Friday, May 13, 2016

Blood Drive

Blood Drive



At Palmetto, occasionally one blood would arrive and ask people to donate blood. This year I was going to donate blood but they took forever to just stick a needle in me. The way I got dragged into donating blood was because my friend wanted me to join him. He wanted me to tag along because he didn't want to go alone so I just went. We ended up not even going at the same time so we were alone for this donation that was going to happen.

When I got there, the place was empty so thought I was going to be out quick. Which is what I wanted but that didn't happen. The people made me wait to get my blood type and then made me wait again to actually take out my blood. After waiting for about 30 minutes, some lady told some of us that were waiting that we could go into the truck and donate. So I followed the lady into the truck and then waited for about 20 min until some other lady walks into the truck and says that the truck is only for the adults.

So I had to leave and then go back to the gym, but when I got there, there was a huge line of students waiting to give blood. So just decided to leave and go to class because I waited all that time for nothing. I guess the people didn't want my blood because they just made me wait and never drew any. Before I left to go to class I took some pizza with me as payment for making me wait all that time. This is why I will never donate blood at palmetto and every year they ask me to donate I just take the consent form and throw it away.





Friday, May 6, 2016

Freshman Year Soccer

Freshman Year Soccer





When I first started high school, one of my main goals was to join the soccer team. It wasn't easy to get into the soccer team because the coach was looking for physical players. In the tryouts I had to go hard in the paint, which is what I did. The coach loved that I had good technique and stamina. Me and my friend were the only freshman on the team. The coach was only looking for two freshman and to be picked amongst the all the other freshman was a big accomplishment.


The first day of tryouts, the coach wanted to see who was fit, by making us do a mile and then suicides. A lot of people stopped trying out because they couldn't handle it. I was able to handle it because club soccer. Eventually I made the team and throughout the year practice was just as much running as tryouts. It was tough but by the end of the season I was so fit  because of the running I did for both high school and club soccer.

As for our season and how it went, it was pretty bad. we didn't even make it districts. we won a couple of games but lost most of them. we even lost against South Ridge who is supposed to be the worse team in the district. Even though our season ended early for us, I still had fun. Besides practice being intense, I still had a lot of good laughs with the boys. Being on the varsity since freshman year was a big accomplishment for me and this year I was the only surviving freshman on the team.

Friday, April 29, 2016

State Cup Over


State Cup Over






Last Weekend was the second round of State Cup and it was played in Ocala. We barely made it to this round but we were still ready to play our hardest in order to advance to the round of 16. We lost our first game already against Toros and the only way of advancing was to win the next two games that we played in Ocala. We knew that wasn't going to be easy so we practiced hard the week before in order to be ready.


Our second game was on Saturday against some random team. They had already lost there first two games, so we were confident that they weren't really good. When we finally arrived at the field after driving for five hours, we didn't see the other team. We warmed up just in case they got to the field late but they never showed up. We got a free win, and we were happy because that means we would have full energy for the game on Sunday.


Our next game was against another random team but this time, the team actually showed up. The other team was full of bigger kids, so that got us kind of worried. Other than that, besides that they weren't even good. We dominated the whole game and got so many chances to score but the ball  just didn't want to go in. eventually we tied 0-0, but in order to advance to the next round we had to win. That means we were out and for most of us, it was our last chance to win state cup.



Wednesday, April 20, 2016

My New Bike

My New Bike



I have always loved riding bikes. I would always ride my bike with my uncle and cousins and we would ride around the streets. I started of in middle school riding with them and it was so much fun exploring with them. We would go almost everyday until something terrible happened. We were going to ride our bikes one day but we had to wait until the rain stopped. When it stopped raining, we went out to our backyard where we have the bikes but they weren't there. They had stolen our bikes while it was raining and our dog wasn't there to protect them.

I was left without a bike for about 5 years, until recently when my uncle got a bike for free. My uncle would always walk pass a by dry cleaners and one day, some random guy calls my uncle over to talk to him. The random guy asks my uncle if he wants a bike and my uncle said yes but only if it was free. The random guy laughed and said "yes". So my uncle gladly accepts the bike and thanks the man. When I got home from school my uncle tells me that he has a surprise in the backyard. When I saw the bike I immediately asked my uncle to go ride. He already had another bike so I was the only one missing a bike.

The image above isn't my actual bike but it is very similar. I'm glad I have this bike because I can go riding again. Since I don't have a car, this is my method of transportation. Even though I would prefer having a car, having a bike is good exercise. You might be wondering why I didn't just buy a new bike after they stole mine, and the truth is I just didn't feel like spending my money on a new bike, because i new that eventually someone would give away their bike. My old bike was also a gift from another random guy in my neighborhood. Now that I have this bike, me and my uncle hide it in a very secure spot where no one can see it and we even lock it down to make sure it isn't going anywhere. 


Monday, March 28, 2016

Spring Break

Spring Break



For my spring break I honestly didn't do much but play Xbox. While most people were at the beach, I was home playing online with some friends who also didn't do much for their spring break. There were a few times where I was invited to go to the beach but I turned it down because don't really like going to the beach. I went out a few times to the movies and to the park but other than that I was just at home playing Xbox.

My soccer team was suppose to have practice but since mostly everybody was out of town, our coach just decided to give us the week off. Which is great because  I told my coach that I was in Orlando (when I really wasn't) to get a week off. Don't tell my coach though because he will get mad and not start me. Not having practice meant that I could relax and play more video games. I mostly played call of duty and FIFA, from the time I woke up to about the time I went to bed.

I usually woke up at around noon and then did any chores that my mom left me to do, because she didn't want me in the house doing absolutely nothing. After I did my chores, I was allowed to play and pretty much the only breaks I took was to go eat and use the bathroom. I would go to sleep around 1:00 am because my eyes were tired of the looking at the TV. Overall my spring break may sound boring but that's just because it was. I still had some pretty good laughs with my friends online, but I think that is about the only good part of my spring break.


Monday, March 14, 2016

State Cup


State Cup





This weekend is going to be the start of State Cup. Being one of the biggest tournaments in the Florida, all the best teams from the state come together and compete. Since the beginning of the season my coach has been telling us that this tournament will be tough and that we need to train hard in order to win. My other team last year got eliminated in the first round, but I believe that this year we can win it. I think winning the trophy would be the highlight of my career.

State cup starts on Saturday and we only have three days left of practice to get ready. Although I believe that my team can win this tournament, there are still some issues facing the team. Some people haven't been showing up to practice, when they really should because we only have a week left and we need all the training we can get. Sometimes our coach wants us to learn new plays but barely anyone shows up, so by game time only a few players know the play. 

Regardless of this problem, I still think our team has a good chance of winning. My main worry right now is the burn on my leg. I got it while getting on mark's bike on Tuesday, and it still hasn't healed. Im most likely going to have to play with this burn.  I just pray that no one hits me there because I think I may cry. Getting it infected will also suck, but I just can't miss this tournament. This is my last year playing club soccer and I want to end on a good note. Força Cutler Ridge Soccer!

Friday, March 11, 2016

Burned my leg


Burned my leg

So on Tuesday of this week, I burned my leg on a motorcycle. Specifically on Mark's bike, who has a Honda CBR 2015. They way the story goes is my school bus didn't show up on time, so i decided to go across to the senior parking lot and ask some of my friends for a ride. I asked my friend Carlos who took me yesterday, but he told me that he couldn't that day because he had to meet up with his grandma. My next option was my friend Chris, who told me that he couldn't take me because he was going the opposite direction. 

As I was getting out of Chris' car, I saw Mark and his deadly bike. I ran up to him and just decided to jump on his bike, but as I was getting on my leg touched the muffler. It stung me at first but didn't really pay attention to it. I asked if he could take me but he told me that he doesn't have another helmet. It wasn't until I got of the bike when I realized that i burned my skin off. This sucks because when I play soccer my leg starts to burn and especially when I'm taking a shower and the water hits my burn. 

Mark told me that it would heal in about a month or two, which isn't good news because I have a soccer tournament next week and this might affect the way I play. I will have to play with the pain because this is a very important tournament I don't want to miss it. Everyday I wrap up the burn so that it doesn't get infected and everyday I have to deal with the pain. Eventually the bus did come and I just rode it.  

Friday, March 4, 2016

IMG Tournament

 
IMG Tournament
 


This weekend we have the IMG tournament in Sarasota. We are so excited for this tournament and can't wait to hopefully get another trophy. We have been training hard for the past three weeks and can honestly say that we have a good chance in this tournament. In the past tournament that we lost, most of our players were out. Now that everyone is healed, we have no excuse for losing. We even got this new kid named Flaco who is from Uruguay and is an absolute beast. The last game he played with us, he got a hat trick (scoring 3 goals) and got us the win.

Even though we have an amazing player with us, we can't just rely on him to get us a win. In order to win this tournament, we need to play as a team and play with heart, which is what our coach tells us before every game. Sadly for some of the players and I, our parents wont attend the tournament, because they have to stay in Miami for work. Lucky for us, there are other parents who are attending our games and care for us like we were their own son.

Shout out to my second mom Rachel who always encourages me to play hard and score some goals. She is one of my biggest fans and supports the whole team no matter what. I'm glad to be part of Cutler Ridge Soccer because of my teammates, as well as the parents who do so much for us. With this team I know everyone has my back and I think that this is exactly what we need to have in order to win games. Chemistry plays a big role in soccer and I think our team has more than enough to win this tournament and bring back home another trophy.


Friday, February 26, 2016

Cutler Ridge Soccer Vs. PSG

Cutler Ridge Soccer Vs. PSG







VS









Since the beginning of the season we have had a rivalry with PSG. We are almost equally matched but I would honestly say that we are a little better than them. Regardless they always bring a fight to every game. We have played a total of six games with them and we won the first 3 but then they came back and won the next three games. The way they won wasn't even good either, they would get lucky goals and the ref would be on their side because we would play at there home field.

We had a game on wednesday and I guess you could call it the tie breaker. we were really pumped for this game because it would finally determine who is the better team. we were also going to dedicate this game to our team manager, Crispino. He does so much for the team and the last game we had against PSG they disrespected him. Every goal we scored that game was dedicated to Crispino. The game was tight but we managed to win 2-1.

We were glad to get the win for Crispino and to be crowed as the better team. We played in the rain with a lot of wind. So it was hard to even see but we managed to score 2 goals. I was the one that scored the winning goal and it felt good. After the game, we didn't even shake hands because they were so mad that we won. I didn't even care though because we came out with a win and that's just what we wanted. For now we hold the crown but maybe in the future they will want to steal it from us.

Friday, February 19, 2016

Weston Cup


Weston Cup



Last Weekend I attended the Weston cup with my team Cutler Ridge Soccer (CRS). We started off with a tie against a team from Brazil. Getting a tie against a team from another country felt pretty good. Especially since that team was from a country known for its soccer. The next game we played PSG, which is a team that we have already played before and lost. Therefore we went in hard and actually dominated the game. We had so many shots on target, but the goalie was just too good and blocked all of them. We ended up getting another tie, which meant we had to win the next game in order to advance to the semi-finals.

Knowing that we had to get a win, put a lot of pressure on us. Getting a win wasn't going to be easy because in the last game against PSG, many of our Defense players got hurt. We lost 4 out of our 6 defensive players, therefore our coach had no other option but to put some of our offensive players on defense. For the third game against West Pines, we had many people playing out of position and we had no subs because everyone was hurt. So we had to work even harder to get the win.

Despite the fact that we didn't have our main squad playing on the field, we still got the win. We won 3-0 and i got two assists. We felt great knowing that we were in the semi-finals, but also scared because we still had some of our players injured. We played against a team with a weird name (which I forgot). They lost against the Brazilian team so that made us feel a little more confident about the game. The game began and immediately in the 8th minute of the game the other team scored. We thought it was going to be the only goal they score because our defense made a silly mistake. But after that goal, they just kept scoring and scoring and Eventually we lost 6-0.

Even though we lost, I think we still did pretty good with the team that we had. It sucks to lose by so much, especially after all the hard work we put into the other games. I think if we had our main starting 11, we would have won that game and probably the whole tournament. There is nothing else we could of done, we did all that we could and the opponent out played us. I would say maybe we'll win it next year but this is my last year playing club soccer so there is no next time. 



Thursday, February 11, 2016

Corrupt Referees

Corrupt Referees






There is an extremely important topic that I need to talk about today and its about referees. Lately I have been noticing that in a lot of my away games for soccer, the refs were almost always in the favor of the other team. To me this is very important topic because these refs are making a difference in the game and not in a positive way. Many teams are being robbed a win, because the referees are calling in favor for the team that play in their area and its just not fair.

I travel a lot with my Cutler Ridge Soccer and I have seen many corrupt refs. Just last week we went up to Sarasota, to play against Chivas Soccer Academy. I wont lie, it was a tough game but I will say that the refs played an important role in that game. The other team was playing dirty and they sometimes wouldn't even go for the ball. The ref just let them play like that, but when we bumped them a little in the shoulder, the ref would call a foul.

I don't mean to sound mean but that ref was complete trash at making calls. He wasn't calling any hand balls in our favor, only against us. The ref was obviously on the Chivas team and wanted the home team to win. Some of the calls that this guy was making would make you wonder if he forgot his contacts at home. I honestly ask myself sometimes, who is the one that give these type of people a license to ref because some of them are really bad.

Not all referees are corrupt, some of them respect the game and call it alike both ways. But like I mentioned earlier, there are some refs that are ruining the beautiful game of soccer and its a shame. I feel like the people that give out the licenses need to make harder tests and be stricter on who they allow to become a referee. I just really hope that the refs aren't corrupt at the tournament that I have this weekend in Weston. They might just play a key role in who becomes the champion.


Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Special Cleats



Special Cleats



Since I started playing soccer at a young age, I have gone through many shoes. Back in the day my family was as fortunate as we are now, so I had wear cheap shoes (fake). They would tear easily and I still remember the one time the front of my shoe opened and you could see my toes. This happened in the middle of a game and my dad had to go to his truck and get tape to fix my shoe. I had to use those duck taped shoes for a whole month, until my uncle saw them and felt bad.

My uncle took one look at my shoes and immediately asked for my size. About a week later he showed up with a box containing brand new Nike T90 shoes. They were all black with red outline. The best part of these shoes were that they were real and they lasted me a really long time. Ever since that day my favorite cleats have been T90s. Eventually when those cleats were ready  to retire I ended of getting another pair of T90 cleats(the image shown above).

Like I said before I have gone through a lot of cleats but none of them could ever compare to the orange T90s. That season that I used those cleats in, was the best season of my whole career. You probably wouldn't believe me, but I played like a young little Messi. I scored so many goals with those cleats that I never wanted to get rid of them. I was unstoppable with those cleats, I would score almost every game with them.

Sadly the year after my amazing season, Nike decided to stop making T90 cleats. I would never be able to buy those amazing cleats ever again. When the orange T90s broke, I had to search for new cleats to buy. I tried many shoes such as F50s, Hypervenoms, Predators, and Mecurials. They were all good shoes but none of them could compare to my special T90s. Nike should have never gotten rid of those cleats, but it is what it is. Maybe Nike one day will do a throwback and bring back those legendary cleats.














Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Road To First Place


Road To First Place




For as long as I can remember I have been playing soccer. I have been on many teams and made many friends throughout my career. My first team that I ever played for was Empire Soccer Academy at about age 5. There I learned how to play the sport and became better. We hosted many tournaments and never won any of them, the only thing I received was participation medals. I didn't mind though because at that age all I wanted to do was play.

At the start of my soccer career it was never about the trophies but as I progressed and got older I started to feel the desire to win. After being at Empire for  a good 7 years, I left because I knew I wouldn't achieve anything there, So I joined Club Atletico de Miami. My first year there we almost won some tournaments but always got eliminated in the Semi-finals, and as the years went by the team just got worse and worse. After spending 4 Years at CAM, I decided to leave to Pinecrest Premier.

I honestly believed that Pinecrest Premier was going to help me achieve that first place medal. Looking at our team, you would think so too because we had some of the best players in Miami. We joined one of the hardest leagues in Miami thinking that we would win the title but we got completely destroyed. Our only chance now was one of the tournaments that we planned to attend. We got all the way to the final but lost in penalties. After that, our season was over and most of us decided to leave.

Getting older I feared that I would never be able to obtain my first place medal. It was going to be my last year playing club soccer so I had to choose wisely which team to join and I went with Cutler Ridge Soccer. Playing our first game I easily could tell that this was the team to make my dream come true. Our first tournament that we played we won. We completely destroyed the competition and I finally got my first place medal that I have been chasing my whole life.

I won many medals of participation in my life and not once was I happy about it. Maybe when I was little but that doesn't count. Anyways winning that first place trophy made me happy and relieved. I could now retire in peace knowing that I finally won a first place medal and I have my team in Cutler Ridge to thank for that. We even won another tournament after that, so I guess its safe to say that I chose wisely with Cutler Ridge Soccer.




Thursday, January 21, 2016

Highschool Soccer

High School Soccer




Since my freshman year I have been on the Palmetto varsity soccer team. Being the only surviving freshman wasn't an easy task, but through hard work I was able to make the team four years in a row. Palmetto boys soccer has never had a really good team, and the last time that the boys were district champs was in 1997. This year was going to be the year that we made history. Having the best team that I ever saw in my years of high school, we all thought that we were going to win.

We started the season by beating last year's district champs and after that day all we did was win. In order to be the best, you have to practice hard and that is exactly what we did. We practiced every day and got better and better. Even though we worked hard, that doesn't mean that we didn't have fun along the way. practice was often filled with jokes and laughter. Even though our practice was filled with banter, we always knew when it was okay to joke around and when we needed to get serious. It wasn't until the end of the season where we started losing, but we still managed to finish 2nd in the league. The day of our district semi-final was nerve racking because we knew that we won the next two games, our goal would have been achieved. Sadly we lost 3-1 against Varela, and our hearts were broken.

Even though we had a great season, we didn't manage to achieve our goal to make palmetto history. For the seniors that were on the team, the loss hit us harder. Our last chance to win districts was gone. Many of us teared up and got emotional, but in the end we did what we could and gave it our all that game. We are all happy to have been on the team this year and I don't think anyone is going to forget what we did this year. I think everyone is proud to be a Panther, I know I am.