My thoughts...

So I am sitting here watching the Olympics on TV, and remembering how much I used to love watching them with my mom. I am not too old, but I actually remember the moment of the torch lighting in the 1984 Olympics in LA... I don't remember who it was, but the guy ran up the steps, then another set of steps, and lit the wick that went upward, traced out the Olympic rings, then lit the cauldron. I remember crying when I saw Muhammad Ali light the torch in Atlanta. I have personally been on the ice surface where the 'Miracle On Ice' took place. I have a great picture of my best friend Chris standing mid ice, under the American flag, hands raised in celebration of the moment. The two of us were in the middle of taking a cross country trip that lasted 3 months, and we stopped in Lake Placid. The moment we drove into eyesight of the Ski Jumps, a warm feeling came over me. When we went inside the ice rink areas, and got to see the athletes practicing, the amazement and awe factor went off the charts. This was in mid-September in 2000. We were introduced to the name of a 'future Gold Medal champion' for the first time. One of the trainers was a large Russian woman, who saw us watching. She came over to us and said "Remember this name... Sarah Hughes! She will win Gold Medal in Salt Lake City in 2002. You remember that name, OK??" She was right! We saw Sarah skating, and even got her to wave at us while she skated around between jumps. I was in heaven. This was the Winter Olympic Training Site of the United States! Chris wasn't as thrilled as I was, but he did appreciate the site to some extent.

I get into all this detail to try to give an insight into how I feel about the Olympics. I stay up as late as I can watching them. I actually watch Curling, and have developed a fondness for the game. I try to watch as much of the Games as I can. Every year they are on, I am hooked on them. I owe this love of the Games to my Mom. She sent me an email the other day saying she missed watching the Games with me. But deep down inside, she knows I won't miss the Opening or Closing ceremonies, or even the most obscure events. I am a die hard fan of the Games, and the fact that American Idol beat out the Olympics the night Shaun White sent shock waves by winning his second Gold Medal really bothered me...


I hate 'Reality" TV. None of those shows are true reality anyway. Even Survivor was busted for having a re-shoot of a scene. Let's see a show about firefighters who blow through the slums and ghettos putting out fires... Or the heroin addicts being revived by the EMT and Medic on their 19th call of the day. That is a show I will watch. But until then, I am content with sobbing at the moments I see happen on the Olympics. And that damned Coke commercial about the Special Olympics!