So I might eat my words...

This is a rare occassion where I might just eat my words regarding the World Cup. I have to admit, I have been sucked into the 'football' frenzy with the rest of London. On Sunday I went to Brick Lane with Meegan & co. to a bar sponsored by XBox to watch the Australia v. Brazil match with 500-1000 other Aussies - a good game but nowhere near as exciting as yesterday! Last night was crazy. My flatmates and a few other friends headed down to the Slug & Lettuce (Aussie pub in Fulham) last night adorned in green and gold to watch the Australia v. Croatia game. The atmosphere of the place was electric - you couldn't move in there and when a goal was scored a deafening roar swept the building. You also copped elbows to the head and beers down the front due to everyone jumping around and flinging their arms up in victory.

I had to laugh when the guy next to me said to his friend - 'This is the most frustrating game!'. As I said in my last journal entry, it is such a stressful sport. You literally bite your nails the entire game and feel sick when the opposition score a goal. Because goals are so hard to come by, unlike in AFL, one goal can be scored and mean a certain death. So imagine how we all felt after Croatia scored in the first 2 minutes!

Definitely would have been some sore heads this morning around here, celebrations kicked on till about 1am and many snakebites were consumed while singing various Australian anthems like 'Land Down Under' and 'Working Class Man'. We have to be the most patriotic country after seeing what happened last night - everyone was just so happy, hugging & dancing with virtual strangers when the final whistle blew.

And seeing as I haven't mentioned shoes in a while, here's something I found to help me understand the offside rule...

The "offside rule" explained for women:
You're in a shoe shop, second in the queue for the till. Behind the shop assistant on the till is a pair of shoes which you have seen and which you must have.

The female shopper in front of you has seen them also and is eyeing them with desire. Both of you have forgotten your purse.

It would be rude to push in front of the first woman if you had no money to pay for the shoes.
The shop assistant remains at the till waiting.
Your friend is trying on another pair of shoes at the back of the shop and sees your dilemma.
She prepares to throw her purse to you.
If she does so, you can catch the purse, then walk round the other shopper and buy the shoes!
At a pinch she could throw the purse ahead of the other shopper and "whilst it is in flight" you could nip around the other shopper, catch the purse and buy the shoes!

BUT, you must always remember that until the purse has "actually been thrown", it would be plain wrong for you to be in front of the other shopper and you would be OFFSIDE!

If you think its bad at home...

So the World Cup is finally here. Thank god. I don't know how much longer I can handle hearing about Wayne Rooney's foot! It has been at the top of the news for the last month...as apparently all of England's hopes for winning seem to be pinned on this metatarsel.

London has turned into a sea of red and white. People are pinning flags wherever they can - prams, scooters, bikes, apartment windows, balconies, all over their bodies...and the TV has had World Cup specials and documentaries on for the last few weeks, the only one of interest being the behind the scenes look at Posh & Becks pre-cup party.

For someone who is a sports buff, I don't know why I can't grow to like soccer. There's just something about it that bores me to tears - the fact that it can be so slow, with possibly no goals being scored in an entire match totally frustrates me. I sat down yesterday and watched 5 minutes of the game between England and...can't even remember who...but one goal was scored while I was watching. Glad I turned the TV off when I did, because that was the highlight of the match - no other goals for the entire 80 or whatever minutes.

I'm still barracking for the Aussies but once they're gone I will be counting down the days until the whole thing is over and we can start focusing on the AFL grand final (which I'm predicting will be an Adelaide vs. West Coast game)!