The Victory of Success; the Agony of Defeat In the World Cup (and of course, other games), unless a tie occurs, there’s a winner and loser. When a team wins, the players are ecstatic. After the game they run around the field, hug and kiss each other, and wave to their overjoyed fans. If they’re good sportsmen, they’ll shake the hands of their opponents and sometimes even exchange shirts (sweat-drenched and all). On the other hand, the losing team is devastated. Some players are so sad they stay in the same spot for a while. Dejected, other players hang their head down with disappointment. Others cry and they comfort each other, while their fans look on in disbelief and disappointment. If the players are good sports, they’ll shake the hands of their rivals, too. This week, during the semi finals Italy beat Germany (2-0) by scoring two rigorous goals in the last three minutes of the overtime game. The Italy team and their fans were extremely happy. The German team and their fans looked inconsolable. During the France vs. Portugal game, France won by making a upsetting goal (1-0). The Portugal team and their fans were sad. Watching the games, it’s dawned on me that the feelings an author experiences are similar to the ones team players go through after playing the Beautiful Game. When an author completes a manuscript (or even a page or a chapter), meets a deadline – when a publisher offers a contract, or readers like the story, the author feels victorious.   It’s like kicking that ball past the goalie and landing it into the net. GOAL!!! GOAL!!! GOAL!!! Very exciting!

That’s the newspaper headline describing a yearly activity on Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York. Every Fourth of July, a hot dog eating competition brings hopefuls from all over the country and beyond to participate. For the past 6 years a young man from from Japan has been the winner. I remember the first time I saw him, he was a skinny young man. But it seems throughout the years, he’s been body building and become more developed. Funny. He still looks smaller next to his competitors but each year he manages to out eat them. Each year, the spectator crowd grows. This year, thousands of people showed up to watch the competitors. It seems that the winner has a certain technique of shoving the hot dogs and buns into his mouth. Very interesting to watch… If it were up to me, I’d prefer to take my time eating and enjoying my hot dog. You can read ( and see more photos) about the event here.

Would you consider entering a wacky competition like this? Have your participated in any such competitions?

Paz Edwards