Tigers in on MacAuley
It was not the ideal situation for Mount Allison’s Mounties. Fresh from their loss to St FX, homebred hero, Connor McCumber and company were eager to rediscover their winning ways against Dalhousie’s Tigers.
Back to a familiar 4-4-2 formation, the Mounties came out guns blazing. Throughout the opening half, head coach Barry Cooper’s charges harassed their opponents and fought valiantly. The story of the Mounties season so far revolves around their costly mistakes. Sunday was no different.
In an uncharacteristic mistake on the right flank, the Tigers pounced on a loose ball and despite a mad flurry of tackles in the box, Dal forward Jordan Mannix managed to squeeze his shot under the body of goalkeeper Travis Sandberg.
Yet again, the Mounties found themselves chasing the game.
Not unlike Saturday’s encounter with St FX, they responded impeccably. Not a single Dalhousie player had the time or space to play the ball, and a patchy surface allowed the Mounties to get in and nip the ball from their opponents. Steely and resolved, MTA started from the back and pressed, searching for that equalising goal.
Surely it had to come. The threat of such players like McCumber, Pat Burtt, and Stuart McAdam is enough to unsettle any defence. Like previous matches, however, the Mounties failed to turn possession into goals. The Mounties midfield seemed to be everywhere, winning challenges and creating opportunities. Chance after chance went begging.
This attacking forage continued deep into the second half. The Mounties were relentless in their pressure. Even winger Chris Vizena, who had a solid day out on the left, could only force a save from the Tigers ‘keeping. The equalising goal remained aloof to the Mounties.
That is where MTA left themselves open to the counter. Having pushed Adrian Crace up front, leaving only three at the back, a hurried clearance from Sandberg landed at the feet of a Tigers player. Outnumbered, the Mounties could not stop Andrew Hutchinson from effectively ending the match with his goal, deep into stoppage time.
Captain Travis Sandberg’s reaction read it all. Surrounded by four of his players, either on the floor or with heads bowed, Sandberg let loose a roar of pain. They had come so close. Close just was not good enough this time.
Heartbreak at home to Tigers
If Saturday was any indication of how well the Lady Mounties could perform, then Sunday should have been a classic match. Home, now, after their trip to Antigonish, Mount Allison hosted Dalhousie’s Tigers. From frustration to heartbreak, the Ladies suffered perhaps the most agonising end to their winless weekend.
Fresh from what head coach Barry Cooper called “an epic encounter” the day before, the Lady Mounties braced themselves for the Tigers offense. Held together by the steeliness of central midfield pair Hilary Hamilton and Kat Fraser, who are fast becoming some of the league’s strongest players, the Mounties repelled attack after attack.
Leading the line today was Sussex’s Megan Spicer. Spicer, now in her second year playing for the Mounties, was constantly threatening in the opening half and her hard work was rewarded when she broke free of the Dalhousie defence and buried her shot in the bottom corner.
Never was a goal so deserved.
For all the effort, heart, and drive, the Mounties finally had their first goal of the season and led the match.
It was a lead they would maintain for the rest of the half. Their miserly attitude at the back, however, could not prevent them from conceding only their second goal of the season.
Five minutes after the restart, Dalhousie’s Kate Macdonald was given enough space and time to slide her shot passed Elissa McCarron’s valiant efforts.
Suddenly it was game on. Both teams came alive, with the goalkeepers put hard to work. McCarron’s cat-like reflexes kept the Dalhousie barrage at bay, while at the other end, Tigers ‘keeper, Taryn McKenna was pushed to her limits by the Mounties forwards.
Maybe the Ladies would have been happy with a draw. Today was not that day.
A bizarre refereeing decision allowed Dalhousie to take not one, but two, improper corners, the second of which resulted in a goal. The second, inswinging, corner was met by the head of a Mounties defender, but only as far as Kate Macdonald, who was hunting for her second goal. As the Mounties failed to closer her down, she curled her shot into the far corner of the Mount Allison goal, past the disbelieving crowd of gold-clad Ladies. MacAuley Field fell quiet, but for the cheers of the Dalhousie players.
With less than five minutes left on the clock, the Mounties won themselves a penalty. Having conceded one begrudgingly yesterday, this was the perfect chance to redeem themselves and earn a more than deserved point. Tigers goalkeeper Taryn McKenna had other ideas when she got down well to deny the excellent Kat Fraser.
Heartbreak. It is the only word to describe their weekend. Coaches Crawford and Cooper must be impressed with the performances that they saw from their charges. As it stands however, the Lady Mounties still remain in the bottom three of the table with only three points from the season.
My day with the Mounties
How do you tell a team that conceded four goals that they played well? How do you tell a team that suffered their second straight defeat that they played inspired soccer? That they were true gladiators out there? That they made me proud to me a Mountie and have them represent us? I didn’t. I should have, though. The men in garnet, for prolonged periods of time on Saturday, were vastly superior to their hosts.
Let’s rewind eight hours to the start of my day with the soccer Mounties.
I was an oddly dressed, grey-clad figure in a sea of garnet and black. The mass before me was the Mount Allison soccer team: the men, the women, and everything in between. Our destination: Antigonish.
We had barely turned onto Park Street before the back of the bus fell quiet; most of the lads were now either sleeping or tapped into their music. The Ladies, in contrast, were alive and chatting (the odd one catching up on some reading). Maybe it was just me trying to draw something from the fog, but today seemed a good day for Sara Laking and co. to break their goalscoring duck. The coaching trio of Crawford, Cooper, and Chineh were certainly relaxed, joking at the front of the bus.
As 10:30am strolled around, once again the now familiar stream of garnet filed back onto the bus, rejuvenated by their temporary invasion of Masstown Market. Suddenly the dreariness that floated between the seats was replaced by an energized buzz. Strange scents wandered past me as the team trooped back to their seats. I could smell everything from the cinnamon of Trissa Dunham’s monstrous scones in the seat next to me, to the roast of Tim Boschel and Alex Topolniski’s chick at the back of the bus. (That’s right… they bought a WHOLE chicken.)
Antigonish, here we come.
When I woke from my nap, an hour later, the imposing red bricks of St FX surrounded us. Sure, we could easily have trudged off the bus, trapped in our weary stet, but head coach Barry Cooper was not done.
Charged with the task of lifting two teams to greater heights, he challenged his men to show courage in the face of adversity. To the ladies, Cooper encouraged. He encouraged their good form, their strengths, and their class. The rest was in the hands of his players, to whom he asked: “Shall we rock and roll?”
We finally did kick off, albeit half an hour late. It seems to be only in the AUS that a match official can be picked from relative obscurity to oversee a university-level game. No matter. We didn’t let it affect us too much.
Perhaps it is true that the Ladies were overpowered, outmuscled, and suffered a physical beating. But they were never outclassed by their Xaverian opponents. Over run at times in the midfield, the dynamic duo of Hilary Hamilton and the ever delightful Kat Fraser ran endlessly, harrying their opponents and causing problems all over the pitch. Fraser even looped a left-footed free kick onto the crossbar (her third time this season).
The return of Marlon Smith up front added an extra dimension to the Mountie attack. On more tha one occasion, Smith’s pace and aerial strength threatened the X-Women.
I seem to be running out of words to describe the marvel that is the Ladies’ defensive unit. Today, they were all on top form. Katie Shipp’s presence on the left provided both familiarity and balance to the back four. At the heart of the defence and everything good the Mounties did today: the unbeatable Allie MacLean and the fierce Trissa Dunham. Last week’s Athlete of the Week, Jessica Keating was switched to her preferred right sided position and twice saved her team with goal line clearances. Combining brilliantly, the four plus ‘keeper Elissa McCarron were nothing short of invincible.
Then that piercing screech of the referee’s whistle erupted, ten minutes from time. It was prompted by a half-hearted cry from the X-Women, a call that should not have been entertained. If this (easily ball to hand) was given, then surely the Ladies had legitimate claims to not one but THREE penalties.
These garnet goddesses had finally bled; suddenly, whispers of their mortality surfaced. Their seemingly impregnable defensive wall had been breached from twelve yards in the cruellest fashion. What a disappointing end to what head coach Barry Cooper called, “an epic encounter”.
Facing confident and talented hosts, Alex Zscheile’s crew had to be at their best. And boy they were. So great was their performance that, at times, the Mounties made the X-Men look like amateurs. It was visibly frustrating, then, to the players on and off the field when the Mounties allowed an untracked St FX forward the opportunity to nick a goal. Down and trailing the game, the Men never let their heads drop.
Having switched to a new formation, MTA’s dominance in the midfield allowed key players like Stuart McAdam and Pat Burtt the time and space to get on the ball. With Burtt and McAdam menacing on the edge of the box while the ever powerful and threatening Connor McCumber led the line, it seemed inevitable that the team wold bounce back.
And they did, in style.
Their good work was finally rewarded shortly after the restart when a flowing move across the field ended up at McAdam’s feet in the far left corner. A master on the ball, McAdam’s perfectly weighted cross presented Tim Boschel a glorious chance that he would not miss. He powered his header past the X-Men goalkeeper to level the scores. Now the Mounties were in the ascendency.
Unfortunately, like most good things, MTA’s high tempo game ran out of steam. The next half hour was a painful one for the Mounties. St FX, at this point the livelier of the teams, continued to push, exploiting the gaps in a brave but tiring MTA defines. It was no surprise then that the X-Men still found three more goals.
The bus ride home was sombre, unsurprisingly. Until about an hour outside of Sackville when Justin Baglole and Elissa McCarron woke the bus for some extravagant performances by this year’s new faces, including: Ryogo Kanda, Kyle Reade, Marcus Greenlaw, Melanie Wagar, Robin Bessemer, and Caroline Whidden. Also performing were the ever inspiring barbershop quartet of Femi Adegbidi, Chris Vizena, Pat Burtt, and Alex Topolniski.
The entertainment was perhaps a necessary cheer up for both teams, who suffered a heartbreaking weekend. Head coach Cooper noted later that night that today’s performance was easily the Ladies’ best showing since he took charge of them a year ago. You’ll find very few who could disagree with him. I certainly don’t. I would even say that this was the Men’s best performance that I’d seen from them in the last two years.
They’ll drop their heads, no doubt because of the scoreline, but I hope they find a way to lift it again. Four inspired run outs by the Mounties this weekend ended without a win. It did, though, end in an Athlete of the Week award for Kat Fraser, and the foundations for greatness. They are at home on both Saturday and Sunday this weekend. I hope the rest of you can come out and support them and watch just truly how far both teams have come.
A new life
For the last four years, I have always identified myself, among other things, as a varsity athlete. I was proud to play my sport and even prouder to play for my school. This year, I will not play for my school and it will be perhaps the toughest test of my mental strength. The temptation to allow the disappointment to consume me is overwhelming – so much so that it has become boring. It would too easy. Learning from past experience, wallowing in your own misery gets you nowhere. It throws you into a hole that is a bitch to get out of and by the time you do manage to drag yourself out, you’re too exhausted to do anything else. So let’s not. Let’s not fall prey to a disease that plagues too many, destroying the little hope they have left and sucking from them even the smallest fight.
Instead, let’s right stronger. And maybe next year, if the fire is back – if the passion can be rekindled – then I’ll return stronger, fitter, and with that burning desire that dominated my summer season and previous seasons. I’ve paused to contemplate very briefly about the consequences of this decision that had been made for me. At first I was indifferent. Disappointment doesn’t even describe the feeling. I felt blank. Neither overjoyed nor saddened, simply… indifferent. And then it made sense: there were more positives than negatives because of this decision. I had a fantastic season this summer and reached the peak of my physical condition – perhaps the fittest I’d been since my senior year and the best that my body felt after an injury-plagued season last year. Perhaps I peaked too soon and was starting to suffer from burnout. I had dedicated my life to the sport all through high school, training three times a week with matches on the weekend and coaching on top of that. That lifestyle (with some alterations) continued straight into my first year of university. My varsity status consumed me. It dictated my schedule and actions.
When I came back this summer, I didn’t come to Sackville to play soccer (as I did last year); I came back for Bigelow. I came back to study. I came back for my friends.
I will not wear the garnet and gold of Mount Allison this year, but I am by no means distancing myself from the team or the program. I have and will always be their number one fan. This year I will cover them for the school paper, hopefully providing a different angle compared to the previously bleak sports write-ups. Today, I have been invited to train with the team. It will be a good indication on where I stand. I have been away from the set up for a couple of weeks now. Perhaps I am ready to be back and involved. Perhaps I am not ready to be thrust back into the competitive nature of the AUS. Time will tell. This weekend, I will travel with them to Antigonish when they play St FX. It will be an exciting day. What a day. Once more, I have the opportunity to relive the wonder that is an away game. Maybe, with some luck and fortune, I may even get to play the role of manager – a position that I have recently desired. In an odd way, it is the backbone of a team, except no one ever notices it.
It took me way too long to write this, but I’ve finally found the words. Now, on for another good year.
McCarron saves the day – MTA Soccer
Lady Mounties struggle to find first win
The sun came out to shine, garnet and gold filled the bleachers; the stage was set for midfield battler Hilary Hamilton and and the rest of her undefeated team to claim their first win this weekend at the season home opener.
Missing four players due to injury, including Marlon Smith (ankle) and Katie Shipp (ill), coaches Kate Crawford and Barry Cooper had to shuffle the pack moments before kick off. The absences seemed to affect the Ladies as they started the first half flatly against the St Mary’s Huskies.
Buoyed from their strong performance against Acadia two days earlier, MTA steadied their course and pushed forward. The infectious confidence spread from the powerful Allie MacLean and the reliable Trissa Dunham, egging the team on – driving them toward the St Mary’s goal.
However, if a lack of clinical finishing cost them against Acadia, then the odd absence of firepower up front did not help the Mountie cause on Sunday. Even the direct and often threatening running of Megan Spicer created few chances. Tightly marshalled by an organised Huskies back line, Spicer and her strike partner, Sara Laking, struggled to test the St Mary’s goalkeeper. When the Mounties did find the front two, they left them stranded in the final third.
Frustration grew. The Ladies conceded fouls across the park, including an uncharacteristic moment of aggression by Jessica Keating, which warranted a talking to by the referee.
While MTA failed to break the deadlock at the far end of MacAuley, a bizarre lapse of concentration at the other almost gifted the Huskies three points. A communication blunder allowed the ball to drop at the feet of a SMU player, who gladly stroked it toward the top corner.
It should have been a goal.
The ball seemed to hang, suspended in the air, crawling toward the back of the net. Stomachs dropped. Then, out of nowhere, in a flash of gold, Elissa McCarron leapt into the air and with cat-like reflexes tipped the ball over the crossbar. From slow motion to fast forward as the Mounties had to contain a pounding from the St Mary’s attack force.
Woken from their second half daze by McCarron’s excellent save, the Ladies grouped and a period of inspired backs against the wall defending kept the Huskies at bay. Eventually, the Ladies pushed their way out of their defending third, aided by the outlet that the tenacious Danica Lundy provided by switching to the right flank. Lundy’s industrious workrate during the last quarter of an hour, supported by Lyndsey Adams, almost created something out of nothing as the Mounties caught a sniff of the Huskies goal deep into injury time.
The scoreline remained goalless, however.
It is a third clean sheet for the Ladies. But it is also another blank slate of goals. One can only wonder how much longer Hamilton’s tireless running, or Kat Fraser’s grace, or even Emma Young’s quick feet will suffice. There is no doubt that masterminds Crawford and Cooper have plenty of talent in their squad. We’re just waiting for their season to take off. We’re hoping that they will announce their presence in the new season with so big a bang as to unleash all heal and wrath on their AUS counterparts, and with that a flurry of goals. Only time will tell.
Mounties collapse at home opener
Injuries deepen wounds
The Mounties were outclassed on Sunday afternoon when St Mary’s fearsome Huskies visited Sackville. Despite growing from strength to strength, on this occasion the men conceded five goals, leaving their scintillating form from Friday night’s comprehensive beating of Acadia’s Axemen a faint, distant memory.
In all honesty, the Mounties did not play poorly. But they did make mistakes – very costly mistakes. As the clouds started to form over MacAuley Field minutes after kick off, a wonder strike from outside the box screamed past ‘keeper Travis Sandberg’s best efforts. Before they could establish themselves in the game, Pat Burtt and the rest of the golden gladiators under Barry Cooper’s charge found themselves a goal down.
Minutes later, the Men almost pulled themselves level. Home hero Connor McCumber pulled clear of his marker and lofted a delicately weighted cross to the far post, where an on-rushing Chris Vizena could not direct his effort goal-ward. The action flowed from end to end and perhaps against the run of play, St Mary’s doubled the deficit. Unnecessary confusion in the box allowed the Huskies to bundle the ball across the line.
It took the most unusual source, however, in full back Adam Brown for the Men to find their lone goal of the game. Ten minutes after he was seen hanging his head in disappointment as the ball rolled into the MTA net, Brown was a sight of pure elation. Standing comfortably on the halfway line with time and space, he chested the ball and volleyed it back toured the SMU goal. The shot, which he protests was intentional (“Oh, it was a shot. I shot that,” Brown said after the game), dipped over the Huskie goalkeeper and in. Game on.
After Brown’s goal – an early contender for goal of the season – the team was rejuvenated: hassling their opponents, bossing the midfield, and dictating the tempo of the game. Yet they didn’t threaten the St Mary’s ‘keeper and as half time arrived, their hopes of recovery disappeared. An unnecessary and untidy tackle in the penalty area provided St Mary’s the chance to regain their two-goal advantage; it was a chance they took gladly from the spot.
The second half promised to be a better one, but in reality was disappointing. Injuries forced the Mounties to change their shape with Connor McCumber, Adrian Crace, and Adam Brown all forced off with shin, foot, and ankle knocks respectively. The Men were losing the midfield battle even before Pat Burtt was substituted, but the loss of his athleticism in the middle of the park was evident as not even Marcus Greenlaw’s battling spirit could prevent St Mary’s from finding two more goals.
It was a bruising result – it still is. It brings back memories of the heavy defeats inflicted upon the Mounties from last season. “Last year we had too many games like this,” said head coach, Barry Cooper. “I thought that had gone; I may not have been right.” It will be back to the training ground for Cooper and his Barmy Army. Teams like St Mary’s, first in the AUS, have can inflict serious damage when given the opportunity to capitalize on opponents’ mistakes, which was the story of the game.
Perhaps it was a case of them losing confidence in themselves; their quality of possession and strength in depth should place them in the same ranks as their higher-profile opponents. “They were good,” Cooper said after the game, “and we were not good enough.” Whether or not they choose to be the resolute side that they know they can be, we shall have to wait and see. Next weekend’s double-header at St FX and then at home against Dalhousie will provide the perfect test. Both are strong teams. What will the Men’s response from their SMU experience be?
A Positive Start – MTA Soccer
On the back of three consecutive wins by Mount Allison sports teams (both rugby teams dispatched Kings’s best efforts, while the football team cruised to their first win in two years against rivals StFX on Saturday), confidence was brimming in Sackville in the anticipation that the Mounties could pull off a clean sweep over the weekend.
Those hopes rested on men and women’s soccer teams, who travelled to Fredericton to challenge UNB in their season opener.
The women kicked off the first of two games in cloudy conditions at Chapman Field and started brightly – nothing of a surprise considering their promising pre-season campaign. It has been strength to strength for the Lady Mounties, led by the domineering presence of goalkeeper and captain, Elissa McCarron, along with centre back Allie MacLean, the team’s MVP from last season. Together, the team quickly settled into the rhythm of the game, moving the ball around comfortably in a tight first half that produced only one half chance when forward Megan Spicer’s dragged a snap shot wide from the edge of the area.
As the game opened up in the second half, it was again the Mounties that looked the most threatening as they pushed for all three points with Kat Fraser coming close twice. Given time and space outside the box, the midfielder drilled her shot onto the crossbar. And in those frantic final minutes, with UNB panicking, Fraser yet again let loose twenty yards out. The Varsity Reds keeper just managed to get a glove on it, forcing the ball onto the underside of the crossbar. With the glut of chances at one end, the Lady Mounties denied UNB even so much as a sniff at goal, with MacLean and her defensive partner, Trissa Dunham (who earned herself a Player of the Match award), in imperious form.
It was a signal of intent from the Mounties, who so famously broke their scoring duck last season with a flurry of goals early in the season. On this Saturday, however, the ladies could not find the back of the net. They know how to score and they have the players to do so – as evident in their 6-0 preseason demolition of a Maine university. From this weekend’s performance, they have set the standard for this season and we can only imagine that it is a matter of time before they start banging in the goals.
The Ladies usually are a hard act to follow for the men’s team, led this year by goalkeeper Travis Sandberg, and despite conceding early in the game, the Sandberg & Co. did not disappoint. The encounter against UNB was always likely to be a fast and furious affair that last year failed to produce goals. Within two minutes of this weekend’s second match on UNB’s Chapman Field, the Mounties found themselves a goal down. A loss of concentration at the back gave UNB a corner and a resulting goal.
UNB upped the tempo and perhaps in years past, the floodgates might have opened. But not this year. The visitors contained the rush excellently, with the impressive Alex Zscheile and Adrian Crace at the heart of the defence. So composed was their handling of the situation that they enabled the Mounties to catch their opponents on the counter attack. Breaking on the left, Chris Vizena rounded his marker on the outside and crossed low into the penalty area. Who better to be on the end of that cross than hometown hero and Mount Allison 2009 Rookie of the Year, Pat Burtt. Burtt raced to tap in his first AUS goal, levelling the scores.
Finally, the Mounties settled into the game. The back four grew in confidence and started to use the ball wisely, allowing the midfield to dictate the flow of the match.
Some say it is the beauty of the game, others call it a curse. All it takes is one slip in concentration, one lapse in judgement and you could find yourself chasing the game. Just as the Men were starting to look comfortable, a poor header off a long throw gifted UNB with a chance they could not miss. And they did not miss, throwing the Mounties back into the mire they found themselves in at the beginning of the game. Minutes before half time, MTA was chasing the game again.
Once again, the Mounties rallied together, battling the entire second half. The half was fast and at time senseless, with few chances at either end. Perhaps the closest the Men came was when Connor McCumber – dangerous throughout the match – broke clear and knocked the ball hopefully to the far post, where an outstretched Chris Vizena could not make contact. It was a chance for both the winger and the team to earn a most deserved point. But not this weekend.
This weekend, the Men in garnet will have to settle with disappointment. The disappointment in knowing they deserved a point – they more than deserved a point. They battled hard, they created, they challenged. They proved to themselves that they are capable of competing with their competition. They came out in the second half a goal down but played with “purpose and strength of character”, said head coach, Barry Cooper. The Mounties team ethic has made them very hard to score against, but two mistakes cost them dearly today.
“What we hoped for was two wins,” said Cooper after the match, “which did not happen to day. Yet the feeling [today] is positive.” It was a positive start this weekend for the Mounties, despite not yielding the results they wanted. Next weekend will present two big tasks at hand. The Ladies can most certainly continue from where they left off this weekend while the Men will have to learn from these mistakes and play with the same steely determination next weekend.
The Mounties travel to Acadia on Friday (17 September) and host St Mary’s on Sunday (19 September) at MacAuley Field.
Mad as hell
I saw this ad on TV about two weeks ago. It was random, it was compelling, it was shocking. It’s not always that you see Jeremy Irons on TV – the last time I saw a good actor in a captivating commercial was Gary Oldman’s “All the World’s a Stage” Nokia ad. This, however, was powerful.
Watch it.
Video: Youtube
Get mad. Get mad as hell. And let the world know. One in six billion people live in chronic hunger. 50,000 children die of hunger every day.
Go visit the Food and Agricultural Organisation’s “1 Billion Hungry” website and sign the petition. By signing it, you “find it unacceptable that close to one billion people are chronically hungry. Through the United Nations, we call upon governments to make the elimination of hunger their top priority until that goal is reached.” The petition will be delivered to the United Nations in October/November 2010.
That’s the smell of diesel, boys
NB: This note was written earlier in the summer and may be dated.
Warning: Contains explicit language.
Not exactly. That was part of the colossal oil spill that lined Singapore’s eastern coast earlier this summer. How I didn’t put tow and two together is puzzling, but when at a yacht club, it is not uncommon to smell the faint odour of diesel. Except that I should have noticed that I was easily 250m out on a jetty and the smell was closer to a rank stink. That’s what happens when your observational skills and deductive reasoning go on holiday with you. That’s also what happens when two large ships collide. The collision left over 60 tonnes of oil-filled sand on the East Coast, threatening the vulnerable Cheh Jawa wetlands. The clean up required over thousands of NEA and NParks volunteers before the area was reopened to the public. One can only imagine what the conditions were like in the Gulf of Mexico.
That we are well into the 21st century and the so-called “post modern” age yet still have this heavy dependance on oil is unbelievable. How does one stand by an industry that is slowly killing our planet? Perhaps I should address that question to several members of the US Congress and to the provincial governments of tar sands hosts, Alberta, and drill-happy Newfoundland. Perhaps the European Union should refocus their debt-ridden and broken economy on the sustainability of the Euro instead of worrying about our seal cull. Maybe the international, particularly Asian-Pacific, community should address Japan’s annual whale hunt. They do as much scientific research as Stalin did at his gulags.
I digress.
But maybe I don’t… to much. When you go to class for four months, you are bound to pick up something. That something is clear: there is a problem. In our search for progress, we are killing our planet. There is an even bigger problem in that not enough of us are doing anything about it. Not enough of us know how. The fate of humanity is tied; it has to be. Bound by our common goal and desires, we now find ourselves in the business of survival. The survival of our way of life, of those that live with us, and of our planet. That business is growing, but not fast enough. How dire does our situation need to be for us to act? Does it take an oil-covered Gulf of Mexico to ban offshore drilling? Does it take forty million orphans to fight AIDS? Does it take landfills the size of small countries to start recycling?
It’s frustrating not having the answers and not being able to ask those that know because they are too busy hiding their balance sheets from the Auditor-General. It’s frustrating to watch your country abandon Africa as your leaders politicise the Governor-General, compromising and undermining her ability to represent our country. It’s frustrating watching an expressionless Secretary-General walk through the motions and yet children still go to bed hungry, they still don’t go to school, and they are still dying of curable and preventable diseases. It’s frustrating being in a room of several hundred students with different solutions but the same goal and no one wants to link these ideas together. It’s frustrating walking along the boardwalk late at night and the leaked oil on the water is darker than the sky.
It’s frustrating living in the 21st century. It’s frustrating being barred by bureaucracy. It’s frustrating reading the meaningless scribbles on the front page as yet another cynic bitches about fruit selection at meal hall. And yet we have to keep living it.
In “The Trotsky” (great movie, btw), they ask the question: BOREDOM or APATHY? I’m still struggling to find our answer. The important thing, though, is that it is OUR answer. Due respect, but it doesn’t matter what gets Mr Lewis out of bed in the morning. This world isn’t his anymore. It is ours. It is ours and we are doing fuck all. Every day should be Lights Out. Every month should be C3. Our campuses should be free of plastic bottles. Landfills should be driven from existence, not our flora and fauna. children should be in schools. Our excess food should be in food banks.
Take a deep breath, boys: that is the smell of us doing fuck all. And yes, it gets frustrating after a while. But we keep going. We keep going.
INSPI(RED) SOCCER FC 