Friday, August 28, 2009

Proof

A few days ago on Facebook, I decided to make a joke about my wife mowing at night while I hung out on the couch. It was a piece of exaggeration as I was actually at soccer practice and then cooking dinner while she mowed. Anyway, the Facebook exchange was pretty funny and I think I had my fair share of doubters in the fact that I actually made dinner. So here is proof:


And here is a snapshot of the exchange on Facebook. Pretty funny stuff.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Altidore's First Touch

As a coach, you preach about first touch. Jozy Altidore must have taken those words to heart because his first touch in the EPL was an assist. Literally. First touch on the ball, leads to goal. To top it off, the pass was some sort of bicycle/scissor kick thru pass. Check it out.



That happened this past weekend. Today, Jozy scored his first goal (have yet to find the video). He is off to a good start.

Monday, August 24, 2009

US Soccer SC Founding Member

Jozy is an official founding member of US Soccer SC. Here she is sporting her team scarf.


Ok...actually, my wife and I are founding members and Jozy is just passionate about the game. The primary benefit of being a member is that we will get early access to World Cup tickets for US MNT games (if they qualify).

Donovan Back From France?

...ummm...meaning it was a all a rumor at this point, or so it seems. Looks like Donovan's trip to Paris is not something to get too excited about just yet. Damn.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Donovan Headed to France

Looks likethat PSG t-shirt I bought in Paris just became a little more relevant to US fans. Landon is rumored to be headed there in the winter. I wonder if he will succeed in the French league. And if so, what in the world would happen to our friends out in LA? Watch Landon in action right around 1:23 in this video below. By the way, that shot is not deflected. That is just a wicked bend on a volley as it sails upper 90.


Kiss My Massachusetts

I've stayed away from the health care topic but this was just too much humor to pass up. Watch Jon Stewart provide some Town Hall Snaps based on Barney Frank's recent confrontation with a Nazi name-calling protester at a health care reform town hall meeting.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Barney Frank's Town Hall Snaps
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show
Full Episodes
Political HumorHealthcare Protests


Life of Mark has the literal town hall scene for your viewing pleasure.

And for a nice double header, watch as Colbert has his way with the insanity of punditry in this modern day and age.

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
The Word - Must-Be TV
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full EpisodesPolitical Humor

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Ice Cream Kid at the Confederations Cup

Not sure if this has become as popular as it really deserves to be. So if you haven't seen it elsewhere, be sure to refer it to all of your friends. His stare is uncanny...


Credibility

I've been doing a lot of reading and self-study on coaching recently. In addition, I am starting to audit practices of other coaches and actively looking for forums to continue to grow and learn in what has become one of my passions related to the game. Today I read a short article by Sean McCann, from the U.S. Olympic Committee (found here). I specifically appreciated some of the basic observations related to coaching and general leadership skills. The article is simple, two pages on the importance of credibility in any leader.

One of the key themes in the article that I always try to be cognizant of is consistency. Here is a brief excerpt:
Increasing consistency...is easy to say but often difficult to accomplish. One common mistake is to make a rule that is applied strictly for some athletes and less so for a star athlete. This is a classic example of the kind of inconsistency that leads to a loss of credibility...I have frequently advised coaches not to establish rules or expectations that they are unable to enforce. If you know that you can't be consistent in your behavior, don't pretend or you will lose credibility with your athletes.
Establishing rules and expectations that are unenforceable has always bothered me. If you are going to establish a rule or a policy, be ready to apply it - whether it be to your best player or your least talented. Most importantly, be ready to do it when you need that player most. Otherwise, your credibility is shot.

Personally, anytime I catch myself starting to elaborate on a policy or rule related to my team, I make sure to focus on the concept of how I will allow for the uniqueness of each situation, keeping the door for an adaptable response that fits the nuances of whatever the context may be. In my opinion, it is possible to do this and still maintain discipline and provide adequate direction for a team.

Coach

Text message exchange regarding practice:
Coach: Guys, practice today at 6:30, Field 22. Wear Grey.
Player: Coach, I can't make I have the swine flu.
Sometimes kids joke around with me about missing practice, but that was primarily last year's team (so far). This particular exchange is dead on serious. I'll be watching for additional symptoms on the team pretty closely today. The last thing I need is a whole team with swine flu as I head into the last couple weeks before our first tournament.

Long Day


Jozy and I both got up way to early yesterday (5:30) so as evening came around we crashed pretty hard. Today was really hard to start.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Nick Cave - Into My Arms

Nick Cave is hit or miss for me. Every once in a while I stumble on a song of his that really resonates. Into My Arms may not be one of the most energetic songs you have heard, but the lyrics combined with Cave's distinct voice are moving throughout these 4 minutes made up of solely him and his piano. Layer into this some extremely emotional footage and this is an impressive piece of work. Another version, being played live and with excellent sound quality can be found here.



I don't believe in an interventionist God
But I know, darling, that you do
But if I did I would kneel down and ask Him
Not to intervene when it came to you
Not to touch a hair on your head
To leave you as you are
And if He felt He had to direct you
Then direct you into my arms

Saturday, August 08, 2009

Not Good

It's never good when your wife reacts to your last statement with:

"That's one of those thoughts that are best left to yourself."

Friday, August 07, 2009

Coach

Coach: So I hear that some of you guys do yoga?
Players (group of):
Yoga rocks!
I love yoga.
Yup! at Reds!
Coach: I just went to my first class at Reds the other day.
Player 1 (to Player 2): You really do yoga?
Player 2: Yeah man, yoga rocks cause there are hot girls there!

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

Yoga

I'm headed back into the classroom for my second shot at Yoga today. I tried it last year and didn't last more than one class - probably didn't give it a fair shake. With that said, I am committed to attending more than one class in order to see if a few tries it what it takes to get hooked. I need the flexibility and outlet that I expect something like yoga to provide so I really do hope that the class is productive.