brighter

Since Monday's conversation with sister, the darkened corners of my mind have been getting brighter. Thoughts are more lucid ... the anxiety that pervades virtually every second of every day is dissipating. I realize, of course, that "the fear," like a creeping fog, can materialize and enshroud me at any time.

But I'm not thinking about that right now. I'm about to watch Turkey battle Germany in the Euro 2008 semi-finals. My prediction: the heavily favored Germans will win -- but not without a fight. Final score: Germany 3, Turkey 1.

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Wow. What a game. Turkey's Semih Senturk tied the game in the 86th minute -- a goal most of the world didn't see thanks to a lightning strike that interrupted the international TV feed (the telecast was plagued by outages). Four minutes later, Germany's Philipp Lahm ended Turkey's storybook run with a beautiful give-and-go goal (Thomas Hitzlsperger with the assist). Final score: Germany 3, Turkey 2.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow's semi-final match, Russia versus Spain. I expect Spain to dominate the Russians and win 4-1. The winner will meet Germany on Sunday and play for the Euro 2008 Championship in Vienna, Austria.