Vancouver 2010 ~ My Favourite Things

WOW! Canada has had a fantastic Olympics!! Not only have we won a record amount of medals…..especially those gold ones…..we have brought the world to Vancouver to check things out the “Canadian way.” There are so many things I have loved about the Olympics. Here is my partial list:

• The daily debriefing in the hallway each morning at work as we all discussed the previous evening’s Olympic performances. Especially Carm’s colour commentary of the curling. I think the St. Patrick staff is now ready to take on new jobs as commentators for TSN (That’s the Canadian equivalent of ESPN)

• Living the Olympics vicariously through my cousin Jane’s face book page. Jane headed out to Whistler a life time ago and we lost touch. Through the wonders of Face book we have been reunited just in time for me to see the Olympics close up and personal through her photos of the locals celebrating the Olympic Spirit at Whistler.Way to go Jane (and Ged and Jack!!)

• Speaking of Whistler, everyone has to love, love, love gold medalist John Montgomery!! After his epic win he strode down the streets of Whistler with a jug of beer in one hand and his beloved turtle painted helmet in the other hand. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/22/jon-montgomery-celebrates_n_471642.html The stereotype is true, Canadians love our beer.

• Keeping with John Montgomery (Did I mention I LOVE that guy) I love his Olympic story. Eight years ago he decided he wanted to go to the Olympics and tried to find a sport he was good at. He tried speed skating. After one practice he knew speed skating wasn’t for him so next he tried the skeleton. (that small little sled thing where you go speeding down the course 100+ kilometres an hour head first) Who would have guessed two Olympics later he would be winning a gold medal?

• Another guy that caught my fancy was Dr. Greg Wells. He was the doctor that explained in CSI fashion the pounding the athlete’s bodies take with each particular event. Since I needed ACL repair surgery from my own skiing accident some years back, my knee was sore all over again when he showed how Alex Bilodeau raced those moguls. Check out the Super Bodies collection of videos. http://www.ctvolympics.ca/video/collections/collectionid=45845/index.html

• Watching the Olympics with Jen made for interesting conversation. She informed me 400,000 condoms – 14 per athlete - were available at the Vancouver Olympics. In Torino there were only 40,000 and there weren’t enough. Those athletes certainly have cardiovascular endurance.

• Fashion…..you had to get to Zeller’s early to get your own pair of red Olympic mittens. And those America outfits? What were they about? A big advertisement for Ralph Lauren on an snow suit that looked like someone threw up stars all over it?

• Watching on TV became an athletic endeavour. All of the shouting and jumping up and down as we reacted to our wins as well as the crashes and falls….OW!!!

• Through the Olympics I came across a new internet person (character) I am fascinated with. Josh Rimer posted on You Tube a fabulous video trying to reconnect a lost camcorder with its American owner. You have to check it out. http://www.joshrimer.com/blog/ Another Canadian stereotype confirmed, we really are nice people, eh?

• A great way to end the Olympics with a tribute to Vancouver and all of its international guests for the last 17 days.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bU7tZrKZq3s

This internet thing tells me there are lots of people reading this blog…..leave a comment…let me know what you're thinking…what was YOUR favourite Vancouver 2010 Olympic moment?