US vs Poland Friendly in Chicago

I’ve never been a big fan of the city of Chicago — the traffic is horrible. But I am a fan of soccer. So, yesterday I made my way to the windy city to watch the US Men’s National Team take on Poland in a friendly.

This was the United States’ second friendly since the close of the World Cup in South Africa (the first being a 2-0 loss to Brazil), but only the first friendly since coach Bob Bradley was re-signed through the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Therefore it was the first somewhat meaningful match in the training period before the next World Cup. Going in, I had expected to see Coach Bradley experiment with different formations and available players. Also, Landon Donovan was not going to be available for the game, as he is with the LA Galaxy for the MLS playoffs.

As I took Chicago’s Red Line Train to the Roosevelt Station near Soldier Field, I was shocked at the number of Polish fans. As it turns out, there is quite a large Polish population in Chicago, and according to Wikipedia, “Chicago bills itself as the largest Polish city outside of Poland with approximately 1,100,000 people of Polish ethnicity in the Chicago metropolitan area.” It was almost an away game for the US team, as there was a very strong showing for Polska.

Before the game, retiring US striker Brian McBride was honored for his career contributions to the sport. He was the first overall pick in the initial MLS draft, going to the Columbus Crew. He later played for Fulham and the Chicago Fire. I remember him best from the bloody face he received in the game against Italy in the 2006 World Cup. He was my favorite player for a number of years, and he has truly done some great things for American soccer. I had hoped he would be on the roster for this game, and brought on as a late substitute to give him one final international appearance. Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be. At least he was recognized.

The game was exciting from start to finish. You can read recaps of the game on ESPN or Fox Sports, or whatever you prefer. That isn’t the intent of this post. But the game was really fantastic. I’m glad I went. The US team has a lot of work to do, though. Some random thoughts and then some pictures below.

• I was very surprised to not see Eric Lichaj come on as a substitute in his home town for his first cap.
• Cherundolo and Bocanegra are great. But they’re not getting any younger. Who will be there to replace them?
• Oguchi Onyewu had some great moments, but also so horrible ones (like the failed clearance that led to Poland’s first goal).
• Maurice Edu might end up being a decent defender.
• Jermaine Jones looked good, and may be the answer in the middle.
• I don’t understand why Benny Feilhaber was subbed out. He wasn’t fantastic, but he seemed better than Alejandro Bedoya, who I didn’t even really notice on the field.
• Stuart Holden looked really good. I think he has a bright future for the USMNT.
• Jozy Altidore finally scored, but he should have had more than just the one goal.
• Is moving Clint Dempsey to striker the way to get Altidore a reliable partner up front? I don’t know. It might be. He had a great game, despite the ugly black eye he picked up playing for Fulham.

The pictures were taken from Section 131, Row 1, Seat 10, in case anyone is curious. And it was actually the front row (I always wonder when I buy tickets what the view might look like).

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Save Blue Like Jazz

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you probably know I really liked the book “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” by Donald Miller. I said so in this blog post right here. That book was all about the process of turning his previous book, Blue Like Jazz, into a screenplay. One would assume that the screenplay would then be made into a movie.

Unfortunately, due to funding issues, that might not happen. I, and several hundred (thousand?) other fans of the books don’t think that’s a good idea. We’d all really like to see this movie made. And right now it’s looking like the only way that will happen is if we break out our wallets and help to fund the movie ourselves.

Some enterprising fans created the webpage SaveBlueLikeJazz.com, and are working with Director Steve Taylor and Don Miller to try to secure the funding through the fans before the deadline of October 25th. So, if you enjoyed the books and want to see the movie as much as I do, head on over and donate! Oh. And if you donate at certain levels you will be given incentives. So, it isn’t entirely like donating. For $50, you get a t-shirt, a signed movie poster, a digital download package (I’m honestly not sure what this digital download is… but does it matter? I’m sure it’ll be cool), as well as a personal thank you phone call from the director, Steve Taylor. There are all sorts of other incentive levels as well.

If you’re interested in more information, go to SaveBlueLikeJazz.com, or their donation page on Kickstarter.com. If there isn’t enough money raised to fund the film, you will not be charged, so there’s no risk involved. Check it out, and donate. I want to see this movie.

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Cystic Fibrosis and my friend Gabe

When I was growing up, I went to public school here in Findlay, Ohio, and I became friends way back in elementary school (it might have even been as early as kindergarten), with a boy by the name of Gabe Poland. Gabe always seemed to cough a lot, and as a child I didn’t really understand it. I thought he was sick all the time. And it turns out, in a way, that he was. Gabe was diagnosed at a young age with Cystic Fibrosis.

I’m not going to claim to be anything close to a doctor, but let me briefly explain what Cystic Fibrosis is. Basically, Cystic Fibrosis is a disease which affects the entire body, caused by a mutated gene. From what I understand, the gene controls the work of bodily fluids like mucus and sweat. With the gene working incorrectly, it’s basically like the body isn’t oiled correctly, and parts start to work wrong. One of the most commons issues with Cystic Fibrosis is frequent lung infections. Cystic Fibrosis is a seriously debilitating disease, and leads to an early death for those diagnosed with it. Based on data from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (and which I swiped from Wikipedia), in 1959, the median age of survival of children with Cystic Fibrosis was six months. In the United States, the life expectancy for infants born in 2008 with Cystic Fibrosis is 37.4 years.

Research and treatment for the disease has gotten better over the years. I remember when I was in elementary school with Gabe, it was a possibility that he wouldn’t even live long enough to graduate from high school. He has done that and more. He has worked with his disease and gone on to some real academic success, graduating from college and law school. He passed the bar for the state of Ohio, and will hopefully become a practicing lawyer. But first, he needs to take care of some issues with his disease. His lungs have basically given out. He needs a double lung transplant to survive.

On Saturday, October 16th, from 5-8pm at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church (directions) in Findlay, Ohio, there will be a fundraiser in association with the National Transplant Assistance Fund (NTAF) to raise money to help cover the costs for Gabe’s transplant. There will be a Spaghetti Dinner, with tickets costing $7. There will also be some sort of Chinese Auction. For more information, check out the Facebook Event Page – Spaghetti Dinner & Auction in honor of Gabriel Poland. If you’d like to contribute, but won’t be able to make it to the event, you can do so online at the NTAF website.

Gabe is also keeping a blog about his progress and thoughts through the transplant journey. It is some truly inspired writing. It is entitled Breathe Easy. I encourage everyone to check it out, and keep Gabe in your prayers.

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