Seoul, November 21
Hey Jack,
The ball is rolling! At least I guess it is. Since I am at the outer end of a covid infection I decided not to stay awake for the opening game last night. So much for World Cup resolutions! I’ll do so for the Senegal – Holland game tonight though. Other than the morning coffee, there’s one more routine I try to stick to in the morning: No news, no social media. And that’s why I don’t yet know what happened in the opening game. It may have been cancelled due to heavy rainfall in the desert.
Routines and habits certainly have an added value to our lives. I couldn’t do without. On the other hand, I try not to be all too rigid about them. The day sometimes follows a different plan and that should be fine too. If missing a routine once or twice ticks me off completely, it seems to achieve the negative opposite double as worse as it usually achieves the positive. I used to be a stickler for ticking boxes on check lists – 10,000 steps a day, 1 hour of reading, in bed by 10 pm – but the result of missing out on a day weighs so much heavier than achieving the other days, that I decided to stop it entirely. So there’s no news, no social media and a hot black coffee every morning and the rest is flexible. We have a straight forward coffee filter by the famous Dutch electronics brand. It grinds the beans, and brews a perfect wake-me-upper. Coffee always from the same mug. It’s a mug I brought from the station diner in Watertown, Massachusetts. A fond memory of my Boston Marathon weekend years ago.
I, for one, am proud and happy for you Jack, for the course you’ve directed your life to recently. There you have it! I realise and appreciate how hard it must be for you to lose the base you got so used to. A base that you may have grown thinking would always be there, like family, or like your house, or dreary, wet Dutch climate. Unlike those elemental parts of life, I am confident it’s healthy to disconnect from corporate life from time to time. To realise you’re still in charge of your own course, to lose some of the routines that unconsciously funnel your life in a fixed direction. There’s no need to think you’re never going back to the cubicle (there will always be a cubicle for you somewhere!), but now it’s time to open the windows and see what’s available without the lifeline that is called the office badge. You always put a smile on my face with your rants about corporate life, about life in general, and about it being (somewhat) meaningless. Having been in similar situations, I can relate to many things you say, but I also felt (or maybe feel) the urge to tell you to cut the contemplation, stop taking it all too serious, and just get the hell out. Your relentless agreement to sit still in an uncomfortable situation leans towards masochism. Especially because the discomfort often seems to be entirely yours, it’s not shared with anyone else. Tell me, is there a part of you that feels the need for a little self-flagellation in life to balance the pleasures you like to experience? And assuming that a large part of these characteristics have been engrained in you by your past, your upbringing, your life growing up in Canada, do you hold similar ideas for the little man when he grows up? I hope you will allow him to grow up to be a radical if he wants. A radical taking the world by trumpet.
Knowing you well, I’m sure you don’t take offence in me saying this. It’s always easy to make statements from the outside looking in. To be fair, I still find myself in similar situations and although addressing you, I am aware that deep down I’m often just talking directly to myself.
Thanks for the Chet Baker reference in your last mail, he’s been playing alongside this writing for the past hour. Chet Baker in a cubicle, the world would have missed out. Did you know he died in Amsterdam?
It would be better if we had opposing expectations of this World Cup’s winner, but I’m afraid we don’t. I agree Argentina holds the strongest hand. I read somewhere that Messi seems not at his physical best, and even though this might sound a threat to their title aspirations, I feel it will only make them stronger. The team seems so determined to win Messi his one missing trophy, they’ll do so even without him. I remember Ajax winning the Champions League in ’95 shortly after Dennis Bergkamp left for Inter Milan, supposedly leaving a gap that could never be filled. Beating Argentina on a bad Argentinian day seems only possible for a very strong Brazilian, Spanish or German side if you ask me. Germany seemingly moving into an underdog role, tells me they will be at their best in a few weeks time. But no, it’ll be Argentina’s this time. If only to make up for the amount of time we spent studying its football history by reading The Angels With Dirty Faces. An incredible piece of work if you’re after every single historical detail and highlight, every player and coach name, every possible connection between politics and football. For me it was a little too much, a little too many details. At the time of reading, I was also listening to an audiobook about dinosaurs on my runs, and the difference was striking. Covering roughly 150 million years, with just as many different dinosaur species as Argentina had players in a century’s time, the dinosaurs kept my attention better. That being said, it’s a book well written and researched, it’s packed with great anecdotes and it serves as proof of Argentina’s wealthy football history. I was particularly happy to read about Riquelme. A name somewhat forgotten. With Nico Tagliafico and Licha Martinez this Argentina squad has two former Ajax players who I dearly miss on the Amsterdam pitch. Argentinian defenders, full of grit, a knife between the teeth and a spare one in the sock.
Also, the blue and white of their home jersey. Always a joy to watch. I find jerseys an important aspect of the World Cup and I can highly recommend having a look at [this Cup’s creations]. I have always been a fan of the jerseys of the African countries, the ones produced by the three stripes’ competitor from the other side of Nuernberg. Unfortunately I find most of their jerseys this time very disappointing. Also Die Mannschaft, ouch! I’m definitely a little biased but my favourite is probably Korea’s away jersey. A neon 90’s style kit with a black base and the traditional Korean colours. I might indulge and buy myself one of those. There is a debate in Korea whether the matches should be broadcasted on one of the main squares in Seoul. The football authorities and the team have asked for as much vocal support as possible, but there are voices against public gatherings so shortly after the recent Halloween disaster. If they decide to do the public broadcast, I’ll probably go there to mingle for one or two of their group games. Koreans love to get together and enjoy a good time rooting for the nation, but on these mass occasions the drinking is by far not as substantial as in most of the European countries. I’m sure it’ll be a stark contrast with the orange madness you are near to. A madness I enjoyed in my early twenties, but said goodbye to soon after. I remember watching the World Cup final between Holland and Spain on the couch with a friend of mine while hundreds of thousands gathered on Museumplein, 5 minutes from where we were. The idea of listening to radio broadcasts sounds very tempting too, but I wonder if that’s still happening, and if so, where to find the right frequency. Other than that I’ll watch most of the matches curled up on the couch with a laptop beside me. If Inyoung wants to join in – most likely only the Korea games – we’ll switch on tv which adds the joy of overly enthusiastic Korean commentary. I claim to watch football for the joy of the game, which is probably not entirely fair as I still find myself referring to the Dutch and the Koreans. Even though I wouldn’t shed a single minute of sleep over them losing, they’re just engrained as the two home bases. It seems you do not have that. It’s the first acte de présence for the Canadian team since 1986 and you have not mentioned them at all. I wonder if you are rooting for any team, or if you are just in it for the pleasure of the ball, the grass, and the art. Tell me about Canada during the World Cup. Is the TV on in your parents’ house? Also, do you think the team is wearing the same jerseys as in 1986? It sure looks like it..
Somewhat contrary to the drag you apparently felt, I enjoyed our little reading project, but more on that in a later post. There were some not so good, and some surprisingly good. Some not so well written but still informative, and some just a joy to read. Without revealing all too much, let me say this: Based on a ranking of the amount of joy I got from the books I read, I’m supporting Tunisia a little extra! Denmark – Tunisia tomorrow. Christian Eriksen against The Eagles Of Carthage. I predict an open game with a lot of goals and I’ll tell you about The Ardent Swarm after. But first the English and the Dutch tonight. Chet and me are signing off for this first day of the World Cup, and a chilly November Monday in Seoul.
Jitse