Actually, this was the second time in the past few months that I've fallen on my face while running. I was virtually done with my run, just jogging across the street directly in front of my house and my left toe got caught in the oversized bunny ear loop of my right lace and I ate it. Throughout my run I had been extremely careful not to slip on the wet leaves covering the sidewalks or catch my foot on the numerous broken pieces of concrete and pavement and just when I thought I was safe....oof. Don't worry , I'm alright - just a little scrape on my right hand. The last time I managed to bang up my knee and shoulder in front of the Waltham Papa Gino's (salivating over the "Help Wanted" sign not the pizza), so this was child's play in comparison to that one which was really child's play itself, so I guess this one was more like infant's play which is really laying there sleeping and drooling, so I guess I'm doing ok for myself.
Welcome Back to My Blog!
Monday, November 13, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
"Met my life gurus and shit like that" - Or, My Final Watson Report
I am sitting at my computer after weeks of procrastination trying to figure out how I could possibly fit the whole of my Watson Fellowship experience into five pages. Unlike a thesis or a term paper, I am not putting my writing on hold because I have nothing to write and don’t want to face the prospect of ranting for ages on a subject so inconsequential as the relationship between “Hunger, Consumption and Christianity” in The Lord of the Rings (as I spent nearly half of my waking hours doing my senior year at Holy Cross). Rather, I have everything to write that is, to me, of utmost consequence. My brain and, more importantly, my heart, are bursting to share each and every moment of this past year with each and every person I encounter. But when it comes to wrapping my mind around this incredible journey and formulating pure emotion into coherent sentences I find myself ready to implode - not knowing how to best convey the essence of my great adventure.
Although I shouldn’t be on the internet and should be writing my report, I check my email. A new message has just appeared in my inbox from Rachelle Beaudoin: a former teammate at Holy Cross, one of my dearest friends, my “little big sister” (as she is at least five inches shorter than me), my “mentor” and my initial inspiration in applying for the Watson in the first place. Rachelle was not selected as a Watson Fellow when she applied the year before I did, but her interest in the program fueled my own. When I learned that I was not an original fellowship winner either, Rachelle urged me to believe that all things really do work according to some greater plan. Her phone calls and emails were pieces of advice that only seemed acceptable from one who had not only gone through the same devastation before, but who also holds the same passion for ice hockey. And today, as I struggle to make this report as profound as the year it summarizes while the question of what my next life venture will be competes for mental attention, I find yet another email from Rachelle, offering me a couch to stay on, supporting my interest in Americorps and even urging me to take a position in her own city. Rachelle is not merely a friend – she is a soul mate, an inspiration and indeed my mentor.
So why go into such detail about a college friend when this report should be summarizing my year abroad? Well, to do that I must back track to before my fellowship year commenced. After my final hockey game at Holy Cross, I thought my career was over forever and I literally could not remove my equipment. I wondered, ff I took my skates off that night would I ever them on again? It was a prospect I could not fathom. But at that point I am not sure if I had a complete sense of why hockey was so important to me. Yes, I had been playing for 11 years and dedicated almost every spare moment of my time to bettering myself and my play, but other than the sheer love of the game I am not sure if I ever stopped to ponder just what hockey added to my life. In February of 2005 it was the inability to imagine a life without hockey that made me physically incapable of unlacing my skates, but it was not until my Watson journey that I fully realized exactly what a life without hockey would mean as I experienced life where hockey was indeed my only demand, my only currency, my only social web in an array of foreign settings.
At the beginning of my fellowship year I worried that my days weren’t “active” enough, that Denmark wasn’t enough of a stretch or as interesting as tramping through a third-world country on a donkey. Why did I choose ice hockey? If only I had taken Mysticism earlier on in my collegiate career, I would have proposed, instead, to hunt down shamans, monks and Sufis and walked the mystical path of enlightenment! But as I began to look deeply into my experiences, I realized I was walking my own unique mystical path – one that required me to play ice hockey. By playing the game that has shaped me and comforted me and pushed me to become better in so many ways throughout my life I encountered a number of personal “gurus” who have provided me with models of the way I would like to live out my adult life. Much like traveling to other lands enables me to pick and choose elements of various cultures to develop my own personal ethos, all of my gurus have shown themselves as extraordinary women (and a few men), whose qualities I would love to succeed in emulating and will be much better off if I do. Each woman is completely different from the next and each has offered me insight into an entirely different aspect of myself and my desires. But what unites them all is that they are all independent, strong-willed, free spirits - the kind of woman one has to be in order to successfully make one’s way into a “man’s sport.”
I never would have even traveled to Denmark had I not received a response from Laura Mackenzie in regards to the email I sent to nearly every ice hockey union in Europe requesting information on their women’s programs. Laura, as I have previously written, is a true inspiration. She began her hockey travels nearly 5 years ago, leaving Canada and going to play in Denmark and Australia with friends. Her travels were much like my own, only she did it all without a fellowship. In their first year abroad, besides making up for the partying they missed as busy Division I college athletes, she and best friend Tamra Jones were among the first to push for gender equity in both countries. When it was time to go to Australia, Laura fell in love and continues to fall for a man she met while “talking hockey” in a bar. Her passion for hockey is just a manifestation of her passion for life. She does everything with zeal: playing and coaching; providing in-home care for quadriplegics; learning Danish (which she advised me not to even attempt!); and dancing in her pajamas at midnight. At thirty years old, life is still fun for Laura and, to me, that is the one thing for which we should strive.
In Denmark there was also Tine Perry – women’s hockey legend and still one of the nation’s top players at 40 years old. Tine played when girls were not allowed play in any leagues and told me of her struggle to fight the inequality within the sport that is significantly less apparent today. At 40 years old, she is the most ripped mother, nay the most ripped woman, I have ever met. I envy her six-pack. She is a caring mother, player and coach who spoils her children with love and reminded me of the important role families – especially dedicated mothers – play in creating successful hockey players. If I am as cool of a mother as Tine when I am forty, then I have done something right.
(In this pic we have Charlotte Hansen - whom I didn't even get to mentioning! - Tine Perry and Laura).
I must also mention Camilla Bedmar, with whom I often filled days drinking coffee and talking about everything from hockey to books and esoteric religion. Though I share hockey with all of my teammates, Camilla is one of the few with whom I can also nourish my love for intellectual and spiritual dialogue. Often I am known only as “the hockey player,” especially when I choose hockey as my primary topic of study. But I am so much more. In fact, I consider myself much more of a bookworm than a jock – I am, I suppose, an “intellectual jock.” With Camilla I remembered that I am not alone in this respect. She too craves learning and understanding. She is one of the few people I met in Denmark who embraces the ideals of the liberal arts. She refuses to choose a career path based solely on the need for money and considers her self-assigned reading list far more important. Though life is till fun at 34, life is still serious, hockey is still serious and books are of utmost importance. Although her goal-tending will be put on the backburner this coming year when she has her first child, we all know she is not done playing and I know she will never be done learning.
Hockey in South Africa is small and women’s hockey is therefore miniscule. However, in the handful of female hockey players I had the pleasure of meeting, playing with and living with I encountered a handful of equally inspiring, fascinating women. It is no coincidence that I stayed in Cape Town with Kirsty Oxenham and her hockey-playing boyfriend Bobby. Both are two of the kindest most generous individuals I have ever met. Although hockey has become a recreational sport for Kirsty after a few years playing with the national team, she still thirsts for instruction and betterment. She is also one of the most cheerful individuals I have ever met and within hours of meeting we talked as if lifelong friends. Kirsty’s religious conviction is captivating and almost guilt-causing. Her positive energy and love has transformed her boyfriend into an equally uplifting and goodhearted person and due to her influence I sincerely feel a desire to better myself both in her presence and even now when we are an ocean apart.
Then there was Jadi Wessels who has used her difficult upbringing as incentive to better the lives of others. Her house is a literal zoo, filled with the countless stray and abandoned pets she has taken in and spends nearly her entire paycheck caring for. The rest of her check goes to Michaela, the 4 year old girl she began baby-sitting three years ago when she met her parents in a local pub and refused to let them take the child there all day every day as they were accustomed to do. Instead, she cares for her when she is not working and will not let the child feel the same pain and abandonment she once experienced. And Jadi is only 22. But for all the growing up she has already done, she luckily still has hockey, the one place she can still play. Although she hopes to begin coaching and in order to prevent South African women’s hockey from dwindling into nothingness, I hope she continues to be “selfish” in this respect and allows herself to keep playing and inspiring girls in that way.
Sabrina and Nadine also had to grow up too soon when their mother passed away when both were quite young. Sabrina, being a few years older, had to take on a maternal role for her kid sister, but it was actually Nadine who got her big sis’ into hockey. Their hometown of Durban is well-known as a surfing spot, but the ice rink was always a place of cool refuge after spending hot summer days out on the beach a few blocks away. Local recruiters asked Nadine to start playing when they saw her skate and when Sabrina got sick of watching and driving it was time to start playing herself. It was on the ice that they were again sisters. In fact, Nadine, who is probably the nation’s most talented female player, became the role model. The rink was therefore a retreat back into childhood for the sisters, as well. The two are now in their late twenties and leaders and coaches in different provinces. But they still meet on the ice in the annual inter-provincial tournament where they compete in the game that brought them together as sisters.
Tamra Jones is Laura Mackenzie’s true “other half.” The two became best friends as New Kids on the Block-obsessed teenagers and the rest is history – one long, amusing history of friendship, love, hockey and beer. Through our mutual friend Tamra readily invited me to coach at a girls’ camp in her now-hometown of Adelaide, Australia. The camp became more of a small power skating clinic in which the two of us were students rather than coaches, but I relished the opportunity to learn not only more about my skating technique but also about how to lead an extraordinary existence. Tamra grew up in a hockey household in Canada and it was only natural that she went on to play at Brown University. Although she was also recruited as a Division I golfer, her heart was with hockey. I would never have wound up in Denmark if it were not for Tamra, who was the first import player in Rodovre and then brought Laura to Adelaide and back to Denmark to play with her the next year. Tamra is still famous in Rodovre for her feisty attitude; in her first two seasons she staged a walkout of the Danish National Championships when the females were unfairly treated and bridged a social gap between talented and beginning players that once existed on our team. While Laura got “stuck” in Copenhagen, Tamra got “stuck” in sunny Adelaide. Not satisfied merely coaching, she is now gaining Australian citizenship so she can play for their national team and help them get to the next Olympics. Beyond being a hockey player, she has her MA in Education and is working towards a PhD. She is an entrepreneur who has started a company called “Hockey Fit,” which specializes in strength and conditioning for hockey players. She is a wine connoisseur and the “mother” to a house of four hockey players ranging from 18-35 years old. Time spent with Tamra is, above all else, fun. She lives each moment to its fullest, admittedly because he has had numerous friends die young and knows that life is too short not to make the most of it. Her wisdom far exceeds shooting technique and vineyard grapes; she spoke to my very fears about falling into a life of monotony and selfishness and showed me that it is indeed possible to “live the life you imagined.” She and Laura still dream of moving back to North America and starting a collegiate hockey program together and I sincerely believe that they will do it. Like Watson fellows, Laura and Tamra aren’t the kind of people that just say they are going to do something – they do it.
When I first met my New Zealand roommates Deb Bain and Sally Dickson I thought that they were in their mid-thirties. My jaw dropped when Sally admitted that they are nearly fifty years old. I want to be Deb and Sally when I grow up. At first I thought it was something in the water that seems to keep Kiwis looking so young, but I quickly learned that it is their active, healthy lifestyle that keeps them happy and young at heart. Deb founded the women’s league in Christchurch years ago and although she is the nation’s oldest player she is still one of the best. Her love for the sport leaves her unable to quit playing at the national level, even though most of her teammates are teenagers young enough to be her daughters. In addition to being on the national hockey team, she is a national water and downhill skiing champion, avid tri-athlete, moonlighting vending machine owner, and genuine goof ball.
Sally started playing hockey at the suggestion of friends who thought it would be a good place for her to meet a man. Instead, she met Deb – not exactly the relationship her friends had imagined. Although she is the more serious of the two, she is by no means boring; her award-winning travel agency earns her enough to live on, but she has a zest for life and activity that has allowed her to succeed in a variety of careers. In addition to their work and busy weekends camping, spending time with their equally amazing mothers and building a second home, they run the hockey league, which would fall apart without their dedication and wisdom. Deb and Sal were part-mothers and part-friends to me, caring for me and partying with me in one fell swoop. Their happiness was contagious and they are therefore my role models not merely due to their dedication to hockey, but due to their dedication to “the good life.”
“Coincidence is the anonymity of God,” my father wrote to me, and indeed God put these amazing women on my path to show me the way, to make this year easier, and to direct my future life. I expected to “study” female hockey players around the world, but little did I know that my journey would become such a self-study in which my “subjects” were in fact my own atypical spiritual masters – whom I found not in the religious ring, but in the rink. I learned about myself by witnessing the struggles and successes of these amazing women, who are all in so many ways different versions of myself at various points in life and altogether represent the various facets of my entire being. These friends, like Rachelle, are what kept me going this year through their hospitality, wisdom, company and outstanding example of how to live life with passion and joy. I now know that it was not merely my love for playing hockey that made it so difficult to take my equipment off when my college career ended. Hockey has been my life’s blood, has provided me with my most sincere friendships, has shaped me into the independent, out-going person I am now. And, thanks to these women, I now see that I can continue to be the very same person throughout my future life, whether or not I am playing hockey (though I also now know that I can and will never stop playing).
I have coursed the face of the earth and realized, just as in a mystical encounter, that everything really is one, that all people are connected in some way (indeed in the small women’s hockey world, one realizes just how small and connected that world is!) and that all things really do work out according to some higher order. What the Watson truly entails is putting one’s trust in a world that so often does its best to darken humanity and it is only by doing so that my sincere faith in humanity was refreshed and restored. Upon each of my arriva
ls, I was greeted with a smile at the airport and welcomed into a complete stranger’s home; I was trusted solely on my membership in the female hockey world, and trusted in others based upon this unique kinship and some distant notion of fate and faith that is no longer all that distant.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
I think I need to go back and read 'The Unbearable Lightness of Being,' which I think was probably a bit heavy for me when I read it the summer after freshman year. I enjoyed it then, but I think its "weight" totally escaped me. But lately, as I try to wrap my mind around all that has happened over the past year and attempt to use language to express everything I felt and experienced - either verbally or through my writing - it all seems utterly futile.
In so many ways it is as if nothing has changed since I first left nearly one year ago: Except Me. Things look the same, people act the same, food tastes the same, but me, I've got a new history of events, relationships and emotions that are now entwined with my very being. But what do I have to show for all of this besides a head full of memories and a computer full of digital photos? Experiences are fleeting, emotions are temporary and relationships are inevitably changed when you go from living with a person to monthly email exchanges.
How then do I proceed from here? I want to tell everyone each and every detail of each and every moment of my journey, but as soon as I try I hit a wall. Actually, it's more of a double edged sword: either I'm struck with the feeling that people just don't care, don't want to take the time to learn about the details of each picture, and wouldn't understand anyways, or I'm completely incapable of transforming these memories into language. It seems as if after a year of travel the most I have to show for it besides the pictures is this feeling in the pit of my stomach that I just lived a tremendous dream (or is that just indigestion?).
To you, dear reader, this probably seems utterly somber and depressing, but really it isn't. I know that in a more existential and less tangible sense that this experience was something extraordinary that will undoubtedly shape my future both in terms of what I do with my life and the numerous relationships I have developed around the globe. But the very fact that my experiences were all in foreign lands now makes them seem even more foreign, so much so that I keep saying "last year" in reference to senior year, as if this whole past year really was just some weird dream, after which I woke up to the very same life I was living before I left, but with some eerie feeling that it really did occur.
It is both a blessing and a curse that the Watson Foundation holds us accountable for so little at the end of our fellowship: 5 pages double spaced. Five pages double spaced!! How do I possible capture all that I want to convey in five pages? But even with that problem, how do I even begin to write it all down when at this point it still seems like pure emotion and thus every time I attempt to write I start to cry?
I guess I have to go back to Eliot on this one, who said that words fail, but ultimately, it is all in the trying. So I'll keep blogging, journaling, working towards my book and final report and eventually I'll find something at least close to the right words.
In so many ways it is as if nothing has changed since I first left nearly one year ago: Except Me. Things look the same, people act the same, food tastes the same, but me, I've got a new history of events, relationships and emotions that are now entwined with my very being. But what do I have to show for all of this besides a head full of memories and a computer full of digital photos? Experiences are fleeting, emotions are temporary and relationships are inevitably changed when you go from living with a person to monthly email exchanges.
How then do I proceed from here? I want to tell everyone each and every detail of each and every moment of my journey, but as soon as I try I hit a wall. Actually, it's more of a double edged sword: either I'm struck with the feeling that people just don't care, don't want to take the time to learn about the details of each picture, and wouldn't understand anyways, or I'm completely incapable of transforming these memories into language. It seems as if after a year of travel the most I have to show for it besides the pictures is this feeling in the pit of my stomach that I just lived a tremendous dream (or is that just indigestion?).
To you, dear reader, this probably seems utterly somber and depressing, but really it isn't. I know that in a more existential and less tangible sense that this experience was something extraordinary that will undoubtedly shape my future both in terms of what I do with my life and the numerous relationships I have developed around the globe. But the very fact that my experiences were all in foreign lands now makes them seem even more foreign, so much so that I keep saying "last year" in reference to senior year, as if this whole past year really was just some weird dream, after which I woke up to the very same life I was living before I left, but with some eerie feeling that it really did occur.
It is both a blessing and a curse that the Watson Foundation holds us accountable for so little at the end of our fellowship: 5 pages double spaced. Five pages double spaced!! How do I possible capture all that I want to convey in five pages? But even with that problem, how do I even begin to write it all down when at this point it still seems like pure emotion and thus every time I attempt to write I start to cry?
I guess I have to go back to Eliot on this one, who said that words fail, but ultimately, it is all in the trying. So I'll keep blogging, journaling, working towards my book and final report and eventually I'll find something at least close to the right words.
-From "Four Quartets" by TS EliotSo here I am, in the middle way, having had twenty years—
Twenty years largely wasted, the years of l'entre deux guerres
Trying to use words, and every attempt Is a wholly new start, and a different kind of failure.
Because one has only learnt to get the better of words
For the thing one no longer has to say, or the way in which
One is no longer disposed to say it.
And so each venture Is a new beginning, a raid on the inarticulate
With shabby equipment always deteriorating In the general mess of imprecision of feeling,
Undisciplined squads of emotion. And what there is to conquer
By strength and submission, has already been discovered
Once or twice, or several times, by men whom one cannot hope
To emulate—but there is no competition—
There is only the fight to recover what has been lost
And found and lost again and again: and now, under conditions
That seem unpropitious. But perhaps neither gain nor loss.
For us, there is only the trying. The rest is not our business.
Funny how TS had the same problem with not being able to put into new words what the great writers before him already said, but in dealing with his problem, actually said it so well that his words are what I turn to. No?
(I know...I am an Uber Dork.) cheers.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Home?
Well, I'm home....or am I? What is home? It's a question we discussed on end this past weekend at the Watson conference, but it is one that shall never truly be answered.
One question that was answered, however was, "Is Meola's as good as I've been dreaming about for a year?" The answer, "INDEED." Yes, I missed my loved ones, I missed my stuff, I missed America, but I REALLY missed my ice cream. Mmmmmm, Mint Patty Explosion! (I'm still not sure who the guy is in the picture with me).
Is home where you live? If it is...then do I not have a home as I continue my nomadic lifestyle until I find a job and a place of my own? Or do I have countless homes all over the world where I have temporarily lived, including all of the couches that have already been offered to me since I've been back? Is home still Utica, where I probably haven't spent more than two weeks at
a time in the past three years and where all my stuff from college still awaits for me to unpack it?
If home is indeed "where the heart is," then I suppose my home is just the world itself. This past year, if anything, has reaffirmed my faith in humanity itself. My mom wants me to write a book entitled, "How to Travel the World for a Year and Not Pay for a Single Night's Accomodation." But it's not all that difficult. All you have to do is reach out to the world and the world will reach back. Despite delving into so many varied projects over the course of our journeys - from "finding the perfect beat," to singing protest songs, to playing ice hockey - I realized at the conference that every Watson fellow ultimately had the same experience and came "home" with the conclusion that what we really learned over the past year had little to do with our actual research projects and everything to do with meeting wonderful people, who opened their homes and hearts to us and welcomed us into their communities without hesitation (except perhaps the Danes, who are just a wee bit hesitant at times!).
But now I'm back. The Watson journey is over and the Life Journey is just beginning. What's next? I haven't really got a clue. For now it's crashing on Caitlin's couch yet again until I find gainful employment and a place to live and although I've got many reservations about being back, fearing that life at "home" may seem utterly mundane compared to my fellowship year, I am so excited about having a place to call my own at last - unpacking my suitcase, decorating, sleeping in a BED!, knowing where everything is in the kitchen! As for employment, I've got a few resumes in to various jobs, but it seems like the front-runner is Americorps. I've got this increasing desire (especially after this year) to make whatever I do in life a means of contributing positively to the world. Yes, yes, I know that I can make a positive contribution in whatever field I choose and one can always volunteer and stuff in one's spare time, but I need to do more. Unfortunately, my fellowship year did not, as I had hoped, leave me knowing what I want to do. Rather, it's only left me more confused. I want to be a writer, I want to go to culinary school, I want to travel, I want to do something in the International Relations field. No, they're not all mutually exclusive, but the question is, "what next?" So Americorps should be good because it is a job doing meaningful work without having to do solely volunteer work or travel abroad, it will force me to make a decision when my stint is up, and it will keep me constantly aware of the world I so want to help positively impact.
There is so much more, but I want to post this before I wait any longer and it never goes up (I started it about 2 weeks ago). I shall return, perhaps having a swell new "job" to tell you about. Until then, stay safe, live well and if you want to donate any money to the "Meghan is now jobless and poor now that TJW isn't funding her life anymore Foundation" feel free to shoot me an email.
If home is indeed "where the heart is," then I suppose my home is just the world itself. This past year, if anything, has reaffirmed my faith in humanity itself. My mom wants me to write a book entitled, "How to Travel the World for a Year and Not Pay for a Single Night's Accomodation." But it's not all that difficult. All you have to do is reach out to the world and the world will reach back. Despite delving into so many varied projects over the course of our journeys - from "finding the perfect beat," to singing protest songs, to playing ice hockey - I realized at the conference that every Watson fellow ultimately had the same experience and came "home" with the conclusion that what we really learned over the past year had little to do with our actual research projects and everything to do with meeting wonderful people, who opened their homes and hearts to us and welcomed us into their communities without hesitation (except perhaps the Danes, who are just a wee bit hesitant at times!).
But now I'm back. The Watson journey is over and the Life Journey is just beginning. What's next? I haven't really got a clue. For now it's crashing on Caitlin's couch yet again until I find gainful employment and a place to live and although I've got many reservations about being back, fearing that life at "home" may seem utterly mundane compared to my fellowship year, I am so excited about having a place to call my own at last - unpacking my suitcase, decorating, sleeping in a BED!, knowing where everything is in the kitchen! As for employment, I've got a few resumes in to various jobs, but it seems like the front-runner is Americorps. I've got this increasing desire (especially after this year) to make whatever I do in life a means of contributing positively to the world. Yes, yes, I know that I can make a positive contribution in whatever field I choose and one can always volunteer and stuff in one's spare time, but I need to do more. Unfortunately, my fellowship year did not, as I had hoped, leave me knowing what I want to do. Rather, it's only left me more confused. I want to be a writer, I want to go to culinary school, I want to travel, I want to do something in the International Relations field. No, they're not all mutually exclusive, but the question is, "what next?" So Americorps should be good because it is a job doing meaningful work without having to do solely volunteer work or travel abroad, it will force me to make a decision when my stint is up, and it will keep me constantly aware of the world I so want to help positively impact.
There is so much more, but I want to post this before I wait any longer and it never goes up (I started it about 2 weeks ago). I shall return, perhaps having a swell new "job" to tell you about. Until then, stay safe, live well and if you want to donate any money to the "Meghan is now jobless and poor now that TJW isn't funding her life anymore Foundation" feel free to shoot me an email.
Friday, June 30, 2006
South Afreeeeka Again!
Ok, this is gonna be quick cause my comp is out of batteries!
New Zealand = Brilliant!!! I saw almost all of it and still that wasn't enough. Can't wait to post all of my glorious pictures, but just go and watch LOTR and know that the movies don't even compare to the real thing. And it's not just the beauty, the people are equally as amazing. It was definitely my hardest departure yet (aside from leaving home) and some tears were definitely shed.
South Africa = I'm baaack. The sun is shining and it is on bright sunny days like these that I am thankful for global warming. It's been a bit of a frustrating week, as I arrived here and learned that they're again on school holidays and hockey won't kick into gear for another 3 weeks! This does allow me to travel, so tomorrow I'm off for some hockey in Pretoria, some more hockey in Durban (about a week left in each place before their holidays) and then a wee bit o' travel down the "wild coast" and "garden route" before my FINAL week here in cape town.
That's right...less than one month left! Crikey! I was only able to get a flight on the 26th of July so I will be back quicker than I can eat a pack of TimTams. It's been and continues to be one incredible journey and I am sure this last month will be equally as wonderful. As I near the conference I am struggling to find just the right way to present my 10 minute "show and tell" at the conference in a way that is fun and informing and gets at a fraction of this wonderful trip, so i'll keep you posted (who am i kiddding? no i won't!) on my progress.
Until then, hi hi!
-meghan
(wow, that is a record for my own ability to be concise. well done, me.)
New Zealand = Brilliant!!! I saw almost all of it and still that wasn't enough. Can't wait to post all of my glorious pictures, but just go and watch LOTR and know that the movies don't even compare to the real thing. And it's not just the beauty, the people are equally as amazing. It was definitely my hardest departure yet (aside from leaving home) and some tears were definitely shed.
South Africa = I'm baaack. The sun is shining and it is on bright sunny days like these that I am thankful for global warming. It's been a bit of a frustrating week, as I arrived here and learned that they're again on school holidays and hockey won't kick into gear for another 3 weeks! This does allow me to travel, so tomorrow I'm off for some hockey in Pretoria, some more hockey in Durban (about a week left in each place before their holidays) and then a wee bit o' travel down the "wild coast" and "garden route" before my FINAL week here in cape town.
That's right...less than one month left! Crikey! I was only able to get a flight on the 26th of July so I will be back quicker than I can eat a pack of TimTams. It's been and continues to be one incredible journey and I am sure this last month will be equally as wonderful. As I near the conference I am struggling to find just the right way to present my 10 minute "show and tell" at the conference in a way that is fun and informing and gets at a fraction of this wonderful trip, so i'll keep you posted (who am i kiddding? no i won't!) on my progress.
Until then, hi hi!
-meghan
(wow, that is a record for my own ability to be concise. well done, me.)
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Eight months to the day
"Day unto day uttereth speech. The clouds change. The seasons pass over our woods and fields in their slow and regular procession, and time is gone before you are aware of it" (Thomas Merton, Seven Story Mountain).
Eight months ago, I was boarding a plane in Boston's Logan Airport, wondering just what in the hell I was getting myself into. Everyone was speaking Icelandic and I was about to arrive in Denmark, which I had to locate on a map two weeks earlier. And now, suddenly, I find myself in New Zealand, the exact opposite side of the world, dealing with a much different kind of ambivalence - torn between not wanting this fantastic journey to end and, at the same time, very much looking forward to getting home to see my friends and loved ones and to eat copious amounts of frozen yogurt at Meola's Wayside Dairy.
Fear not, though, I am still living wholly in the present, truly soaking up everything this marvellous adventure has to offer. In fact, I've been so immersed in life here that I hadn't realized that it has really been just about a month since my last update - I thought it was only a week or two ago! Perhaps this mental lapse is because of how quickly and easily I've gotten into the rhythm of life here:
I'm still with Deb and Sally, who beyond being wonderful, open, warmhearted people, also have some of the most interesting hockey stories to share, since Deb was actually the one who founded the women's league here and has been on every national team and provincial rep team in their histories (beyond that she's a national water skiing champ, and triathlete). My plan was to find my own digs, but it will probably turn out that I will just stay with them, as I'll only actually be in Christchurch for a total of two and a half weeks left, with 17 days of travel planned to start at the beginning of June.
And although I have plenty of time for relaxation and mental activity, I find myself quite busy, which I did not expect. Hockeywise, I am playing in two leagues, including a men's checking league where I feel quite accepted and respected by my teammates, who describe me as "Meghan, the girl who plays in our league and is better than all of us." I am finally at the point where I feel totally comforatble and confident with the men, though I've learned that I am a hopeless checker and its best for me to just ignore the fact that it's an aspect of the game! (I have thrown a decent number of solid hits though, and I always impress the guys when I take some huge ones too). I am, of course, also in the women's league, which consists of 4 teams, though I often play against all the same core players because we usually have trouble getting an entire roster of 10 players to show up for a team's game, so subs are called in from the other teams. I am lucky to be coached by a man named Rob, who has an equally long history with the women here, and who because of his positive coaching style and creative criticism, never has trouble getting most of his players to show. Rob actually began coaching the women 10 years ago when he was reffing the national tournament and saw that the Canterbury Rep Team (ChCh is a part of Canterbury) was hopelessly attempting to play without a coach. Rob basically stepped on the bench and said he was their new coach and he's been with the women ever since then! The level of women's hockey overall has grown quite a bit since then, but they lack the depth of talented players and dedicated players who will make their national team prosper. They are certainly limited by only getting one ice time a week and I am utterly impressed by how well these women do play and how intelligent they are about the game (as women around the world seem to be), despite that lack of ice time. So, although I kind of school everybody and try not to score too much, the games are a blast and filled with laughs and good fun and are not too painful to play with everyone slow AND out of position - just slow.
Beyond my hockey leagues, I have just begun coaching in a weekly HS development league, which is not sponsored by any schools, but is open to all local students to come. They have a few levels, and I am basically workin with the learn to skaters. Learn to skate + teenagers = hard work. My first session was a lot of fun, though, and I am glad to help in any way I can, as their current coach is doing it out of the goodness of his heart but really has a short hockey background and is dying for assistance. I am also about to start helping out coach the Tykes in the youth league, as well as some of the 9-16 yr. old teams, on which about 14 girls are playing at various levels. Unlike SA, the coaches here are volunteering, but I am happy to see that they are not only using the IIHF "Learn to Play" program, but they all exude positive enthusiasm and a real desire to have me help them and give them a few pointers as well.
Hockey-wise I have also been conducting a lot of interviews. They are all much easier to conduct here than anywhere else I've been, since most people live relatively close to the rink, and it is easier to set up with people who not only speak English as a first language, but who also are very open and willing to be interviewed. The girls often just rush in and out of the rink, so it is a great way for me to be meeting everyone since we are only there once a week together. So, basically, the rink is becoming my new home!
I am also doing a lot away from hockey as well. I began volunteering at two places - on Wednesdays I cook lunch at a Church in a low income community, where I am one of three volunteers with a group of people doing it as court-appointed community service, and I am doing casual office work for the Red Cross. I was first adverse to doing Red Cross work, thining office work wouldn't be all that rewarding, but I then recalled how much they did for us after the fire in August, and knew it was the least I could do. And what a good thing i did! I have been helping the marketing manager, who is actually working on a book of personal narratives based on oral interviews much like my own, but his focused on the 75th anniversary of the RC in NZ, so he's been great to shoot ideas off of. Plus, he's offered to help me get TV and Radio spots to talk about my research and promote hockey here, which is quite unknown. And I think I have done less work for them than I have gotten to do fun things, including a trip to the west coast, my first elite rugby game (the Crusaders!), and giong to a Maori "Marai" for a feast with a boatload of Kurdish immigrant families - plus I've even met a few hockey contacts who work there.
Other than that, I've gotten to do a lot of reading and writing, going to the gym and running, and just enjoying life. It's been raining like whoa here, but there has been enough sunshine to keep me smiling. I wouldn't call ChCh my favorite city in the world, but the people and my activities have made it a place I am sincerely loving to be. So, although I am indeed looking forward to my return to SA - and already working on setting up some power skating camps there - and thinking about my eventual return home, I am fully immersed in life here and it will be sad when the end comes, and comes sooner than I know it.
Eight months ago, I was wondering why I didn't propose to go study with a mystical guru, or something "more exciting." As it turns out,though, I have indeed walked the mystical path in a way, realizing through all the connections I am making just how connected we all really are - thus really raffirming my faith in humanity and forcing me to tap into my own "creative void" and write. Plus, as I am realizing, all of the extraordinary women I am encountering are, in fact, my gurus, showing me the kind of women I want to AND can become: creative, atheltic, adventurous, not your typical 9-5 gal! And as I continue to play and my interviews increase and I see my story reflected in theirs, and as I see the end of my playing career perhaps approaching, I am aware of how blessed I am to be able to continue to play the game that really has shaped me into the person that I am today....so if you don't like me, I suppose you can blame hockey.
Oh, and happy mothers day (belated) to all the hockey moms out there, who dragged us to rinks at 6am and sat for hours in the cold, who bought us expensive kit, and who drove us 4 hours and back to a game in the midst of snow storms.
Here's two more to keep you thinking:
"Because there is happiness only where there is coordination with the Truth, the Reality, the Act that underlies and directs all things to their essential and accidental perfections: and that is the Will of God" (Merton).
""In one sense we are always travelling, and travelling as if we did not know where we were going.
In another sense, we have already arrived" (Merton again).
Cheers,
Norm
Friday, April 21, 2006
Dang - Those Hobbits Gots Some Big Feet!
Well hello there, e-world. Can you believe it's been over a month since my last update? I think I've been putting off blogging because so much has been going on that I fear it will turn into another painfully long post for you to read. I will do my best to be brief, but be warned that they didn't call me '26 Pages' in my Tolkien seminar for nothin'.
Where in the world is Meghan O. Mahoney? Right now, I am happy to say I am in Christchurch, New Zealand, now unbelievably SEVEN MONTHS into my journey! I haven't seen any Hobbits yet, but the cat where I am staying is named Frodo.
When I last left you, I was thoroughly enjoying my stay down in Cape Town, where I made some extraordinary friends whom I'm really looking forward to seeing when I head back there in July. The highlight of my trip may have been when I was "allowed" to play with the men against a Finnish club team that had come down for some exhibition games and I went from playing third line, to not being taken off the ice and being named "Man of the Match" and acquiring a fanclub along the way. I saw almost everything there is to see on the cape peninsula, so when I go back I hope to see much more of the country itself, perhaps getting to Jo'Burg and Pretoria to see the hockey there. SA is a fascinating place. The direct juxtaposition of extreme affluence to extreme poverty is more striking than any place I have ever been and as much as I love it, it is impossible to escape the rampant political and cultural problems that still lurk as a result of apartheid.
I left SA at the very end of March and it's a good thing I did because my last weekend there the club I was playing in was actually banned from play by SA Ica Hockey Assoc. because, they claim, they let players on the ice who owed the association money (one of them only owed $3!). Basically, however, it seems that the real reason is a conflict between Cape Town and Jo'Burg and the president not wanting Cape Town players to usurp his power after seeing that he knowingly allowed the national team to take the ice while intoxicated not once, but two times, against the Finnish team. I have never seen a game so destroyed my politics as it is in SA. And it was tragic to see the young kids unable to play because of such bull. I think things have been "resolved" since then and they are at least playing once again.
After that it was off to Copenhagen for the Danish national championships, which we unfortunately lost to our rival in the final game. Win or lose, it was great to go back and see a few people one last time. Although we didn't have the big blow out party I was promised, Laura, Claus and I did have one wicked pajama party my last night there.
Then it was a mad dash for Adelaide, Australia and on the way debating having to pay 1,000 bucks for my excess luggage and at least getting it down to 150. I spent a terriffic two weeks in Adelaide, participating in a power skating clinic (the camp I was going to coach at was cancelled due to a lack of interest). I stayed with Tamra, Laura's best friend who is also a Canadian and will soon have Aussie citizenship to play for their national team, as well as her three housemates. The camp was amazing and I made good friends and travel buddies with a woman who travels the world coaching skating and coaching clinics and is basically an older, quirkier version of me. We had a terriffic time playing tourist together and, as it turns out, she wants her next stop to be Africa so I am now working on getting her down to SA with me in July since I wanted to set up a camp while there anyways. I absolutely adore Adelaide, which is a tiny but beautiful city, right on the ocean. The one thing that really struck me about Australia was just how new everything is. We think America is young, but Oz didn't even acquire independence until the 1900's. Churches stood out to me the most, especially after seeing the ancient churches in Europe and all of a sudden everything is just brand spanking new. It is different, but beautiful in its own way. The weather too was gorgeous and I must say I totally fell in love with Oz and its people and may wind up going back for a few weeks to play in a tourney (allowing me to meet a great deal of their female players) and see a bit more of the massive country.
And now I'm in New Zealand, where I've been for about three days. The weather is a beautifully crisp autumn, though I think the rains will be coming soon. Christchurch is def the center of women's hockey here - the only city with a league (about 40 players) - so although I may come to like some of the other artier and trendier cities better (this one is very British), I cam to the right place to play. I am currently staying with Deb and Sally, who are a couple that both play and help organize the league and they have been absolutely terriffic. They live just a 15 minute bike ride outside of town and right at the base of some incredible hills which I biked up yesterday to get a gorgeous view of the southern alps. I am SO looking forward to exploring the entire country but am waiting to here if sister will visit to plan my sight seeing around that. And although no sets are still up, I will be going through (hopefully) many of the areas where LOTR and Narnia were filmed and will def take some pics for my fellow dorks. (Really, I can't escape the Hobbits, as I even wound up in a bar in Cape Town called 'The One Ring,' which has maps of Middle Earth painted all over and is patronized by exactly the kind of people you would expect in a bar of that name...the drinks are super cheap though. The owner also owns "Gandolf's" Dance club and 'Middle Earth' bar, so Prof. Mulrooney, you may need to take a trip to SA).
I'll be here in NZ for at least 7 weeks depending on if I go back to Adelaide, though I may be moving in with a few other players who need temporary flat mates (lucky for me). My days will be a bit empty once again, but unlike at the start of my trip, I am quite looking forward to the freedom to read, write, run and do off-ice training, and really savor the last 14 or so weeks of my trip.
I did do my best to keep this concise, so I hope you got through it alright. I left out a ton, but you at least have the basics. I apologize to everyone I am behind on emailing and I'll do my best to progressively get back to you all. Enjoy the springing of spring as I brace myself for yet another winter!!! Toodles!
Where in the world is Meghan O. Mahoney? Right now, I am happy to say I am in Christchurch, New Zealand, now unbelievably SEVEN MONTHS into my journey! I haven't seen any Hobbits yet, but the cat where I am staying is named Frodo.
When I last left you, I was thoroughly enjoying my stay down in Cape Town, where I made some extraordinary friends whom I'm really looking forward to seeing when I head back there in July. The highlight of my trip may have been when I was "allowed" to play with the men against a Finnish club team that had come down for some exhibition games and I went from playing third line, to not being taken off the ice and being named "Man of the Match" and acquiring a fanclub along the way. I saw almost everything there is to see on the cape peninsula, so when I go back I hope to see much more of the country itself, perhaps getting to Jo'Burg and Pretoria to see the hockey there. SA is a fascinating place. The direct juxtaposition of extreme affluence to extreme poverty is more striking than any place I have ever been and as much as I love it, it is impossible to escape the rampant political and cultural problems that still lurk as a result of apartheid.
I left SA at the very end of March and it's a good thing I did because my last weekend there the club I was playing in was actually banned from play by SA Ica Hockey Assoc. because, they claim, they let players on the ice who owed the association money (one of them only owed $3!). Basically, however, it seems that the real reason is a conflict between Cape Town and Jo'Burg and the president not wanting Cape Town players to usurp his power after seeing that he knowingly allowed the national team to take the ice while intoxicated not once, but two times, against the Finnish team. I have never seen a game so destroyed my politics as it is in SA. And it was tragic to see the young kids unable to play because of such bull. I think things have been "resolved" since then and they are at least playing once again.
After that it was off to Copenhagen for the Danish national championships, which we unfortunately lost to our rival in the final game. Win or lose, it was great to go back and see a few people one last time. Although we didn't have the big blow out party I was promised, Laura, Claus and I did have one wicked pajama party my last night there.
Then it was a mad dash for Adelaide, Australia and on the way debating having to pay 1,000 bucks for my excess luggage and at least getting it down to 150. I spent a terriffic two weeks in Adelaide, participating in a power skating clinic (the camp I was going to coach at was cancelled due to a lack of interest). I stayed with Tamra, Laura's best friend who is also a Canadian and will soon have Aussie citizenship to play for their national team, as well as her three housemates. The camp was amazing and I made good friends and travel buddies with a woman who travels the world coaching skating and coaching clinics and is basically an older, quirkier version of me. We had a terriffic time playing tourist together and, as it turns out, she wants her next stop to be Africa so I am now working on getting her down to SA with me in July since I wanted to set up a camp while there anyways. I absolutely adore Adelaide, which is a tiny but beautiful city, right on the ocean. The one thing that really struck me about Australia was just how new everything is. We think America is young, but Oz didn't even acquire independence until the 1900's. Churches stood out to me the most, especially after seeing the ancient churches in Europe and all of a sudden everything is just brand spanking new. It is different, but beautiful in its own way. The weather too was gorgeous and I must say I totally fell in love with Oz and its people and may wind up going back for a few weeks to play in a tourney (allowing me to meet a great deal of their female players) and see a bit more of the massive country.
And now I'm in New Zealand, where I've been for about three days. The weather is a beautifully crisp autumn, though I think the rains will be coming soon. Christchurch is def the center of women's hockey here - the only city with a league (about 40 players) - so although I may come to like some of the other artier and trendier cities better (this one is very British), I cam to the right place to play. I am currently staying with Deb and Sally, who are a couple that both play and help organize the league and they have been absolutely terriffic. They live just a 15 minute bike ride outside of town and right at the base of some incredible hills which I biked up yesterday to get a gorgeous view of the southern alps. I am SO looking forward to exploring the entire country but am waiting to here if sister will visit to plan my sight seeing around that. And although no sets are still up, I will be going through (hopefully) many of the areas where LOTR and Narnia were filmed and will def take some pics for my fellow dorks. (Really, I can't escape the Hobbits, as I even wound up in a bar in Cape Town called 'The One Ring,' which has maps of Middle Earth painted all over and is patronized by exactly the kind of people you would expect in a bar of that name...the drinks are super cheap though. The owner also owns "Gandolf's" Dance club and 'Middle Earth' bar, so Prof. Mulrooney, you may need to take a trip to SA).
I'll be here in NZ for at least 7 weeks depending on if I go back to Adelaide, though I may be moving in with a few other players who need temporary flat mates (lucky for me). My days will be a bit empty once again, but unlike at the start of my trip, I am quite looking forward to the freedom to read, write, run and do off-ice training, and really savor the last 14 or so weeks of my trip.
I did do my best to keep this concise, so I hope you got through it alright. I left out a ton, but you at least have the basics. I apologize to everyone I am behind on emailing and I'll do my best to progressively get back to you all. Enjoy the springing of spring as I brace myself for yet another winter!!! Toodles!
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Hello From Afreeeeeka!
Has It Really Been A Month?! Crikey!!!! Funny how the more I have to blog, the less I actually do so, eh?
In brief, the Olympics were incredible! I met up in Milan with one scally-capped David M. Quinn and we set off for quite an Italian adventure. (And if Sharona Quinn is reading this please take note that I am utterly infuriated with you for purchasing said cap for Mr. Quinn after I searched high and low for one in Ireland, only to have you give him one first.)
Because of the ridiculous prices in Turin, we only stayed one day and saw the US beat Switzerland 7-0. SUI put up a surprising fight and their goalie was phenomenal, but they couldn't keep up with the US late in the game and eventually broke. It was definitely cool to sit in a section with all the American parents and see how proud they were - and to even be able to tell them that I used to play against their daughters (they would of course skate circles around me). Although I of course wanted the states to do well, I was so thrilled that they were beaten by Sweden...especially since I played against almost half of their team in the European Cup. I actually didn't find out about it until I got back to Denmark, as we were completely away from the TV, but luckily Laura taped all the games, so I was able to watch when I stayed with her for my last few weeks there. What a game, eh?! This is def huge for women's hockey as it may incite countries to pump more money into their women's programs, now seeing that competition is possible. It's especially big for Scandanavia, in particular. We saw Sweden take on Canada in an exhibition game back in October and they lost something like 10-0...and to get to beating the US and then only losing 4-0 to Canada in the gold medal game is quite an accomplishment, especially since their development funding is laughable according to their coach. This win could thus do a lot for their budget. PLUS, the coverage was terriffic - in both Denmark and Sweden every women's game was shown at least once in its entirety, meaning that a lot of girls had the opportunity to watch and fall in love with the game and a lot of current players were able to see that if they keep working hard they can indeed keep up with the powerhouses. It was also awesome to watch the gold medal game with Laura, whose name was mentioned many times by the Danish broadcasters as they discussed her team's potential for the Vancouver 2010 Games (her home country!). I've already told her that if they go I expect a spot on their staff roster and if not I will attend anyways to see Michelle, our 15 yr old Finnish all-star and Heikki's daughter, who was the last player cut from Finland's team merely because of her age and who will undoubtedly be in the next games.
Italy itself was simply amazing. I had no idea that i would love it that much! Rome is truly "Romantic" in every sense and I delighted in meandering through the city streets, where you couldn't help but stumble upon beautiful ruins and statues and the like. And it's all so huge!! When I next get my own comp online I will certainly post pictures. Florence was also captivating and a great contrast to Rome for its small city feel. And the food!!! Wow! KRems def would have been proud of me for following her advice and eating carbs like a true champ. I am now in love with risotto, seafood pasta, seafood risotto, bruchetta, rabbit, red wine, and GELATO. And, of course, I'm even more in love with pizza than ever. We had a few "minor" setbacks with the train system and shelled out a hell of a lot of money on Trenitalia, but luckily money is just money and a 6 hour train ride sitting on your bag in a hallway of a crappy, overstuffed, secondclass car when you payed for a first class sleeper carriage isn't all that terrible. The week luckily didn't pass too quickly but it was def sad to say goodbye to Italy....oh, and Dave, too.
My last few weeks in Denmark were filled with real happiness. Unfortunately a good deal of our games got cancelled, but I did spend a weekend coaching the national team at their most recent samling, during which they played a number of games. They are really progressing wonderfully, thanks in large part to Laura's dedication and the terriffic job she is doing in obtaining increased ice time for them. Although they are 14 in the world, competition is close for the teams that will be battling to get into Vancouver and with 4 years to improve their chances are improving every day. As I mentioned, I spent those weeks with Laura and her gentleman friend Claus and had a terriffic time hanging with them, cooking for them, painting their apartment and, most importantly, implementing the "Gold Star Board" to reward good behavior (i.e. cleaning and doing the dishes)...though I fear that being gone three weeks will make me terribly behind in the competition. I didn't really have a big goodbye when I left, knowing that I will be back for the national championships in April and have scheduled myslef a day to recover from the big goodbye/victory celebration before leaving for Australia.
And where am I know? CAPE TOWN!!! I arrived last Wednesday to Cape Town after an awful 24 hour layover in London (never ask British public transportation agents for help in finding your destination as it appears they just lie to you and send you to whatever train station they like the name of) and a long ass flight through Qatar and Jo'Burg. The flight did give me time to catch up on my movie watching, including the new Harry Potter and Elizabethtown, which I highly recommend if you really want to cry yourself some happy tears.
And CAPE TOWN!!! Wowwy wow wow wow. It's unbelivable how much a little sunshine will change your mood, that's for sure. My skin didn't know what that bright thing in the sky was and proceeded to burn a bit, but I am finally beginning to get some color and almost look like a living human being again. After some failed phone calls and my mother thinking I was dead in the streets of Cape Town, I managed to hook up with my contacts here and am set up both on the ice and off. I am currently staying with Bobby and Kirsty, a couple about my age, both of whom play at the Western Province club; they are in the running with Beaud-lose and Steve-o for my favorite couple ever. Completely opposite of my first weeks in Denmark, I feel completely at home and at ease and have nonstop conversations covering everything from hockey to politics and religion with them. As a whole, the people here are so cool and laid back - definitely the "warmth" that was missing in Denmark at times. Oh, and they eat with their hands!!!
Hockey down here is frustrating, to say the least. The club is obviously very small and is getting smaller every day. Apparently they once actually had a pro mens league down here that did quite well, but it eventually failed. And although there once was a women's team here, there aren't enough women any more so the girls are just mixed up on the guys teams. Unlike clubs in America, this one club is comprised of multiple teams which play eachother in weekly matches (since there are no other clubs close by).All of the teams practice with their age divisions and one coach runs the whole thing. The ladies play in the Intermediate A division, which is basically 14-18 year olds. There is also a younger division and a senior men's league. I have been practicing both with the men and our division and will be helping coach the kids, which is now much easier since the kids understand what i am saying. The men have quite a range of skill and it's good to practice with them and get some fast-paced play under my belt before the Danish championships. OH! And we play in a Casino...so I walk into the building, send my sticks and bag through an xray machine as I walk through a metal detector before walking down a garden-filled corridor to classical music, and then walk by a slew of fast food joints (very tempting after a few hours on the ice), before heading into the absolutely beautiful new rink...very bizarre. And, yes, the rink is hot as Africa and I sweat my brains out. If you want to find out a bit more about the club, you can check it out at www.icehockey.co.za. It was just updated the other day, which I think is quite a rare occurrence. The guy on the front page is Marc, my initial contact here who has set everything up for me and is a great guy who is really passionate about developing hockey here and keeping politics out of the rink (which is something that happens more here than I've ever seen before).
Development is the biggest problem here, as there is none (both on the men's and women's side). I, like most players I've spoken with, am already utterly frustrated with the coach at the club (a former Scottish player and citizen) who is paid full time to coach and not only does an awful job coaching (they rarely do any drills and just scrimmage with no guidance), but is abusive and foul-mouthed and cares very little for actually teaching his players. And apparently the women's national team coach is even worse and has caused over half of the team to quit recently. My new goals include running off ice sessions with the ladies here so they can actually learn, as well as finding out how I can put in to take over for these awful coaches! I have meetings with the SA Ice Hockey president and the women's team rep this weekend when they come down for some national team exhibition games against a Finnish club team and am interested to hear what their concept of development is. I will also be able to attend a ladies meeting with the women's rep, during which they will discuss the national team coach and how no girls will play if the current coach is rehired...so maybe there will indeed be an opening to lead their team in the world championships next March!!! I definitely picked the right time to come here, as well. Apparently, women's hockey is much "bigger" in Jo'Burg and Pretoria, so I may schedule some visits up there when I come back here in July (that's also where the national coach is and it would certainly be interesting to see how bad he actually is).
Other than that, I've been taking my time doing the "tourist thing" and have done some Apartheid museums and went to Robben Island where Mandela was imprisoned. I am fascinatated by the rich history here and am planning on reading up on it while I'm here. I am also learning a lot about cricket and was fortunate that the first game I watched was said to be the greatest match ever played.
In other random news, I had my first (and probably last) paintball experience on Sunday (sorry, I'm a lover not a fighter). I spent yesterday at a wildlife rescue owned by a teammate and her husband (also a player) and played with babboons all day long...I now know why there is an expression about having a "monkey on your back." Pictures of this will def follow as well.
Ok, this utterly long update is now over. I am off to turn in my second quarterly report, which I was able to keep within 10 pages on the first draft this time. I have two more weeks here in SA, filled with hockey, a wine tour and a tour of the cape, some sunset views - the sunsets are the world's best here! - on the beach and on top of Table Mt. (the huge Mt. righti in the center of cape town), and more living the life.
I close with some of my new favorite words for your learning pleasure:
Kit = Hockey equipment (equipment in general / bags)
Hectic = Wow (As, in, "that's totally hectic")
Kiff = Good ("Are you kiff, man?" or "It would be kiff if you handed me that [insert object of interest here]."
I hope you enjoyed today's lesson.
Until next time, i remain yours in South Africa,
Meghan
In brief, the Olympics were incredible! I met up in Milan with one scally-capped David M. Quinn and we set off for quite an Italian adventure. (And if Sharona Quinn is reading this please take note that I am utterly infuriated with you for purchasing said cap for Mr. Quinn after I searched high and low for one in Ireland, only to have you give him one first.)
Because of the ridiculous prices in Turin, we only stayed one day and saw the US beat Switzerland 7-0. SUI put up a surprising fight and their goalie was phenomenal, but they couldn't keep up with the US late in the game and eventually broke. It was definitely cool to sit in a section with all the American parents and see how proud they were - and to even be able to tell them that I used to play against their daughters (they would of course skate circles around me). Although I of course wanted the states to do well, I was so thrilled that they were beaten by Sweden...especially since I played against almost half of their team in the European Cup. I actually didn't find out about it until I got back to Denmark, as we were completely away from the TV, but luckily Laura taped all the games, so I was able to watch when I stayed with her for my last few weeks there. What a game, eh?! This is def huge for women's hockey as it may incite countries to pump more money into their women's programs, now seeing that competition is possible. It's especially big for Scandanavia, in particular. We saw Sweden take on Canada in an exhibition game back in October and they lost something like 10-0...and to get to beating the US and then only losing 4-0 to Canada in the gold medal game is quite an accomplishment, especially since their development funding is laughable according to their coach. This win could thus do a lot for their budget. PLUS, the coverage was terriffic - in both Denmark and Sweden every women's game was shown at least once in its entirety, meaning that a lot of girls had the opportunity to watch and fall in love with the game and a lot of current players were able to see that if they keep working hard they can indeed keep up with the powerhouses. It was also awesome to watch the gold medal game with Laura, whose name was mentioned many times by the Danish broadcasters as they discussed her team's potential for the Vancouver 2010 Games (her home country!). I've already told her that if they go I expect a spot on their staff roster and if not I will attend anyways to see Michelle, our 15 yr old Finnish all-star and Heikki's daughter, who was the last player cut from Finland's team merely because of her age and who will undoubtedly be in the next games.
Italy itself was simply amazing. I had no idea that i would love it that much! Rome is truly "Romantic" in every sense and I delighted in meandering through the city streets, where you couldn't help but stumble upon beautiful ruins and statues and the like. And it's all so huge!! When I next get my own comp online I will certainly post pictures. Florence was also captivating and a great contrast to Rome for its small city feel. And the food!!! Wow! KRems def would have been proud of me for following her advice and eating carbs like a true champ. I am now in love with risotto, seafood pasta, seafood risotto, bruchetta, rabbit, red wine, and GELATO. And, of course, I'm even more in love with pizza than ever. We had a few "minor" setbacks with the train system and shelled out a hell of a lot of money on Trenitalia, but luckily money is just money and a 6 hour train ride sitting on your bag in a hallway of a crappy, overstuffed, secondclass car when you payed for a first class sleeper carriage isn't all that terrible. The week luckily didn't pass too quickly but it was def sad to say goodbye to Italy....oh, and Dave, too.
My last few weeks in Denmark were filled with real happiness. Unfortunately a good deal of our games got cancelled, but I did spend a weekend coaching the national team at their most recent samling, during which they played a number of games. They are really progressing wonderfully, thanks in large part to Laura's dedication and the terriffic job she is doing in obtaining increased ice time for them. Although they are 14 in the world, competition is close for the teams that will be battling to get into Vancouver and with 4 years to improve their chances are improving every day. As I mentioned, I spent those weeks with Laura and her gentleman friend Claus and had a terriffic time hanging with them, cooking for them, painting their apartment and, most importantly, implementing the "Gold Star Board" to reward good behavior (i.e. cleaning and doing the dishes)...though I fear that being gone three weeks will make me terribly behind in the competition. I didn't really have a big goodbye when I left, knowing that I will be back for the national championships in April and have scheduled myslef a day to recover from the big goodbye/victory celebration before leaving for Australia.
And where am I know? CAPE TOWN!!! I arrived last Wednesday to Cape Town after an awful 24 hour layover in London (never ask British public transportation agents for help in finding your destination as it appears they just lie to you and send you to whatever train station they like the name of) and a long ass flight through Qatar and Jo'Burg. The flight did give me time to catch up on my movie watching, including the new Harry Potter and Elizabethtown, which I highly recommend if you really want to cry yourself some happy tears.
And CAPE TOWN!!! Wowwy wow wow wow. It's unbelivable how much a little sunshine will change your mood, that's for sure. My skin didn't know what that bright thing in the sky was and proceeded to burn a bit, but I am finally beginning to get some color and almost look like a living human being again. After some failed phone calls and my mother thinking I was dead in the streets of Cape Town, I managed to hook up with my contacts here and am set up both on the ice and off. I am currently staying with Bobby and Kirsty, a couple about my age, both of whom play at the Western Province club; they are in the running with Beaud-lose and Steve-o for my favorite couple ever. Completely opposite of my first weeks in Denmark, I feel completely at home and at ease and have nonstop conversations covering everything from hockey to politics and religion with them. As a whole, the people here are so cool and laid back - definitely the "warmth" that was missing in Denmark at times. Oh, and they eat with their hands!!!
Hockey down here is frustrating, to say the least. The club is obviously very small and is getting smaller every day. Apparently they once actually had a pro mens league down here that did quite well, but it eventually failed. And although there once was a women's team here, there aren't enough women any more so the girls are just mixed up on the guys teams. Unlike clubs in America, this one club is comprised of multiple teams which play eachother in weekly matches (since there are no other clubs close by).All of the teams practice with their age divisions and one coach runs the whole thing. The ladies play in the Intermediate A division, which is basically 14-18 year olds. There is also a younger division and a senior men's league. I have been practicing both with the men and our division and will be helping coach the kids, which is now much easier since the kids understand what i am saying. The men have quite a range of skill and it's good to practice with them and get some fast-paced play under my belt before the Danish championships. OH! And we play in a Casino...so I walk into the building, send my sticks and bag through an xray machine as I walk through a metal detector before walking down a garden-filled corridor to classical music, and then walk by a slew of fast food joints (very tempting after a few hours on the ice), before heading into the absolutely beautiful new rink...very bizarre. And, yes, the rink is hot as Africa and I sweat my brains out. If you want to find out a bit more about the club, you can check it out at www.icehockey.co.za. It was just updated the other day, which I think is quite a rare occurrence. The guy on the front page is Marc, my initial contact here who has set everything up for me and is a great guy who is really passionate about developing hockey here and keeping politics out of the rink (which is something that happens more here than I've ever seen before).
Development is the biggest problem here, as there is none (both on the men's and women's side). I, like most players I've spoken with, am already utterly frustrated with the coach at the club (a former Scottish player and citizen) who is paid full time to coach and not only does an awful job coaching (they rarely do any drills and just scrimmage with no guidance), but is abusive and foul-mouthed and cares very little for actually teaching his players. And apparently the women's national team coach is even worse and has caused over half of the team to quit recently. My new goals include running off ice sessions with the ladies here so they can actually learn, as well as finding out how I can put in to take over for these awful coaches! I have meetings with the SA Ice Hockey president and the women's team rep this weekend when they come down for some national team exhibition games against a Finnish club team and am interested to hear what their concept of development is. I will also be able to attend a ladies meeting with the women's rep, during which they will discuss the national team coach and how no girls will play if the current coach is rehired...so maybe there will indeed be an opening to lead their team in the world championships next March!!! I definitely picked the right time to come here, as well. Apparently, women's hockey is much "bigger" in Jo'Burg and Pretoria, so I may schedule some visits up there when I come back here in July (that's also where the national coach is and it would certainly be interesting to see how bad he actually is).
Other than that, I've been taking my time doing the "tourist thing" and have done some Apartheid museums and went to Robben Island where Mandela was imprisoned. I am fascinatated by the rich history here and am planning on reading up on it while I'm here. I am also learning a lot about cricket and was fortunate that the first game I watched was said to be the greatest match ever played.
In other random news, I had my first (and probably last) paintball experience on Sunday (sorry, I'm a lover not a fighter). I spent yesterday at a wildlife rescue owned by a teammate and her husband (also a player) and played with babboons all day long...I now know why there is an expression about having a "monkey on your back." Pictures of this will def follow as well.
Ok, this utterly long update is now over. I am off to turn in my second quarterly report, which I was able to keep within 10 pages on the first draft this time. I have two more weeks here in SA, filled with hockey, a wine tour and a tour of the cape, some sunset views - the sunsets are the world's best here! - on the beach and on top of Table Mt. (the huge Mt. righti in the center of cape town), and more living the life.
I close with some of my new favorite words for your learning pleasure:
Kit = Hockey equipment (equipment in general / bags)
Hectic = Wow (As, in, "that's totally hectic")
Kiff = Good ("Are you kiff, man?" or "It would be kiff if you handed me that [insert object of interest here]."
I hope you enjoyed today's lesson.
Until next time, i remain yours in South Africa,
Meghan
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
A Quick Hello Before I Go
Here we see some lovely photos of the team warming up. Normally we just stand in a circle and not on bleachers, but I kind of like the way the one on the bottom looks sort of like dancers in a musical, no? (and we all know I wish life was a musical). And the top is our team huddle, where we clap and yell "whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" (I know, my powers for description are captivating.)
Onwards: I am such a poet, eh? (Re: my title. "Eh?" I'm also turning into a Canadian thanks to Laura. And, coupled with my tiny bit of Danish and all the catch phrases I'm sure to pick up everywhere else, I should have one interesting dialect upon my return to the US).
Onwards: Denmark. Who knew it existed until I came here? And now look how "famous" it is. I think it's a good thing I'm leaving soon! Though I haven't seen anything myself I know there are a lot of protests going on around here and there are a lot more police sirens than usual. I had a really interesting chat with, Bodil, one of my "interviewees" today over lunch. She actually is an Anthro. student studying the Islamic experience in France and a bit in Denmark so has a learned and insightful perspective. As she put it, it's just become a lot of stupid people saying a lot of stupid things and not listening to one another. I'm not really concerned about my safety, but I never really am when these sorts of things occur (what does that mean, Caitlin?), so perhaps it is good that I'll be out of here for good in a few weeks....if there is some sort of attack it better not happen at the airport and popular train stations that I'm always going through, that's for darned sure.
Onwards: life is good. This is my last night at Tine's before I head to Italy. I've had a terriffic time shadowing her and really becoming one of the fam...and definitely loving the fact that they all speak English.
Hockey is great! I still can't get over how well I'm playing! Some wall has broken where I no longer have to really think about the technical aspects of the new skills Heikki is teaching me and it's all coming really naturally. He and Tine are really impressed as well and the other day he laughed as he said to me, through translation of course, that he bet I never would have thought I'd come to a tiny hockey country like Denmark and learn so much. True that, Heikki.
Onwards: I'm really getting into the coaching life. Though it makes me certain I want to keep playing because just watching is not enough, I really love being able to help other girls learn. I've donned the coach's cap for the past 3 weekends, first at the national camp, then they camp I set up in Jutland, and this past weekend I coached the younger girls on our own team at a local tournament. The first stringers took the weekend off from the tournament in order to give the younger girls a chance to play as much as possible and make the competition more equal, since it usually isn't among these teams. It was a wise choice and the teams we usually beat 20-0 wound up coming out within a few goals of us. One of the main problems facing DEVELOPMENT here (which is what I'm studying after all) is the club mentality: Clubs only want to develop their own players and WIN. Thus, Heikki at times will sit some of the weaker girls during games when we're already up by double digits, just so the top players can practice and resultantly humiliate the other team. The clubs then wind up hating each other and no one thinks about the development of the national program. I'm so glad that didn't happen this weekend.
I also had a real break through in my personal relationships with the younger girls...who it seems are FINALLY comfortable enough to talk to me. Yeah, wait until I leave in two weeks, thanks gals! It's great though, and some girls who just giggled around me before are now talking my ear off. I know it's time to move on, but it will definitely be hard, and strange to say goodbye for good....I mean, this could be a kind of "forever" goodbye that I don't want to think about.
Upwards: I've been working on another "samling" in Jutland and was able to get ice for next week, which is incredible for Denmark. But, again, the lack of concern for development strikes again: I'll be in Italy so I need to find coaches, but they just don't care. I finally found a national team player willing to help out, but it might be two late and 4 good hours of ice time will probably be wasted because the Jutland coaches in particular aren't in it for the betterment of their players as a whole.
Eslewards: (new word?) Well, I'm honing my PR skills by writing university recommendation letters for some of Laura's national players and really enjoying it (that's the English major in me of course), I'm honing my baking skills by baking banana bread like whoa (Nicholas said it was the best cake he had ever tasted as he and his sister proceeded to eat an entire loaf in one sitting), I'm still pushing my essay contest and have decided that if I get enough entries I may start another website as a place where I'll put all the self-written stories I gather from the different countries, and I am of course getting psyched up for Italy (I leave Friday!). Like I mentioned, I'll be meeting up with some guy I know from back home so it will probably be nice to catch up with him a bit. Then it's back here for two more weeks and off to Africa (said in the fun African way like Becky Mahoney-Phillips)!!!!
And in conclusion: Congrats again to my HoCroWoHo Seniors!!! Well done on a super career (though I know it's not over yet...especially since I've also made the decision that each of you will come to Europe and play for a bit before taking on 'the real world'). And some advice to everyone else: do yourselves a favor and go cheer them on at the ECAC Open Tournament at the Hart Center the last weekend in February....send VBs my love and tell him I'll be back to coach with a slew of foreign recruits.
Peace, love, puck,
19
PS: Don't let me forget to tell you about Ulla - former national team coach, breast cancer survivor and living inspiration who was told she's never play again and now is able to come back every once in a while and remind everyone that we play because we love it.
Saturday, January 28, 2006
As Bono Once Sang....
"It's been a while"
"Sending you a smile from Transylvania"
Superfluous Superfluous Redundancy. Now THAT'S Superflous!
So. In summation:
-Right before Christmas - while riding my bike home from a good lift with Laura, I'm struck by a strange sensation. What is it? I thought. Hey, that's happiness! For the first time, I've found a group of friends with whome I actually can relate to. Though each friend brings out a different of my varied qualities, it is amazing to have realized such friendships and connections I have barely before realized while being an ocean away from home.
-Christmas = Excellent.
-Reunion with Caitlin and Tibi = Phenomenal. It was such a relief to just feel completely comfortable again.
-Budapest = Beautiful. Apparently there's a lot mroe to it than an ice rink and a shady hotel.
-Transylvania = Food. And lots of it. At least 2.5 kilos worth.
-Things that make me happy on Christmas = hershey kisses from grandma; Holy Cross hockey pucks from Dean Peace.
-New Years Eve = Failing to find a single pair of shoes in all of Transylvania into which I could slide my enormous feet. Good times, lots of dancing and lots of champagne nonetheless.
-Transylvania = Citadels. Churches. Food. Citadels. Churches. Food. Dance parties. Gotta love Tibi. I brought my running shoes, but instead of working out I did the next best thing and ate 5 pieces of cake at every meal.
-Copenhagen = Caitlin learns the Spaniard was right: It's fuckin cold in Denmark. And dark.
-And I'm Back = Hurting a bit getting back into shape, but I'm about there now. Semi got ousted from my living arrangement (it really came down to giving my hosts some space), and now I'm moving from place to place with different teammates. However, it's all good and so much better for learning about the women about whom I want to write. The past two weeks I've been living with Tine Perry, female hockey icon in Denmark and following her as she coaches/watches/gets up at 7am with her kids, go to practice and talk all day with her. And work out. A lot. God bless mothers and all that they do. And she's got an American husband and thus English speaking kids and a kick ass electronic cappucino machine to boot.
-Hockey = better all the time. The season's at a lull, but I feel incredible out there and am amazed by how much I'm improving. AND now there's a new american..former Brown player (current junior) here studying for the semester. now I'm not the new kid anymore and can actually show someone else the ropes!
-"Research" = beyond learning about Tine, I spent last weekend helping coach at the national team camp for 4 days and this weekend was the day camp I had for all of the potential national players in Jutland. A HUGE success I'll talk more on soon. (I swear!).
-Time = Almost up! Can't believe it, but I've only got 4 weeks in Denmark plus one more in the middle when I'm meeting up with some guy in Italy to watch the Olympics....and maybe do some sight-seeing too. And by maybe, I mean Rome, Florence and Venice.
-Sunshine = forecasted for August 3rd...conference at Davidson College...right near lake NORMAN. Here comes the sun, little darlin. And honestly, now that it's time to leave Denmark, the sun is finally coming up earlier than 10am and staying out more than 30 min. WTF?!
-And how are you, dear readers?
The only good dance p
arties are 80's dance parties....but I do like that new Black Eyed Peas song about "my lovely lady lumps." And by like, I mean: "are these people SERIOUSLY SERIOUS?" Unfortunately, the answer is yes.
1940's Black and White Movie Kiss in a certifiably "romantic" setting in Transylvania....Stoker and Shelley would have been eating their hearts out (or at least sucking the blood out of! bahdaboom i'm good!...and it turns out Stoker never even WENT to transylvania!
"Sending you a smile from Transylvania"
Superfluous Superfluous Redundancy. Now THAT'S Superflous!
So. In summation:
-Right before Christmas - while riding my bike home from a good lift with Laura, I'm struck by a strange sensation. What is it? I thought. Hey, that's happiness! For the first time, I've found a group of friends with whome I actually can relate to. Though each friend brings out a different of my varied qualities, it is amazing to have realized such friendships and connections I have barely before realized while being an ocean away from home.
-Christmas = Excellent.
-Reunion with Caitlin and Tibi = Phenomenal. It was such a relief to just feel completely comfortable again.
-Budapest = Beautiful. Apparently there's a lot mroe to it than an ice rink and a shady hotel.
-Transylvania = Food. And lots of it. At least 2.5 kilos worth.
-Things that make me happy on Christmas = hershey kisses from grandma; Holy Cross hockey pucks from Dean Peace.
-New Years Eve = Failing to find a single pair of shoes in all of Transylvania into which I could slide my enormous feet. Good times, lots of dancing and lots of champagne nonetheless.
-Transylvania = Citadels. Churches. Food. Citadels. Churches. Food. Dance parties. Gotta love Tibi. I brought my running shoes, but instead of working out I did the next best thing and ate 5 pieces of cake at every meal.
-Copenhagen = Caitlin learns the Spaniard was right: It's fuckin cold in Denmark. And dark.
-And I'm Back = Hurting a bit getting back into shape, but I'm about there now. Semi got ousted from my living arrangement (it really came down to giving my hosts some space), and now I'm moving from place to place with different teammates. However, it's all good and so much better for learning about the women about whom I want to write. The past two weeks I've been living with Tine Perry, female hockey icon in Denmark and following her as she coaches/watches/gets up at 7am with her kids, go to practice and talk all day with her. And work out. A lot. God bless mothers and all that they do. And she's got an American husband and thus English speaking kids and a kick ass electronic cappucino machine to boot.
-Hockey = better all the time. The season's at a lull, but I feel incredible out there and am amazed by how much I'm improving. AND now there's a new american..former Brown player (current junior) here studying for the semester. now I'm not the new kid anymore and can actually show someone else the ropes!
-"Research" = beyond learning about Tine, I spent last weekend helping coach at the national team camp for 4 days and this weekend was the day camp I had for all of the potential national players in Jutland. A HUGE success I'll talk more on soon. (I swear!).
-Time = Almost up! Can't believe it, but I've only got 4 weeks in Denmark plus one more in the middle when I'm meeting up with some guy in Italy to watch the Olympics....and maybe do some sight-seeing too. And by maybe, I mean Rome, Florence and Venice.
-Sunshine = forecasted for August 3rd...conference at Davidson College...right near lake NORMAN. Here comes the sun, little darlin. And honestly, now that it's time to leave Denmark, the sun is finally coming up earlier than 10am and staying out more than 30 min. WTF?!
-And how are you, dear readers?
The only good dance p
arties are 80's dance parties....but I do like that new Black Eyed Peas song about "my lovely lady lumps." And by like, I mean: "are these people SERIOUSLY SERIOUS?" Unfortunately, the answer is yes.1940's Black and White Movie Kiss in a certifiably "romantic" setting in Transylvania....Stoker and Shelley would have been eating their hearts out (or at least sucking the blood out of! bahdaboom i'm good!...and it turns out Stoker never even WENT to transylvania!
Monday, January 16, 2006
This one's for Prof. Cull...
Don't worry, I have indeed tried the "fine Danish beers," though they're nothing compared to the fine Transylvanian wines, that's for sure. 
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