Still crazy about the World Cup?

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"Is the U.S. finally going World Cup mad?" read one headline for BBC World News.

It does seem that more Americans than ever are watching soccer's biggest event, due in no small part to the U.S. team's success. (Despite a heartbreaking loss to Ghana this weekend).

What I know about sports you could fit into a thimble. So for a better perspective on America's seeming growing interest in professional soccer, I turned to my friend "Big Ben" Criscitiello, co-host of the "Southern Sports Now" radio show, heard locally on WSPO (99.3 FM and 1390 AM), 3-6 p.m. weekdays.

Ben notes that this year's World Cup "had higher ratings than the World Series and all of the NBA finals except game 7."

He believes, however, that "soccer will never be an 'American' sport because it's never going to be a part of our daily consciousness."

"It's like the Olympics," Ben adds.

Of course, this is the same talk host who says that "Bring it On" and "Space Jam" are among the greatest sports movies ever made and that if Clemson was playing al-Qaida, he'd root for al-Qaida. So perhaps his perspective is a bit skewed.

Regardless, I would add that our own Charleston Battery soccer team has become one of the most popular local sports offerings in recent years, perhaps reflecting a larger trend nationwide of Americans finally embracing soccer.

Either way, Americans have certainly embraced the World Cup.

Thumbs Down

As a freelance writer who can't stand to stay caged up in my house, I like to spend my afternoons at AC's Bar & Grill on King Street downtown, enjoying lunch, gabbing with friends and typing away.

Strange as it sounds, the clinking of glasses, a little white noise and some background chatter tends to get my brain churning, but one particular noise in the past few weeks has all but shut my brain down: that God-awful "buzzing" sound that accompanies the World Cup.

I understand that thousands of people blowing into big yellow horns, or "vuvuzelas," is some sort of South African tradition, but so are my afternoon visits to AC's, where I feel like I've been working inside a beehive for the better part of June.

Apparently, I'm not the only person annoyed by this, and I even tried staying home to work one day last week, but it was no use.

I not only missed the familiar comfort of AC's, but the relative silence of my house was even worse than working in the beehive.

So while I give kudos to Americans embracing soccer's biggest event, I honestly can't wait until the World Cup is over so I can get back to work, undisturbed.

I've been known to get a "buzz" in AC's on many occasions, but this isn't the same thing and it's certainly no party.