Major League Soccer, Time to Shine

La Liga Fans

The time has come for soccer to take its rightful place in the United States and its long- awaited return to triumph and popularity.  I wonder why it is that people continue to question the place of major league soccer, MLS.  The media may play a part in this influence, as financially speaking the big money rests in baseball, football (American) and basketball.  The sporadic location of soccer teams may be another, if a city has no team, then its citizens are not as apt to promote a sport.

The decline of soccer popularity in the United States has contributed to soccer fans turning their attention to the Premier league, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga.  Now is the time to bring the joy back to US soil, now is the time to let soccer shine in this neck of the woods.

New York has already announced a second MLS team, giving the Red Bulls a competitor, and now it seems, maybe Miami will soon join in the excitement.

David Beckham is said to be considering club ownership in Miami.  The international friendly fixtures seem to draw a crowd and create frenzy among the local fans and then there is the upcoming International Champions Cup.  The idea of major league soccer in a town heavily populated with South Americans may prove interesting, at the very least lucrative, that is, if the introduction of a new team is managed properly.  The high profile name of Beckham may be the seal on the deal.

We will soon find out if another MLS team is born, in the meantime we can enjoy the game in limited release as well as in World Cup Qualifying matches, for it seems like the US Men’s Soccer Team has no intention of giving up its bid for World Cup 2014.

Now for those of you who still question the brilliance of soccer. Let me just recap my views on this fantastic sport, just in case you missed it before.

The game of soccer is magnificent to watch.  It is a game of skill and art.  The combination of immaculate fit, masculine, close to perfection bodies, as well as the skill to maneuver a leather, 28 inch, 16 oz ball across a grass field while 9 other set of legs quickly and assertively manipulate that same ball to their advantage is a sight to see.

That last minute crossing pass that seems to slow down time as it soars from the sidelines, down the middle to the perfect chip shot that floats over the goalkeeper’s head and just makes it swiftly under the crossbar to score the winning goal.

Since many of us, soccer fans, will say anything so that this sport is given a higher profile in the US, may I add for some of you ladies that are still on the brink of hesitation on whether to watch this wonderful game…

The game of soccer is an artistic endeavor and a sexy game as well.  When that tone, fit to perfection player immaculately and skillfully maneuvers a chest trap, you have to sigh at the tone chest rippling underneath the snug jersey, while the hamstring and quadriceps muscles peak from underneath those fantastic billowing shorts.

Of course, there are those of us who enjoy the game for its athletic and skillful intensity, but a little bonus fun never hurts.  Besides I believe that promoting a sport should be done in any way possible, just ask the folks in Europe; they know how to use this marketing strategy and do it very well.

The Baffled Writer.

I am always baffled by the reasoning of some writers to subscribe to some kind of formula for what sells.  Recently, in a creative writing class, I came upon future or aspiring writers, and I say this, for when asked what they write daily, most could only respond with the hope that when they figured out what to write about they would actually start writing.  That is a topic we will address on another day, but my thoughts on this will always remain faithful to the fact that being a writer does not mean being paid to write.

The fact is there is no guarantee that what you write will ever be read, let alone read enough to bring you an income, but does writing within a genre or about a topic that is “in at the moment” warrant success, I don’t believe so.  Yes, there are those that jump on the bandwagon of writing what’s selling at any given moment, but seriously how many of the vampire books published were really necessary and how many of those written were literary classics, or for that matter, even worth a 10-minute peek.

I say when looking for a topic to write about, use what you know, your own experiences or use what you long for, these are the things that inspire your words.  I try not to research the next fad, for then my writing does not come from the heart, then I will become one of those individuals who search for a story depending on what is selling.  I create stories from within, from the deepest part of my hopes and fears and from the simplest things on the surface.  There is no magic fairy dust sprinkled on my keyboard or on my notebooks full of words, it is just the sprinkle of the jumble in my head.

Creative writing is just that, being able to share whatever you may want with anyone or no one in particular.  I am always inspired by certain music; the lyrics share the emotions of the artists, emotions put into words that inspire some kind of reaction.  If you are searching for answers, look no further than what stirs your imagination, what topics move you to question the future, what daily concerns cause you to crawl into bed with a glass of wine and be introspective…these hold the answer to the question, what shall I write.

A little Music just for Fun.

 

Sorry about the accompanying video (a little geek moment-Highlander fan)

 

 

And for everyone’s enjoyment 😉 (Rocky Fan as well)

 

The Path Towards Tomorrow

Sometimes it takes just a flicker of something that catches the corner of your eye to allow the imagination to take root and the fruition of something exciting to emerge.

Mackinac Island

Enjoy the day, enjoy the moments, for in the shortest of seconds you may be inspired by the color of a flower, the laughter of a child, or even the scamper of a squirrel.

Close your eyes let the wind caress your senses and let the possibility of creation work its magic on your yet undiscovered words.  Like the kite that strives against the wind, let its strength empower you to keep moving forward and pushing into the unknown.

For there is sometimes fear for the path ahead, but without the choice of pursuit, there will be no answer, there will be no success.

What Must I Write…

How do I know what to write? An odd question at best, for the answer drifts somewhere in the realm of your imagination, so many times that question has been posed and allowed to grow with irritation.  How can there really be one way to respond, whether writing for fun, for work, for a future you have dreamt once upon a time, whether a student, a teacher, a curious bystander of thoughts unanswered.  The question is not what, but when and the answer is anything you want and now.

To those of you distraught with the notion of subject, genre or platform, I say step back, look at the full picture, and wait until the words appear by themselves.  Writers come from all walks of life, from all over the world, and some actually get paid for their work, while others may only fathom a day when the world allows them to spend the day thinking and jotting anything interesting that may arise.  Write what you like and believe that there is no recipe when it comes to success, the universe is full of surprises and our passions may escalate to wonders never imagined.

I write because it makes me settle the thoughts in my head.  I write what I want.  Some may say there is a formula for a writer; however, I argue that sometimes that thought process keeps us from progressing to the next step.  Take one day at a time, write whatever may come and somewhere in the jumble of words, you will figure out the place for you, figure out the words that are meant to be shared with others.  I enjoy so many different things in life.  I could not eat the same thing for breakfast or lunch for too long of a time, so why must I write about the same thing day in and day out.  Of course, there are those of us who can, and I say I am glad for that as well.

For those of us who worry that we are not following a formula written for writers by writers, fear not and remember these words….

Have something to say, and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret.

– Matthew Arnold

A Future Full of Oranges

Sometimes it takes just the smallest push to get you flowing in the right direction.  It may be just that one moment when you wake, the one moment that makes you attempt a bit of what you have set out to accomplish, the one small turn of a head that pushes you in another direction.

It may be a grasp of something unexpected, sometimes that bite is sweet, and sometimes its bitter, but it leads us toward an unpredictable bend in our lives.

The thing you never expected to give you hope, the little nudge that helps lay out the path of things to come.  We may question our dreams, but when we abandon them to the wind, they roar through our lives until we imagine how our touch can quiet the noise and settle the fear.

The smallest gesture of the pursuit of something untried may lead us to great endeavors or small accomplishments that bring us back into the grasps of a future worthy of failure, a future worthy of success, a future that cannot be, unless we take that one small step and grasp for what we do not know.

Sometimes it is hard to imagine what we cannot see, hard to picture what we want without thinking about the work to be done.  Work that may not lead to success, but if we stop trying, if we succumb to living without the possibility of dreams accomplished or tried, we cease to live the life we were meant to enjoy, the life we were meant to explore, the life that awaits in the future…

Reach for it with the strength that one small step can change the course of all to come.