Friday, June 25, 2010

Italy Out of the Running

Personally (shh, don't tell anyone okay?), but personally...I could care less about the World Cup.

That's a dangerous sentiment at my house, best expressed far from the hearing range of my older son. For him, the World Cup means "all soccer, all day" for the entire period of the event. He watches every game televised on Italian TV, whether he cares about the teams playing or not. Is it possible that he really cares about ALL of the teams?

Every day after Italy has played he buys the Gazetta dello Sport, the Italian sports daily, and pours over all of the analyses and statistics.

He has eaten every evening since the beginning of the Cup in front of the TV, with his dinner balanced on a tray on his knees so he can follow the game.

Let's just say we are living, breathing, talking, everything soccer all day every day and I see no end to this lifestyle in the foreseeable future. No wait, it has to end. The World Cup can't last forever...can it? No, no, July 11...the final game will be held that day. There's a light at the end of the tunnel!

Check out his enthusiasm before a recent Italy game:


Oh, the weird blond in the background dancing and making immature gestures to Italy's national anthem? That would be me, of course. My husband and son were scandalised by my irreverent behaviour. I just call it the "anthem shimmy." Forgive me if I don't share in the gravitas of the whole thing!

Anyway, it's old news by now that Italy lost to Slovakia yesterday. And that WE WERE ROBBED by those LOUSY refs! etcetera...

Luckily, we are a dual citizenship household. Now that Italy has been sidelined, our loyalties have immediately shifted to the US team. Keep your fingers crossed for the game against Ghana tomorrow. Go USA!

Do you think I can teach Danny the American national anthem by tomorrow evening? How does it go? "Oh, say can you see"...and then? Why don't I know it by heart the way Italians know theirs? Admittedly, theirs is catchier, with more rhyming lines and a lot of yelling DEATH, DEATH at the end. Such drama...

Are you watching the World Cup? Willingly? Or, like me, to keep a loved one happy?

5 comments:

Eleonora Baldwin said...

You had me at, "Personally..."

Once the African teams were out, I lost all interest. I have a vuvuzela in the house and never blew it.

My son is still young, and cares more for monster trucks and diggers, God bless him.

This post made me laugh!

Saretta said...

Ah, the days of monster trucks and diggers...alas, only distant memories for me! :-)

Francesca said...

world cup, what's that:)?

Anonymous said...

Ok I love that video. It really makes the person writing, being you, real! your son is cute.

Saretta said...

Francesca, I wish I could ask that!

italianmammachef - that's the real, wacky me! Btw, I think that kid is pretty cute, too! :-)