• About

snacks & adventure

~ oversharing is a way of life.

snacks & adventure

Tag Archives: football

UEFA Cup Adventures

29 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by frannyritchie in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

England, football, Germany, Italy, pub culture, soccer, UEFA

Ian and I went to The Avery, a pub I’d never been to before, to watch the UEFA semifinal match between Italy and Germany.  We’d been to a different pub to watch a couple of the England games, and I have been in Europe during the World Cup before, and I watched the US-Japan Women’s World Cup final last summer, but none of that quite prepared me for the experience of The Avery last night.  The place was packed.

It was a really exciting game – in the second half in particular, Germany had about a bazillion chances to dig themselves out of an 0-2 hole, but decided to stop and pick their nose every time they got near the goal.  They also managed to botch half a dozen corner kicks, if not more, before finally scoring on a penalty kick in the second minute of stoppage time (and the crowd went wild).

The UK requires people to pay annual television licenses, so TV ownership is still pretty expensive (beyond just buying the set), and many people either don’t have one (relative to the US) or (maybe force of habit) elect to go to the pub to watch the game anyway.  Although there is lots of hand-wringing in England about the decline of pub culture, I think that the crowds at the football games are proof that the UK still really values its pubs as “third places” (between home and work).

The game also proved to me that Americans, even in England, haven’t grasped the European love of the game.  I arrived late, but I met up with people who had gotten to the pub an hour before the game started – and still hadn’t gotten a table.  During halftime, small groups of Americans kept trying to sit at the tables in my vicinity as if they hadn’t noticed the dozens of people standing around, apparently fully expecting that there would be seats available halfway through the game. Dumdums.

In the end, Italy won 2-1, and, despite the nail-biting finish, Germany wasn’t really in contention after about the 33rd minute (when the second goal was scored).  But the cultural experience was as much fun as anything else, and I’m pretty sure it was worth blowing off my yoga class to do it.

Advertisement

The Superbowl won’t fill any holes in my heart, but I’m kind of sorry to miss it anyway

03 Friday Feb 2012

Posted by frannyritchie in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

cupcakes, entertainment, food, football, sitting, sports, Super Bowl

I don’t care about the Patriots or the Giants, but I do love hoopla.  And I’m sorry to miss the hoopla that goes along with Superbowl Sunday in the States.

Via http://www.cupcakeproject.com

People love football so much that they’re willing to make buffalo-wing cupcakes with blue cheese frosting.  Yup – that photo is real.  And the ads have been circulating YouTube for two weeks already, starting with Volkswagen and Honda, with a Ferris Bueller-themed viral video.  I don’t think either ad is funny enough to repost, but its on YouTube if you’re curious.

Even though I’m thousands of miles and five time zones away, I think I’ll treat this Sunday the way my countrymen do: by sitting on my ass and eating disgustingly caloric food.  And may both the Giants and Patriots be forced under the heel of the Packers and Steelers next year.  Go Rust Belt!

Merry Christmas!

25 Sunday Dec 2011

Posted by frannyritchie in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Christmas, Family, football, holidays, SomeeCards

Go hang out with your family! Or go watch football.  Either way.  Have a happy Christmas.

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 172 other subscribers

Adventure or Snacks?

  • babies
  • Delivery
  • Early Days
  • Parenthood
  • pregnancy
  • Snacks
  • Uncategorized

Click me, big boy!

  • RSS - Posts
  • RSS - Comments

Blogroll

  • TAMBA
  • Twinny Life

TwitRoll

  • RT @mollyfleck: Scenes from Chicago’s premier car-free space during my bike commute this morning 🙃 https://t.co/2XKGIQPZtO 3 months ago
  • .@DivvyBikes I spent 20 minutes looking for a dock in the Loop this morning. When I finally left the Loop to dock,… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 8 months ago
  • RT @WorldBollard: Bollards save lives AND bring immense joy and happiness to the world. #WorldBollardAssociation https://t.co/4IjwPZS1Nb 8 months ago
  • RT @kathleen_belew: One historian of abortion argues that abortion stays at pretty much the same rate per capita over time whether it's leg… 9 months ago
  • I've supported this project as a consultant since I started at Sam Schwartz and I'm so excited to see it go live. C… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 9 months ago

pinterest!

Follow Me on Pinterest

The Gist

adventure Amsterdam architecture art babies baking Bath Beer Belgium book review books breastfeeding Brussels Cambridge Christmas Cornwall cream tea cupcakes design England entertainment Family feminism food football Freiburg friends Germany Ghent Great British Summer high risk pregnancy hiking historic architecture history holiday holidays identical twins internet memes Kings College London Made In Chelsea media Mill Road movies multiples My Friend Jaime my friend kamilla My Friend Lauren nature NICU outdoors Oxford Parenthood parenting photography preemies pregnancy premature premature babies pubs rock climbing snacks summer the Peak District This American Life Toronto travel twins UK urban planning vacation Valencia Wales walking yoga

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • snacks & adventure
    • Join 172 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • snacks & adventure
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...