Addicted...Again, No Fooling

Several of my posts for this 2014 A-Z Challenge will deal with the recently completed Winter Olympics.

Oops, I did it again.

The Olympic games came about (winter version) and I vowed once again to NOT get sucked in to watching the zillion hours of televised events. I do this every Olympics, summer or winter. And once more I became addicted. Even accidently seeing results on the Internet or hearing them on the morning news, I still could not help tuning in to see the actual running of the events.

Even a 10-hour time difference couldn't derail my watching of the Games. A couple things were working against my plan to be more productive than watching the tube. First, my wife had major oral surgery on the 12th of February and I took 5 days off to care for her. Yes I am awesome that way. So I was home with many things planned to stay productive as she spent most of the days sleeping. Having the games on in the background was probably not a good idea if I was to stick to my plan. Second, the weather had been cold and wintery and conducive to bonding with a winter sporting event.

As always the hiatus of the regular programs I watched, to make room for Olympics viewing, meant there was nothing else on TV in the evenings.

Sking, snowboarding, biathlon, bobsled, skeleton, skating, speed skating (long and short track...all distances, even a hockey game (I basically hate hockey), and...get ready for this>>>curling! All these were on my radar.

The USA seriously underperformed on events they were favored in. Bode Miller flamed out, winning only a bronze in his final event. Although in all fairness to him, the death of his younger brother earlier this year put a huge damper on things. Julia Mancuso failed. Ligety disappeared. Shani "blame the suit" Davis was never in it, and Shaun White failed by oh so slim a margin in what might have been a snowboarding passing of the torch. In all, we left a lot of hardware on the courses and ovals that we were expected to at least seriously contend for.

We had great human moments like Emily Scott, short-track speed skater, who had to turn to the Internet to raise money to make the trip to Russia. And her dad took a 4-day odyssey of multiple air trips through 3or 4 countries to get to Sochi. How's that for a first trip outside the US at age 55. All for Emily to get knocked out of the final in a three person crash. Dream over at 25.

Noelle Pikus-Pace finishes her final Olympic skeleton run winning the silver medal. And the end of the run she jumps into the arms of her husband and kids in the stands.

The US swept the  men's ski slopestyle event.

And in the most telling event of the games that had the undercurrent of the 1980 Miracle on Ice, the US men's hockey team failed to defeat the home ice Russian team.

In the end we can be disappointed that our top athletes didn't perform as we believe they should have while representing the USA...when we really should be proud to have 230 athletes, who received no government support to get to the games, go out and give their all on the quoted, "worlds biggest stage" for their country.

And the most amazing moment of the Olympics...can you believe the Latvia flag bearer was dragging his country's flag on the ground when their team marched into the stadium for the opening ceremony?

There's your trouble...

Oh, and if you missed the commercials with the 7 1/2 month old baby water skiing, you have got to see this:



And at 11 months...that tow boat is flying!