First things first, to our friends and family: it's Jen fault.  It has been almost two weeks since we posted something and I am going to without a second thought blame it all on Jennifer, for she thought it pertinent to have the computer with her in Poland (she was right, of course) and leave me with no way of communicating or writing a blog (I actually could of used our roomies comp or gone to the Internet café but I perhaps got a little lazy without Jen around and those other computers are German and therefore have weird keys and keys in the wrong spot and this is very frustrating to type on). That may be the biggest parenthetical sentence ever written. Put it in the record books. Off to a good start, one paragraph and we are already off topic. Sorry.
 
Onwards, it's Tuesday night the 24th of November, 2009, and I am in a house in Germany typing about my life enjoying a rather fine Hefeweizen. Sometimes I have to remind myself of where I am and the opportunities I have been given because life goes by too fast and we don't take time to enjoy it. I went for a run Sunday afternoon and found myself running along the Rhein on a beautiful fall day on the border of Germany and Switzerland and it reminded me just how lucky I am. I get to play a sport I love almost daily, I haven't had a job in over four months and my fiancé is not only smoking hot but she thinks I'm not too bad either. Life is good. Most of my friends are in school or working or doing something not fun. They are definitely not enjoying good Hefeweizen. With all the complaining I manage to do, one would think I don't love what I am doing; there is nothing else in the world I would rather be doing right now than what I do every day. Thank the lord. Go handball. 
 
That said, let's commence with the complaining and moaning.  The last two weeks have been a whirlwind.  I'll try to highlight without putting you all asleep.  Weil won two Saturday's ago and last Saturday which gives us five in a row and puts us fourth in the league with a match up this weekend against the No. 3 team. Big time game this weekend and we are excited. Had somewhat of a breakout game two Saturday's ago, scored 6 goals, probably should have had 10 but the most promising thing was all my goals were scored within the offense which means I am doing a better job of finding openings and my teammates have continued to look for me and deliver the ball in a spot where I can catch and score. Hoorah! This last weekend I only put in two but we faced a different-style defense that hugs the circle which freed up our backs and wings and we still came away with the most important thing: 2 points. Things are going well for us. And so it goes with Jen's team as well, they have won two or three straight, even managing to get one without Jen on Sunday. I was able to watch a tape of Jen play in Poland and if she plays that aggressively and confidently back here in Grenzach, she is going to be very dangerous in her league. More to come about Poland and Jen later. 
 
The Sunday Jen leaves for Poland I get the opportunity to coach four 9-10 year old games. Bails and bails of fun. We don't speak the same language and they don't respect me. We don't sniff a win and I'm pretty sure the parents want my head and the kids hate me. We lost one game 25-0. This is what happens when you play 5 young girls and 2 undersized boys against a well-coached, experienced team.  Very ugly, a little embarrassing and I couldn't wait to leave. Than I remembered I don't have a vehicle and I have to get a ride back with a parent. Very quiet trip. I'm just happy he stopped the car when it was time for me to get out; I'm too big to hit and roll. Sunday afternoon was much better, I visited Jen's and Arno's (brothers on my team who are really good, Arno is a phenom circle player and is kind enough to let me play there) mother's house.  She lives with a friend from England and so they all speak English.  I spent my afternoon eating the most amazing food, drinking really good beer and speaking English.  Compared to my Sunday morning, I thought it was a few hours in heaven. 
 
The week went by slow for me, I had some unfortunate timings and dealings with the bus and trains which led me to have to walk 3 plus hours (See Below: Fun Activity) and spend almost 40 Euros (half my stipend left to me by Jen for the week). Between that and not having my waker-upper in class (I started sleeping in High School and can't break the habit) it was a long week.  There were some bright spots, I refrained from killing any kids at my kid practice on Thursday (patience is a virtue) and because Jen's teammates and our roommate felt sorry for me, they fed me all weekend. Homemade, delicious sushi on Friday night, amazing meatloaf (which contained hard boiled eggs, you should try it) that Aniko (roommate) made on Saturday for game day finished off with crepes filled with Nutella and sugar cream and a Sunday feast of fried fish, fries and salad made me a very happy camper by the end of the weekend.
 
Following the win on Saturday, my teammates and I trooped to the Sit In where I learned to play Chicago (can somebody please mail me my dice, I don't think the ones at the Sit In are regulation) and Das Boot made its requisite post-game win appearance.  Jen not only took the comp but also the camera to Poland so I still do not have photo evidence that Das Boot exists. For this I am sorry and I promise to capture it the next time it shows up. I am better than this. 
 
Jen had an amazing time in Poland.  She was very impressed with the hotel and accommodations on the trip.  It was the first trip for her fully funded by the USATH and she thought it was very well put together and huge learning experience for the young girls who went. Jen was able to showcase how much she has learned in the short time she has been playing/training in Germany and received great praise on her improvement from the coaching staff. I can't begin to describe all the fun and learning and experiences she and the girls had on the trip. I do believe that I can convince her to write a few pages about her experience and time in Poland. 
 
With her at practice I do have the chance to brag a little about her. Even though they didn't win or really play a close game, Jen was the Player of the Game for one match and the Player of the Tourney from the U.S squad and she led the team in goals every game. I didn't not expect any less considering her experience, size and age advantage she had on all the girls but none the less I am super proud of her.  She has poured her entire life into the sport and seeing how much she has put into it, it is nice to see her get recognized by her peers from the tournament. I'll be in trouble for this but I am super proud of her. 
 
I do believe she is about to storm into the house I am at.  I can hear her voice outside and that means I am wrapping this puppy up. Hopefully an installment from Jen about Poland will be forthcoming in the near future. 
 
Hope all is well back home. Happy Thanksgiving!! Be on the lookout for No Shave November pics now that I have the camera back. 

Fun activity of the week:  Mapquest directions from Basel Badischer Bahnof to 22 Solvayplatz, 79639 Grenzach-Wyhlen and let me know how far that is.  It may not look very far but when you start walking it after a 2 hour practice at 1145 PM, it seems really, really long.  Took me 2 hours and it was cold.  On a positive note the entire walk was along the Rhein and it is absolutely beautiful at night.