressed in blue T-shirts and shorts board the plane was a superstitious one, OH, My God, I'm flying with a soccer team. The team might also be superstitious because compared to the amount of them that were checking in, only half were on my flight. However, the flight was perfect and superstitions are, well, just that. But it did get me thinking about the upcoming Women's World Cup. I've become familiar with many of the US and Canadian national team's players over the past few years and for the most part the women's national teams from those two countries have stronger sides than the men's. It's in the statistics. The US have weapons in their forwards Kristine Lilly, Natasha Kai and Abby Wambach and break out of the gate on Sept 11 against Korea DPR, who I have no doubt will be packed with their own ammunition. Canada's side is full of players who already play for MLS clubs and USL sides such as the Vancouver Whitecaps, New Jersey Wildcats, Toronto Lynx and Ottawa Fury, they include striker Christine Sinclair, defender Melanie Booth and forward Rhian Wilkinson, to name a few. They kick off on Sept 12th against Norway. In my gut, I foresee Canada and the US in the finals, be it quarter, semi's or the big 'F'. It all starts on September 10th. Should be high calibre play, another great event to fill up the old sports calendars with.