By the time you read this post, if everything goes according to plan, I’m probably already en route to Australia.

It’s a whole new chapter in life as everyone’s been telling me and I’m really excited/scared/nervous.

So long, and thanks for all the fish!

It was a close game but you all managed to scrap in a goal during extra time. Also the first time I witness the infamous vuvuzela firsthand, live.

Excellent work fellas!

Lazy movie reviewer day

The above passages may contain spoilers.

Rating: 3/5

Like any self respecting Singaporean football fan, with the insane World Cup rates bordering on day-light robbery, we’re all flocking to our neighbourhood kopitiams and McDonald’s.

So the other day, I was at a particular McDonald’s at 0230 watching the Spain, Paraguay match and the place’s packed like every other McDonald’s this World Cup season. I was rooting for the Spanish and was pretty sure the Paraguayans were pretty damn lucky to get this far.

So it goes.

Around the 60th minute, Gerard Pique pulled down Paraguay’s Oscar Cardozo in the penalty area on a corner kick, earning a yellow card and giving Cardozo a penalty kick. Amazing Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas dived left to block Cardozo’s low kick and the entire McDonald’s erupted in cheers and roars.

“Sure are a bunch of passionate Spain fans,” my buddy whispered to me.

Seconds later, on Villa’s attack in the penalty box, he was hauled down by Antolin Alcoraz, who drew a yellow card. Xabi Alonso took the penalty spot and sent a beautiful drive into the net. Again, the entire McDonald’s erupted in cheers but the referee Carlos ‘Kelong’ Batres quickly dampened the spirits and disallowed the goal, saying a Spain player entered the area too soon.

Given a second chance, Paraguay keeper Justo Villar guessed correctly, diving left to stop the penalty kick. He also knocked the rebound away from Cesc Fabregas before defender Paulo Da Silva made a leg save at the goal line on another shot by Sergio Ramos.

And this is the part that baffles me to no end.

The entire McDonald’s erupted into cheers yet again.

WTF is going on here? Who the hell are these people supporting?

Are they simply watching for the thrill of the goals? Do they care which team wins? Do they even know which team’s which?

Excellent.

Addendum: Wondering if screening the World Cup have been good for McDonald’s business or are they cannibalizing themselves with the horde of freeloaders?

Is this why you see everyone and their mothers (or fathers) are switching over to those hugely oversized cameras they hang around their necks like they’re suddenly all ‘professional photographers’?

PUI!

Expect to see goal-line technology an absolute certainty at the next World Cup following the referee’s blunder.

Though you gonna give it to Germany’s goalie, Manuel Neuer for nonchalantly scooping up the ball and playing on.

Addendum: Fifa president Sepp Blatter apologizes (albeit not a very sincere one me thinks) to the Football Association over Frank Lampard’s disallowed goal in England’s World Cup defeat by Germany and promises to reopen the goal-line technology debate at the next Fifa board meeting in July.

Oscar was badly injured in an accident which nearly claimed his life, is walking again thanks to a team of British experts who preformed a pioneering operation to attach groundbreaking prosthetic paws to his hind legs.

There is hope for the human race after all!

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