Gold or Bust - The US WNT

(This is going to be a really long post. As long as The Dark Knight Rises? Perhaps. Sorry I'm not sorry)

My last entry was posted on the day of the Opening Ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics, and today, the day of this entry, is the day that the Games come to an end. The Olympics as a whole has been terrific and exciting and filled with an abundance of different emotions, felt by the athletes, their families and coaches, and, of course, the fans. The Opening Ceremony was brilliant and I believe that it perfectly portrayed English history: from Mr Bean to the Queen sky-diving in with James Bond, from the Industrial Revolution to the birth of the technological era, from the nurses of World War 2 to the journey of the Olympic torch, and everything in between. Personally, I would have loved to have seen the Queen say, "May the odds be ever in your favour," and then lock everyone in the stadium until only one remains, but we don't always get what we want and what we got was rather spectacular nonetheless. 

For three weeks, millions of people crammed into stadiums and onto couches in front TV's to watch some of the fastest, strongest, most agile people on Earth. We watched as Chad le Clos defeated Michael Phelps by four hundredths of a second in a stunning upset to win the gold medal, we watched as Usain Bolt dominated, once again, in the track events, and we watched as the Chinese and the Americans swept the floor of the majority of events to secure themselves the top two places in the medal standings. We watched as the young teenagers made their names known, we watched as dreams were realised and hearts were broken, and we watched as the world came together in one of the greatest sporting events in history. 

However, in the midst of all the various sports that take place during the momentous Games, I think that everyone has a favourite. For some, it's the track events, for others, it's the water based events, for many, it's the gymnastics, but for me, and proudly so, it's the women's soccer.

Now, this is the part where I go on a rave about my team so if you're not going to be interested in what I'm about to say: 1). Why are you even here? and 2). Gtfo.

"My team" is the United States Women's National Team. And I'm not just talking about my "women" team. No. This is my team, above any other women or men's team. Yes, I know I'm not American, but the support and the passion that I have for this group of girls is somewhat abnormal, borderline unhealthy, and critics may even call it obsessive. But! I don't let the haters stop me from doin' my thang. I have been looking forward to watching these women play in the Olympics since this time last year, when they came second in the World Cup after a heart-breaking loss on penalties against Japan. I don't really know how I can put my love for the USWNT and everything that they have done in the last three weeks into words, so I'm going to let my tweets taken from the time of some of the games speak for me:

25 July - Opener vs. France  

YEEESSSSS!!!!!!!! The #USWNT games are being televised here, starting with their opener at 6pm tonight!!!!!!!!! :D :D :D SO! FUCKING! AMPED!

AND AND AND!!! WE GOT THE GREATEST STARTING LINE-UP ON!!! :D SOLO! RAMPONE! KAO! BOXXY! CHENEY! TOBIN!!!!!! PINOE! MORGAN!!!!! AND WAMBACH!!

I'm fully aware that not one of you cares, but this is the highlight of my year, so y'all and all of my homework can mize. LET'S DO THIS!!!!

NO ONE HAS EVER FELT THIS MUCH EXCITEMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THERE THEY ARE!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!!! I'VE BEEN WAITING A YEAR FOR THIS MOMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *faints*

ABBY AND ALEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YYYYUUUUUUSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CARLI LLOYDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ALEX MORGAN AND TOBIN HEATH, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Forever in awe of @hopesolo.

A-Rod, let's go!

#USAvFRA: #USWNT win 4-2. Two goals from Morgan, one from Lloyd, and one from Wambach. I'll take it!!! :D#Happyhappyhappyhappyhappyhappy

6 August - Semifinal vs. Canada

I just can't take this!!! I can't!!! #USWNT #USAvCAN

HOPE SOLO, YOU WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL HUMAN BEING!!!

OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ALEX MORGAN!!!!!!!! IN THE 123RD MINUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MY TEAM!!!!!!!! MY FUCKING TEAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! #USWNT #USWNT#USWNT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I CAN'T EVEN!!!!!!! WE'RE IN THE FINAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NEVER SAY DIE!!!!!!! USA SPIRIT!!!!!!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!!!!!!! LITERALLY IN THE LAST 20 SECONDS ALEX SCORES!!!! USA!!!!!! 4-3!!!!!!!!!!

*faints*

This is one of the greatest moments of 2012 for me. Nothing can ruin this. Alex Morgan, you are perfection. USWNT, you are perfection.

Let me just bask in the glory of this moment and tomorrow I can start preparing to go through it all over again on Thursday.

9 August 2012 - Final vs. Japan

Game time. Let's do this USA.

GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tobin to Alex to Carli with the header!!!! (Yes. First names will be used)

Hope Solo. Hope Solo. Hope Solo. I can't even.

Shit man. Can you imagine what I'd be like if I was actually at the game? I'd fangirl out and faint within the first 5 minutes. #USAvJPN

Hope's just like, "Oh. Sorry, were you trying to score? Lol. That's not happening. Oh, the ball? Thanks, I'll take that." #USAvJPN

And the crossbar's like, "Oh, Hope. Don't you worry your pretty little self, I'll get that for you." #USAvJPN

@TobinHeath is doing some great, great things tonight, you guys.#USAvJPN

AND THAT'S TWO FOR CARLI LLOYD!!!! WHAT WHAAAAT!!!!! 2-0!!!#USAvJPN #USAForGold

Kelley O'Hara's face when the second goal was scored. :) ♥#Whatacutie #USAvJPN

2-1. It's chilled. It's all chilled.

Christie Rampone. Captain America if ever there was one. *bows at her feet* #USAvJPN

YOU ESS AY! YOU ESS AY! YOU ESS AY!

I just can't take this right now. #USAvJPN

HOPE SOLO I CAN'T EVEN ARE YOU EVEN HUMAN WHAT IS THIS AMERICA'S HERO IS FUCKING RIGHT MR COMMENTATOR AMERICA'S HERO IS RIGHT!!!!!

So close!!!

THIRTY SECONDS LEFT!!!

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALISTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MY INCREDIBLE BEAUTIFUL CHAMPION TEAM!!!!!!! ♥ ♥ ♥

"Greatness has been found." HELL YEAH IT HAS!!!! Happy happy happy happy. :) You know, this team deserves it. That's all I can say.#USWNT ♥

@hopesolo and @TobinHeath trending WORLDWIDE!!! THAT'S. WHAT'S. UP! http://yfrog.com/nyu7fgnj

11 August - Two days later

Post-#USWNT depression. It will be at least three years before I see them on my tv screen again; leave me to mourn.  

Well, there you have it. My Olympic journey. Now I'll just have to be satisfied with YouTube videos of the team (which are HILARIOUS, by the way), live web casts of matches, stalking them on Twitter from time to time, re-watching recorded and locked matches time and time again, and saving up the money to go to the 2015 Fifa Women's World Cup in Canada (mark my words, I will be there, regardless of who I have to sleep with or what degrading work I have to do to get that plane ticket, I will do it) and the 2016 Olympics in Rio (previous bracket applies).

It's a Melancholic Kind of Feeling

(Taken from hyperboleandahalf.com)

Here I lie, in my not-at-all-warm-enough bed, with a beanie over my head and Colbie Caillat's I Never Told You emanating from my laptop. I really want to go to sleep to escape from this dreadfully despondent mood that I'm in, but my excitement for the 2012 London Olympics Opening Ceremony which is starting in little under an hour is what's keeping me awake.

Right now, I want:

A brownie
A warmer bed
To be cuddled

But apparently that's too much to ask for, so, for now, I'll just have to be content with Colbie and the Olympics, which aren't too bad, I guess.

Colbie and the Olympics. Pretty cool band name, me thinks.

16. Watch The Notebook

"I am no one special; just a common man with common thoughts. I've led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten. But in one respect, I have succeeded as gloriously as anyone who ever lived: I've loved another with all my heart and soul; and for me, that has always been enough."

Aaaand I'm crying.

The reason that I put "Watch The Notebook" on my Bucket List is threefold:

1. Pretty much every girl and her grandmother has watched The Notebook, and I felt a little left out. Subsequently, I knew that this particular romantic drama was a bit of a tearjerker, and I challenged myself not to cry (I failed miserably, but we'll get to that later)
2. I was hoping to catch the Ryan Gosling fever that exists within the hearts, souls, and loins of most of my friends, which is something that I've never been able to understand
3. I seriously needed to find out what the fuck "If you're a bird, I'm a bird" meant

Nicole picked me up from my house at around 1pm today, and we went to Lonehill shopping centre. I had no idea what we were doing there, and I had no idea what we would be doing for the rest of the day as she had made it a point to keep it a secret for ages. When we walked into the video store, she told me to stand on the other side of the shop while she rented a DVD, and then she drove us back to her house. After a tense and violent argument regarding whether or not I had asked for ice in my coke light (knives were drawn) (okay, that's a lie), she popped in the DVD and it all made sense. I was there to finally watch The Notebook.

"Do you want me to get you tissues?"

"I don't know, will I need them?"

Yes. Yes, I needed them. I started crying when Allie broke up with Noah and then changed her mind as soon as he started driving away, and I stopped crying when... Oh. No, wait.

When I got home, and after I thought I had no more tears left, my mom asked me to tell her what the movie was about. The waterworks came back on sometime around "Well, it started off with..." I don't know why the movie affected me so much. Maybe it was because I can't decide whether it was heartbreakingly sad or triumphantly happy. Maybe it was because it was the truest portrayal of an everlasting love that I have ever seen. Or maybe it's because 

Oh, sorry, wrong Rachel McAdams movie. Oh, and on the subject of Rachel McAdams, she is so perfect and beautiful that she somehow has me both in love with her and wanting to jump off a cliff at the same time. And did I catch the Ryan Gosling fever? Yes. Yes, I did. I still see him as a horse-looking murderer (considering the fact that the first movie that I ever saw him in was 'All Good Things'... in which he played a murderer and, in my eyes, that will stay with him forever), but now, he is an incredibly attractive and perfect horse-looking murderer.

All in all, I loved it. The story of Allie and Noah was so enchanting and pure that it could melt even the hardest of hearts.

And now my mom wants to watch it with me, and I don't know if I can do that...

Because there's a sex scene and that's awkward.