It's finally here: match day for USA-Mexico. As much as I wish I could be in Columbus tonight, I'm really looking forward to watching the game at home, in glorious HD.

Unfortunately, I'll be doing so by myself.

Now, my cicumstances don't really allow for any footy themed debauchery anyway; I'm responsible for my 9-month old son tonight, and that obviously takes precedence over any desire to watch the game with a bunch of like-minded fans. And, if I wasn't tied down tonight, I guess I could always head towards the city and hit one of the well known soccer bars in Arlington or the District. It actually makes me happy to know that Summers in will be rocking tonight, jam-packed with red, white, and blue clad crazies, rooting on America's Team.

This isn't actually a new thing for me, no matter the sport. Where I live and the current state of my home life means I watch plenty of games alone on my couch. I actually don't mind for the most part, because I love being home with my family. Still, if this was the Super Bowl, or the World Series, or any other sporting event that registers for American sports fans, there would be ways to ease my lonliness. Because I'm so often watching at home alone, phone calls and text messaging have become of a integral part of my sports watching experience. If I feel the need to complain about a bad refereeing decision, or moan about the coaching strategy, these things give me an outlet, and help ease the pain.

Unfortunately, there's not going to be anything to ease my pain tonight.

There are no outlets for soccer in my life, no buddies to shoot the shit with about the beautiful game. No one I know cares at all. I'm a man on island.

Still, nothing can depress me today; today is USA-Mexico, by far the best day on my little island. And despite my lonliness and isolation, I know I can always come here and share my thoughts with all of you, the soccer crazies that inhabit the Internet. And, if we're lucky, maybe a few Americans, uninterested in college basketball or American Idol, will flip by tonight's match and catch the bug that so infects all of us.

I'm dragging a bit today (don't worry, I'll be fine by tonight), so my thoughts aren't coming together very well. I'm hoping to be back later with various USA-Mexico thoughts to share, but I think I need large doses of caffeine first.