My Top 10

I was thinking the other day about this subject: my top life-defining moments.

What does that mean? Does an event have to be supremely profound for it to define a part of your soul? Or can it be fun, painful, mundane?

I think all such events contribute to your life in one way or another. Here's my list of the top 10 experiences of my life..so far:

World Cup 2010: Games set, now we wait

So the draw is taken and the U.S. knows who will be its opponents in the opening stages of World Cup 2010.

I like the draw we got in Group C on Friday: England, Algeria and Slovenia.

Finally, a fair draw that pits us against good teams, but gives us an edge. Clearly, the Old Motherland will be our biggest challenge, but American soccer fans usually love any chance to stick it to England.

And so the season of stupidity begins

Thanksgiving was a lot of fun. Probably the best part was watching 11 children, all but 2 who are under the age of 15, running around my parents' house playing with toys and soccer balls on the front lawn.

Friday and Saturday, my father and I decorated the house and outside evergreen tree with Christmas lights. I look forward to the Christmas season, with more feasts and decorations and merriment. But...

The worst part: the season of stupidity is officially underway.

Turkeys and skunks

The bags are packed. The boys are sleeping peacefully dreaming of turkeys and mountains of mashed potatoes. And tomorrow we'll drive three hours to stuff ourselves with all the trimmings of the American Thanksgiving feast.

And here I am tapping away on this laptop while the Pittsburgh Penguins systematically dismantle the Montreal Canadiens.

The only thing missing is cold weather. It's so much like a rainy spring night, that I've spotted the green tops of my irises starting to peek out of the flower beds around the house.

With any luck, it's about 10 degrees colder in Pike County, Pa. But I'm expecting just as much rain.

I'm looking forward to the trip, but I can't help having thoughts that this will be my first Thanksgiving without my grandfather, who died last April.