Come On The Boys

10 Aug 2013 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , ,

Bristol Rovers vs. Scunthorpe UtdMaking good use of my time up in Bristle, I was pleased to go along to the Bristol Rovers vs. Scunthorpe United game, at the Memorial Ground this afternoon. Rob, his Dad Barry and Jake are avid Gas Heads, and I am accepted as an honorary fan whilst I’m up there.

It was the first home game, so the ground was buzzing, but Rovers are suffering from a spate of pre-season injuries, with nine of the senior players unavailable, including Chelsea old boy Danny Woodards. So it was left to the youth to take on Scunny, with Brian Laws’ side renowned for their passing abilities, albeit that they were relegated last season.

Tom Parkes Stretchered OffShortly after kick off, The Gas suffered another blow as captain Tom Parkes was stretchered off with concussion, being substituted by the exotically named Santos. So it was left up to the talented younger squad members to take on a much more mature Scunthorpe side.

In fairness, Scunny had the best of the play, hitting both posts in the first half, but to give them their due, Rovers makeshift side put in enough hard work, energy and determination to be well worth the point they took from the 0-0 result.

Whilst there was a little doom and gloom around the ground as the crowd made their way home, the quality of the youth on show bodes well for the future of the team, assuming they can manage to hold onto the talent. Have faith you Gas Heads.

Super Soccer Saturday

26 May 2012 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , , ,

Cadbury Heath U7sHow glorious is this weather? Beautiful blue skies and mid 20s temperatures, just perfect for watching Jake’s football tournament, though a little warm to be playing I think. A short trip to the Walkers field in Emerson’s Green and I was quickly united with Rob, Jake and Zach.

Jake’s team, Cadbury Heath were a little out of their league and were soundly spanked, 7-0, 5-0 and 4-0, but, as the coach said, it’s the taking part, not the wining that matters. To be honest, I don’t hold with all this ‘everyone’s a winner’ business. How does that possibly prepare children for modern life?

By early afternoon the matches and presentations were done and dusted and I was back at the cottage. The runner beans have been growing like crazy in the greenhouse, and urgently need planting out, so I spent the afternoon and most of the evening getting down and dirty in the veggie patch. I think I must have overdone it, or I’m in worse condition than I’d like to think, because I ended up with a cracking headache and a dodgy tummy, maybe a touch of heat stroke?

After drinking copious amounts of water everything calmed down and, unusually for me, I found myself watching the Eurovision Song Contest. It didn’t take long to remember why I don’t usually watch it. It seems to me, to be a huge waste of time and money, though I did feel a bit sorry for The Hump, albeit that the song was rubbish.

By the end of the program, I was ready for bed. Too much sun and a deal of exercise had taken their toll and combined with the prospect of having to get up ‘early’ tomorrow, for the trip down to Cornwall, to rescue the injured Bumble, I’m going to sleep like a log.

Buddhist Football

24 Apr 2012 Leave a comment

by Anupadin in Buddhism Tags: , , ,

uefa-champions-leagueThose of you who know me, even a little bit, will know that I am, and have been for longer than I care to remember, a Chelsea fan. Now this evening, I will be glued to the telly, watching a very important event taking place in Barcelona, namely the Champions League semi final, second leg.

Ok, I say important. Not as important as many, if not most other things in life, but an occasion of note let us say. Time was, when my lad and I would be glued to the telly, or at the match if we could get tickets, avid fans you might describe us.

If we won, we were happy, if we draw, less so, but if we lost … well, let’s not even go there. Sad to say, but when we lost, as Chelsea do occasionally, not only were we unhappy, but that made those around us unhappy too, crazy really.

I am pleased to say that I have come to terms with the situation. Winning is nice, losing not so nice, but it doesn’t put me into a bad place anymore. And that’s all down to re-anchoring my life, by making my Gohonzon my Honzon.

Life in general consists of an ever changing canvass of thoughts, words and deeds, a complete palette of emotions from the very happy to the very sad. But if you anchor your life on faith, and in my case that is obviously Buddhism, the changes have far less effect because you have a more stable base to work from..

It was the great Liverpool manager Bill Shankly who once said ‘Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that. Shankly was indeed a great manager, but I’m afraid Bill, you got that wrong.

So if we, by whom I mean Chelsea, make it through to the final, I will be delighted. If we don’t, well it won’t be the end of the world, for me at least. In terms of the path to enlightenment, I guess I can chalk that up as a win either way.