Thursday, November 08, 2007

Goodbye, college soccer season...

It shouldn't be this difficult.

It's 10:21am on a November 8th morning, and I am in the very slow and deliberate process of peeling off the Rhode Island College men's and women's soccer schedules from my cubicle walls. Had I known how arduous an affair this was going to be, I would have avoided posting them on my walls back in late August.

Ok, so that's a straight lie. I would have done it anyway. It would have been futile to prevent.

Anyone who knows me is aware that a good chunk of my life revolves around the fixture lists of soccer clubs. So it was an impossible proposition for me not to put these schedules on the small walls at work. However, it definitely wasn't my intent to grow so attached to both clubs - especially the women's side, after getting to know many of the players' parents during the season.

These schedules afforded me many wonderful thoughts of escaping the office to the cozy confines of the RIC Soccer Field. In fact, each team's first home match of the season was brightly highlighted in yellow marker, signifying its importance for me to set aside all else and make it there. The first match wasn't the only ones classified as "important", mind you. I can recall many a time where things at work were hectic, only to glance back at the schedules, side by side, and take comfort in knowing that either team was playing within the coming hours/days. The promise of sunny afternoons and cool late evenings kept my spirits high through the late-summer, early-autumn workweek and following Saturday afternoons.

I've purposely delayed this unhappy task. Both teams’ seasons ended last week, thus rendering these lists obsolete. But now, as I ceremoniously peel the tape off these magical fixtures that opened the door to my wonderful fixation with college soccer, I cannot help but release a sigh of sadness.

Goodbye, college soccer season.

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