Monday 14 March 2011

Championship

Not just any kind of it, oh no! It was the national championship in archery. I qualified and so did my son. My Main Squeeze accompanied us which I found very nice and reassuring.

This year they organized it 215 kilometres away and I was supposed to be there by half past eight in the morning. In Slovenia, mind you, which is so small that you actually have to think hard to make someone travel that far. I have just used Google maps to find out how far the furthest place in Slovenia is from here - believe it or not, you can hardly reach 300 kilometres!

Anyway, I didn't want to leave home at half past four in the morning and actually compete that day, so I looked for a place to stay. As early as always, I found out everything had already been booked by more diligent archers, thinking more than a week ahead.

As lucky as I am (I actually tend to be lucky when my mind fails me, or my memory in most cases and even my credit cards have proved that by waiting for me in the most inappropriate places or finding their way back to me :)) ), I found this nice couple not more than ten minutes away from the sports hall where the championship took place. I could actually practice my English, can you imagine? And see our country through the eyes of someone coming from another part of the world.
But talking in Slovene would be just as nice, of course, when you're talking to nice people, such as our hosts.

I spent two wonderful days. Not only I entered two competitions (and came last both times), I also cheered for my son (not loudly, I don't dare shout when he's shooting), I also saw a part of our country which I had not seen before and I must admit it's very nice. My son was more successful than me even if he took the 10th place while I ended up in the 9th.

It's interesting how attractive archery can be if it's organised the right way. You can't say duels are boring. The archers still shoot at the targets, not at each other, of course. But they compete in pairs against each other. And the best one qualifies for the next round. Not me, but you know what I mean. I'd love to upload some photos and I will as soon as I get them and as soon as I delete some from my web gallery.

Last place? Well, I did have some bad luck with my equipment. I managed to break the berger button less than a week before the championship. And once you change that (or any other part), nothing is really the same. Only two weeks ago I reached a score which would take me one or two places higher.

Never mind, next year there will be another national championship and I'm sure I can qualify again and do better. If not, I can still meet the same great people at the competition and enjoy doing a sport together with the people I love.

And God knows which part of our vast country I will be discovering next year!



Friday 18 February 2011

USA vs SLOVENIA?

Nope, Delgado vs. Zavec. Go Dejan!

I am always annoyed by arrogant people. And Delgado came to Ljubljana to "take the red belt back to where it belongs - to the USA"! Jerk!

I mean, if he wins it, okay, may the best man win and as far as I know it our world champion can keep the title or lose it. And he's aware of that. He knows Delgado is good (we all know Dejan Zavec is good) and he accompanied Delgado's words and his dramatic tearing of the poster announcing the fight in half - with a smile. Knowing, of course, that Delgado is, after all, American and a show was to be expected. But still, his atitude sucks.

Have a good fight tonight, you two, may the best man win. But I sure hope it's Dejan (btw, it's pronunced Deh-yan) and I sure hope he kicks his ass well (punches his nose, that is). If anything else happens, so be it. But until then, this is the right place for the red belt.

Sunday 13 February 2011

Thoughts of today

My head is spinning. Why?

It's just too full of thoughts, not having unloaded them here for such a long while, lazy me ... It's going to explode any minute and it won't look nice, I'm telling you! Make sure to keep a safety distance when that happens!

Yesterday I went to a competition. Archery. Yep. Full of hopes (not really, I have nothing much to expect), I was dissapointed soon after the trial shots. The trial series, you see, are usually alright. Quite good. But then ... I don't know what it is ... fear? And I wanted nothing but a decent result not to be ashamed of. Didn't happen. And I KNOW I can do better. And I do it for fun - so, why should I be bothered so much that it makes me shoot like shit? Sorry, that wasn't nice.

Usually the co-competitors at the same target talk a little (even when I was in Italy and my Italian really isn't too good), but this time we just didn't click. This woman I was shooting with - I know she's a gret person, but somewhat more serious than me or a different character or ... something. Anyway, I realized it was me not talking, not connecting, it just didn't work. Not that it would have mattered had I been shooting the way I can, but still, the atmosphere just wasn't right.

And I had to admit - and I did it out loud - sorry, I'm so cranky I can hardly stand myself. I feel like I should open the lid (like the top of my head) and let some of that out. I'm so terrible I must be radiating negative energy around me. Sorry for that.

In Italy a man said, "Ogni gara e una storia." - each competition is a story. Another story. I couldn't agree more.

The other day I was in Italy together with my MS and my son. My son did quite well and we thought he would win. He was better than the others in his category and there were only a few more to compete in the last "shift". Two or three of his friends, we thought, then it turned out there was only one - and that one wasn't good enough. And there was this Italian kid whom my son beat twoo weeks earlier with a score 529 (so the Italian guy had fewer points than that). And now my son's score was 563, so it's probably out of the other guy's reach.

We watched him shoot. One ten after another. And a nine. no eights. He was so good that when he didn't hit a ten WE were actually sorry. So concentrated. He must have done some serious work in these two weeks. Well done. Congratulations, gold for him and silver for my son. Italians, you see, are very serious about archery with about 2 000 000 archers (2 000 000 is the population of Slovenia, BTW), but they make lots of these nice cosy competitions.

But yesterday!!! Geeeez!!! 317 (out of 600!!!!) - who goes on a competition to achieve THAT!!!

Am I stupid or what?
Some things have happened since I last posted that are so much nicer than archery (and I still love archery). Remember I became I great aunt in April? Well, on 20th December two more great-nieces wee born. Two months early, but very healthy. Haven't had a problem since. Her parents (my first niece and her "husband") didn't alow visitors for some time and I think that was the only possible right decision in the time of flu and other viral infections.

Ahhh... and they're so so cute.

My head is a bit better now - I guess I should do this more often.