Tuesday, February 23, 2010

in my own mind.

this may be a first!  i might just be too tired to write.  we are a week or so into the olympics and i feel like i've been worn out from all of this activity. 

                  our olympic training on the luge.......

i've been on the luge...mens' and womens', i've done freestyle skiing and snowboarding, ice dancing, ice hockey, womens' skating, free skating, curling, speed skating, giant slalom, snowboarding, downhill skiing, bobsledding, the bi-athalon and much more that my brain can't even function well enough to remember.

                             our bobsled

i feel like i'm at the academy awards and i don't have my script with all of the names of the fine actors, producers and directors and oh! don't let me forget to mention the set directors and lighting and oh!  cinematography director!!!  and last but not least, how could i forget bob costas?

let's face it....we all know that bob costas makes the olympics!  how grateful we are in our house that he has such a lovely and even tone low, melodic voice!  think of the different commentators that could make these events even more stressful!

 our commentator!

and who could forget the greatest commentators on ice,
dick buttons and tom, sarah.....and what's her name, you know, peggy fleming, dorothy hamill...the one with the haircut!....i had that haircut but i don't know how to spell her name!  well, they were all there!

sensuality, flirt, style, grace, poise.......just some of the words used to describe their performance.

triple toe loop and double toe loops and working the program, rotations, technical, triple lutz,  triple flips, combination, sequence, triple loops, timing, awkward, athleticism,  artistic elements, moving freely, good and solid, short of rotation, landing............and that's just the ice skating!!

phew! i'm exhausted from working so hard...o.k., so i'm not actually working toward the olympic medal with all of the years of preparation, family sacrifice, time, money, willpower, strength, drive, dreams, goals and triumphs, but these 2010 winter olympic games are killing me!

our ski team!

the pressure!  the emotion! the hopes! the dreams! the stories of excellence and struggle, personal, physical and emotional....are all so much to take in!  and what about our personal favorites....and our country loyalty...the greatest story of perserverence through much adversity!

as i'm writing this, the canadian ice skater, whose mother just died, is on the ice...magnificent....and bob costas is interviewing tim janssen, a speed skater from the last winter olympic games, whose sister died just before his big skate......it's one big lump in my throat!  how did she do it....so beautifully and so flawlessly.  i feel her pain....and i have no idea how she even stood up, much less skated through it all!

i can imagine her thinking about her mom and doing it for her mom, in her memory....i can imagine how she feels like she's going through the motions and just not allowing her emotions ......until after....and....the healing begins....the sadness and the loss.....yet, she pulled herself together enough to be able to skate and live her dream!

these olympic days and nights have me physically and emotionally exhausted.  i can't just watch quietly....the kids have made fun of my armchair coaching and cheering and plain old hysterics!

and why are we all so captivated?  to sit and sit and shout and ooh and ahhhh and ohhhhh!  and i hold my breath! because of that thinking.....magical thinking......it could have been me! 

rachel flatt.....17  years old...... a high school senior...... preparing for her graduation in the spring.........this u.s. champion has a mom and dad who are
o.k. now the molecular biologist and biochemical engineer...great personality...american champion....cheyenne high school senior who is planning to go to stanford!  not just any old school, stanford!.......and she's adorable!  talent and beauty and smarts!  to the max in each category!  wow!  

and to think i was proud that i went to the post office today to mail a package, mail 2 letters and pick up a return package that had been returned because it had been deemed an insufficient address.......because i had not written the name of my sister in law on the package.......just a name....don't most people leave out the zip code?

i was proud that i returned d.v.d's to the library in a timely manner!  

i was proud that i walked the dogs at the beach in the rain.

i was proud that i made it to an appointment today.

i was proud that i cooked a whole recipe by myself tonight....and biff missed it because he is out of town....it was a new recipe with lots of ingredients that i had never used before! .......and i had all of the ingredients! very proud...did i already say that?

i was proud that when i went to the back of the car and i saw fitzy and daisy sitting so nicely ......waiting for me!  i found out later, when i went out to the car......fitzy had eaten a pizza......... that fell out of the bag of groceries earlier!


i'm still a champion!.....in my own mind.