World Cup Fever

You've seen them. The ones with World Cup "Fever." They have the tell-tale signs. Your first hint is like the sign of a plague ship...the ever-present national flag of the team they're egging on, attached to their car. Further symptoms may indicate how far gone they are with respect to their fever, such as:

• Rashes on their faces in the colours of the team they're supporting;
• The wearing of clothes in their team colours, or in more severe cases, the wearing of national flags;
• Huddling in groups around big screen TVs in bars favouring their teams, for mutual support;
• Exuberant and sometimes irrational behaviour, in the streets of the city after their team wins; and
• In extreme cases, calling in sick, coincidently on the days when their team is playing.

The cure for this fever seems to occur when those afflicted see their teams eliminated from the World Cup competition. Flags are removed from their cars; their rashes disappear; they're back to wearing their normal clothing; less huddling around big screen TVs; and quieter streets, especially in areas that are prefaced with the title "Little." The most tell-tale sign is the muttering of, "just wait, we'll win next time," or something similar.

I have to admit that I'm not interested in soccer (or football, as it's called in Europe). Oh sure, I've kind of been following the standings, especially now that the competition is in the elimination round and it's down to the finals. But that's more because I work in a cosmopolitan office in a cosmopolitan city. So it's more for a little water cooler talk than actual interest in the game. Maybe I would have been more interested if the country of my birth, or of my heritage, had made it to the finals. But then again, maybe not.

Because of my lack of real interest in the sport, maybe I should rebel against all those supporters. Why don't I show everyone that I won't succumb to the "Fever." That I'm immune to the symptoms that appear, at least in four year cycles. But how? How do I wear my rebellion on my sleeve?

I think I have the answer! I'll take a cue from a movie that's opening this summer. That's right, The Pirates of the Caribbean is not only entertainment, but it's educational too. I'm going to fly the pirate flag, The Jolly Roger, on my car!

Maybe it's a little too late in this year's World Cup competition to do that, considering the competition is almost over, but it's certainly something to keep in mind when this fever reappears in about four years. I'll show everyone that I will not fall to the fever everyone else does.

When it comes to the World Cup of soccer I say, hoist the sheets, set course, and...

UP THE JOLLY ROGER!!!

Wings Over The World