The Thing That Goes Doink

So I think a break is necessary from the Olympic Drama Llama.

Today I'm watching the games and working on my My Little Pony costume. I'm getting closer and closer to being done - the kicker will be if I decide to make the vines with ribbons or if I draw them on using fabric markers. Anyway, the big project for today is cutting out strawberries and leaves from felt, which I will in turn hand sew on to the jacket.

Twenty-one strawberries have been cut out, nine remain. Thirty two leaves remain. My hand is cramping, so I'm taking a quick break to make a nonsense post about me cutting out felt. Exciting, I know.

Anyway, I'll probably finish the strawberries and then do as many of the leaves as my poor, abused hand can take for tonight. Also, somewhere in all of this costuming, I have to drag everything out from under the bathroom sink and reorganize, as my husband bought me a shitload of stuff at Bath & Body Works that can't live in the bags on the dining room table. Husband also bought me a Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book (pink edition) yesterday, too, but that was much easier to put away than the stuff from Bath & Body Works.

So I need to order some gloves (or go to the local party supply store and see if they have any) that I can modify because I need something to put over my arms. Also need white shoes. Well...I have white shoes, but there's black on them too. Ideally, a pair of white clogs would work, but I'll settle for something different if I can find something else I like.

Mmmm, back to cutting out strawberries.

...NOT sing "Blame Canada" when things go wrong in the Vancouver games or "What Would Brian Boitano Do?" as Evan Lysacek warms up tonight.

Despite how appropriate the songs are.

(For the record, the last time a US skater won the men's singles was Brian Boitano at the 1988 Calgary games. Apparently Canada is good for men's figure skating.)

My poor husband, dealing with my fanatical following of the Olympics. Now I haven't been completely glued to it, but I'm perfectly content to spend the next week and a half sitting on the couch watching the games. Of course this means that all prime time programming is at a standstill - something that I couldn't quite understand until I realized that it would be useless to try and compete with the Olympics. So now I can sit and watch the Olympics and not worry about missing my favorite shows.

As to the games themselves, I've rather enjoyed a wide spectrum of sports. Hockey (mostly women's, as the the men's games just started today and I missed it because I was exercising), figure skating, speed skating (short and long track), Nordic combined, biathlon, and luge, to name a few. And yes, I watched the WHOLE luge competition. Not because I wanted to see if there would be a spectacular wipeout, but probably more to make sure that there wasn't a spectacular wipeout. After the death of Nodar Kumaritashvili, it was hard NOT to watch the luge competition. I missed the women's, mostly because they're showing it at one AM because heaven forbid we on the west coast actually get something LIVE. (You know, except for the Oscars, and the rest of the country can just suck it.)

Figure skating has exploded the last couple of nights. Shen and Zhao were just spectacular - truly deserving their gold medal, especially after 18 years. I believe that China put on an amazing show, though Russia could make a comeback in four years. The Russian team, while good, is also very young and has room to grow and improve. I think that the US team also has room for improvement, and in four years will also be a team to contend with. Tonight starts the men's figure skating, and given the size of Evgeni Plushenko's ego, and Johnny Weir's for that matter, should prove entertaining. I'm interested in seeing what Evan Lysacek can do, as well as Jeremy Abbot, as I'm not very familiar with Jeremy Abbot or what he can do.

All in all, things are good, and kind of lazy. I'm enjoying being able to watch the games, as four years ago I was so busy with work and school, I really only kept up with the headlines and barely watched anything. But now? SO GLUED TO THE TV SO DON'T GET IN MY WAY, OKAY.

Today I was good and did my yoga and then went down and lifted weights. My arms feel a little rubbery, but this is good for me and regardless of how much I feel like being lazy, I know that it's better for me to be getting up and active rather than vegging out on the couch all day.

I think I'm coming down with a cold, which sucks. I hate being sick. I hate knowing that I have stuff to do but can't because I have no energy.

On the plus side, since the Olympics start today if I do get sick, there will not be a lack of stuff to watch. X3

I watched the Today Show "live" from Vancouver (I put it in quotation marks simply because I live on the west coast and therefore anything that broadcasts live from the east coast is three hours later here) where they've set up to cover the games. And Vancouver, eh.

I have to say, it's kind of funny, I'm sure by the end of the month they will not be so bright eyed and bushy-tailed at what equates to seven AM New York time - they'll be broadcasting at four AM here. This probably means that they have to get to the "studio" at one or two AM. Methinks that the Today Show crew will be sleeping though the bulk of the games, simply because by going to bed at around three or four in the afternoon is the only way they'll be getting up in time to do the show.

Anyway, I'll probably make myself a bowl of popcorn to have as I watch the opening ceremonies. Of course everyone and their pet will be comparing it to the summer games two years ago. Don't get me wrong - Beijing's opening ceremonies were truly impressive if not a little contrived. (What can I say, communist countries really like to put on the old song and dance to cover up their glaring inadequacies.) I'm sure Canada will do a great job - their show at the close of the Turin games was a fantastic preview of what we can expect.

Now for the fun part, which famous Canadian will light the Olympic torch? The Great One, Wayne Gretzky (and I just realized that my spell check actually has his name in the database...)? Michael J. Fox? Sarah MacLaughlin? Kurt Browning? I think of all of the options, and the fact that it's the OLYMPICS, Wayne Gretzky is probably the top choice. Kurt Browning is also a good choice, but it could be a pop culture icon as well. Bryan Adams, Michael J. Fox, Pamela Anderson, Nathan Fillion (okay, probably not, but I can hope, can't I?), Nelly Furtado...

All will be revealed tonight, but it's fun to contemplate what might happen.