more on last week

Maybe it should read Mor-On last week, oh the best laid plans, etc
After the lengthy recap of day 1 of Noah's excursion to Milwaukee Wave Soccer Camp, I feel compelled to offer brief "father's Eye" view of the remainder of the week, as I have been stewing on a few other topics to write about.

Needless to say with the temperatures in the 80's all week, Noah's sweat level was high from hours of running around the soccer field. For those of you that may say "Soccer is not interesting to watch", I encourage you to take in some viewing of 75 6-15 year olds running around the fields; kicking, passing and trying to score goals.

Each day of last week started between 8:40-9:00am with the kids arriving and immediately dropping their red Puma soccer balls onto the still dewy grass of Hawthorne Park...and it was off to the races as boy and girls of all skill levels dribbled, kicked, shot and juggled balls across the field.
The whistle sounds and everyone stops what they are doing and assembles under the one large shady spot in the park, under a large tree, for their initial instructions for the morning from Camp Director Michael King.

Fast forward to the middle part of the afternoon...parent begin to arrive as each age group is dispersed around the park, working on a variety of skills or in the middle of a scrimmage, or a game of "World Cup". After a full day of soccer action, many of the young, World Cup wannabes are winded, tired and ready for a break, while a handful of others are still running like the Olympic gold medal was in the balance.

Once again the whistle sounds, and each of the budding soccer stars scrambles to collect soccer balls, water bottles, cones, nets and anything else strewn across the park. Just as in the morning, the kids assemble under the cooling shade of that one tree for a recap of the day that was and instructions for the next day. The red faces shows the level of exercise these children faced throughout the day.

Back to Noah...each day we would retreat to the comfort of the air conditioning of our Dodge Grand Caravan..and Noah will release a full recap of what happened that day. More often than not, the stories would be filled with quips about Deco and Chico, the two Brazilian players that were coaches for the week's training. After a couple of minutes, Noah's head would begin to slump to one side, as the adrenaline of the day wore off and his body finally succumbed to the rest that was needed.

Friday was the one day I was not able to witness the ending of the camp day, as I was 2 hours to the north. Friday was a shorter day, ending at 1pm, with the campers getting to enjoy "graduation" from camp, but also a special Water day. Dozens of different types of water gun paraphernalia arrived the morning from many of the campers, in anticipation of the after-lunch activity of chasing coaches and other kids with the Super Soakers.

Needless to say...Noah will cherish his time at Milwaukee Wave camp, the friends he made, the time spent with Wave players and the new skills he learned. If you have a son or daughter between the ages of 5-15, I encourage you to look into the Wave Summer Camps...it is well worth the minimal investment.
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I will post later on some of the things that have been on my mid, including the Brewers/Cubs series that kicks off tonight, the upcoming Olympics (huge news...Paul Hamm is out [see story here], and more)
Also...expect a podcast/story about an upcoming event involving Soccer Tennis!

Noah's week at Wave Soccer Camp

Well I had hoped to send out daily reports (from a father's point of view) on my son Noah's experience at Milwaukee Wave Summer Soccer Camp. But of course it was one of those weeks where one thing led to another and before I knew it....it's Thursday.

Day 1 (Monday)-Noah's excitement level was high, because he knew he would be spending an entire week playing soccer, but better yet, taught by Wave players. The only thing was, Noah did not know which players would be there (but his Dad did).
8:40am: We arrive for registration...Noah is practically bouncing in his seat. We arrive at Hawthorne park in Wauwatosa and Noah bounds out of our Dodge Minivan (OK I guess you can call me a Soccer Dad). He immediately starts to scan the area to see what is out there and if he recognizes any players. His eyes light up as he catches a glimpse of Michael King, the now retired captain of the Milwaukee Wave (not a Favre-esque retirement either)
A little background, Michael King made a special appearance for Noah's 1st grade class in June when he was "Star of the Week", much to the delight of his classmates and his teacher.
Later, as the kids assembled for the first group introduction, they all found out that two more Wave players were there...Deco and Chico (both from Brazil).
Fast forward to 2:30pm...I arrive a little early for pick-up to watch some of the afternoon action. The well-oiled machine of the Wave Soccer Camps had the 70 plus kids divided up into a variety of age groups. Noah's group of a dozen or so 7 year olds was on the field playing "World Cup", basically a scrimmage game. before I even noticed where they were, I could hear Noah's voice booming above all yelling "let's go USA, let's go". I immediately thought "Oh great Noah is going to embarrass himself". Well just a few seconds later I hear Noah's coach (Gabe) yell out "Hey at least one player is cheering for their team!"
Typically Noah will be charging after the ball and running the field, but on this afternoon he was doing his best Nick Vorberg (goal keeper for the Wave)imitation...covering the net, making blocks and clearing the ball away from the goal area.
2:55pm hits and the loud whistle sounds...as Michael King and the coaching staff assemble the mass of kids for one last talk. Much like a combination drill sergeant and coach, Michael commands the attention of all and he provides the last words of wisdom for the day and instructions for the following morning.
Noah loads into the van, covered in grass and sweat and tired from a full day of soccer...ready to share his stories from the day, clutching his new, red soccer ball.

More to come later....

My take on Brett Favre and Days of our Packers

OK...I am jumping in late, after just about every other media outlet, blogger and fan website has beaten this topic to death.

"Should Brett Favre retire, return or be traded"

One sentence and four words will answer the question..."I DO NOT CARE!!!"
In this time when gas prices have hit an all time high, prices at the grocery stores are skyrocketing, the economy is more than slumping and companies are laying off hundreds, if not thousand of employees...here we spend so much desire and energy on a football player??!!??

Yes Brett Favre was the "messiah" for Green bay Packer football, leading the team to the "promised land" in 1996-1997, and spurning hope every late July that "this could be another Super Bowl year.

Folks let me remind you...football is a sport, a game played by men. It is an escape every Sunday from September though January, where we can forget the cares of the world and don the colors of our beloved team and cheer them on, jeer them on Monday mornings when they lose, and hope the Bears still Suck.

I have been a Green Bay Packers fan going back to the mid 1970's, when Bart Starr was the coach, Lynn Dickey, David Whitehurst, Paul Coffmann, Terdell Middleton, James Lofton and others wore the Green and Gold, mostly in losing efforts. I lived though dismal season after dismal season under Starr, Forrest Gregg, Lindy Infante and others.

I was thrilled to death like many other Cheeseheads in the mid 90's when the team was beginning to look like a contender...I was jumping and screaming when Favre and Desmond Howard brought home the beloved Lombardi trophy. I reveled in the Superman-like effort Favre put out on Monday Night Football against the Oakland Raiders the day after his father passed away...and I cried the day this past March when Brett Favre announced his retirement to the world.

Ladies and gentlemen...as much as many in this great state and around the country tend to forget...football (along with other professional sports) are just a game. It should not take over our lives.

The passion that is being shown by the Pewaukee brothers that are organizing the Bring Favre Back Rallies...if that was redirected towards something more beneficial to all...imagine the impact it would make.

Our culture has become so passive when it comes to moral and ethical issues, but when it comes to sports, everyone is ready to shout their opinions from the rooftops. Yes I will admit I am guilty of this as well.

THIS IS YOUR WAKE-UP CALL!! Get off your Green and Gold soapbox, take off the Fire Ned Yost T-Shirt...and get involved in something bigger.

I am tired of spending over $4.00 a gallon in gas, spending hundreds of dollar more a month on groceries and not getting anything extra, watching businesses downsize and close because the economy is killing them.

Instead of trying to hold the Ted Thompson's, Ned Yost's and Brett Favre's of the world accountable for something that happens on the athletic fields, how about we work, (individually and as a community) to send a wake up call to the Jim Doyle's, Tom Barrett's, Russ Feingold's and Herb Kohl's of the world (no I am not taking shots at the Democrats) and let them know we are sick and tired and are not going to stand for it.

We vote these men and women in to represent US....let's let them know we are here 24/7/365, not just at Election time.

And as far as Brett Favre...be a man, keep your word, RETIRE and enjoy the time with your wife and daughters. how many of us wish we could retire at 39 and have the money to be financially sound for the rest of our lives???

The next generation Gym???

Thanks to Drew Olsen of OnMilwaukee.com and ESPN 540 in Milwaukee for this funny video.