Nothing can come between us, except a big problem.

I forgot what I did during the evenings before the Olympics...

One might think I would harbor disdain for the Olympics. The girth of their effect on populace worldwide suggest powers attainable only by the unattained. Yes, I'm talking about The Man.

But the Olympics are bigger than The Man.


Think about a cold, half-rain half-snow day. The sidewalks look like someone spilled a Big-Gulp sized dirt Slurpee. Countless shoe prints reveal that others haven't bothered to clean up the mess either. You have to walk home through it and you wish you hadn't worn your one pair of shoes that somehow allow the frigid precipitation to soak up through to your socks and make your toes squeak when they rub together. Your hoodie is getting soaked. And although the hood part is protecting your hair it will still be moist and look bad when you get home. Your nose is running and you're sure it's red. You try strictly exhaling through your nose to keep it warm. Your eyes are watering and sting a little. Then, you walk in the door, stamp your feet, push your hood back off your head and there on the kitchen table is a bowl of steaming tomato soup and two perfectly buttered slices of perfectly toasted sourdough. And it's for you. Next to it is your best friend, seated, smiling, happy to tell stories about their day until you feel ready to talk about yours.


You know that warm feeling you got at the end of that paragraph? That's what the Olympics are. Amid the unrest and spilled slurpees in the world this international tradition remains, crossing borders with victorious underdogs, healthy competition and stories of grace under despair. And I am a total sucker for it. I can't get enough. And even though watching curling is like watching an afternoon at the senior center on ice (does your senior center have a shuffleboard?) I'd rather watch it than do pretty much anything else.

I even love Canada now.

What the what?

So, if The Man really does run the Olympics I will have to add it as a 'Pro' to my Pro/Con list about him. [along with capitalism and Valentine's day]. But I'm pretty sure that The Olympic spirit is a free spirit, and therefore belongs to no man.