In case you’re interested, an article originally posted here has been picked up and published in the Christian Science Monitor. The piece, which I titled The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis and How Language Affects our Understanding of Soccer, is in today’s Monitor on the commentary page under the headline Win or Lose, It’s How You Say the Game. It has been edited from the original essay, but contains the same basic ideas.

Since I started this blog at the beginning of the year, I’ve been surprised and honored by how the readership of my blog has grown. I’ve been curious to know who exactly these people are who are taking the time to read my website. So, inspired by Ives Galarcep, I’d like to do a Culture of Soccer Roll Call. I’ve gotten to “know” (such as one can on the Internet) some of you through your comments, emails, etc., but I’d like to know more about other readers with whom I have not communicated.

Below, if you would be so kind, please tell me your name (first name or posting nickname is fine) and where you live. If you have a website of your own, feel free to list it. I’m always looking for good new reads.

Thanks for reading Culture of Soccer.

Apologies for the lack of updates. I’m on vacation now and will be until next week. I may post something this week, but no guarantees.

This is not me, though it would be nice if it were (photo: destination360.com)

So, for those of you who don’t know me in “real” life, I am moving from Washington DC, where I live now, to San Diego, where I will be starting a PhD program in anthropology in the fall. I’ve been thinking about my trip across the country and how I can make it more interesting than a mad dash from Point A to Point B.

One idea I’ve had recently is to try to make into an American Soccer Road Trip. It occurred to me recently that, without going too far out of my way, I could stop in most cities with MLS teams (Washington, Columbus, Chicago, Kansas City, Denver, Salt Lake City, and Los Angeles). I like the idea of building my trip around these teams and cities rather than, say, truck stops off the highway. Update: Here’s a link to a map for a potential route I could take.

But, if you have read the blog with any regularity, you know that I’m interested in stories behind the headlines. So, while I’d like to stop and visit all of the MLS teams I could (even if it’s just to see a practice and interview a player or two), I’d also hope to find interesting soccer stories that not many people know about. A league for Mexican migrants in Nebraska, a Polish soccer club in Chicago, etc.

This is where you come in. I’m posting this in the hope that some of you will have ideas for interesting stories that I might try to cover on my way across the country. Really, as long as it is soccer-related in some small way, I’m probably interested in it (yes, I’m obsessive), so please don’t hesitate to holler at me with an idea or two. I know I have readers from all across the country (and the world) and I’m hoping that your collective expertise can make my trip a “great success” (say it like Borat does). I’m leaving at the end of August, so keep that in mind.

Oh, and one last thing. I’m going from being an elementary school teacher to being a grad student, both things not known for being lucrative. So, if you live along the route I sketched out above and want to put me up (I’m not opposed to sleeping on couches), I’d be immensely grateful.

Please leave a comment below or send me an email at david [at] cultureofsoccer [dot] com. Thanks in advance for all of your help!

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I will be out of town this weekend so there will be no updates until next week. Thanks for reading.

I apologize for the lack of updates all last week. I was visiting UC San Diego, where I will be entering a PhD program in anthropology in the fall (part of my research will look at the role of soccer among Spanish-speaking immigrants in the US). Posting will resume as normal now.

By the way, if you have any suggestions for topics you’d like to see me cover, please contact me. My email is david[at]cultureofsoccer.com (remove the [at] and replace it with @).