Bode Miller/Olympics
Made my morning. I had a really strange dream which took me a while to shake it off. I awakened to my sister pushing my bed up and down - her usual annoying method to get me up. Damn my vertigo!
I plopped myself by the table to wait for breakfast. Dad was reading the Sunday times. I noticed the Magazine special for tonight's Super Bowl and the upcoming Olympics. I flipped through pages and found a full page picture of Bode Miller. He's shirtless, holding a huge chunk of crumbly snow. He does have his ski pants on...
I showed it to my sister who was sitting across the table from me. "Hey, look at this. He's hot!" My sister agreed. My father who was seated beside me, rolled his eyes and said, "he's not going to ski naked". "I don't care" I replied with a smirk. I think my eyes were glazed. My dad returned behind the newspaper.
Bode has this combo of athletic and crunchie look. He's enough muscle and fat to be easy on the eye.. Not all muscle.
Anyways - I'm looking forward to the Winter Games.... The events I usually watch are Alpine skiing, mostly Slalom; figure skating, and the luge. I've not kept track of current athletes (middle school and high school I followed the cup winners) so it'll be all new for me. I think Picabo Street is the only skier I know from the 90s who is competing this year. I watched most of 2002 winter games - I was living in Ireland then and the Irish didn't give a hoot about winter games. My housemates were kind enough to allow me to watch the TV several hours each day..
It was few months after 9/11 and coincidientally , the US was the host. I had missed the 9/11 grieving period and after three months of reading European press critical of US's tactics to find Bin Laden I thought the opening ceremony (aside from Native American dancers) was saturated in... I don't know.. some overblown display of grief.
In the past when we were young, naive and rooting for one's country.. oh wait. That was during the 70s and 80s when it were the Americans, the Soviets, those behind the Iron Curtain..and in between (the mighty West Germans, French, and Italians) .. now with the Cold War finito it's all about the globalization and corporate sponsorship and it 's less of an issue when we compete the Chinese.. If the Soviets won, it's like a point for them in the Cold War. When the US hockey team won in 1980 it seemed more of "In your face, commies!" a rag tag US team against the Soviet juggernaut. That didn't reflect the US goverment unfortunately so it was a poor comparision I think... In recent years I tend to root for those whose style or skill (or in the case of skiing and gymnastics - bodies) I admire.. I honestly don't pay attention to the flag attached to names or teams of competitors.
About corporate sponsorship, that much I do not know of. I'm assuming the sponsors pay for training, food and board, and travel. I saw a blurb in NYT this morning that the US luge team looked to the scientists to improve the steel ridges to make it faster.. I recall during one World Cup for football, some scientist came up with footwear that could grip the ball longer..
May the best corporate.. I mean.. Material.. No. May the best athlete with resources on hand win.
I plopped myself by the table to wait for breakfast. Dad was reading the Sunday times. I noticed the Magazine special for tonight's Super Bowl and the upcoming Olympics. I flipped through pages and found a full page picture of Bode Miller. He's shirtless, holding a huge chunk of crumbly snow. He does have his ski pants on...
I showed it to my sister who was sitting across the table from me. "Hey, look at this. He's hot!" My sister agreed. My father who was seated beside me, rolled his eyes and said, "he's not going to ski naked". "I don't care" I replied with a smirk. I think my eyes were glazed. My dad returned behind the newspaper.
Bode has this combo of athletic and crunchie look. He's enough muscle and fat to be easy on the eye.. Not all muscle.
Anyways - I'm looking forward to the Winter Games.... The events I usually watch are Alpine skiing, mostly Slalom; figure skating, and the luge. I've not kept track of current athletes (middle school and high school I followed the cup winners) so it'll be all new for me. I think Picabo Street is the only skier I know from the 90s who is competing this year. I watched most of 2002 winter games - I was living in Ireland then and the Irish didn't give a hoot about winter games. My housemates were kind enough to allow me to watch the TV several hours each day..
It was few months after 9/11 and coincidientally , the US was the host. I had missed the 9/11 grieving period and after three months of reading European press critical of US's tactics to find Bin Laden I thought the opening ceremony (aside from Native American dancers) was saturated in... I don't know.. some overblown display of grief.
In the past when we were young, naive and rooting for one's country.. oh wait. That was during the 70s and 80s when it were the Americans, the Soviets, those behind the Iron Curtain..and in between (the mighty West Germans, French, and Italians) .. now with the Cold War finito it's all about the globalization and corporate sponsorship and it 's less of an issue when we compete the Chinese.. If the Soviets won, it's like a point for them in the Cold War. When the US hockey team won in 1980 it seemed more of "In your face, commies!" a rag tag US team against the Soviet juggernaut. That didn't reflect the US goverment unfortunately so it was a poor comparision I think... In recent years I tend to root for those whose style or skill (or in the case of skiing and gymnastics - bodies) I admire.. I honestly don't pay attention to the flag attached to names or teams of competitors.
About corporate sponsorship, that much I do not know of. I'm assuming the sponsors pay for training, food and board, and travel. I saw a blurb in NYT this morning that the US luge team looked to the scientists to improve the steel ridges to make it faster.. I recall during one World Cup for football, some scientist came up with footwear that could grip the ball longer..
May the best corporate.. I mean.. Material.. No. May the best athlete with resources on hand win.
posted by Kate O. Breen at 6:29 PM
1 Comments:
I'm planning to volunteer at 2007 Winter Deaflypmics. Why don't you do that as well? It is slated to be held in Salt Lake City.
Hey, how can I reach you asap?
R-
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