Well, after a last minute, nail biting win last week against the previously undefeated Frankfurt Galaxy, the Admirals find themselves back at even this week with a 2-2 record. And it wasn’t an easy road to get there. The game last Saturday was very exciting. It was close the whole way through and it wasn’t until our quarterback Shaun Hill threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Matthew Hatchette to put us up 20-16, that it looked like we may actually win it. And even then, Frankfurt’s offense drove the ball down and tried for a special 4-point field goal (anything over 50 yards) with three seconds left to tie it up. Lucky for us, it was no good.

That made for a great night of celebration! It was our first win at home, so it was the first time that we were all in a celebratory mood in Amsterdam. Everyone was smiling and living it up at the stadium and then we had to decide where to celebrate. I went out with a few of the players to a club in Amsterdam that reminded me of clubs I had been to when I lived in Los Angeles. We got there at about 11 and we were the first ones there. But it didn’t take long for the place to liven up. It really didn’t matter what was going on, we were going to have a great time because of our great win that day. Everybody was dancing and enjoying themselves and I even got thrown up on the platform to dance!

With my day off this week, I went to “The Heineken Experience” which is a tour of the first Heineken brewery. I learned a lot about Heineken and brewing beer in general. And it was a very entertaining tour as well, with interactive games and moving-theatre short films. Plus, they allow you to sample the beer, which somehow tastes much better here than anywhere else that I’ve had it. I would definitely recommend it.

On Wednesday, it was Queen’s Day here in Holland. It is celebrated every April 30th. From what I had heard, it is one huge street festival. Everyone has the day off and most people bring out items to sell in the street since no permit is needed to sell on that one special day. I was, and still am, feeling a bit under the weather, so I couldn’t really join the party. I felt bad missing out, so I forced myself out of bed just to see what it was all like. But I think I joined the party a little late. The streets were covered in trash and the whole town smelled of beer. Some people were still celebrating and it did look like fun. I just wasn’t in the state to enjoy it.

This weekend, we travel to Berlin to face the Thunder. It will be a tough game because the Thunder is still looking for their first win, which makes a team very hungry and very dangerous. I am hoping that we can keep them winless throughout the weekend. And that will mark the halfway point of the season. I can’t believe how fast this is going, but I am definitely looking forward to the rest of the way. ---