Dear Faithful Readers,
I have 3 minutes before my time expires but I wanted to tell zou all that I am in Bosnia right now and having a blast in Croatia (most beautiful country ever) and Bosnia. It has been amazing . Off to split to watch the USA win 2-1. Hope all is well... a lengthy post to come on july 3rd when i get back. peace and love
Ethan
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Frantic Post
So my computer will probably freeze any second so here is the 1 minute version of my life right now...
1. Happy Fathers day to Ton-loc, Marcus and all the other fathers out there
2. I am leaving for Croatia on monday and will be posting less frequently
3. I will be in Belgium for 5 days in the next 6 weeks
4. 2 days after I get back from Croatia we depart on our month long road trip
tentative itinerary: Bourdeaux region of france July 5-11, San Sebastian for world cup final july 11, On to Lisbon for 2 days, Algarve Coast for 2 days, Sevilla for a few days, Alicante for a day or two, Barcelona for a few days, Flying from Barca to Palermo Sicily on July 24, flying back to Belgium after a few days in sicily, a few days on the Almalfi coast, and a few days in Florence on August 4. Should be a wild 6 weeks... I'll try to post as often as possible.
5. Troy goes for his first win on the mound tomorrow at home v. Braasschaat
6. In a minie hitting slump.... gonna break out tomorrow
Much love to everyone!
1. Happy Fathers day to Ton-loc, Marcus and all the other fathers out there
2. I am leaving for Croatia on monday and will be posting less frequently
3. I will be in Belgium for 5 days in the next 6 weeks
4. 2 days after I get back from Croatia we depart on our month long road trip
tentative itinerary: Bourdeaux region of france July 5-11, San Sebastian for world cup final july 11, On to Lisbon for 2 days, Algarve Coast for 2 days, Sevilla for a few days, Alicante for a day or two, Barcelona for a few days, Flying from Barca to Palermo Sicily on July 24, flying back to Belgium after a few days in sicily, a few days on the Almalfi coast, and a few days in Florence on August 4. Should be a wild 6 weeks... I'll try to post as often as possible.
5. Troy goes for his first win on the mound tomorrow at home v. Braasschaat
6. In a minie hitting slump.... gonna break out tomorrow
Much love to everyone!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Another Tough Weekend (sigh)
This comment by Rachel following our shellacking on Sunday pretty much sums up the weekend of baseball.
"I read for most of the game. After a while I couldn't take watching anymore."
After dropping another close game in extra-innings on Saturday, a game we should have won more times than one, we got destroyed today on the road. It was really frustrating, but on a positive note, Deurne is a good team and we showed (even if for only 7 innings) that if we play our game, we have the ability to beat them and other good teams. We just need to find that killer instinct and play to win instead of not to lose.
But as they say here... Alles goed, because tomorrow our savior Boy Troy arrives.
Without further ado... Boy Troy!
"I read for most of the game. After a while I couldn't take watching anymore."
After dropping another close game in extra-innings on Saturday, a game we should have won more times than one, we got destroyed today on the road. It was really frustrating, but on a positive note, Deurne is a good team and we showed (even if for only 7 innings) that if we play our game, we have the ability to beat them and other good teams. We just need to find that killer instinct and play to win instead of not to lose.
But as they say here... Alles goed, because tomorrow our savior Boy Troy arrives.
Without further ado... Boy Troy!
Welcome to Belgium Troy!
Friday, June 11, 2010
USA 2 England 1
Figured while I have a minute I would bring everyone up to speed on what is new...
In case you live under a rock, the World Cup started today, which I have been waiting for all summer(summer actually hasn't arrived in Belgium and maybe never will, but with all due respect to the upcoming solstice, it should be summer). The US opens their tourney with England tomorrow in what promises to be an exciting match. Like my prediction when the US played Canada in hockey during the Olympics, again I will predict with my heart and not my head. Since I have a crate of beer bet with Kleine (our catcher, the catalyst for our offense, and Brad Pitt brother look-alike) that the US will not lose, I might as well head into the game with some confidence.
Not only is tomorrow a big day in spectator sports, but we also take on the 3rd place Deurne Spartans in what promises to be a good one. With several of our players coming back from exams, we plan on giving this solid team a tough weekend. Tomorrow I take the hill at home. In our previous series with them, there was a lot of typical Belgian baseball happenings... Douchebaggery on the part of the opposing pitcher, a tight (understatement) strike zone, balks (that surprisingly were not called), peeing on fences, Zino, and the like. Tomorrow promises more of the same hopefully with a touch of redemption, as we look to hand them a loss.
In other news, Rachel and I had our second to last baseball clinic today. Monday is the last one and the official beginning of "summer holiday" (since it's such hard work haha)... thanks for showing up on time Troy. After today's clinic, we took a bike ride to the field where I met with the above mentioned Kleine for some bp and relaxation (a pintje). I think every time I have ever seen Kleinner, I have had a pintje... it's a streak that I don't want to end. Got to love it. Bram joined us after he got off work, and we fine tuned the strokes for the weekend. The plan for the three of us is to have 8 hits between us in tomorrow's game, I'll let you know how that turns out.
I'm off for now, but I'll leave you all with some pictures of what has been going on lately. My camera broke and my computer died so I'm at the mercy of Rachel's photo album, which I am sure is spectacular. Here you go J Ma, enjoy.
Also, feel free to comment and cast your 2 cents on whether I should let my hair grow out or get it cut.
Peace
Me in Brugge in front of a bar with a really small door.
Rachel and I toasting our sampler beers after a tour at De Halve Maan (The Half Moon) brewery in Brugge. The tour and the blond beer were voortrefelijk.
Rachel sat on her glasses and broke them in two symmetrical pieces. I laughed, she cried (with both laughter and sadness).
In Oostende at a bunker that was once used by the Belgian Kings to make weapons/protect the coast and then was used by the German Army during WWII to protect the coast from the Allies on the North Sea. Barb wire and wild flowers help to provide a contrast between the beautiful coast and the ugliness of conflict/war.
In case you live under a rock, the World Cup started today, which I have been waiting for all summer(summer actually hasn't arrived in Belgium and maybe never will, but with all due respect to the upcoming solstice, it should be summer). The US opens their tourney with England tomorrow in what promises to be an exciting match. Like my prediction when the US played Canada in hockey during the Olympics, again I will predict with my heart and not my head. Since I have a crate of beer bet with Kleine (our catcher, the catalyst for our offense, and Brad Pitt brother look-alike) that the US will not lose, I might as well head into the game with some confidence.
Not only is tomorrow a big day in spectator sports, but we also take on the 3rd place Deurne Spartans in what promises to be a good one. With several of our players coming back from exams, we plan on giving this solid team a tough weekend. Tomorrow I take the hill at home. In our previous series with them, there was a lot of typical Belgian baseball happenings... Douchebaggery on the part of the opposing pitcher, a tight (understatement) strike zone, balks (that surprisingly were not called), peeing on fences, Zino, and the like. Tomorrow promises more of the same hopefully with a touch of redemption, as we look to hand them a loss.
In other news, Rachel and I had our second to last baseball clinic today. Monday is the last one and the official beginning of "summer holiday" (since it's such hard work haha)... thanks for showing up on time Troy. After today's clinic, we took a bike ride to the field where I met with the above mentioned Kleine for some bp and relaxation (a pintje). I think every time I have ever seen Kleinner, I have had a pintje... it's a streak that I don't want to end. Got to love it. Bram joined us after he got off work, and we fine tuned the strokes for the weekend. The plan for the three of us is to have 8 hits between us in tomorrow's game, I'll let you know how that turns out.
I'm off for now, but I'll leave you all with some pictures of what has been going on lately. My camera broke and my computer died so I'm at the mercy of Rachel's photo album, which I am sure is spectacular. Here you go J Ma, enjoy.
Also, feel free to comment and cast your 2 cents on whether I should let my hair grow out or get it cut.
Peace
Me in Brugge in front of a bar with a really small door.
Rachel and I toasting our sampler beers after a tour at De Halve Maan (The Half Moon) brewery in Brugge. The tour and the blond beer were voortrefelijk.
Rachel sat on her glasses and broke them in two symmetrical pieces. I laughed, she cried (with both laughter and sadness).
In Oostende at a bunker that was once used by the Belgian Kings to make weapons/protect the coast and then was used by the German Army during WWII to protect the coast from the Allies on the North Sea. Barb wire and wild flowers help to provide a contrast between the beautiful coast and the ugliness of conflict/war.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Epic Journey(s) to Come
So I have noticed, being the observant person that I am, that American ball players in Belgium seem to have several ways to approach their stay here. While some are here strictly for baseball, others have dual nationality, are trying to still get signed by pro teams in the states, or are here for the baseball and life experience of living and playing abroad.
Don't get me wrong, I would love to play pro ball in the States and think that if provided the opportunity, could be successful at that level. However, there is something to be said for being provided the opportunity to play ball, live in a new place, learn (or at least try to learn) a new language, make new friends, and for me another important plus is the opportunity to travel. Once again, I would love to play everyday, but getting to travel is a nice trade off for not having the ideal playing/practice schedule.
For me, I plan to take advantage of the travel opportunities provided to the fullest. That brings me to the two big trips I have coming up. The first is a trip Rachel and I are taking to Croatia for 10 days. For some reason, Croatia is the place I wanted to see most while over here and we have a pretty awesome trip planned.
I will fill in details when I have more time.
The next trip will take place almost the entire month of July and promises to give BJ or Bust '07 a run for its money. The tentative plan is to cram 5 or 6 of us into a rental car all wearing crazy hats and hit the road. A week in Bordeaux region, then off to Spain/Portugal for two weeks and then a week or so in Italy. Again, i'm out of time for which I apologize, but more details will be filled in and I'll post some pictures soon. Thanks for reading! More later. Peace and happy birthday Toby!
Don't get me wrong, I would love to play pro ball in the States and think that if provided the opportunity, could be successful at that level. However, there is something to be said for being provided the opportunity to play ball, live in a new place, learn (or at least try to learn) a new language, make new friends, and for me another important plus is the opportunity to travel. Once again, I would love to play everyday, but getting to travel is a nice trade off for not having the ideal playing/practice schedule.
For me, I plan to take advantage of the travel opportunities provided to the fullest. That brings me to the two big trips I have coming up. The first is a trip Rachel and I are taking to Croatia for 10 days. For some reason, Croatia is the place I wanted to see most while over here and we have a pretty awesome trip planned.
I will fill in details when I have more time.
The next trip will take place almost the entire month of July and promises to give BJ or Bust '07 a run for its money. The tentative plan is to cram 5 or 6 of us into a rental car all wearing crazy hats and hit the road. A week in Bordeaux region, then off to Spain/Portugal for two weeks and then a week or so in Italy. Again, i'm out of time for which I apologize, but more details will be filled in and I'll post some pictures soon. Thanks for reading! More later. Peace and happy birthday Toby!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Weekend Results vs Braaschaat
It is always hard for me to write about the games without fully letting them sink in and taking a day to digest what happened, but with clinics all week now is the best time for a little update. I'll make it quick.
On Saturday, I took the hill at home, looking for my 3rd straight win and possibly complete game. The game started off in frustrating fashion with them getting a few seeing eye singles and a double play ball that went by second base as our 2B crashed towards second. All in all it could have been much worse, and with 1 out and runners on 1st and 3rd I buckled down and got out of the inning only allowing 1 run. In the bottom of the frame, I quickly erased that deficit with an rbi single up the middle. I would add another rbi single later in the game.
Despite the early runs, the game turned out to be a pitchers duel with each team capitalizing off of defensive miscues. In the end (to make a lot of details into just a few because I need to go to bed), we ended up losing 7-4 in 11 after blowing a 2 run lead in the ninth. I finished the day throwing 10 innings and allowing 1 er while getting the no decision. At the plate I was 2 for 3 (arguably could have been 3 for 3 because I beat out a sac bunt but they said it was a throwing error) with 2 rbi and a run and 2 sac bunts.
Today was a different story with us suffering a lopsided defeat on the road. We lost 10-2 on another rainy Belgian afternoon. I was 1 for 2 with a run and a walk and some nice defensive plays in the field including a near web gem of the year on a diving play in the hole but my throw couldn't be picked out of the dirt. I have to run... more later.
Peace
On Saturday, I took the hill at home, looking for my 3rd straight win and possibly complete game. The game started off in frustrating fashion with them getting a few seeing eye singles and a double play ball that went by second base as our 2B crashed towards second. All in all it could have been much worse, and with 1 out and runners on 1st and 3rd I buckled down and got out of the inning only allowing 1 run. In the bottom of the frame, I quickly erased that deficit with an rbi single up the middle. I would add another rbi single later in the game.
Despite the early runs, the game turned out to be a pitchers duel with each team capitalizing off of defensive miscues. In the end (to make a lot of details into just a few because I need to go to bed), we ended up losing 7-4 in 11 after blowing a 2 run lead in the ninth. I finished the day throwing 10 innings and allowing 1 er while getting the no decision. At the plate I was 2 for 3 (arguably could have been 3 for 3 because I beat out a sac bunt but they said it was a throwing error) with 2 rbi and a run and 2 sac bunts.
Today was a different story with us suffering a lopsided defeat on the road. We lost 10-2 on another rainy Belgian afternoon. I was 1 for 2 with a run and a walk and some nice defensive plays in the field including a near web gem of the year on a diving play in the hole but my throw couldn't be picked out of the dirt. I have to run... more later.
Peace
Friday, June 4, 2010
Troy to Join Cats
First thing first. The big news of the week is the addition of Aaron Troyansky to the Merchtem Cats. Boyansky will be coming over on the 14th as the second import on our squad. Couldn't be more excited and am looking forward to outdoing the BJ or Bust '07 road trip (4,007 mile, 14 day road trip from California to Minnesota via Arizona and Texas) with some European travel adventures. Also looking forward to him helping us win a few more games on the field. Should be a great addition to the club both on the field and off.
Second most important thing... Big weekend series against Braaschaat Braves this week. At home tomorrow, away Sunday. I have spent most of the week trying to mend my back but all should be good with the sun shinning and baseball in the air tomorrow. I'm on the bump.
Third thing.... Why do I love Belgium/ians?
Today I went to a school to do a baseball clinic for elementary age kids. Contrary to popular belief, when I entered the school, I had 0 beers in my bag. When I walked out after a few hours work I had 4. Talk about a good day at the office. Yesterday, while at the same school having a drink in the teacher's lounge, a teacher told me he was going to bring me the best beer in Belgium (aka the world). I wasn't sure if he was kidding or not, but sure enough today he presented me with a few beers. You just don't walk into an elementary school empty handed and come out with a handful of beers. I'm bringing the tradition of beer in the teachers lounge back to the States.
Yet another example of how awesome people are here. Not to mention Ruud setting up a physical therapy appointment for me.
Fourth... I had an awesome helper for my last two clinics. I'm not sure if the kids will know how to throw, but Rach-Dogg did an awesome job and was a big help.
Last because I am running out of steam and directly pertains to me getting kicked off the computer... My computer crashsed and is definitely on the DL... possibly a career ending injury and worse case scenario life threatening. As a result, I will probably be a little harder to get in touch with but the sun is shinning and I'll just take it as a sign that I shouldn't be inside on the computer.
More later... until then, keep it classy.
Second most important thing... Big weekend series against Braaschaat Braves this week. At home tomorrow, away Sunday. I have spent most of the week trying to mend my back but all should be good with the sun shinning and baseball in the air tomorrow. I'm on the bump.
Third thing.... Why do I love Belgium/ians?
Today I went to a school to do a baseball clinic for elementary age kids. Contrary to popular belief, when I entered the school, I had 0 beers in my bag. When I walked out after a few hours work I had 4. Talk about a good day at the office. Yesterday, while at the same school having a drink in the teacher's lounge, a teacher told me he was going to bring me the best beer in Belgium (aka the world). I wasn't sure if he was kidding or not, but sure enough today he presented me with a few beers. You just don't walk into an elementary school empty handed and come out with a handful of beers. I'm bringing the tradition of beer in the teachers lounge back to the States.
Yet another example of how awesome people are here. Not to mention Ruud setting up a physical therapy appointment for me.
Fourth... I had an awesome helper for my last two clinics. I'm not sure if the kids will know how to throw, but Rach-Dogg did an awesome job and was a big help.
Last because I am running out of steam and directly pertains to me getting kicked off the computer... My computer crashsed and is definitely on the DL... possibly a career ending injury and worse case scenario life threatening. As a result, I will probably be a little harder to get in touch with but the sun is shinning and I'll just take it as a sign that I shouldn't be inside on the computer.
More later... until then, keep it classy.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
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