To begin with: an apology to my avid readers. And, yes: I now have proof that at the very least two of you exist. In the last 24 hours, I have received both a facebook complaint and a verbal complaint about my lack of posts over the last 10 days. So to you two, I'm sorry. I got caught up in mock, informational and actual interviews and decided that might be less interesting (to you two) than Lady Gaga, lifetime movies and my forays into alternative fitness. I will do better in the future. Now, to you dozens upon dozens of silent fans that had no words of reproach for my long absence: I understand your desire for anonymity, but really, this blog will never transform into a Julie and Julia (with a Cosmopolitan/Confessions of a Shopoholic twist) success story unless you start commenting, spreading this blog to your roommates (or at the very least, your friends in the publishing industry) and demanding (like my two avid readers) that I step it up during periods of blog-neglect.
Anywho. On that note.
THE WINTER OLYMPICS. Several someones told me that they don't care about the Winter Olympics nearly as much as the Summer Olympics, to the point that they might not even bother watching over the next two weeks. Now, I love the Olympics, so I couldn't believe this. I think the Summer Olympics are great (Michael Phelps + women's gymnastics), but Winter are just as exciting. Hopefully I don't have to explain why you should watch big-ticket events like women's and pair's figure-skating or men's ice hockey, but there are plenty of other great reasons to tune into the happenings in The Great White North over the next two weeks.
1). Short Track: This sport is great to watch because so much can change lap-by-lap. An athlete can go from 7th to 4th to 1st in a matter of seconds, a mere bump can disqualify the favorite and a tiny slip can not only end your race, but also drag down competitors from Korea, Canada and France at the same time. Plus, we have adorable veteran Apolo Anton Ohno (who already won his Olympic 6th medal in this sport tonight) and adorable newcomer J.R. Celski (who is coming back from 60 stitches worth of skate-blade-damage inflicted just last September).
2). Nancy Swider-Peltz Jr.: A Wheaton North grad, she is competing in Long Track, 3000 meter speed-skating. She graduated a year after me (I know we had a class together, I'm pretty sure it was Speech with Klemm my sophomore year) and her mom was also a speed-skating Olympian.
3). Mogul Skiing: This freestyle skiing has the athletes navigating a long series of bumps (moguls?) which make you wonder how you go about acquiring that level of thigh and calf strength. While racing down the timed-course, the skiers also have to complete intermittent freestyle jumps, spins and flips off of ramps. I don't recognize any big Olympic names in this event (i.e. on the scale of Lindsey Vonn or Shaun White), but it is simply cool to watch.
4). Bobsled Races: Cool Runnings. Enough Said. (Although, ironically, Jamaica's bobsled team did not make it to the Olympics this year. So, a new tropical-climate Cinderella story must step up!).
5). Closing Ceremonies: If you already missed the Opening Ceremonies, I thought they were pretty great. I missed the Beijing ones two years ago thanks to my Friday-night-job (I had heard they would be impossible to top - but without the handy benefit of socialism, Canada would inevitably need to be more accountable to tax-payers, so I did not blame them) but I thought Vancouver did well. I'm still not really sure how the punk, jigging, fiddlers related to Canadian history or culture, but by the time fire spewed from their tap shoes and violin bows, I no longer cared. I assume that the Closing Ceremonies will be just as great, if not better.
Final Note: I find the death of the Georgian luge-racer very sad, simply because he is my age and because there should be enough precautions in place that no one dies during a sporting event. But how strange is it that NBC was airing the footage of his fatal final run (including the part where Nodar gets thrown from the track) yesterday? I guess they realized it was tactless and disturbing, because they announced they won't be airing it anymore this evening. Too bad everyone already saw it yesterday, NBC.
Final Note # 2: After the Barney Stinson-Super Bowl-plug, I can't wait to see what kind of Robin-Canada jokes they make on How I Met Your Mother after the Olympics are over. They are inevitable, right?
Avid (or occasional) readers: comment! And I will try and be a more regular blog-poster.
Anywho. On that note.
THE WINTER OLYMPICS. Several someones told me that they don't care about the Winter Olympics nearly as much as the Summer Olympics, to the point that they might not even bother watching over the next two weeks. Now, I love the Olympics, so I couldn't believe this. I think the Summer Olympics are great (Michael Phelps + women's gymnastics), but Winter are just as exciting. Hopefully I don't have to explain why you should watch big-ticket events like women's and pair's figure-skating or men's ice hockey, but there are plenty of other great reasons to tune into the happenings in The Great White North over the next two weeks.
1). Short Track: This sport is great to watch because so much can change lap-by-lap. An athlete can go from 7th to 4th to 1st in a matter of seconds, a mere bump can disqualify the favorite and a tiny slip can not only end your race, but also drag down competitors from Korea, Canada and France at the same time. Plus, we have adorable veteran Apolo Anton Ohno (who already won his Olympic 6th medal in this sport tonight) and adorable newcomer J.R. Celski (who is coming back from 60 stitches worth of skate-blade-damage inflicted just last September).
2). Nancy Swider-Peltz Jr.: A Wheaton North grad, she is competing in Long Track, 3000 meter speed-skating. She graduated a year after me (I know we had a class together, I'm pretty sure it was Speech with Klemm my sophomore year) and her mom was also a speed-skating Olympian.
3). Mogul Skiing: This freestyle skiing has the athletes navigating a long series of bumps (moguls?) which make you wonder how you go about acquiring that level of thigh and calf strength. While racing down the timed-course, the skiers also have to complete intermittent freestyle jumps, spins and flips off of ramps. I don't recognize any big Olympic names in this event (i.e. on the scale of Lindsey Vonn or Shaun White), but it is simply cool to watch.
4). Bobsled Races: Cool Runnings. Enough Said. (Although, ironically, Jamaica's bobsled team did not make it to the Olympics this year. So, a new tropical-climate Cinderella story must step up!).
5). Closing Ceremonies: If you already missed the Opening Ceremonies, I thought they were pretty great. I missed the Beijing ones two years ago thanks to my Friday-night-job (I had heard they would be impossible to top - but without the handy benefit of socialism, Canada would inevitably need to be more accountable to tax-payers, so I did not blame them) but I thought Vancouver did well. I'm still not really sure how the punk, jigging, fiddlers related to Canadian history or culture, but by the time fire spewed from their tap shoes and violin bows, I no longer cared. I assume that the Closing Ceremonies will be just as great, if not better.
Final Note: I find the death of the Georgian luge-racer very sad, simply because he is my age and because there should be enough precautions in place that no one dies during a sporting event. But how strange is it that NBC was airing the footage of his fatal final run (including the part where Nodar gets thrown from the track) yesterday? I guess they realized it was tactless and disturbing, because they announced they won't be airing it anymore this evening. Too bad everyone already saw it yesterday, NBC.
Final Note # 2: After the Barney Stinson-Super Bowl-plug, I can't wait to see what kind of Robin-Canada jokes they make on How I Met Your Mother after the Olympics are over. They are inevitable, right?
Avid (or occasional) readers: comment! And I will try and be a more regular blog-poster.
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