England –Ghana –Essien Saga and Other Issues Arising
I woke up this morning to some interesting news related to the England –Ghana match. Firstly, and I am sure we all know that, the match is a complete sell-out. The English FA are delighted. They are going to make roughly 10 million pounds from this match alone. I am yet to know how much Ghana will earn. Part of this money, of course will go towards completing their Centre of Excellence in Burton which they hope will help improve skills in their youth.
It amazes me how poor the English are when it comes to football skills. This is an example of a situation where over-development probably works against you. Their weather does not help of course. Take a walk on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the UK and you will find a group of boys playing football, all well dressed in nice jerseys and boots with their parents waiting by the sideline and a paid coach in the centre. You naively walk up to enquire if your boys can join in, and you are given a phone number to call and register to join some other time.
So I cast my mind back on the football we used to play in our backyard. You were actually lucky if you had a proper football. Nobody was barred, unless of course, if you had had a fight with the ball owner. Twenty of us would play in a little space and you were thankful for every touch. You instinctively learned to control the ball, dribble and keep the ball to yourself from a very early age. Of course we never learned to shoot, and that shows in some of our professionals as well. Where we played, if you shot too hard, the ball would probably end up in Mr Alhassan’s wife’s soup. There was neither coach nor referee. You learned to kick and be kicked and generally look after yourself. That is one reason why, man-for man, the Black Stars are technically better than the English. Of course we all know that being technically gifted does not always win you football matches.
For the match against Ghana, I heard today, that the England coach Fabio Capello is considering re-instating John Terry as permanent captain. This is a controversial decision. As we recall. John Terry was stripped of the captaincy after having an affair with the former partner of a team mate. The public humiliation he endured was well-deserved. And yet, to the credit of the guy, he has since then, always made himself available to play for his country and performed to the best of his ability, even though some believe his weary legs are giving way. Good luck to him if he gets the captaincy back. It would be a reward for patriotism and dedication.
Talking of patriotism and dedication, John Paintsil, in the same news item about the England-Ghana match was asked about how difficult it must be to balance club and national commitments. He gave a very wise answer. He said, that the reason why most of them got to play in Europe and in the premiership in the first place was because of the national team. They therefore owed a certain level of commitment to the national course. Well said John.
There are some players who play for their national teams for years and then decide at some point, in order to prolong their careers, to concentrate on club football. Football fans round the world respect that. Stephen Appiah has done it. Ryan Giggs has done it. Paul Scholes has done it. We have no problem with that. Michael Essien’s wish to be given a “break” from the national team when he is performing consistently for his club, however, is most annoying to say the least. A break till when? Is it till when the next big tournament comes? Is it to allow the “mental scars” of getting injured in Africa to heal? What is it?
Paul Scholes owes England nothing. He joined Manchester United as a school kid and has played there all his life. And yet he insists, he would probably have changed his mind if Capello had spoken to him. He is only human. He wants to feel loved. So I must commend our coach for taking the trouble to visit Michael Essien and trying to win his confidence and affection. But that should be it. Michael Essien should come and play our next match or be kicked out of the national team for good. As John Paintsil implied, he is where he is because of the national teams and not the other way round. There are boys in my village that can play better than Essien’s awkward bravado in midfield. Getting in the national junior team is everything in Ghana and we can only take so many players at a time. Essien was lucky. He should be saying a prayer for Ghana every morning.
Let’s face it; we got to the final of the African cup without Essien. We got to the quarter finals of the world cup without Essien. While it is important that we bring all our best players on board, this should not be at the expense of team spirit and discipline. What message do we give the other players when it appears we are falling backwards to ensure one player plays against his will? Look at Anthony Annan. He is now a constant for Shalke 04 except for the Champion’s League where he is cup-tied. Prince Boateng is performing brilliantly for AC Milan. Ayew is winning praises from the likes of Ferguson. What about Kwadwo Asamoah and Agyemang Badu in Udinese? Who needs Essien?
In the end, team spirit is what brings results, over and above the brilliance of any one particular player. Lionel Messi, arguably the best player the world has ever seen played for Argentina in the world cup and what happened? Eto’o, the Cameroonian superstar arrived at the world cup in style – with ten thousand pound wrist watches for each of his team mates, and what happened. It has never been and will never be about one man.
Olele!! Good old Olele! What can I say? Olele has had a rather difficult time in England, to say the least. He was the initial beneficiary of Steve Bruce’s “love” of Ghana when he signed him for Birmingham. He later moved with him to Wigan. In both of these clubs, Olele was only a third choice goalkeeper. Indeed, when Steve Bruce left Birmingham acrimoniously, the owners accused him of signing “waste of space” players like Richard Kingson. When Steve Bruce left Wigan to coach Sunderland, Olele’s contract in Wigan was not renewed and we all thought his carrier was over. Then a splendid performance at the world cup, against all the odds, brought him into the limelight again and he was signed for Blackpool by Ian Holloway.
Olele was signed for Blackpool as a reserve goalkeeper. But when the number one got injured, it was an opportunity to show what he was made of and prove his critics wrong. The problem, though, was that Ian Holloway knows only one way of playing – attack!! attack!! and attack!! This means poor old Olele is left with virtually no defensive protection and the goals are going in in their fours and fives. Inevitably, attention is drawn to the goalkeeper and people begin to question his competence. I pray he does not lose his confidence and continues to believe in himself.
Anyway, I will be going to the England –Ghana match. This is more than a friendly. Always nice to be able to stick one up your colonial masters. I will let you know what I see. We all pray for a Ghana victory.
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Wednesday 16 March 2011
Friday 4 March 2011
ICED KENKEY - My Struggles With Obesity
Iced Kenkey – My Struggles with Obesity – Part 1
I am not a nutritionist. Everything I say here is derived from my personal research and experience from my long struggle with obesity. I hope that writing this article will not only motivate me to continue my personal battle to maintain my weight, but will also inspire others to try to do the same. I welcome people more knowledgeable on the topic to chip in with some tit bits in the comments for the benefit of us all.
Loosing weight is not fun. Because, basically, being hungry is not fun. During the 1983 food crisis in Ghana, a man collapsed in the centre of Kejetia, and as is our wont, a few Ghanaians surrounded him and began to share ideas as to how best to help him;
“Leave him alone for a while. He must be tired. It’s too hot today” said Mr A
“No. Let’s take him to hospital” said Miss B
“I think we should buy some ice-kenkey, add some milk and give it to him” Mr C said.
On hearing Mr C, the collapsed man suddenly raised his head, rolled his eyes to the heavens and mumbled ever so softly;
“Listen to what Mr C is saying”
Obesity is a killer. There are no nice euphemisms for saying this. It increases your risk, not only of developing diseases like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and stroke, but also of dying prematurely from complications of these diseases. It causes often forgotten problems like snoring and sleep apnoea with interrupted sleep resulting from blockage of the wind pipe at night and subsequent tiredness during the day. Erectile problems for men may also be worsened by obesity.
In women, in addition to the above, there is an increased risk of cancer, especially of the womb, but also of the cervix and breast. Excessive unwanted hormones produced by fat deposits interfere with the natural cycle of hormones so the monthly periods become irregular and achieving pregnancy becomes more difficult than usual. And if you do become pregnant, your risk of having a miscarriage, having an abnormal baby, developing diabetes and blood pressure during pregnancy or having complications during childbirth, are all increased.
In women seeking pregnancy, the single most important thing they could do to help themselves is to loose weight. Often, weight loss results in regular cycles and pregnancy soon follows, of course, if all other factors are normal. That is God’s grand design to maintain procreation in mankind at all times including periods of famine. You see, the last thing on a hungry man’s mind would be to have children. So God has designed us such that loss of weight increases the women’s fertility and enhances sexual arousal in men. How clever is that.
The strongest scientific evidence for this is in very large men and women who undergo surgery to, among other things, close part of the space in their stomach. (Bariatric surgery). It was found that, following surgery, women who had tried for years to get pregnant to no avail, suddenly became pregnant. Also, people who had adult-onset diabetes often realised, that they did not have to take their medication anymore and indeed, it is the belief among some scientists, that in the future, this kind of surgery may be recommendable for the treatment of adult-onset diabetes.
The official definition of an obese person is anyone with a body mass index (weight in kilograms divided by height squared) greater than 30. Recently, the waist to hip ratio has been found to be a better way of determining health. So all the young men thinking they are generally slim and alright, remember your little “pot belle” may mean that you have a higher waist lenght/hip length and make you prone to similar diseases as obese people. The people of South India are smallish people and yet they have a high rate of heart disease and diabetes. This has been found to be due to their higher percentage of body fat compared to others. So even if you are small, you may still benefit from watching what you eat.
I was a slim young man before I got married. So I have every right to blame the regular fufu from a dedicated wife for my obesity. Of course, the beer did not help either, as my wife is often quick to remind me. At my worse a few months back, I was 110kg. My mother, may her soul rest in peace, died of complications of diabetes and high blood pressure and at a routine check-up, I was told both my blood pressure and blood sugars were borderline. I had to do something.
Over the past few months, I have lost a total of 20kg. It has not been easy and I still have a daily battle to try not only to maintain the weight, but even to loose some more. As the weight fell off, I kept a little screw driver in my room to make new holes in my belt so they could fit better. Making a new hole was always a joy to me and that singular act kept me motivated.
My wife turned to me one morning and said a tad sarcastically, I thought, that I had become the young man she met again.
“What do you mean?” I asked suspiciously.
“Well, you know.....mmmh” My wife has a great sense of humour.
“So why didn’t you tell me before that there was something wrong?” I asked?
“I never thought of it before” she said “but I think I prefer you this way. Let’s face it, who wants a panting perspiring man on top of them?”
I have had my lapses. But the secret is not to give up but to get back on course as soon as possible. I remember that night when I was watching television with my wife. I had had my small portion of fufu but on this one night, the hunger pangs would not go away. Soon, my wife started to nod off. Normally, I would just go upstairs with her or allow her to sleep in the sofa and wake her up when I was ready to go. But this day was different;
“Go and sleep sweetheart” I said
“Oh, I am waiting for you” she said sleepily
“Go and sleep sweetheart, you are going to work tomorrow” I said
My wife looked at me suspiciously and went upstairs, but she did not sleep. She waited a few minutes and came quietly down to find me enjoying a huge bowl of gari, sardine and shitto. We both had to laugh.
But I am determined to battle on. I have put on some 2kg from recent lapses, but I am deliberately still using the last hole I made in my belt. I won’t loosen it, ever, even though it squeezes the hell out of me. For, it is a constant reminder, of the difficult daily battle I am faced with.
So, the next time you see me collapsed in Kejetia, please remember, not only to get the bottle of ice kenkey, but also to quickly loosen my belt. It just might be squeezing all the air from my lungs.
NB - Part two will detail how I achieved my weight loss
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Papaappiah.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/papaappiah
I am not a nutritionist. Everything I say here is derived from my personal research and experience from my long struggle with obesity. I hope that writing this article will not only motivate me to continue my personal battle to maintain my weight, but will also inspire others to try to do the same. I welcome people more knowledgeable on the topic to chip in with some tit bits in the comments for the benefit of us all.
Loosing weight is not fun. Because, basically, being hungry is not fun. During the 1983 food crisis in Ghana, a man collapsed in the centre of Kejetia, and as is our wont, a few Ghanaians surrounded him and began to share ideas as to how best to help him;
“Leave him alone for a while. He must be tired. It’s too hot today” said Mr A
“No. Let’s take him to hospital” said Miss B
“I think we should buy some ice-kenkey, add some milk and give it to him” Mr C said.
On hearing Mr C, the collapsed man suddenly raised his head, rolled his eyes to the heavens and mumbled ever so softly;
“Listen to what Mr C is saying”
Obesity is a killer. There are no nice euphemisms for saying this. It increases your risk, not only of developing diseases like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and stroke, but also of dying prematurely from complications of these diseases. It causes often forgotten problems like snoring and sleep apnoea with interrupted sleep resulting from blockage of the wind pipe at night and subsequent tiredness during the day. Erectile problems for men may also be worsened by obesity.
In women, in addition to the above, there is an increased risk of cancer, especially of the womb, but also of the cervix and breast. Excessive unwanted hormones produced by fat deposits interfere with the natural cycle of hormones so the monthly periods become irregular and achieving pregnancy becomes more difficult than usual. And if you do become pregnant, your risk of having a miscarriage, having an abnormal baby, developing diabetes and blood pressure during pregnancy or having complications during childbirth, are all increased.
In women seeking pregnancy, the single most important thing they could do to help themselves is to loose weight. Often, weight loss results in regular cycles and pregnancy soon follows, of course, if all other factors are normal. That is God’s grand design to maintain procreation in mankind at all times including periods of famine. You see, the last thing on a hungry man’s mind would be to have children. So God has designed us such that loss of weight increases the women’s fertility and enhances sexual arousal in men. How clever is that.
The strongest scientific evidence for this is in very large men and women who undergo surgery to, among other things, close part of the space in their stomach. (Bariatric surgery). It was found that, following surgery, women who had tried for years to get pregnant to no avail, suddenly became pregnant. Also, people who had adult-onset diabetes often realised, that they did not have to take their medication anymore and indeed, it is the belief among some scientists, that in the future, this kind of surgery may be recommendable for the treatment of adult-onset diabetes.
The official definition of an obese person is anyone with a body mass index (weight in kilograms divided by height squared) greater than 30. Recently, the waist to hip ratio has been found to be a better way of determining health. So all the young men thinking they are generally slim and alright, remember your little “pot belle” may mean that you have a higher waist lenght/hip length and make you prone to similar diseases as obese people. The people of South India are smallish people and yet they have a high rate of heart disease and diabetes. This has been found to be due to their higher percentage of body fat compared to others. So even if you are small, you may still benefit from watching what you eat.
I was a slim young man before I got married. So I have every right to blame the regular fufu from a dedicated wife for my obesity. Of course, the beer did not help either, as my wife is often quick to remind me. At my worse a few months back, I was 110kg. My mother, may her soul rest in peace, died of complications of diabetes and high blood pressure and at a routine check-up, I was told both my blood pressure and blood sugars were borderline. I had to do something.
Over the past few months, I have lost a total of 20kg. It has not been easy and I still have a daily battle to try not only to maintain the weight, but even to loose some more. As the weight fell off, I kept a little screw driver in my room to make new holes in my belt so they could fit better. Making a new hole was always a joy to me and that singular act kept me motivated.
My wife turned to me one morning and said a tad sarcastically, I thought, that I had become the young man she met again.
“What do you mean?” I asked suspiciously.
“Well, you know.....mmmh” My wife has a great sense of humour.
“So why didn’t you tell me before that there was something wrong?” I asked?
“I never thought of it before” she said “but I think I prefer you this way. Let’s face it, who wants a panting perspiring man on top of them?”
I have had my lapses. But the secret is not to give up but to get back on course as soon as possible. I remember that night when I was watching television with my wife. I had had my small portion of fufu but on this one night, the hunger pangs would not go away. Soon, my wife started to nod off. Normally, I would just go upstairs with her or allow her to sleep in the sofa and wake her up when I was ready to go. But this day was different;
“Go and sleep sweetheart” I said
“Oh, I am waiting for you” she said sleepily
“Go and sleep sweetheart, you are going to work tomorrow” I said
My wife looked at me suspiciously and went upstairs, but she did not sleep. She waited a few minutes and came quietly down to find me enjoying a huge bowl of gari, sardine and shitto. We both had to laugh.
But I am determined to battle on. I have put on some 2kg from recent lapses, but I am deliberately still using the last hole I made in my belt. I won’t loosen it, ever, even though it squeezes the hell out of me. For, it is a constant reminder, of the difficult daily battle I am faced with.
So, the next time you see me collapsed in Kejetia, please remember, not only to get the bottle of ice kenkey, but also to quickly loosen my belt. It just might be squeezing all the air from my lungs.
NB - Part two will detail how I achieved my weight loss
Papa Appiah
Lexeve1@yahoo.co.uk
Papaappiah.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com/papaappiah
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