Well this is awkward

So I said I would post about every player and I have to keep promises. 

Why not be awkward and talk about Dulski

We have shared many awkward moments.  Let's add this one.

I don't even know how to start. This ought to do.  

Here is some calculus for you

Talkative Person + Talkative Person = Dead Silence

Dulski probably said hello to me and was nice to me from the moment I got behind the goal as a manager and got loose soccer balls for her.  I am sure she appreciated that and was quick to say thanks, which she always said to me and I always appreciated hearing.  

Our first get to know each other moment was a scene out of the movie Fargo. (Minus the smoking and cursing of course)  It really did remind me of this though.  This might have gone through my head during our drive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqIGiVLOY4E

I drove her to the NCAA's for the team because she had gotten Swine Flu (which I am pretty sure she gave me).  It was complete and total silence for pretty much the whole ride.  The only thing she asked is why I downshifted because she knew I wasn't driving a stickshift car. 

The reason of course is that downshifting can slow down the car without making you use your brakes.  My dad told me to do that, so I do. 

I am talkative and she is talkative and together we basically said nothing for that ride to Boston. 

It's funny though because I almost didn't drive her to the NCAA's.  I often go through periods when I don't check my phone for messages.  For some reason I actually checked my messages before I left and noticed I had missed calls and text messages from Dulski and Mags asking me to drive her.

In some ways I felt bad for Dulski on the trip because I had packed up a lot of stuff to take home with me with the change in seasons.  My car had no room.  It was like she had to sit next to an 350 pound offensive lineman on the ride minus the smells and sweat. 

After the car ride, and as we got to the hotel she began to speak more.  She took interest in the book I was reading on the University of Miami football program.  In the lobby before our game vs. BU we talked about how she had considered going to Miami and how she had visited the school.  She didn't like Miami.  I could have gone there in a second, but I am glad she didn't.

Dulski is one of the most energetic, happy, caring and loud person that I know.  I remember her asking how I was doing and I didn't give a positive response so she asked if I wanted to talk about it.  I appreciated how much she cared. She was like that with everyone.  She cared about everyone and seemed to reach out to everyone. I also really loved everytime she would say hello to me when she saw me.  I never ever, ever knew how to respond to her excitable hellos.  I was excited and happy to see her, I just never knew how to respond.  She could make you feel good about yourself with her hello's though.

I remember during pre-season in 2010 that we would run into each other at breakfast.  Every morning that preseason I got up and challenged myself to get out of my comfort zone and initiate a loud and excitable hello.  Every morning I failed.  I wanted to give her a loud and excitable greeting, but I just couldn't.  I give her credit for being able to do that.

I also remember seeing Dulski at a men's soccer game as a fan.  This little girl walked by with a shirt on that Dulski liked and she stopped the girl to tell her how much she liked her shirt.  I appreciate the confidence and out going attitude it takes to be like that.  I wish I could be like that sometimes.  She also might have scared the little girl, but that's a minor detail.  She should keep doing what she does.

Dulski had one really, beyond awkward moment with me while doing laundry on a road trip.  She remembers what she said, and so do I.  I'll never forget what she said.  We won't embarass her.  I recently told her I had a story to tell her and she responded by saying "Oh I can't wait, I always come out looking so good in them."  Speaking of that there was another awkward moment this preseason.  Also no need to go there.  They weren't that bad, but there is no need to embarrass Dulski.

Dulski was on camera when she didn't know she was when we were in New Jersey eating at a restaurant.  As I was editing the film I heard her say that she thought it would be a good idea to pass the camera around and have everyone tell Tim how much they loved him.  I guess no else thought that was a good idea.  I'm glad that didn't happen.  That would have taken awkwardness to a whole new level.  Hearing that on camera was awkward. I will say that I always felt like Dulski used the word "love" a lot, and I think I use it more often with my family because of her.

I was able to get Dulski to take a recruit over night once by asking her if she wanted to make a new friend via text message.  She fell for my trap and responded with "only if they are cool."  She didn't say no, so I got my opening and was able to get her to agree to the overnight. I was so proud of myself.  She called me sly, and at the moment I felt it.

Dulski had Mika for an overnight before the 2010 USF game.  I got up early and drove Mika to the airport.  I picked her up at about 7:15am from Dulski's apartment.  I was supposed to call Dulski when I got there.  When I called her that early in the morning I was totally unsure who had picked up.  It sounded like such a strange voice.  She thinks she sounds like she has a smokers cough.  I'll admit that maybe that early in the morning she does, but who doesn't.  Despite what she thinks about her voice I think she should have her own radio show.  I would listen in.
 
I really believe Dulski would be great for radio and I thought about that when I was scanning through radio stations and ended up hearing Delilah.  I actually stopped scanning when I heard Delilah and thought to myself that I could totally see Dulski having her own radio show. 

Did I just admit to listening to Delilah for more than a second?  That's not good. 

One of the reasons I say that Dulski would be good on radio is because I have always valued Dulski's opinion.  There are some people's opinion that I don't care about, but her's I do.  I think she is a fascinating individual.  I find myself fascinated by her opinions and what she thinks.  I don't really know why either.  I think I think that she sees things differently than I do, and that I will have a more diverse understanding of an idea by listening to her. 

She is extremely bright and has the best vocabulary of any athlete I know.  She would say things to me and I'd nod my head and say I understood.  Then I made a mental note of the word she used and said to myself, 'you should probably look that up.' 

In my opinion, and no disrespect to anyone else, she gave the best senior speech at a banquet in the three years I heard those speeches.  She also apparently had one of the best speeches ever at an awards ceremony this year.

At Pitt Dulski asked what we were having for dinner and I responded with "McDonalds because we need happy meals."  She found that hilarious, which I appreciated.  

I loved the conversations that I would have with her about anything.  Sometimes at practice during breaks she would have some good things to say.  She was always loud and entertaining.  I think her excitableness and my calmness were an interesting dynamic in conversations.  

Dulski was the only person on the team to call me by my full name. Once she called me by my middle name and then first name and then last name by accident. Maybe Cory has called me by my full name too. Doing that gets your attention and makes people remember you. 

Dulski and I got to the point where we were totally in sync at practice.  She would need a ball for a drill, she would just look at me and I would have it ready and would throw it over the goal and right to her.  It was so smooth, except for when I stopped paying attention to whose ball it was. 

I got to score a couple of goals on Dulski for fun.  It meant a lot to me because I knew how much I sucked and how hard I had to work in order to only suck a little bit.  I once volleyed a cross from a really difficult angle past her.  It was the offensive highlight of my soccer career. 

Apparently goalkeepers are crazy.  Our assistant coach informed me that she puts her whole body under for cold tubbing.  Considering the amount of pain goalkeepers have, I understand why, but there is no way I could possibly put anything but my legs in for a cold tub. 

Of all the players I got to watch I felt like Dulski improved the most over her three years I knew her.  I don't mean this in a soccer sense, I mean it in a people sense.  I felt like she matured a lot and became a great leader.  I actually tried to take note of some of her leadership traits because I felt like they might be good to think about or use.  She was also easy to deal with, and I always thought she was responsible, even though she didn't think that.  She might forget her gloves from time to time but she was always good about not taking advantage of people and making sure to follow directions and do things on time. 

I always loved making highlights of goalkeepers.  I spent most of my time at practice around keepers so I always wanted them to do well.  This year the entire goal of borrowing my sisters camera was to get extra clips of Dulski's amazing, and acrobatic saves.  I never felt that game film did them justice. The directions I gave to managers for highlights were simple, try to film the whole game, but make sure you don't miss our goals, or Dulski's saves.    I would plead for her to make those saves at home when they could be properly filmed and remembered. 

Her save against Wake Forest this year was really memorable, as were the ones against Notre Dame in 2010.

Dulski was a great interview.  She said some interesting things and was easy to talk to.  She was camera shy though.

She tried to interview me this year on camera and she did.  I don't mind...dare I say I love being interviewed?  I never used her interview though.  As a matter of fact I thought I looked hideous on camera, and as the editor I get to decide what is and isn't used. I had way too much hair.  I got it cut two days later and have kept it short since then.  I should thank her for not letting me look like a weirdo anymore. 

She interviewed me after the DePaul game at the airport in Chicago.  I asked her a few questions regarding a story about Kemba Walker and Mika (and now they are linked together forever on google) and she wanted to return the favor and put me in the hot seat.

Mika tried to convince me that Dulski believed the story, and knowing how gullible Dulski could be I just had to interview and investigate.  That's why the interview took place in the first place. Mika swore Dulski believed, but it became evident throughout the interview that thankfully Dulski did not believe the story she was told.

She is very gullible though.  She once believed that we were hosting a life-size bobble head doll game in 2012 for the first 10,000 fans.  Shoey believed it too though, as did Mel.  Then again Mel and Shoey were the same person sometimes.  Maybe gullibleness runs in the Rochester water.  They were also young then and didn't yet know that sometimes I lie for fun to see people's reaction.

One of the things she asked me was "If I was a flower, what kind of flower would I be?"

I have no idea what I said.  I can name flowers, but other than a rose I can't put the name with the characteristics of a flower.  She stumped me with that question.  I probably said a white birch tree because they are found in New Hampshire (State Tree of New Hampshire as far as I know) and I love New Hampshire.

Dulski and I also had a friendly argument about whether or not Stew Leonards is better than Wegmans.  We argue about grocery stores.  I admit that Wegman's is nice.  When we argue I don't admit that.  But to me, Stew Leonard's is just better.  I've asked many people for their opinions and I think I have atleast two people on my side. 

A coach once told me that Dulski is the best player they have ever seen when it comes to mental preparation.  

I would also call Dulski tough and all goalkeepers need to be. 

She also loved the game.  She would always be the person who wanted to do shooting games after a long practice.

I would say that I think Dulski will be really successful at making the world a better place.  I can see her being a great outdoor adventure guide, or someone who gives back to those in need.  She is great with people and I have a lot of respect for her. 

I also appreciate her family because they have supported me and my work.  They motivated me and were a part of the reason I enjoyed doing what I did because I knew how much they appreciated my work. 

I will end this by saying something that maybe I shouldn't say, because I don't need to say anything controversial or that could get me in trouble, but I really believe that the BIG EAST made a huge mistake with their all conference selections.  How they only selected two-goalkeepers for three all-conference teams is beyond me.  There should be three keepers for three teams and Dulski should have been one of them.  No discussion necessary.  Without Dulski's saves against Wake Forest the RPI of the entire conference would have been a lot worse this year.     

I might have more stories or things to say about Dulski but for now this is good.  I've spent two hours on this and it's time for bed.  As I am sure you can tell there is a lot to say and I wish I could write this much about everyone.  There will be some others who get just as much writing as her, if not more.

The Food I Have Tried

I have eaten a lot of new things considering how picky of an eater I am because of my time with soccer.

Here is a short list that I have:

Chicken Parm and Chicken Parm Wrap (I love the wrap from T-Anthony's in Boston) - This is probably one of my favorite meals now, and I never had it growing up but all the players ordered it all the time so I decided to give it a try.  I would have loved it had I known Chicken Parm was Fried Chicken with pasta and tomato sauce.

As it turns out my pre game meal turned into a grilled chicken parm.  I looked forward to pre-game meals so badly.  I loved my grilled chicken with pasta and tomato sauce from A-Step Above Catering.  So good.  A-Step Above also was a part of my pre-game meal because I would have about four chocolate chip cookies before every game. 

Davio's Chicken Parm Spring Rolls - G worked at Davio's Restaurant and I saw one of their specialties in the grocery store so I bought them and tried them.  G didn't tell me to get them, but I noticed them because I recognized the name from her place of work.  

Oatmeal - Coach and Charno were responsible for this.  Coach loves his Oatmeal and Charno told me to try some so I did.  I now like to eat Oatmeal for breakfast sometimes, although my mom swears I had some when I was really little.

Ham sandwich, with lettuce tomato and cheese - Until soccer I ate my ham sandwich without anything but ham and bread.  Our assistant coach ordered a post-game meal for me at the NCAA's in 2009 and I loved the additional toppings.  I now have all those ingredients on a Miami Onion Roll and it is really good.

Cinnamon Pretzel Stix - Charno was responsible for this as well.  I knew I would like these, but Charno was the person to get me started.  She convinced me to walk to the other side of O'Hare to get some and it was well worth the trip.  I also found out that it's a better value then the regular pretzel according to her.

Burrito - I had no idea what a burrito was until I got one because...you guessed it, Charno told me too.  Turns out I would have really liked the burrito had I known what it was.  I like the beef the best from the student union with nothing but the tomato and onions as toppings.  My mom also uses beef in the soft shelled tacos she makes, and those are really good.

Kabab- I need to thank the Lackman's for these.  They made them at the summer picnic at their place the past two years and they are really good.  I had always seen kabab's but never had one before.

Cake Ball - Our assistant coach brought these in for Christmas one year and they were so good.  I loved them.

Paradise Blend Juice - During my endless search to find a replacement for the Guava Juice that I love that Ocean Spray used to make, I was introduced to this wonderful juice by Julie.

Honeycrisp Apples - The best apples in the world are Honeycrisp Apples and I have to thank our other assistant coach for introducing them to me.  He brought them in and had me try one and it was so good.  He got me started on a very good habit of having an apple a day.  Everyone in my family now likes Honeycrisp Apples and we recently purchased and planted a Honeycrisp Apple Tree on our property.

Cannoli's - I never had a Cannoli until after the Seton Hall game in 2010.  Devin's mom brought them after a game and they ended up on the bus.  Dev got me to try one and I must admit that it was really good.  I had another canoli at our senior day celebration.

Office Stuff - The team administrative assistant and our assistant coach made amazing treats that I don't always remember what they were, or what to call them, but they were really good.

Saying Goodbye

I'm still in the process of saying good bye to everyone with the team. It takes time. I'm slowly texting or making plans to see people. Someone asked me recently if I would cry when I said goodbye. Well I didn't. I thought I might at times, maybe even the banquet too but it didn't happen. There are moments that have made me tear up. Those moments include Jessie and Hillary's first career goals. Both of their celebrations were priceless. They both jumped up in absolute joy and seeing how much it meant to them made it mean that much more to me. However, I have been able to avoid those tears, even though I care so deeply about everyone and the program. Saying goodbye has been bittersweet. I don't look forward to saying good bye to people I may never see again, yet on the flip side I enjoy saying goodbye and letting people know how they impacted me and made my life better because everyone does that. I have been humbled during the process by the amount of thank you's that I have gotten. I have never gotten so many compliments in such a small time frame. The thank you's and little things that I have gotten mean the world to me. I will never forget that G and Lew took the time to get me some really cool gifts and fill out a card with nice hand written notes. It was so nice of them, and I will never forget their gesture, nor them, for the rest of their lives. I owe them. I must also say that the thank you's and thoughtful gifts mean so much more than the pay I didn't get. What I got seems much more rewarding.  Appreciation is a great gift to get.

I am a fan again

I am a fan again. I can write whatever I want now! It's weird to just be a fan again, but it's time. I said I would write stories about games or players and I am going to do that...starting now. I loved my time, the coaches, players, staff members, etc. in my time there. I'm sure I have lots of interesting things to say.