All this in mind, every time the Broncos play this year it pains my heart that I'm not there, at home, cheering on my boys. I want to go to Sports Authority Field and watch Peyton Manning throw a game-winning touchdown pass, Von Miller sack an evil quarterback (mainly Tom DoucheBag Brady), Eric Decker catch a classic 80 yard pass, Champ Bailey make an interception...I fucking LOVE my Broncos. Always have. Always will. In my veins, my blood runs orange and blue.
This brings me to sacrifice. I get much praise from friends and family for doing what I do - pick up and move to a country I've never been to before and make a life out of nothing. It's not easy, but it's about the only thing I feel I'm good at. I love doing it and I love travelling, but it's definitely not without its sacrifices.
You might think sacrificing the Denver Broncos is petty sacrifice (if so, you're probably not insane about football like me...I did say my blood runs orange and blue), but small sacrifices add up and can wear on a passionate soul.
You should be aware by now that I'm also crazy insane about music. When I'm home, or anywhere near a normal city that hosts concerts, I average on maybe 2 gigs a month - it's not really a lot, not for me anyways. It's been 1 year and 75 days since my last gig. I'm like a sober drug addict. And it's horrible. I hear about my favourite bands playing in Denver at my favourite venues and it sucks knowing I can't be there. A few bands I would love to see will play the Southeast Asian circuit and stop in Singapore, so I get really excited thinking that I can just pop on down to Singapore for a weekend...then I see the ticket prices. A show that would be $20 back home is $100 in Singapore. WTF Singapore!!! Do you not realize that's 1/8th of my paycheck?! Fuuuuuuuuck ooooooooffffff!!!
In addition to the Broncos and concerts, I've missed out on many of my friends's weddings, babies, family functions, having a relationship of my own...all in the name of travel.
My Broncos situation isn't near as dire as it was in England, there are a few bars in town that air repeats of NFL games the next day. However, watching NFL in Thailand isn't great. Football is a true American sport and there is the atmosphere that goes with watching the games. I don't feel like I can cheer, scream, taunt the opposition (because there are not that many football fans in Thailand, so you're lucky to find the opposition in the same bar), scream more, swear, throw things at the tv...if I even clap, it feels awkward and out of place. It's just not fun. If the game is still on in Denver when I go to work in the morning, I'll follow the Broncos Gameday live Twitter feed...Broncos score a touchdown and I scream and cheer in my office - my fellow foreign teachers (who hail from Germany, Holland and England) look at me like I'm a freak. Uh, dudes, you're the freaks 'cause you like soccer. Boom. I said it.
Anyways, all I'm saying is don't be too envious of my journey, because I'm just as envious of yours. I've made a lot of sacrifices to be here, sometimes it's easy, but most of the time it's hard. Especially knowing one of your best friend's is walking down the aisle and you can't be there. Or your family is getting together for that yearly BBQ and you're missing out on it again. Please don't think I'm not grateful for my journey, I wouldn't be here if that was the case. Like I said, I love travelling, I just miss out on a lot that I would like to be a part of.
One more thing: GO BRONCOS!!!
Happy Trails.
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