5-a-side tournament

Right, the last match I’ve played was… long forgotten, possibly more than 3 years since I wore my Fingersave Adidas gloves diving between the posts. I’ve agreed to play with work because it sounds ‘fun’, turned out the ‘fun’ involved waking up at 8:30am, get onto a grassy field and get our arses kicked, painfully.

I was one of the earlier arrivals, having stopped at a cashpoint for money I drove leisurely through Wilmslow and towards Warford, I soaked the sun and woke up the best I could. Chris, his son Andy and wife Mary turned up, Andy the boss followed… then Brendan, then… a call from Emma, turned out her boyfriend Ady wasn’t available at all and with one sub short already we were down to NO sub at all. We quickly scanned the field and realised how unprepared we were. Only one other team had no sub but they were young. In fact most of the players on the field were young, powerful and 6ft plus. 

Rules, 10 minutes each end of the pitch, three groups, 4 games each in group stages so that’s 80 minutes of football in total.

1st game, lost 1-0
We started first against the team with no sub, they beat us 1-0 courtesy of a silly pass across our defensive line from Brendan, they nicked it in the middle and slot it past me. Did some good saves to keep us 1-0 down, we had chances but didn’t score. I was rusty, the muscles above my knees were sore because I haven’t done much crouching for a while! Could have made it a draw if we didn’t miss the chances.

2nd game, lost 3-1
This was the A team, there is a B team in another group! They were good and attacked in threes, I’m best at one-on-ones or shot-stopping but it was too much for me when they swarmed forward. We scored! We only scored because their keeper slipped. We had one or two chances but missed the lot, we were VERY wasteful up front. They utilised their subs in the scorching heat, while everyone was struggling.

3rd game, lost 2-0
This game was against an aggressive team, one went in hard against Brendan, then another clattered him – it blew up and we had to separate them, those guys were unnecessarily physical because we were shit and did nothing to aggravate them. Brendan’s calf had an abrasion about 5 inches long! It’s stupid really cos it’s a charity match and everyone was friendly, families and kids around enjoying the matches. The first goal was blasted at me from the edge of my area, nearly took my head off. It was taken by their thuggish forward who walked around like he wanted a fight. Second goal came from 2 vs me, I couldn’t stop it. It was a forgettable game, I got closed down really quickly and couldn’t distribute my balls to a very tired team, no one ran. Again, they had two subs and used them accordingly.

It was a HOT day, the sun was unrelenting and I’m burnt to crisp standing around. Thank fuck I wasn’t doing the running against these lads. We had a two long breaks (watching two matches) and the aggressive team used the same bullying tactics against the A team who were very fair and friendly, so after a bad tackle you sensed they knew what was going on and decided to PLAY and whooped them – it was a joy to watch because despite the aggression, the other team had skills, speed and were a much better side. Twice they scored from near the half way line, these guys weren’t having it and beat them by a fair few goals.

What was strange today, no-one took a shot at me from distance, I didn’t have to do anything too acrobatic. Then again our defence was probably so loose they just walked it in! Which is what happened! 

By the third game my shoulders and elbows were aching from hard impact with the ground, I did skid around a lot making sure the inbound ball wasn’t on target. I was probably the busiest keeper in the whole tournament, the oppositions praised me. Well, I was busy keeping their shots out.

Ok 4th game, lost 8-0
Yup. This was a whooper, they scored 6 in the first ten minutes running past my defenders like they weren’t there, this team had good teamwork and simply slipped to the other guy to slot it home. It happened three times and I think they felt sorry and slowed down lol. Andy had a groin injury and didn’t run much, Chris was knackered. In second half twice I saved from a one-on-one, one save with my shoulder, it was nice of them to spare us the torture. These guys put the subs on, even their own supporters have stopped cheering because we were that crap! 

It was over, 2pm it was done. We were shattered and just went home, my legs are ok now but arms are the worst. They were setting up the quarters, but we couldn’t be arsed hanging around anymore.

Oh yeh, what was special about this tournament was they had the Premier League trophy there plus two bulky guards, one angry-looking Scotsman and his apprentice – a slightly less angrier Scotsman I’m presuming. It had blue ribbons on but no engravings yet, they’re doing it tomorrow. I’ve noticed most of the engravings were ‘Manchester United’. Damn straight! It was beautifully polished, a gleaming trophy, really impressed. I told the guards I’ll take a picture of it when the ribbons are red again. He didn’t even smile, I think he’s immune to happy thoughts. Walk away Sam walk away…

I had a fantastic drive back to my parents, dropped my car off and slowly limped to the station, it was HOT! Got into town and met Kev D up for a brief chat, it was 5pm when I limped back to my flat with a pizza. Too tired to cook or do anything! What a quick weekend, I had the 10km last Sunday, Friday night was out until midnight, Saturday was out during the day by the canal then went home, today been up since 8am…

Next weekend I’m doing VERY LITTLE! 

Oooooh Soccer Aid is on ITV now, great to see ex footballers back, like Van Der Sar, Jaap Stam, Roy Keane and Teddy Sheringham back at Old Trafford – SO HAPPY!

Bupa Manchester 10km

It was ok, my aim was always under an hour so it’s satisfactory. 

A BIG improvement on Parbold Hill when I did 7 miles in 1 hour 25mins back on that icy February day!

Last night I went to bed just after midnight but twice got up, to check the route and to write a tribute on my back card – a special mention to Micah True, Caballo Blanco RIP. Prior leaving for Germany I read an article on his biopsy result, according to the analysis 58-year-old Micah True died of cardiomyopathy – an enlargement of his heart, the left ventricle which pumps oxygenated blood to his body had become thick and dilated. He’s an ultra-runner and much fitter than the rest of us, but like anything to do with the heart, it’s hard to predict. Without our engine, our bodies stop.

A tribute went on my back, thank you for inspiring me.

Two weeks without running

I didn’t train for two weeks, I gorged on ice cream and chocolate in Germany and I know I’ve put on weight. Not like I could shift it for the race, I’ve been walking around town since I got back and last night had pasta, cheese with broccoli, yellow pepper and frankfurters (more carbs!). I relaxed by watching Green Lantern followed by an exhilarating Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Chelsea, disappointed Chelsea won but respect to Roberto Di Matteo, he’s performed miracles. 

Even with an early night I rolled off my bed at 9:15am feeling spaced out, I didn’t feel like getting up let alone running. I had a little bit of left-over pasta, a bottle of Lucozade, a banana and set off at 10:30am.

Yawn…

Met up with Andy Y, and we walked to the starting point – full of people! It was 40,000 today and the biggest so far. The wait was nearly half an hour, didn’t enjoy that bit. I thought it was a little excessive, the music, the hype, the sponsors, the confetti, everything. To me, running is running, it’s joyous to run and I don’t need loudspeakers and warm-up acts to pump me up. I sound grumpy right? I suppose the atmosphere was really nice though, given the choice however I’d still have picked the village hill run over this. It was more raw and less ‘glossed’, the 500 participants in Parbold Hill ran because they loved running (also the fee was £5 compared to £37 for this!). Here some do it for a dare, some do it for another person, some do it for charity. Ah and speaking of charity, I represented Mind, but I actually didn’t do any fundraising. Is that bad?

I’d like to think people should be allowed to make their own decisions in regards to being altruistic, I don’t want to tell them to pay me because I’m running 10k, it’s not that big a deal. I get annoyed by constant emails from people I barely know asking for sponsor money just because they’re running. Do it for the love of it, don’t do it as a chore! I just wore the Mind vest and simply ran. What do you think? Should I have raised money? Was representation enough?

BANG!

11:25am we started and the first 1km wasn’t fun, I had to skim around the crowd in order to break free from the mass of bodies, once cleared I was on Chester Road and dug myself in. Me and Andy Y decided not to run together, it was mutual cos I like to run in solitude! The weather wasn’t too cold and it was dry, brilliant running conditions. Passed 2km and 3km with ease, nearing 5km I glanced to my right and someone ran past BAREFOOT! What a hero! I tried to follow his trail and saw how bravely he tackled the tarmac with his exposed flesh, his pair of trainers was tied to his back. I wanted to ask him whether he considered a pair of VFF but I couldn’t catch him! He was fast for someone without shoes! Truly my hero! 

I was thirsty by the time we passed Old Trafford, luckily at 5km we had some water, I was careful not to down too much and muck up my breathing. By 6km I began to slow as I could see Beetham Tower in the distance and my mind probably thought ‘that far?!’, I ploughed on without stopping, took a refreshing detour through the shower tent and threw two Dextro Energy tablets down my throat, that combination gave me a jolt and I felt alright approaching 8km and 9km. The last stretch after the roundabout was painful as I picked up pace going over bridge that didn’t seem to end, then there was a tiny bit of inclination towards the finishing line, with a surge I did my best to get in under the hour. 56 mins is a good base to start on, I should aim to do it under 50 next time.

Wheeze…

Got my goody bag with a cool t-shirt and a medal plus bits of energy food. I walked around a little to absorb the atmosphere, my left calf started cramping when I stood still for a minute, went home and looked out the window to enjoy the rest of the race – my flat overlooks the last 400m to the finishing line. My highlights were the giant lobster suit, Batman & Robin and Sonic. Overall the atmosphere was really friendly and a lot of Mancunians came to cheer us on, much appreciated but to be honest I hardly took notice because I was eyeing the finishing line. I shut everything out just trying to reach the end before the hour was up.

Bumped into Andy my cousin and his wife Lisa, we had a brief chat, good to see him ok. He did his part in 48 minutes which is brilliant, then again he also did the marathon! I had a call from Jay shortly after, with haste I had a shower and met him for a pint in Brewdog followed by another in stinky Bank, there’s always a pungy lavatory smell when you enter the place – I didn’t eat and just drank, bad idea. Two was enough to make me woozy, had a laugh with Jay who lives in town now, I’ll see him at work tomorrow anyway but good to enjoy a pint. I swung by McDonald’s for a meal, been back here since 6pm, just chilling.

My soles are aching, are they bruised? No idea, but it was certainly an experience running 10km on tarmac – pedestrian pavements are smooth but the tarmacs are rugged for car tyres, I felt every lump there and back. Would I change my footwear? Nah! I LOVE THEM!

Long live my VFF!

Beat the time next year? Under 50 mins?

Sister’s Wedding

My sister’s Turkish/German/Chinese/British party

I’ve been back for a couple of days now, still reeling from an amazing time in Frankfurt. We were there for only a week but it was enough to do the things that really mattered, we spent time as a family, by that I now refer to our new extended Turkish German family!

The international family

It’s a large family, starting with Mum and Dad, older sis Ilknur with two twin girls (11), second oldest sister Aynur (need spelling!) married a very smooth Italian and has two sons Kiyan (manically energetic 5-year-old!) and Cem (8?), then the brother Volkan and his wonderful wife Elmas with a daughter (13, Sara?) and son Semih (11), followed by Hakan and my sis! During our stay the mum had two brothers staying plus a wife, one is a priest from Bursa and the other with the wife from Istanbul. So lets count – that’s 18 people already excluding us!

We were immediately accepted into the family circle, on our first evening we had a massive dinner of gorgeous home-made Turkish food, salad, veg, lamb, soup and non-pork meat because they’re of Muslim faith. The language barrier was obvious but didn’t really get in the way of… I suppose, bonding is the word. In Chinese culture we don’t do much physical contact, we do but it’s not a common thing to see. It’s like keeping up appearance, pride or whatever that’s ingrained into our heritage. The Turkish are complete opposite, they greet by touching cheeks on both sides or forehead nudge, arms around shoulders, handshakes, hugs, there’s an incredible amount of openness, warmth and contact I’ve never experienced.

Over the course of the week our mums bonded well, it was cute when they held hands as we took a stroll along the river Rhein. Dad left the day after the wedding party to fly to the UK because he was in a hurry to fly back to HK to see Granny in hospital who wasn’t doing too well. We had mixed emotions.

Our Granny in HK

We knew she wasn’t too well in HK, she was moved into hospital three months ago even before Mum returned to England. Things got worse when Mum left, she didn’t eat and the prescribed drugs only made her delirious and increasingly paranoid. She deteriorated to the point they had to put her on drip, she wasn’t eating or drinking and accused the doctors and nurses of trying to steal from her or murder her. Dad rushed back to HK. I’ve spoken to mum today and she’s doing much better and been eating normally again – her mind is clearer too. If I was to analyse why, I know Granny had always wanted to move here with us, she even gave Dad a substantial amount of money to build an extension at home so she can move in. Dad built fuck-all. In her mind we’ve all abandoned her, she’s scared of being alone – hence when we left HK last September she started to panic and was in and out of hospital a few times, the tipping point was when mum came back for sister’s wedding party. She lost her confidence in life and just gave up.

Dad is back until September I think, he’s bringing her over to the UK when she regained her strength. About time, it was his lack of enthusiasm that started it all (he didn’t want her here – she had a place in HK he could stay at during his annual visits). Bad isn’t it? He could have brought her to this country years ago – but didn’t. Now he’s doing it, bit late isn’t it?

Hakan’s dad

It was two days after the wedding party, sister took a call from Hakan, his dad will have to undergo chemo treatment for something in his throat. The doctor’s appointment was initially set two days before the party but he delayed it until the event was over, it broke our hearts. I like his dad a lot, he’s a mischievous spirit, he might sit quietly and attentively for a while and with a sudden burst of energy come to life and make us all laugh. He pinched my cheeks, yanked my sister’s hair, wore girly sunglasses, went on the swings, does silly poses, a truly gentle yet mischievous fella. 

We didn’t do much that day, walked around the city centre and met their family in the evening for a stroll along the gorgeous river Rhein. We were all subdued, we walked and walked. The mum was really quiet and I could see her face etched with uncertainty. We walked until it was dark and boarded the U-bahn back to Bockenheim. That’s where they all lived, everyone is within a few minutes walk from each other, they’ve been in that area for the last 40 years. The day before we flew home he wasn’t that well, but still met us at his daughter’s house outside town and stayed through the day, he looked frail and sad – I sincerely hope he can recover his spirit to sustain him through the treatment. Our thoughts are with him and his family.

The contrast to our dad…

 Dad left for HK without leaving mum a penny. She’s unemployed. I transferred some money into her account today, just for stuff like food shopping and whatever she have to buy. He’s a difficult ‘child’ – I call him child because I don’t consider him an adult. He knew a wedding is coming up for his friend’s daughter, his friend came to our banquet in HK to give lai sees (red pockets), it’s his role to return the gesture. Mum asked for gift money three times and he kept putting it off – then fucked off without handling it. It means mum will have to pay money from her own pocket to HIS friend’s daughter. Nice of him isn’t it? What a git…

Sister asked how much his new ticket to HK was (originally meant to go in June) – he told her the original was ripped up and the new one costs nearly a thousand. That’s a FAT lie because he asked me to go into town to sign a form to shift the date of that flight, I had to pay the date-changing fee which was only £226 (he paid me back). So he lied about the cost, giving my sister the impression he spent a lot more money than he did, the original ticket was valid – he paid a fee to change the dates, that’s all. He once told mum his car was bought for £7,000, when in fact it cost £5,000. Two days before we left for Germany he asked my younger sister to return some money she borrowed, problem was, it was all of her wage that month and she came to Germany without a cent, he knew she had little money but did it anyway because he could… and that really pissed me off. She had no money to spend at all!

That extension money Granny gave him? He kept it. He also claims the tenants of our second property never pay their rent on time when in fact they do. Why do we know it? The payment goes through an account with my sister’s name and she has access to it – it clearly shows how much money he’s getting each month (a lot that goes into HIS pockets, mum doesn’t get anything!). Yet persistently he would say he’s short of cash, pathetic isn’t it? Why is he using my sister’s name I haven’t got the foggiest, she doesn’t know either. He created an email under her name as well just to receive the plane tickets, AGAIN using her identity – something I screamed at him about not long ago when he stole my identity. Is it fraud? Is he trying to be clever? We have nothing to do with his stupid schemes so I hope he doesn’t get Mum or my sisters in trouble. Mum described him perfectly, when money goes to him, it never comes back out – he trusts no-one and utmost secrecy is maintained even with us. If his stupid methods get him in trouble with the law I won’t help him because everything is self-inflicted, his greed is monstrous.

The sad fact is, we all know his schemes, we all know his lies, white lies and silence. Everything he does is for his own benefit. He donated two of mum’s new trousers to the charity shop – he never donates anything so why donate her stuff? Just a few days ago she asked him to take an important dress back to HK because someone needs it in October – of course he forgot. Younger sis told me, anything that isn’t important to him is meaningless. I think he’s just a self-centred arse. I sometimes wonder if he does it deliberately to make mum’s life difficult.

I know he’s my dad but sometimes it’s infuriating to know he’s my dad – *sigh, I will never become like him, that I will swear.

I’m very vocal because he’d put us down in front of others, he’d tell strangers how badly we treat him, how the family drains him of his money, often attempt to present himself as the victim. That’s precisely why I’m so open about him, I’d like a record somewhere that paints the real him, a greedy, selfish, lying, grown-up child. In our family we love each other to bits, he’s been the source of a lot of problems that could have torn this family apart – BUT he’s also be the reason why we’re so united without him, isn’t it ironic?

Enough now, breathe…

Sorry for the rant, it had to be said, it had to be logged, it had to be exposed – my dad’s a weasel. 

Breathe! Breathe!

 Anyway, on the bright side. I adore Frankfurt – we didn’t do much in terms of exploring the city or shopping, We spent most time with our new extended family. We had a lovely BBQ in their rented garden, we had a nice evening walk along the river, dinner at their house twice and we had a gathering at Volkan’s house outside Frankfurt. We didn’t go to Bad Kreuznach (our old town), but it didn’t matter, family time was so much more fun. I spent a lot of time mucking about with little Kiyan the 5 year-old, he had no fear of me and we communicated through bits of German I can remember, basketball with him was a highlight!

 The party! What about the wedding party?

Oh it couldn’t have been more magical!

 It was such a wonderful day, the weather report warned of rain but we had nothing but gorgeous sunshine. It began at the parents’ house, then a limousine ride with Ilknur, her two kids and Kiyan to the botanical garden for photographs. Every family had theirs taken with Janie and Hakan, the kids were having a blast. Later I volunteered to hold their bag and follow them around the garden as the photographer did his job.

When it was time we arrived at the restaurant filled with around 200 people, everyone was there plus guests. We didn’t eat that much, most of our time was spent dancing – DANCING!

We did the marathon Turkish dance, a line is formed by linking our small finger, then we shuffle in a circle to our right for 20 MINUTES. It required stamina and lots of giggles and improvisations. I did it twice lol, it was boiling hot but it was FUN! I don’t remember eating much, I did drink something alcoholic called Raki, most of the evening was dancing, dancing and more dancing for… maybe 7 hours plus!

I’ve made a new friend in Sulamander, an uncle (related somehow) of Hakan who owns a Kebab shop. We did an energetic dance together and he took an immediate liking to me, so much he invited me to his shop for a doner kebab! Luckily, we passed by on our evening walk a few days later and he treated me to a gorgeous proper kebab! Crispy skin unlike the flimsy wraps we get in the UK. He embraced me in a hug and we ate for free! Lovely guy, really warm and instantly likeable.

Met some of my sister’s mates, I spoke in broken German and had to dig deep to remember! It was nice to see so many people. One girl in her mid-40s was particularly ‘eye-catching’, she was absolutely bonkers (a bit like my younger sis!). It was Mother’s Day the day after, one of the uncle prepared a speech in Turkish that had many people in tears – it was a beautiful speech because when it was finished the children came out with bundles of flowers to give to every mum in the place. I saw the lady break down when her son brought the flowers, later I learnt she’s divorced and once had another 15-year-old son who tragically passed away from Leukemia. It was an emotional moment for many in the room. Everyone took their mum for a dance, I joined in and danced with mine.

 The evening was enjoyed by all. I’ve never experienced a wedding party like that, they certainly know how to party! There weren’t any alcohol due to their faith (it was available but out of sight from the elders), there were adorable children running around (babies too), old grannies were chatting, old men were dancing/stomping, it was a happy occasion. It was joie de vivre, the enthusiasm for living was infectious!

Latino girls are HOT

Two waitresses were latino, they did their a-la Shakira moves with hip wiggling… it was quite a show lol! I was mesmerised as they shook themselves a couple of feet from me – rude to stare I know but they were keen to show off! Also they occasionally danced, then shuffled off to clear the tables, casual working – cool isn’t it? I was… stunned by their errrr ‘spice’! 

And the rest…

I think we were fortunate to catch three sun-soaked days, our second day reached 26 degrees, that’s almost summer weather but minus the humidity. I’ve scoffed a bratwurst, and thoroughly recaptured an element of my childhood by eating ‘spaghetti ice’ – it’s like an ice cream I used to plant my face in. Gorgeous! We’ve brought back lots of German chocolate to give to out, and sister gave me a small electronic fryer she didn’t want. I enjoyed Turkish tea and food, I’m accustomed to continental greetings now – cheek to cheek on both sides even with men! Hakan took us to a local pizza place that’s been there for three generations, the current owner is the grandson of the guy who started it, it was delicious! I love the convenient transports network, I love the pedestrian town centre and Alt Stadt, the river Rhein is gorgeous. We left Frankfurt with some really good memories.

Most importantly

We’ve learnt the importance of family. Family is everything. And with that I end my loooooong entry. It was a fantastic experience, thank you Germany! I will come back!