December 2009
1 post
the end of an era...
he consoled himself with the fact that, in the real world, when he looked closely into the darkness he might find the presence of a light, damaged and bruised, but a little light all the same.
-colum mccann, let the great world spin
this writing project has suffered from neglect for the last few months as a result of the massive commitment required for my new local team as well as the busy...
October 2009
1 post
epl: stoke v manchester united (0-2)
i have been too busy all week with moving and day job writing to write about this match. i’m still too busy, so i will sum it up in one ginormous run-on sentence…
the parental units, fresh in from the oh so cold d, lovingly accompanied me to the pub for this glorious occasion to see two midfielders in their mid-30’s, scholes and giggs, put on a vintage performance to win this...
September 2009
4 posts
epl: manchester united v manchester city (4-3)
well little mikey saved the day. and what a glorious day it was. many superfluous tags of the game are being lofted about like a nerf ball at a 3rd grade recess; ‘best derby ever,’ ‘greatest injury time spectacle 4eva,’ ‘best 97th minute goal sure to enrage both man city and liverpool fans in one broad stroke.’
yes, those are all accurate.
the pub was...
cl: beşiktaş v manchester united (0-1)
look at that beaming ‘lil saintly ginger. he just scored the winning header (!) and silenced some decibel-shattering ornery turks in a mid-week champions league fixture. our first of the season. i was at work, writing about other things, as this match was being played and the iraqi stream i was trying to watch/listen to it on kept going down. it seemed to be a conspiracy. against me. this...
epl: tottenham v manchester united (1-3)
on this day i went to the pub thinking i was dying. i ended up leaving thinking i was dying even more. no, not the best way to enjoy a smashing victory where a 10 man united thoroughly decimated the tottenham defense and valiantly fought back from being 1-0 down after 48 seconds.
there were many eventful noted events of note going on all around me as my head felt ‘like a troop of vengeful...
epl: manchester united v arsenal (2-1)
now, that was a match. it had a little bit of everything. feisty-ness, cheating, performance art (see above), luck, and horror mistakes. for some reason, despite playing like a shadow of the team we were last year, the chips fell our way and we came out on top of the first big game this season.
as these big 4 matches tend to go at the pub, it was a full house. crowded. loud. stuffy. reeking of...
August 2009
4 posts
epl: wigan v manchester united (0-5)
funny what a difference a few days can make. the boys came back from a humiliating 1-0 defeat to burnley by destroying wigan 5-0 via 5 second half goals that, albeit briefly, illustrated the potency of our attack when it’s firing from all cylinders in the post-ronaldo, post-tevez (rip) epoch.
mind you, this kind of goal bonanza also makes the pub a much more enjoyable and relaxing...
epl: burnley v manchester united (1-0)
since it’s wednesday at 2:45 and i have one of those things some people call jobs, i’m not able to be at the pub this fine afternoon to see a curious man u lineup take on newly promoted burnley. instead, i rely on the curious mecca (and medina and the vatican and jerusalem) of online footie streaming sites, iraqi goals, to hook me up with the action on my piece of poop work computer....
epl: manchester united v birmingham (1-0)
it was certainly not the prettiest of opening league matches, but as they say, 2 points is 3 points. no, they don’t say that. 3 points is 3 points. yes, that’s it. regardless, getting to the pub at 8:30 am on a sunday after drinking all day on saturday following a grey-goose soaked friday was no small feat. luckily, a few magners over ice is the world’s greatest hangover...
community shield: manchester united v chelsea...
church* is in session…
i walk in and exchange greetings with my peers and united-obsessed drinking compatriots i have not seen in approximately two and a half months. this match marks the start of the new season. this, i realize as i sip a pint glass full of magners irish cider and ice, is my 4th season watching manchester united at this colourful character-filled pub in western queens....