I had another “66” moment yesterday, as I continue to be reminded of my age. We were at Coeur de Terre winery to pick up our member shipment, and I was having a discussion with the owner. Music was playing in the background but I really didn’t notice until Nat King Cole started to sing “Route 66.” It caught me by surprise, and I pointed the coincidence out to my wife, further adding to the number of times my age number of 66 has surfaced in the past few months.(See Post #302).

In the study of numerology, the “Angel Number 66 is a message from the angels to put your faith and trust in the benevolence of the Universe as your daily needs are continually met.” Some consider it to be “a powerful number of unconditional love, healing and faith and trust in the Devine.” Others say that it “shows a double 6th sense and an ability to connect with others.” Words are converted to numbers by adding them together.  A=1, B=2, C=3….J=10 or 1, K=11 or 1+1=2….Z=26 or 2+6=8.  Words that add up to 66 include Discipleship, Resurrection, Spiritual Work, and Transformation.  Technically, 66 breaks down to:  6+6 =12, a master number of learning spiritual lessons, and even further to 1+2=3, referring to the Trinity, meaning you’re receiving divine protection, help, and guidance.  You find your personal numerology number by beginning with your full birthdate, adding the digits together after reducing them to a single digit.  Mine is August 27, 1951 or 8+9+7=24 and 2+4=6.  My life path is a 6 – The Nurturer.  I apparently was meant to by my own boss – so retirement has given me a chance to be just that, except for my wife!

The only numbers I was worried about today was my annual property tax statement, showing that our taxes had gone up 9.2 percent when compared with last year.  Our property value only went up about 3%.  It’s inflation like this that concerns retirees on fixed incomes.  With a working wife, our household income isn’t yet susceptible to the growing costs of staying in The Rose City.  Hopefully, our dollars are going to support a retiree in the Portland area education community.  The letters RCTID are on billboards all over town, and the battle cry of the Timbers Army, who we saw in action today.  Rose City Till I Die will not be the case with these levels of tax increases.  RCTIL is more like it – Rose City Till I Leave!

My wife and I wrapped our Portland Timbers Army scarves around our necks for the big game today.  Only soccer fans sport scarves, an element of the unique tradition of this game that is universally known as futbol.  I immediately spotted #66 for the Vancouver White Caps opposition; the biggest man on the pitch, Ali Ghazal.  Since he really stood out, I was immediately concerned that he might be a factor, but the Timbers ultimately prevailed 2-1.  Soccer is filled with chants, mysterious abbreviations, and lore.  For example, the 80:00 minute mark is celebrated with the song, “You are my Sunshine.”  It’s done in remembrance of the daughter of original mascot Timber Jim Serrill, who died at the tender age of 8.  Currently, Timber Joey celebrates each Timber goal by sawing off a slab of log with a chainsaw.  The trophy is then presented to the goal-scorer in a post-match ritual.  Today’s ceremony also included the presentation of the Cascadia Cup.

The Cascadia Cup honors the rivalry between the Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders, and Vancouver White Caps.  The Timbers won it in 2009, 2010, and 2012, so it’s been 5 years since the cup has been claimed by Portland.  In the 2015 Championship season, the Timbers actually finished a distant last in the running for the 2-foot-tall silver cup.  Honestly, I hadn’t been to a match since early in that Championship year, so this was a good game to attend.  Everyone waves and twirls their scarves to honor the playing of the “Star Spangled Banner,” and in this particular game to “O Canada.”  In other sports this tradition might be considered disrespectful, especially in lieu of the recent hubbub over kneeling or sitting during the anthem.

Caleb Porter is the successful coach of the Timbers, a fellow Indiana University grad, who played on the soccer team from 1994 to 1997.  He was also an assistant coach for the Hoosiers from 2000-2005 and helped guide the school to two of their 8 NCAA Championships.  Porter, himself, starred on IU’s 1994 squad that lost 1-0 to Virginia for the national title.  This year, Indiana is currently the #1 team in the country, undefeated through 16 games, and allowing only 3 total goals.  In fact, their scoreless-minute streak reached an incredible 922:28 minutes.  The last time they were undefeated this far into the season was 10 years ago in 1997 when Porter was an IU Senior.  As a fair weather fan, I typically follow soccer when the football season looks hopeless and basketball hasn’t started yet.