Today in World Cup Football

Portugal v Mexico is going to be a GOOD GAME, I'm pretty sure. And with Portugese fans being the craziest, I should probably go watch at Olympico (and cheer for Mexico, mwah. no, i have no affiliations that way, i just want to watch a good game, to be honest). But what I'm really into, what I'm revved up for, is the Holland-Argentina match this afternoon. omg.
GO ARGENTINA!!
But yeah, I woke up early and did some work. I feel pretty good about this day so far.

The World Cup Routine

So World Cup Football/Soccer has been going on for well over a week now and though at its outset I told myself to limit my viewing to one game a day, I must not've told myself sternly enough (I am not so good at stern) because, holy crap, I have watched every game. Or, more honestly, at least a respectable part of every game.

The internet has helped me here. I love the internet and, obv, the people who use it to its extremes and how it is meant to be used. I thank these people and their technological know-how. As a (grad-y) student, I don't have a set schedule. Oh, I have things to do, work to work on and finish, appointments to keep, but there's always a way to work those around the World Cup schedule. Yes, this is what's happened to me, let it be no surprise.

So anyway, my team is ARGENTINA and has been since before the whole thing started (so don't think i'm jumping on any bandwagons here) - thought was put into this. Well, a bit of thought. I don't really watch soccer very often, but I did some reading up. And after World Cup is over, I think I might need to choose a club, y'know, have games to watch throughout the year. All other sports-viewing interests may be sacrificed. Except winter olympics. (okay, i don't really watch any other sports. sometimes hockey, yeah, that's true.)

ANYWAY, a good thing about this schedule is that I go running at the gym in btwn games or at the end of the day - and wouldn't you know it but I'm running better and better and faster and up more hills. Abs are beginning to show. Inspired by soccer! I haven't been faking any injuries or falling down and practicing my grimace-face though. If you want to play soccer with me, I promise I will do this though.

I'm serious about the soccer playing - let me know! I'm so IN.

world cup, you will not destroy me!

world cup watching is a 9-5 job, people. i'm probably going to do it again tomorrow, but after that, i have to put the brakes on, okay.

i mean, today i watched the second half of the australia-japan game, had monday-morning-mom phone call, then showered, then watched USA-CzechR, then gathered up gym stuff, went to gym, hoofed it over to cafe olympico for italy-ghana game. Then bought, y'know, food at store b/c i figure i might as well get provisions now while i still have some of my faculties intact, or i'll be well on my way to a steady diet of cafe-au-lait and rotisserie chicken sandwiches. (of course, they are perhaps the BEST cafe-au-laits and chicken sandwiches around, but let's not argue. point being: i need vegetables. and i am caffeine-free. and dairy-free. i'm okay with this, let's not argue.)

so the plan is to go easy on wednesday and thursday. pick one game to watch. and leave the house and do work somewhere where there is no soccer game on. like, y'know, a LIBRARY. it is the only way to accomplish things that are not Watching World Cup. Because I'd like to fool myself into thinking that's an accomplishment. even if it is sorta. and it only happens once every four years! do you see how it's gotten into my brains?

so yes, onwards.
tomorrow: go south korea!

World Cup 2006 BEGINS...

I feel like I'm not going to get a lot done in the next month. No, no, no, that's the wrong way to think. I will get ALL SORTS OF STUFF done this more. It will just include watching a lot of high-quality soccer... I can't help it, I love World Cup.

Right now I'm watching it at home on a rainy day (why, rain? why?), but yesterday I caught the first game (Germany v Costa Rica - 4-2) at a cafe near my house. I got there with time to spare, so got a drink and a seat in direct view of the big screen. (I was just writing about this on Midnight Poutine too, as it got me thinking about the uniqueness of watching World Cup in Montreal, where there are fans for EVERY team, I'm certain.)

Oh, the excitement. I was reminded of 2002 and the fervour, the getting up waaay too early to watch games before work (I was living in Vancouver), the drinking of too much coffee in Cafe Roma on Commericial, the mayhem of the Korean cultural centre during the second round, the post-game karaoke drunkeness and, okay, that doesn't have much to do with soccer, but at the same time it does.

World Cup soccer kind of becomes a focal point of life for a month. I'm not sure how it works that way, but it does. I mean, I enjoy sports, I like exercise, but I don't watch a lot of sports on tv (okay, none) and I don't keep up with sports news or anything. I'm all about the high-quality sports, I will admit my elitism. e.g., I also love the Olympics, especially the winter ones.

So who am I going to root for this time around?? I'm still deciding, but for some reason I'm feeling it for Argentina. I know there are reasons why not to back this team, I know it'll get heated, but I like 'em this time around. But I'm also into S Korea, for sure. hmm. And I have a friend, Deb, who's spent a lot of time there and dances a mean tango, so perhaps that's part of my "reasoning." We. Shall. See.

So while I love the sport itself - the skill, the athleticism, the playing field, the GAME - I also love that it's about the WORLD, and that while countries are competing, they're still all together in one place, and so are so many of the fans. I am a giant cheeseball, it's freakin' true, yeah yeah.

back to the game. see you at olympico/green room/socialclub/random cafes/my house/d'internet/etc.

Plastic Crimewave Sound at Casa del Popolo, Montreal

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Plastic Crimewave Sound - I'm not even sure if these guys are my thing, but I liked the show. And they had lots of awesome album art and other things for sale, which, along with the awesome album art of the Mammatus album, made for a pretty great merch table layout.

But yeah, I think they're what blew my ears out, in the end, (as they came on after the other two bands), even though I'd half-assed plugged said ears (to future me: always remember earplugs. you are not 19. you are not even 24. toilet paper is not an earplug.)

Residual Echoes at Casa del Popolo, Montreal

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Residual Echoes: also pretty freakin' awesome, also from Santa Cruz (area), California, just as Mammatus is. also: loud. yes!

(video posting is robbing me of words. no, no, sleep deprivation is robbing me of words. so more words, at some point. in future.)

Mammatus at Casa del Popolo, June 4, 2006

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whoa.

heavy. awesome.

mammatus.

loud show, so the sound's fairly distorted, but hey, gives an idea. i could have listened to them for another hour at least.

and, on top of it all, they're great guys. i totally want to go camping in the middle of nowhere and listen to this. right now.

Jack Rose (with Glenn Jones) at Casa del Popolo, Montreal

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More of the Jack Rose show at Casa, this time with Glenn Jones playing too.

Jack Rose at Casa del Popolo, Montreal (6-string & lap guitar)

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Jack Rose switches guitars, continues awesomeness.

Jack Rose at Casa del Popolo, Montreal (12-string)

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So, despite being super tired last night, I knew I had to go see Jack Rose, and that that would pick me up and make me feel good. Of course, it did. Because Jack Rose is awesome and I love him something fierce. Listening to his albums is great enough, but listening live is fairly meditative - lulling yet very awake/alive.

He didn't talk too much this time - at Terrastock he told a few good stories. Here he told one rambly story about prog rock, not being liked by a certain prog band (well, who knows), and how the only thing prog about him is his guitar stand.

The last three songs brought Glenn Jones (of Cul de Sac) up to play with him - awesome.

Josephine Foster at Sala Rossa, Montreal

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Josephine Foster's voice control kind of astounds me and she's got this awesome dreamy quality about her when she sings. really lovely to see her for the first time in a quiet, chill setting.

Diane Cluck at Sala Rossa, Montreal

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Diane Cluck, based in New York/Brooklyn, played an amazing set on June 2 in the mood-lighting of Montreal's Sala Rossa.

Terrastock Video Clips x2

I've certainly taken my time getting these (really short) videos up, but hey. I haven't even written much about Terrastock in the first place - where to begin? I'm just going to begin with these.

The videos I took were kind of random - me getting used to this camera and also being kind of overwhelmed by Terrastock in general - music, awesomeness, etc.

Avarus hail from Finland and at first appear unassuming but are actually kind of nuts. They were suprised that people in North America were so into them because "no one knows who we are at home." Well, Terrastock is kind of a special event... (oh, the music nerdery...)


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Damon and Naomi used to be part of Galaxy 500, a band I absolutely loved several years ago - and still do love now, though I don't often listen to them. Here they're playing a song with the guitarist from Ghost. I didn't get any video of Ghost, who played at the end of the festival, but I'm sure about 854 other people did. (People are really into Ghost.)


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Obviously I'm still working out some issues re: videoblogging and will be back to edit.

Let the Videoblogging Begin!

Okay, so I've got a lot of words in my head, it's true, but sometimes words are not enough, or too much, or whatever, maybe I'm lazy or maybe I'm just EXCITED ABOUT VIDEOBLOGGING. Yeah. So here is my first attempt at putting video, that I took, on teh intermanet, using blip.tv.

We're on our way back fromTerrastock, pretty tired, listening to Boredoms, about to find a lovely (but cold, but windy) beach. This captures some kind of lovely moment, to me.


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And here is the beach! (Salisbury Beach!)


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