Lymric's in the Loo

Euro 2008

2008-06-26T18:44:00.000-07:00

So, some of you may know that there has been quite a bit of International Futbol on TV lately. Personally I have felt like this has been a great break from the midday Wimbledon travesty or the Tiger Woods fractured knee fiasco. Now don't get me wrong, Tiger did overcome some very insurmountable circumstances; however, I just can't bring myself to watching Golf or Tennis for more than 10 seconds. Therefore, for those of you that are still confused as to why Futbol is appearing on American TV, I vow to explain to you the importance of this sport as well as the excitement involved in this particular tournament.

Futbol, or soccer to those who are ignorant to the fact that Americans are the only ones to call it such, is really one of the only sports that is respected and participated world wide. Futbol is the world's sport; easily the highest grossing sport in the world. There is no other sport in the world that can rally a country to unify behind a group of men that usually account for less then 1 percent of the population. Why have we as Americans ceased to catch the vision of this sport? Do we choose not to support a new thing that is growing within our Country or is it that we are aggravated because we were not the first nation to take this sport to a higher level (Unlike Baseball, Basketball, and Football.) Somehow I believe that America is missing out on a sport that could change the unity of this powerful country.

Now these futbol matches that have been broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN Classic, are from the Euro 2008 tournament. This tournament only involves European countries that have qualified for one of four slots within one of four groups. The matches are then played within the group and the top two teams from each group move on to the quarter final round, and the tournament progresses until only one team remains. The teams that qualified for the tournament this year were as follows: France, Italy, Turkey, Croatia, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Romania, Russia, Poland, Greece, and Czech Republic. Overall these countries all have pretty strong futbol histories, however I was surprised to see that England was not represented nor was Denmark. These two teams are generally very strong sides and represent themselves well in most tournaments, however they were unable to qualify for the final tournament.

When the tournament had finished the group stages I felt that with complete confidence that the final match would come between two of three teams; Netherlands, Portugal, or Spain. All of these teams had moved on to the next round and all looked incredibly strong. Russia, Turkey, Germany, Italy, and Croatia had also qualified but none had seemed to impress as much as the three dominating forced mentioned before. However strong I felt Netherlands and Portugal were both were beaten in their respective quarterfinal matches, allowing for Russia, Turkey, Germany, and Spain to advance. Of course I still felt that Spain would dominate over the Russian side, However Turkey had beaten Germany within their group stage; nevertheless, Germany under the lead of Michael Ballack, were able to prevail over the Turkish side.

This Left Germany and Spain on top of everyone to battle it out in the final. On one side you have Germany that are led by Ballack the determined and focused midfielder that can shock to net from any distance. On the other side you have Spain that are a group of young superstars that almost don't have enough room on the roster for some of the worlds greatest players. They are led by Fernando Torres a young striker that is relentless in his attack on any defense regardless of their formation or reputation. Spain also hosts players such as David Villa, Sergio Ramos, Xabi Alonso, Cesc Fabragas, Carles Puyol, and Pepe Reina.

My only analysis of the match,to be played on Sunday June 29, is that if Spain comes prepared and mentally ready to play that no defense or team in the world can stop them.

Back From the Septic Tank

2008-06-03T00:01:00.001-07:00

So, time has past and much has happened since the my last posting; however, I have decided to bring this blog back from the depths of stinky despair to share with you all a few of my experiences and thoughts on cultural subjects. Though I do not get out to the theaters very often or have a lot of time to spend reading, I have been focusing a lot on new musical groups or groups that have come out with new albums.

My hope is to get a few posts out in the next few weeks that might spark some interests within everyone. Here is a quick look at what I have steaming around the 'ol bowl:

My Favorite Newly Discovered Band - Elbow
Currently Reading - 1984 by George Orwell
The Joy of Searching for a New Apartment
Movie Review - You Choose????
Growing My First Garden

I hope that you all will keep checking back to see the posts as they come in and I will do my best to keep the blog as active as possible and not have so much down time in-between.

2006-12-09T15:16:00.000-08:00

So we are trying to determine a logical and fesible wedding date for the Salt Lake City Temple, but seem to be having some trouble discovering when will be the best time. Thus far we have eliminated any where between March and May due to the possibility of not only my sister not being able to attend but also my mother, which just isn't going to fly. Right now, however we have called and set a date on February 17, 2007 at 9:00am, but we don't know if that is going to work either. So give me some feedback I would love to hear what you all think.

The Proposal

2006-12-06T10:24:00.000-08:00

So I have recieved some comments on my blog as well from phone calls that I should post how the proposal went and what way that I decided to ask. So in this posting I will explain the whole process including the days building up to the proposal, as well as the stunning conclusion to the story.
So Melissa and I headed back to Pleasanton for Thanksgiving and her 21st birthday. We drove all the way from Provo, and arrived in Pleasanton on Wednesday night at her Parents place. We got up the next day and Her father and I drove to San Francisco for the 2007 new car model show while Melissa and her mother stayed back and got dinner started. I knew that I needed to talk to her dad about the proposal and if he would approve of us getting married. I wanted to wait until i was able to sit alone with him but didn't quite know how to bring it up. For anyone that knows Melissa's family they know that her father is super nice man but not always the most talkative person, so the time to bring up such an important subject was definetly weighing on my mind. Well I thought that maybe i could do it on the way back home from San Francisco, but sadly i couldn't muster up the courage to open my mouth. After Thanksgiving dinner i was luckily given another chance to talk with him when Melissa and her mother went to visit an elderly woman in the area. I gratfuly jumped on the opportunity to talk with him this time, thinking that Melissa would be back quickly. He did grant me the ability to propose to Melissa but wanted to ensure that i would care and love her even more than he has these last 21 years, which I gladly agreed to do. However, as much as I thought my time to speak with her father would be short, the 15 min time slot I had planned on turned into 25 minutes, then to 35, and then into 45 minutes, and finally after many awkward silences, Melissa and her mother returned home. The next day Melissa and I left at noon to get to an apointment at the Refresh Day Spa to get massages and relax. After our Day Spa experience her dad picked us up and drove us down to union square for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and to watch the giant Christmas tree lighting ceremony. After stuffing ourselves for the second day in a row, we split ways and Melissa and I took our scenic drive back home, while her parents went straight back.
I drove Melissa and I up to Grizzley Peak just over Berkeley and had one of my good friends (Nick) drop off one of Melissa's birthday presents to the spot where we were going to stop. Grizzley Peak looks out over the whole Bay Area, and all the way out to the Pacific with all the lights in between. Nick dropped off a glass bowl with Hawaiian sand and shells in it as well as two candles lit. I explained to Melissa that the sand in the bowl had actually come from Hawaii and that as much as she always asks me to take her to Hawaii that I might not always be able to, but that I would do my best to give her the things that she wants. I then lit the candles said that the candles were to represent our relationship and love that will eternally bring us closer together and warm each other. After a few minutes of collecting my thoughts and courage I then proceeded to give Melissa her final gift of her Birthday. The words that I used exactly I don't think I could recall but basically they were my feelings for her and that I wanted to spend all enternity with her. Before I could even get the words "will you marry me?" out of my mouth, Melissa had said yes and grabbed me from off my knee.
Now Melissa and I are beginning to plan our wedding and hope to get a Salt Lake City Temple date sometime near the end of April and will have one reception in Utah, and one in Pleasanton. That is our story thus far but are waiting to see the temple availability as well as family availability. We will keep you all posted as to what is going on as far as planning and dates and everything.

Heading to California

2006-11-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

So, I have a few minutes before I head off to California, but wanted to throw this out there as my first blog. Melissa and I will be traveling back to our hometown of Pleasanton for Thanksgiving and for her birthday. I will be proposing on her birthday but just wanted to get a little feedback from everyone about how they think I should propose. I have some ideas of what I think I want to do but give me some ideas and feedback or maybe personal stories.