Moaning is so very last year.

By Walter Broeckx

Changing the tune is something that is happening a lot of course. No better place to see it happening than in the football environment. And certainly with Arsenal.

Not on Untold one could say. Since Tony started this blog all those years ago we have been celebrating each win, have swallowed each defeat but never gave up on our support for the players and the manager. We weren’t happy when at the end we didn’t win but that is how things go.

We understood the difficulties we were facing with oil money being thrown around like snow on the top of Mount Everest. We were paying for the building of the Emirates and on Untold we waited for the better days that would come. And we enjoyed the roller coaster. We had a few downs of course but every win felt sweet and was enjoyed.

People came on here and called us deluded. And they denied that they were glory hunters. No, no they were the real supporters, the true supporters. For them it was not about winning, it was about competing, they said.  Because when we pointed at finals, semi finals, the 2007/2008 season and the 2010/2011 season it was brushed aside. Making me wondering that if that wasn’t competing then what is competing?

But now when one could say that we are competing I again notice a turn. Now let us get this straight. Is being 5 points in front after 15 games competing? If not then from which point is competing? Being 7 points in front? Or is it from being 10 points in front?

Was Manchester United competing last season after 15 games? They had 36 points and were 3 in front of City at the same point last season. So I think that we are very much competing.

And so at Untold we enjoy this. Of course we enjoy it much more than last season when after 15 games we were 10th and had 21 points.  So having 14 points more and be top of the table is fun. And a sign of us competing. But again some come over and say that we shouldn’t enjoy it now as we might still slip up.

So that is a strange message for me.   It is rather like  saying that you can only enjoy it when your team wins it at the end. Of course I would love us to win the league. Or the Champions League. Even the FA cup. But if we want to win it we have to win the games that take you there.

So what is the idea behind, “you can only celebrate when you win it in May?” That is like going on a holiday but don’t enjoy the trip to the sun. No, you have to be unhappy till you reach your destination in the sun.

But before that please keep on moaning about the weather at home, the long queue before you can board the airplane, the small space you have to sit in, the passenger next to you who smells a bit and could do with a bath.  The low quality of food served. The delay of the flight…

I don’t understand it to be honest. Whenever I have been on a holiday the fun has started from the moment I shut the door at work. The first second of the holiday is the same as the first game of the season. And of course you can have a setback by standing in a long queue (it is like losing a game), and sometimes you get a narrow result. A draw when you had hoped for a win (sitting next to the person with the bad smell) but is this all a reason to go overboard and start moaning about how bad all things are?

So each moment in the season has its ups and downs. We had a big down on the opening day. But we recovered in an amazing way and showed them what we are made off. We are a team challenging for the honours this year. And I will jump over the garden fence when we win this season. I think you will hear me shout all the way to London when we win the title. I probably will travel to London on the day we can win the title just to be there when we win and enjoy it in the heart of London even without a match ticket. I will just be there.

But the most important thing is not to forget the now part. And to enjoy it. I have been called a loser in the past for this attitude. I’d rather call myself an enjoyer. Someone who enjoys the journey. The rollercoaster. The turns and twists. And of course it is much more fun when you are in front than being 15 points behind.

So stop whatever moaning you want to do for now. Now is the time to enjoy it. And most of all, now is the time to support. Supporting winners is easy. Supporting on the road to win things is already a bit harder. For that you have to stick out your neck. And you have to give yourself in order to help the team.

In a way it is easier to not invest a part of yourself in the process. So you can say: told you so. But then you forget the main thing: enjoy it. Enjoy things while they are happening.

And those of us who have given their all to support the team will feel even more delighted once we get to the end and win something. Because to some extent at that moment it will be also your title.  And if we don’t win a competition after all , this is football, and you can live up to what you have said earlier: I’m not a glory hunter, I just want us to compete.

So compete and support. Do your bit. Moaning is so very last year.  This year it’s fun.

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55 Replies to “Moaning is so very last year.”

  1. But Walter…..moaning is a form of coping with one’s inherently pessimistic and dark inner self…afterall, IF things go bottom up, the moaner can say I told you so and woefully accept their destiny as losers while revelling in being proven right. However IF the unlikely happens and AFC win, then they can return to their inner shadow world, closing out the happiness and ephemeral joy that disturbs their cloudy universe and threatens to remove their desperately held convictions.
    You are basically saying that it is the journey and not just the destination that constitute the true joy of supporting, and I entirely agree. Those who moan and whine or rant about all things unwell at AFC are actually people who never started the journey in the first place. They are sedentary spectators in the game of life and never take risks…all is lost, failure is inevitable, hope is delusion and safety lies in denying potential success while espousing doom and gloom, pessimism and a poverty of the possible.

  2. Ithaca

    When you start on your journey to Ithaca,
    then pray that the road is long,
    full of adventure, full of knowledge.
    Do not fear the Lestrygonians
    and the Cyclopes and the angry Poseidon.
    You will never meet such as these on your path,
    if your thoughts remain lofty, if a fine
    emotion touches your body and your spirit.
    You will never meet the Lestrygonians,
    the Cyclopes and the fierce Poseidon,
    if you do not carry them within your soul,
    if your soul does not raise them up before you.

    Then pray that the road is long.
    That the summer mornings are many,
    that you will enter ports seen for the first time
    with such pleasure, with such joy!
    Stop at Phoenician markets,
    and purchase fine merchandise,
    mother-of-pearl and corals, amber and ebony,
    and pleasurable perfumes of all kinds,
    buy as many pleasurable perfumes as you can;
    visit hosts of Egyptian cities,
    to learn and learn from those who have knowledge.

    Always keep Ithaca fixed in your mind.
    To arrive there is your ultimate goal.
    But do not hurry the voyage at all.
    It is better to let it last for long years;
    and even to anchor at the isle when you are old,
    rich with all that you have gained on the way,
    not expecting that Ithaca will offer you riches.

    Ithaca has given you the beautiful voyage.
    Without her you would never have taken the road.
    But she has nothing more to give you.

    And if you find her poor, Ithaca has not defrauded you.
    With the great wisdom you have gained, with so much experience,
    you must surely have understood by then what Ithacas mean.

    -K. P. Kavafis (C. P. Cavafy), translation by Rae Dalven

  3. @ Walter – Well put ,couldn’t agree more .Right on !

    @OMG Arsenal -Moaning is never having to say you’re sorry ?”

    @ foreverheady – Awesome ! Thanks .

    This is from the Book of quotes :-

    There are some people who ,
    put you down in life ,
    mock your dreams ,
    and challange your personality ;
    they look like winners .

    But in actual fact , they are only voicing out their insecutities and jelousy .
    Do not let them pull you down .
    Believe and accept youself and hold on to what you believe in .

    LONG LIVE THE AKBs !

  4. When I was young I was scared of the Dark… Now when I see my electricity bill I am scared of the lights..

  5. Spot on Walter.
    A good example of what you are talking about from the Just Arsenal blog yesterday, their headline reads….
    ‘Why Arsenal draw with Everton was simply NOT good enough!’
    The article itself a load of pessimistic tosh.

  6. well said Walter I’m a keen follower of your articles and I can’t highlight more about how I’m disappointed about the fickle nature of these so called Arsenal fans who I think don’t understand what this team is all about. I hate moaners who at the drop of a hat can be narcissistic about what this team has given them in the first place. To dream.

  7. Bravo, Walter! Bravo!! The journey is quite often more fun and enjoyable than the anti-climax of the destination. Only a handful of people know that, I suppose.

  8. Walter,
    To paraphrase Kipling (not the guy whose apples in his pies are never properly cooked):
    “If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two imposters just the same….you’ll be a good Arsenal supporter all your life, my son”.

  9. Walter,

    Thanks for sparing me the need to write something like this. You know I mean no disrespect 🙂

    Many are letting their fears cloud their vision and influence their judgement on what the team is doing. Case in point, Everton came to the Emirates and huffed and puffed for 30+ minutes and all of a sudden the team that made their goalkeeper arguably their best player on the night is slipping.

    This is not to take anything away from Everton but they were not the first to huff and puff at the Emirates they were only lucky to escape with a draw. Stoke played just as well and got a well taken goal. But since we defeated them with 3 set piece goals (strange), no one is bigging them up while sidelining us.

    Anyway, thanks for writing this pal. Many Gooners need it.

  10. this summer, the days when the transfer window closed, I was on a holiday. I missed our Fenerbache second game, the NLD and the Ozil signing.

    Ah the holiday. On the treking trip to the himalayas. I took us 7 days (up and down 100 kms). We climbed a tough terrain to our destination. And when we reached there, there was sense of achievement. But the most memorable part of the trip was the climb. Not the destination.

    Well there are easy ways to go there too. Helicopter ride to the top. Stay there for a couple of hours and then fly down. But is there anything to remember, sense of achievement????….

    Enjoy the journey, you never know…..

  11. Moaning keeps the balance between being happy and being sad, after all we would not know we are happy if there was no sad, so it’s a matter of balance, and it is fun sometimes to rant and rage “in a calm collective way”.

  12. Moaning season is on. Veira is moaning too. And he thinks we dont have leaders on the pitch.

  13. Tonight ManC plays Bayern, and unlike us they can field a weakened team as can Bayern, they are both through and the order will not change who ever wins.
    We have to make sure of winning Napoli, but i am confident we will also beat ManC.

  14. ARSENAL 13,

    You just don’t have foresight dude. Smart people like those who crap all over Arsenal’s achievements around here would have taken the helicopter and then point and laugh at you for reaching the summit days after they’ve already left.

    I still honestly have no idea how this season will end but I intend to enjoy and agonise (hope more of the former and very little of the latter) along the way.

    I asked on the previous thread, which series of games was better for us, last mid-week when all the top teams won or last weekend when we got the same result as other contenders with one major contender losing a net one point? Our lead actually increased this weekend while only stayed the same a after the mid-week games.

    So why all the hand wringing? Everybody dropped points this last weekend. EVERYBODY that matter. The fact that the then 2nd placed team lost even more means we actually gained a point. Why the whole panic? And we outplayed Everton where it really mattered: shots on goal and clear scoring chances.

    Onward to Naples.

  15. The mountain farmer got in his pickup and drove several miles to a neighboring farm and knocked on the farmhouse door. A young boy, about 12 opened the door.

    “Is yer paw home?” the farmer asked.

    “No sir he ain’t,” the boy replied. “He went to town.”

    “Well,” said the farmer, “is yer maw here?”

    “No, she ain’t here neither. She went to town with paw.”

    “How about your brother, Joe, is he here?”

    “No, he went with maw and paw.”

    The farmer stood there for a few minutes, shifting from one foot to the other and mumbling to himself.

    “Is there anything I can do fer ya?,” the boy inquired politely.

    “I know where all the tools are, if you want to borrow one. Or maybe I could take a message fer paw.”

    “Well,” said the farmer uncomfortably, “I really wanted to talk to yer paw. It’s about your brother Joe getting my daughter, Pearly Mae, pregnant.”

    The boy considered for a moment. “You would have to talk to pa about that,” he finally conceded. “But if it helps you any, I know that pa charges $50 for the bull and $25 for the boar hog, but I really don’t know how much he gets for Joe.”

  16. The Optimist and the Pessimist

    Two friends, one an Optimist and the other a Pessimist, could never quite agree on any topic of discussion. One day the Optimist decided he had found a good way to pull his friend out of his continual Pessimistic thinking.

    The Optimist owned a hunting dog that could walk on water. His plan? Take the Pessimist and the dog out duck hunting in a boat.

    They got out into the middle of the lake, and the Optimist brought down a duck. The dog immediately walked out across the water, retrieved the duck, and walked back to the boat.

    The Optimist looked at his Pessimistic friend and said, “What do you think about that?”

    The Pessimist replied, “That dog can’t swim, can he?”

  17. The AAAAs lot !

    The Importance of Moaning!

    Morris comes home to find his wife, Sadie, crying.

    “I found out from the neigbours that you’ve been having an affair with that cheap secretary in your office. Why would you do that to me? Haven’t I always been the good wife? I’ve cooked for you, raised your children, and I’ve always been by your side for thirty-five years. What haven’t I done to make you happy?”

    Embarrassed, Morris confesses, “It’s true, Sadie, you’ve been the best wife a man could hope for. You make me happy in all ways but one. You don’t moan when we make love!”

    Sadie questions: “If I moaned when we had sex, you’d stop running around?! All right, come to the bedroom so I can show you that I, too, can moan!”

    So they retire to the bedroom, get undressed, and climb beneath the sheets. As they begin to kiss, Sadie asks, “Now, Morris, should I moan now?”

    “No, not yet.”

    Morris begins fondling Sadie. “What about now, Morris? Should I moan now?”

    “No, I’ll tell you when!”

    He climbs on top of Sadie and begins to have intercourse.

    “Is it time for me to moan, Morris?”

    “Wait, I’ll tell you when.”

    Moments later, in the heat of passion, Morris yells “Now, Sadie, moan! MOAN!”

    “OY! OY!” Moans Sadie. “You wouldn’t BELIEVE what a day I had!”

  18. At least we are not as pessimistic as this.

    A Spurs supporter was walking down the road when he found a brass lamp laying on the payment.
    He picked it up and rubbed it whereupon a genie appeared.
    I can grant you one wish, said the genie.
    The Spurs supporter replied ‘I would like to live for ever’.
    ‘I regret to say that is one wish I cannot grant’ said the genie ‘think of something else’.
    The Spurs supporter thought for a few seconds and then said ‘I would like to live long enough to see Tottenham win the Premier League’.
    Exasperated the genie replied ‘What did I just tell you’.

  19. Optimism and pessimism – six of one and a half dozen of the other….from…

    http://www.jimpoz.com/quotes/Category:Optimism_and_Pessimism

    No one ever says “It’s only a game” when their team is winning.
    George Carlin (1937 — 2008)

    They are ill discoverers that think there is no land, when they can see nothing but sea.
    Francis Bacon(1561 — 1626)

    Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning.
    Thomas Edison (1847 — 1931)

    When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.
    Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 — 1882 )

    Pessimist: One who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses both.
    Oscar Wilde (1854 — 1900)

    Pessimist: a person who thinks everybody as nasty as himself, and hates them for it.
    George Bernard Shaw (1856 — 1950)

  20. Untold at its best. An optimistic article (or meant to be) and great comments and of course Brickfields to provides us to laugh out loud with his never ending jokes.

  21. Arsenal13, what a trip that must have been. I take a bow and Tony will take his hat off I think. Amazing

    and completely in line with what I was trying to say.

  22. Bootoomee,
    It will be like this the whole season.If say we win in Naples, some people will say, ‘the real test is Saturday lunchtime’. If we win on Saturday, then someone is bound to say, ‘Arsenal has never beaten the Special One’, let’s wait for Monday’. If we get a draw then, some other explanation will be concocted. I also think Vieira saying we lack leaders was a complement. Many be he recognised that this time with Per, Arteta, Flamini and Ozil, we may have mire leaders to push us through. Don’t forget that little Jack is also there to assist.

  23. I was born to be a pessimist. My blood type is B negative.

    I told my wife she was ‘lucky to be born so beautiful’.
    Unlike me, who was born to be a fantastic liar.

    Keep talking, someday you’ll say something intelligent.

    After spitting at a photographer outside a nightclub, Wayne Rooney has been ordered to write an apology.
    That’s a six month sentence. A bit harsh.

    When I left home, my mum said, “Don’t forget to write.”
    I thought, “That’s unlikely… It’s a basic skill, isn’t it?”

    Church booked – Check.
    Flowers – Check.
    Cars – Check.
    “Get your suit on lad,” I said to my son. “We’re going to be late”.
    “But Dad,” he replied. “The doctor’s said that she’s still got a faint pulse”.

  24. A fairy tale….in more ways than one !

    One day in the great forest, a magical frog was walking down to a water hole. This forest was so big that the frog had never seen another animal in all his life. By chance today a bear was chasing after a rabbit to have for dinner. The frog called for the two to stop. “Because you are the only two animals I have ever seen”, the frog said. “I will grant you both three wishes. Bear, you go first.”

    The bear thought for a minute, and being the male he was, said, “I wish for all the bears in this forest, besides me, to be female.”
    For his wish, the rabbit asked for a crash helmet, and immediately put it on. The bear was amazed at the stupidity of the rabbit, wasting his wish like that.

    It was the bear’s second turn for a wish. “Well, I wish that all the bears in the next forest were female as well.”
    Rabbit asked for a motorcycle and immediately hopped on it and gunned the engine. The bear was shocked that the rabbit was asking for these stupid things, after all, he could have asked for money and bought the motorcycle.

    For the last wish the bear thought for a while and then said, “I wish that all the bears in the world, besides me, were female.”
    The rabbit grinned, gunned the engine, and said, “I wish the bear was gay.”

  25. The Man’s Dictionary …

    “That’s women’s work.” – REALLY MEANS: “It’s dirty, boring, thankless and I wouldn’t ask a dog to do it.”

    “Will you marry me?” – REALLY MEANS: “Both my roommates have fucked off, the sink is full and I’m running out of clean clothes .”

    “It’s a man thing.” – REALLY MEANS: “Fuck off, its nothing to do with you.”

    “Can I help with dinner?” – REALLY MEANS: “Why isn’t it already on the table?”

    “It would take too long to explain.” – REALLY MEANS: “It doesn’t involve cooking, washing, cleaning, shoes or hair styles so you won’t understand.”

    “I’m getting more exercise lately.” – REALLY MEANS: “I need to get some new batteries for the remote.”

    “Oh dear, we’re going to be late.” – REALLY MEANS: “You are allowed to drive over 25mph.”

    “Take a break Love, you’re working too hard.” – REALLY MEANS: “I can’t hear the TV over the vacuum cleaner.”

    “That’s interesting, dear.” – REALLY MEANS: “Fuck me, are you still talking?”

    “Darling, we don’t need material things to prove our love.” – REALLY MEANS: “I forgot our anniversary again.”

    It’s really a good movie.” – REALLY MEANS: “It’s got guns, violence, fast cars and naked women.”

  26. Christmas crackers ….

    Three men die on Xmas eve. To get into heaven St Peter says, “You must have something on you that represents Christmas.”

    The Englishman flicks on his lighter and says, “It’s a candle.” St Peter lets him pass.

    Welshman pulls out a set off keys and jingles them and says, “They are bells.” St Peter lets him pass.

    The Irish man pulls out his 10inch cock and St Peter says, “How the fuck does that represent Xmas!?”
    Paddy replies, “It’s a fucking cracker isn’t it?”

  27. Cricket made easy ?

    In preparation for the Ashes this summer against Australia, this demonstrates how simple the rules of cricket really are:

    You have two sides, one out in the field and one in.

    Each man that’s in the side that’s in goes out, and when he’s out he comes in and the next man goes in until he’s out.

    When they are all out, the side that’s out comes in and the side that’s been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out.

    Sometimes you get men still in and not out.

    When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in.

    There are two men called umpires who stay out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out.

    When both sides have been in and all the men are out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.

  28. Just heard that Alan Hanson has quit MOTD.

    Would be great if this has something to do with Operation Yewtree, just so I could see The Sun headline “You can’t win anything with kids, Alan! ”

    To those outside UK . just google it ! I did .

  29. Victoria Beckham and her driver were cruising along a country road one evening when a cow ran in front of the car. The driver tried to avoid it but couldn’t – the cow was killed.
    Posh told her driver to go up to the farmhouse and explain to the owners what happened. About an hour later, the driver staggered back to the car with his clothes in disarray.
    He was holding a bottle of wine in one hand, a cigar in the other and smiling happily.
    “What happened?” asked Posh .
    “Well,” the driver replied, “the farmer gave me the wine, his wife gave me the cigar, and their beautiful daughter made mad passionate love to me.”
    “My God, what did you tell them?” asked Posh.
    The driver replied: “I’m Victoria Beckham’s driver, and I just killed the cow.”

    All the above jokes were from…
    http://www.sickipedia.org/getjokes/similar/1529986?page=9

    Goodnight guys !

  30. Brickfields Gunners
    December 10, 2013 at 1:43 pm

    Warning Brickfileds my friend, this is not the best time to be making cricket jokes if you want to keep to keep your English following.

    We lost Trot and got the trotts!!! Not good! 🙁

  31. A song writer once said ” it is one who heaven helps that can be the friend of all. If you are successful, people will talk. If you are not, still they will talk. The question then is ; what can one do that men would not complain or moan?” Friends, the answer is NOTHING! Few years ago, everyone complained that we are a bunch of kids, now the tune has changed to “ozil is the reason for your success” (as if we are not paying his wages). All the big teams dropped points, no comment from them either except that we missed the opportunity to make it 7 points gap. people will always talk. That’s what you all should know. The earlier you know this, the better. You can help yourself by ignoring them.

  32. It takes a wise man to change his mind when new evidence comes to the fore. Only an idiot holds to the same views no matter what he or she experiences.

    My quote for the day – changing the tune once in a while is a smart thing to do 😉

  33. @ colario – I have an English following ? I have a feeling that they are going to desert me soon ,very soon !
    Anyway I’m sure the English team are as well versed on the rules as those who don’t know the game – yup ! That’s right – all at sea !
    N0 ! Not the face !

  34. An trying to post a very funny video clip but for some reason it ‘s not coming up.

  35. I had captioned it as , ” Another case scenario of a bewildered Brit when facing Aussie balls ; and its not even cricket !”
    Comments please ! No brickbats accepted !

  36. Brickfields Gunners
    December 11, 2013 at 4:35 am

    I don’t know about the face but what about a day with the trotts! No I wouldn’t wish you that. I reserve that one for manure London supporters.

    However lay off the cricket jokes just now (wait till we are winning again) or you could be ashes yourself!

  37. @ colario – I received an e-mail with an video clip attachment but I didn’t know that it was from Movie 43 !
    Been huffing and puffing all morning and getting the runaround in a ball chase to all corners !
    Sound familiar ?
    Not really been following the Ashes ,but try to catch the highlights on tv – very poor coverage over here !

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DH72kLnJQE0
    Am not sure why its the wrong way around !

  38. One thing I want to point out is that there is a pattern in the performance. The team were good for a year and then worse in the second since Arsene arrived.

    In a good year, they do very well or they over perform even if the players are seens as “not so good”. It is the reverse in a bad year.

    It was a relatively bad year last year since the team almost failed to get into top four even though the staff was somewhat improved from the year before.

    If this pattern holds true, this year will be a good year.

    In fact, there is already sign of it. For quite a while, the team tend to suffer starting from Nov regardless of their performance before. This is not the case this year and we are mid December. Even if the team start to suffer a bit they are still way better than previous years.

    If they can make it through Dec and Jan in relative good shape, they would be champion.

    One or two losses is really a non- issue.

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