Another loss in a championship for American soccer. This time it was the women in the World Cup who fell to Japan in penalty kicks. This team had captured more attention than any since the 1999 champs with their spirited comeback win against Brazil last week.
Brazil, the number-one rated team in the world, was up 2-1 and has one more player after a crazy referee's succession of red card and penalty kicks in the second half. Amazingly, the U.S. scored a tying goal just before full time was called. Each team scored one goal in overtime.
In the closing seconds a cross flew across the face of the goal and was hammered into the net by the head of Abby Wambach. My jaw dropped. We had to go to our cells for count while the teams battled through penalty kicks but a friend gave me the results of each kick as he swept the floor. Down a player, the U.S. had beaten the number one team in the world.
That excitement carried through the semifinal win over France and it looked certain that the Americans would beat Japan for the championship. Between games I discussed tactics and favorite players with two friends, John and West, who are also enthusiastic fans. It was odd to be talking women's soccer at all, much less in an environment like this, surrounded by testosterone and junkies of a different sort of football.
The final was going well for the Americans until Japan tied it in the closing minutes of the game. In overtime the U.S. scored, followed by a goal from the Japanese, My stomach churned as I realized that this game was eerily similar to the Brazil game. The only difference was full squads on both sides.
The Americans' usually sure-handed goalie, Hope Solo, allowed three goals to pass, while the American shooters met similar luck, missing the first two shots. were interlaced atop my head in nervousness that proved to be well-founded when Japan scored their final kick. My Jaw dropped. The Americans had lost. It sure was a fantastic journey, though.
Time once again for the unit-wide soccer tournament. The draft took place last week and my team is truly horrible. I was our captain's first pick, followed by one other actual soccer player. Everyone else West picked was completely inexperienced in the sport. I don't know if the field of players was really so bad or if West just didn't recognize available players. Either way, we were s_____d (rhymes with "dude").
Our first game today was ridiculous - a 4-0 stomping. Most of our inexperience w
as placed on defense. It was there that they displayed not only their inept soccer skills, but also their lack of fitness. If they weren't in our goalie's way they were miles away from the ball without any desire to get any closer. Okay, I'm exaggerating, but not by much.
My style of soccer is as a play-maker. I usually need someone who is able to finish the play I create. Often the opportunities take one or two touches to capitalize on for a goal. That didn't work at all, My ball control isn't rust-free so i couldn't weave the defense either, so we were just stuck.
After this loss, we have one more game to redeem ourselves and stay in the tournament. In order to win that one, we will need to find some unrecruited players and come up with a good game plan. Anything less and we're gone for good.
Our second game of the tournament came today. I took off work to play this afternoon and had to have a friend help out my new coworker. I wasn't able to play at full strength due to a sore ankle from yesterday's game, and then was kicked again today by the rec boss while he patted me down. I told my captain I wouldn't be able to do a lot of running, but could still shoot and pass with my right foot just fine.
THe entire first half we weren't able to get any cohesive action going, but, luckily, the other team didn't have any success, either. Shortly after the second half got underway, I scored on a juke (fake) followed by a shot with my hurt ankle. The ball rebounded of the post and into the net. I rushed to my captain for our planned celebration and he went down on one knee to shine my goal-scoring foot on his other knee.
Unfortunately, our goalie made two gross errors that led to goals. The first one came as he called to one of our defenders that he would get a loose ball. His downfall came on his lack of follow-through, which allowed our opponents to take the ball right in to our goal.
Despite out two losses, I had fun and at least scored a goal. I also came away with an ankle that, as I write, is growing beyond baseball size. I have a feeling "Gimp" will be my name for a few days as I hobble around.
A soccer tournament has been organized for the unit, a first since I've been here. Last week we had a raft in which about seventy guys from my half of the unit went to eight teams. Despite only playing in a few games over the past couple weeks, I was picked up in the first round. The rest of our team looks decent. Hopefully, we'll get the passing done what we will need to win some games. Most guys here prefer to keep the ball to themselves.
We play on a small field with small goals - 4' X 6". We had been using rubber soccer balls, but someone donated two stitched leather balls for the tournament. They are supposed to look like the crazy Jabulani World Cup ball. The yard crew spent a couple days leveling the field and trying to take out the few mounds of grass. Yes, we play in dirt. The corners are still wildly unpredictable when it comes to ball control.
My team started our first game yesterday evening an had to stop early to come in from rec. The remainder of the game was played this afternoon. I definitely liked the cool evening better. Even then, we didn't do too well. FIrst, we struggled to have a full seven-man team to show up and almost had to forfeit. Then, since we hadn't played together before, we misjudged a bunch of passes. One guy just began booting the ball when it came near. The other team had a handball in the box that should have been a penalty kick for us, but went uncalled. We lost 1-0 in the end on a goal where our goalie was far out of place. It's a double elimination tournament, so we have one more shot at a win. With this crazy goalie, I'd be nuts to expect to win the whole thing.
I apologize for my lack of new entries. I have not had the desire to write down anything for a long time. To make up some of the missing entries, I'll do my best to bring you up to the present with a summary of events.
Just after Ereman quit working in the library, a "mysterious tip" accuse me of establishing a relationship with my boss. A few weeks after a scare form one of the sergeants, that situation, as ridiculous as it was, was diffused. I spent a week working alone until I got a new coworker who turned out to be more security than worker. I don't mind, but it leaves me busy during the day and mentally exhausted in the evening. The new coworker received an FI-1 parole answer not long ago, which means he could go home any day.
I started and completed a "contract job" for the kitchen captain. He had me help streamline the kitchen by reformatting the Excel stuff they had been using. It was awesome to be problem -solving on a computer again. I'm hoping he needs more work done so I can use my strengths again.
The unit had a volleyball tournament in which my team was in and out in the first round. Woohoo! Luckily, we are having a soccer tournament soon. Soccer has been my sport since age 8, so I'm far more comfortable with a ball at my feet. I was just drafted in the first round and our team looks decent, a few guys that can really pass the ball around.
In mid-May, I had a strange physical occurrence. My right field of vision went out in both eyes for about an hour, followed by a terrible headache that stayed with me for eight hours. I went to the infirmary and they referred me to Galveston, a trip I was unwilling to make for such an infrequent aberrance. I think it was a buildup of stress and a bit of dehydration taking its toll on me, but I've been feeling great recently.
Because of the stress, I backed off from the choir for a few weeks. That freed me up a couple of more nights for me to chill and spend time with God reading and praying. Last week was my first back with the choir and with the egoism and dictatorial attitudes I've seen, I'm tempted to step away again. However, I think right now God wants me to be right there.
And that's the whirlwind recap. Hope you enjoyed (though probably not as much as the full entries.) Thanks for your prayers and support.
Today was the first time in about a year that I've played soccer. I hadn't played at my last unit because no one else was going out to play. I just stayed inside and worked out on my own.
This place is a different story. There are quite a few guys that play. I'm still working out, too.
When I got here I saw a guy from my last unit who I played soccer with. I was one of the better players at the previous spot, so in the first couple weeks of my being here he was hyping me up with all the other guys. I had people asking if I was "that guy" and if I was going to play. There were several weeks of hype before I finally played because I had to repair my shoes.
This weekend I was ready. The field has no boundaries except those that are called. The goals are about the size of hocky or lacrosse goals, which makes for more difficult scoring. Overall, everything is smaller. With the eight-man teams it got crowded, and crisp passing was needed for any success. My touches on the ball were not as sure as usual and I got winded sooner that I expected, but both should be back in the coming weeks. I did manage to score off a great pass, though. I'm just glad to be playing again.
Today marks two years of my being incarcerated. By no means have those years been easy, but I owe a lot to family and friends for making my time here more comfortable with letters, visits, commissary, books and prayers.
I've also done as much as I can to make this time productive by reading, taking college classes and researching schools for when I get out.
I spent five months in county jail before boarding a bus in chains to be herded like cattle at an intake facility. I moved from cage to cage for twelve hours answering surveys, getting my head shaved, showering ina crowd, receiving clothes, and finally going to a dorm. I stayed at the intake facility for about two weeks as the system took blood, did physical and psychological testing and interviewed me.
Next I went to a unit in east Texas where I was in the "hoe squad", doing the farmwork outside. I liked the hoe squad because we worked outside and with our hands, even if we didn't really have a purpose for working most of the time. That unit is where I started my heavy reading. I ended up finishing 60 books in 2008, far more than I could have ever read outside or even imagined reading in one year.
In March of last year I arrived at my current unit. I moved around to four different dorms in my first four months - one because of a fight, one because the dorm became a kitchen workers' dorm, and one move for a job change to my current job on the shower crew. Here I could play soccer and run every day and in August I started college classes, which has been the best use of my time so far. I should receive my associates of arts degree this summer.
Now I look forward to possibly seeing parole this fall. I have extreme gratitude for everyone who has written letters on my behalf to the parole board. I'm hopeful for a positive answer and release this winter. Until then, I stay in the Word and continue to try to impact the guys around me for the better. Thank y'all for your support and prayers for me and my family!
* Who forces time is pushed back by time; who yields to time finds time on his side. ~The Talmud
It was a beautiful day outside today and I had to take full advantage and share it with some other guys. I tried to convince a couple of other guys to come out and play hacky sack with me, but they both wanted to stay in and lay on their bunks. Only when Rabbit, fresh out of cell block, said he would join us from his new dorm did Shawn agree to go out.
It turned out that Rabbit didn't show up anyway. Shawn and I played hacky sack with a few other guys from other dorms. Since we have been playing in the dorm frequently, we were far better and dropped their jaws with a few tricks. About an hour passed and the other guys went back inside, so I got to running.
I only finished a mile before some guys asked me to play soccer with them. The last time I played soccer was late last fall, but I'm always up for kicking the ball around. We played until the sun went down thirty minutes later.
It was so nice to be outside for such a long time (little more than two hours), especially after nightfall. I'm really looking forward to going camping when I get out. Even just walking around or going running on my own time sounds great. It can't come soon enough.
Well, it's most of the way through the week and I am pooped. It's been a long time since I went to school from 8:00 AM to 2:30 PM and I didn't have a job then, either - a night job, at that. I used to be involved in all kinds of activities after school: football, theater, track, soccer, Bible study. But, like I said, it's been a while.
I'm glad my day is so filled now. It feels a bit more like the busyness I'm used to on the outside. I just wish I could make my own choices and do what I want instead of waking up with my day decided for me. I miss being outside, too. We haven't had rec outside for about two weeks now. Because I'm not able to run, I've been doing work outs in the dorm - mostly pull-ups and hanging crunches. I hope we get some good time outside before it gets too chilly.
I thinl part of the reason I'm exhausted is my erratic sleep schedule. I don't think I've gotten more than four hours of straight sleep since the weekend and it's never at the same time of day, either. That's just a reality of prison life when you share your room with nine guys, a TV, toilet, and shower. Oh, if I could have a quiet place with a mattress, covers and a pillow - right now that would be heaven.
I got last night off from work even though most of the other guys went out. I guess they don't quite honor federal holidays around here despite the title Labor Day.
I actually like my job pretty well. The hours are odd but fit my schedule just fine. I'm used to staying up all night for the quiet anyway. I like being able to move around the unit and see different people every night. I'm often able to talk with my friends in the other dorms that I otherwise wouldn't see.
I'm still having trouble with courage to share my faith. I know I should be having purposeful conversations with guys, but I just don't know when to do it. The dorm has guys who will jump in to cannibalize conversation and I'm always running or playing soccer while at rec. It's something I want to do more often but can't find good opportunities.
Yesterday evening the field and gym opened for recreation ... finally.
With excitement built up for a potential pick-up soccer match, I was a little disappointed when only six or seven players showed up.
Not one to allow the circumstances get me down, I decided to do intervals around the track. I was shooting for seven intervals of one minute hard running followed by two minutes of jogging all back-to-back.
Boy, all this time without recreation has killed my stamina. I was able to get in three intervals before struggling to suck wind. After about five minutes of walking I picked up again. After only two more intervals I conceded defeat and walked for the rest of the hour.
Hopefully I can regain the endurance I lost. It will only come with more frequent recreation, though, and I have no control over that.
After a week of not being able to go out to the field for rec in the afternoon, I decided to wake up early for the morning rec at 7:00 AM. It was great to be out in the still, cool morning air. The grass was still a little wet from the morning dew.
Apparently I was one of the few guys that woke up early because it was just Carlos and me on the soccer field. We spent the morning passing and messing around with the ball, not doing anything serious. My knee is feeling better. Even with the little activity the pain came back a bit but not as much as it had been hurting.
All week I've looked forward to the soccer game tonight. Mexico played Argentina in a game that pitted two great soccer traditions against one another. Argentina has one of my favorite players, Hernan Crespo, and maybe the best player in the world for his age, Lionel Messi. Mexico's team is filled with many young players and few veterans.
Because the game was played so late (kickoff at 10 PM), we had to beg and plead to get the TV to stay on late. If any of the other lieutenants had been there, the TV's probably would have gone off. We were lucky to be able to watch the whole game. I think the main reason it stayed on was because of the many Mexican's that would have caused a headache if the game went off.
The game started quickly with Argentina scoring two goals in the opening fifteen minutes. Messi took part in both, with an assist and a goal. The rest of the game was dominated by Argentina as Mexico's in experience played itself out. The final was 4-1.
* "Football (soccer) is the ballet of the masses." - Dmitri Shostakovich
The last two days have been great on the soccer field. Yesterday I had to wait a while to play before the other teams got off the field. We play to three goals, and then the next team comes out. Many times the next team will recycle a few of the previous team's players. When my team finally got to play we were on fire.
Most guys haven't played soccer before, so they just kick the ball wherever it pings off their foot. A few guys are good players, but they are selfish, trying to all-star through everyone and losing the ball most of the time. The team that I played with had a few of the former, more of the latter, and mostly a third type - the players who know the game and use their team to put the ball in the net.
Both yesterday and today we used teamwork - crisp passes, accurate crosses and clear communication - to put the ball in the net repeatedly. That was the first time that I wasn't frustrated with how my teammates played. I'm so excited to play with capable an cooperative teammates.
It turns out the goal posts were only gone for a day so that the holes could be welded shut. Unfortunately, most of the the guys hadn't heard about the return so we were playing short-sided today - only 4-on-4.
I also had some good conversations with some guys in the dorm. The guy who bunks next to me really encouraged me by telling me to continue living out my faith just like I have. I have a lot of anxiety about the way I present myself and take much caution to not spoil my witness to the people around me. (* 1 Peter 2:12, 3:13-16)
The other conversation I had was with my bunkmate, Goat. He's been having a hard time in correspondence with his wife and kids. He's been taking a lot of his stress 
out through anger and just messing with people. I tried to encourage him and gave him a few tips on how to get stress out differently, like running or working out. I'm really hoping things work out on the home front and he decides to change his attitude so that it carries out into the world in a healthy way.
After playing soccer yesterday evening I came back to the dorm to examine my foot to see what was causing the pain with every step. I had a feeling that it was a blister because I felt something rubbing when I was out on the field. I had moved to goalie so I didn't have to run and pivot. Whatever it was on my foot, it felt big!
Sure enough, the sweaty sock and sub-par shoes had teamed up to put the biggest blister I've ever had on the ball of my right foot. At first I thought that it was just a little blister, but my skin is so calloused there that I didn't see the rest of the blob. When I cut and drained it to put antiseptic, gauze, and tape on it, a rush of fluid came out and the whole ball of my foot depressed. This sucker is about 1 1/4 inches across. I'm hoping size doesn't influence the healing time so I can hit the field again soon with confidence.
Today I went out at about 12:30 to play soccer for two hours (the allotted rec time for the day). I've grown accustomed to the mild weather, so the recent heat wave caught me off guard.I sweat it out like a pimple-faced teenager on his first date and was exhausted to boot. After the third game (we play to three) everyone was beat and off the field. I think I'll only be going out for the evening rec times once the real Texas heat kicks in.
Tonight at about 3:00 AM I was wakened by a guard yelling,"All right guys, everybody get up and come into the hall one at a time to strip down!"
Apparently someone had been tattooing but they couldn't tell who it was in the dark, so they were going to just check everyone in the dorm. However, the guy getting the work done showed his fresh tattoo and the tattoo gun was taken up. The guards called off the body search and people were able to go to sleep again.
Well, they would have been able to go back to sleep if some people hadn't become emotional and antagonistic toward the guards and just started yelling. Nothing like some early morning drama to keep the guys from getting some shuteye.
*Never greet a stranger in the night, for he may be a demon. -Talmud
Yesterday the outside field was opened to play soccer. Hooray! It's been a while since I've played my favorite sport and I was sucking air pretty quickly. My team stayed on the field with a few wins and I scored a couple of goals. I'm so glad we get to play soccer now. Much better than volleyball in my opinion.
