Part 8 - Footy Rebirth
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Moving to southern California opened the door to becoming more intimate with Aussie Rules than ever before.
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Fast forward to about 1997 and one could use the title of an old Men at Work tune to describe my life at that point - "Settle Down, My Boy." A year removed from transitioning from Army life back into the civilian world, I was a newly married bloke now living in Huntington Beach, California and beginning a professional career in systems engineering with a focus on integration and test, training and technical publications. Starting a new life in southern California with my wife Ellen was exciting, as it was adventurous, with just about everything imaginable available to us as far as recreational activities were concerned. Warm, glorious sunshine-filled days opened the door to activities you'd expect to take part in around the southern California beaches: biking, rollerblading, running, shopping, Disneyland, Hollywood, Los Angeles, sunning on the beach (or at the apartment swimming pool). While work kept me busy to the degree of spending three-plus months on the road with business travel, it was one weekend resting at home where I experienced a flashback while watching television. While switching channels, I clicked on ESPN2 and the picture hit me square between the eyes - it was Australian Football! I simply could not believe it and watched in amazement as it was the first time my eyes had seen a footy match in over five years! Even more fascinating was the fact that footy hadn't crossed my mind in years and there it was right in front of me! It appeared the game had slightly changed as players wore larger advertisement banners and the game appeared to have picked up pace while much of the fighting and physical stuff from when I first started watching gave way to greater athleticism. I made certain to keep tabs on ESPN2 telecasts of the game so that I could begin watching again.
The year 1997 was the first for me in being "on-line" and having access to the World Wide Web. Though far less graphic intensive than now, the web back then still was a tremendous resource for information. With the shock of being reunited with footy and the AFL, I began searching the web on everything Australian Rules Football related in order to facilitate getting back up to speed with the game. I was introduced to the AFL's official website as well as Collingwood's official website. Before long, I was up to speed on all the lost years and excited about the prospect of getting up to the minute information on game like never before! Without question, the internet was the perfect medium in which bridge the gap between the United States and Australia and offer me a chance to embrace the game more intimately than ever thought possible.
With the weekly footy show on ESPN2 during 1997, and subsequent years on Fox Sports Network and Fox Sports World (now Fox Soccer Channel), the concern about watching footy on the television was effectively mitigated. The next step, in my mind, was to see if others on the web shared my enthusiasm for the game and perhaps establish a pen-pal or two from down under. What awaited me was something far beyond what I could have imagined as a huge leap into the world of footy beckoned.
Part 9: AFANA 
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