Firstly, check out this article about translating Albert Camus’ alienated classic, The Stranger. I’ll wait.
Done? Good.
I remember very clearly back in 1992 when I was in high school, my friend Matt telling me about the new, Matthew Ward translation. Part of what he told me was about how Ward was trying to capture the colloquial, ‘American’ style that he believed Camus was aiming for. And then he told me about the line.
On a purely nostalgic level, Mother died yesterday cannot be beat for it cultural cachet, which, of course, made Ward’s change so massive. It felt like editing It was the best of times, it was the worst of times (though I should add, that book was among Dickens’ worst and there’s no good reason for people who aren’t Dickens completists to just skip over it).
We were all would-be existentialists at that age (and would-be communists, anarchists, and beatniks, as well, never mind the contradictions because we were teenagers) and Camus had a powerful hold on the imagination, especially with those iconic photos of him at his Humphrey Bogart-esque best with the dark overcoat, half smoked cigarette, and weary/sexy face (yeah, I’m heterosexual, but you can’t tell me Camus wasn’t a sexy man – http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/backissues/camus.jpg)
Sam Allardyce, who currently manages newly promoted English team, West Ham United, comes in for a lot of stick.
He coaches his teams to play ugly soccer. To play ‘route one’ or long ball soccer, where the ball is simply launched towards a big guy near the opposition goal in hopes of causing some havoc and getting a lucky break.
No creativity, just boring, blunt force. Nothing attractive to watch or cheer for.
In short, it’s the emblem of the worst stereotypes of the English game.
But I don’t think it’s fair.
When ‘Big Sam’ managed Bolton in the first half of the noughties, for a time, he had his team playing the most exciting, attacking soccer around. Because he had two skillful attackers in Jay-Jay Okocha and Youri Djorkaeff.
Okocha was the heartbeat of one of the Nigerian national team, a talented ‘no. 10’ who directed the attack for club and country.
Djorkaeff played on the 1998 World Cup winning French squad alongside Zidane. He played behind a lone striker for both France and Bolton, drifting from side to side like a (not very speedy) ‘floating winger’ or ‘central winger.’
Allardyce gave both of these players a free reign in midfield and attack. Yes, he had ‘boring’ bulldozer of striker upfront to feed off the delicious efforts of Okocha and Djorkaeff and a pretty boring midfield behind them, but the efforts of his two ‘fantasistas’ made Bolton’s games amazing viewing.
What I believe Allardyce does is get the best out of the players available to him. After that Bolton team, he never really had those kinds of players on his squad. If the West Ham ownership were to give him sufficient funds to not only shore the most pressing needs, but also buy a creative, luxury player (Aston Villa might be ready to ditch Charles N’Zogbia), I think you would see him put out a much more interesting side. What he doesn’t do is ask players to play beyond their abilities.
I’m a big fan of minor league baseball.
Right now, I don’t go, because I live within walking distance of the stadium of a major league team, the Washington Nationals.
But in principle, I like minor league and when I have lived near minor league teams, I have gone to see games more frequently than I go now to see the Nats.
This article backed me up on my appreciation for minor league ball.
While working on campaigns in Iowa and Mississippi (legislative and a governor’s race, respectively), I went frequently to see the Des Moines’ triple A Iowa Cubs and Jackson’s single A Braves. The I-Cubs play in a great stadium, on the edge of downtown and right by Iowa’s state capitol. It’s a beautiful park with great views and some quality ball is player there. I have less positive things to say about the Jackson Braves, but paying a few bucks to see some ball means that going to see a game feels like less of an effort. No planning, no worries. Just head out there and see the game if you feel like.
And I grew up Florida, the land of spring training. My hometown of Dunedin has a stadium for the Blue Jays (for both major league spring training and minor league in the regular season). You could walk to it. That’s freaking awesome.
The neighboring town of Clearwater has a much nicer stadium, but it’s in a more suburban environment and feels less like an organic part of the city, but it’s still pretty darn gorgeous and pleasant.
the coffee philosopher 
