broken compasses and wanderlust

(Cue the John Williams' Olympics theme music)

So. The Beijing Olympics.

On one hand, they were everything we expected them to be. We all knew that giving the hosting duties to China might spark drama due to China's history of human rights issues, so when would-be US flag bearer, Joey Cheek, got his visa taken away for being a huge advocate against the Darfur genocide, it wasn't all that surprising. We all hoped that they'd stick to their promise of unrestricted freedom of the press, but seeing as how two elderly women are currently being ordered to a labor camp for applying to protest, we weren't shocked that it took reporters and photographers getting manhandled and arrested for covering the protests before we even heard about them happening.

And of course, everyone knew NBC would be wholly unable to do a good job in scheduling live events, providing clear, objective commentary, or giving adequate airtime to athletes that weren't American, Chinese, or Michael Phelps. So naturally we came prepared with CBC feeds to compensate and Olympic drinking games in place before Costas even had a chance to mangle the pronunciation of his first foreign country.

Yet, as familiar as the urge to throw pillows at the TV and scream "SHUT UP, AL!" was for the last two weeks, the 29th Olympiad of the Summer Games was also drastically different. In many ways, it was the Changing of the Guard. Old world records fell to the wayside, not only with Michael Phelps's eight gold medals, but also in the pool and on the track- and they were set mostly by relative newcomers to the Games. The acceptance of beach volleyball as a legitimate sport and the addition of BMX to the Games have given it a revamped, more youthful image from your Daddy's Olympics. And maybe Thoogie put it best when he said, "It's time to step aside for the new generation of athletes" because it seems that the athletes are just getting younger and younger (and no, I'm not just talking about the Chinese gymnasts.)

So with that in mind, I give you my Best and Worst of the Olympics for 2008. Expect new faces, new categories, and even more outrageous drama than the last Summer Games. But don't worry. The snark is still there as prominent as ever, and I promise, no CGI added elements have been added this post to make it look pretty. (The pictures of pretty pretty athletes do that just fine).

( The Best and Worst of the 2008 Beijing Games )

I know, I'm late. Sorry. This is taking much longer than I thought to find the right pictures! Tomorrow night, it will be up, I swear. Meanwhile, here's something related to make you laugh:

So I'm sitting here watching the Closing Ceremonies and Costas keeps bringing up the big debate over who is more deserving of the title "The Greatest Olympian of All Time (or at least of the Beijing Games)": Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps. And as the NBC commentators continue to blather on, I can't help but think that the two athletes who probably deserve the title more haven't been mentioned in the debate at all. Maybe it's because they have so much fun winning that people think it's easy. Or maybe it's just because their bikinis prevent people from realizing that they are awesome athletes.

I am, of course, talking about Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh. ( Beach volleyball, are you serious, Kay? Yeah, I am. Here's why. )

So we've established that I have a thing for mash-ups, remixes, covers, and crossovers, yes? I mean, yes, some things should not be remade (Rocky Horror remake people, I'm looking at you.) But generally speaking, I love it when people decide to put two polar opposites together and they make it work brilliantly, or when someone takes an great classic and adds a new spin to things. When remixes are done correctly, the result can be pretty awesome. So much so that I feel the need to share two of my latest obsessions right now:

1) My latest audio obsession right now is the Vitamin String Quartet. What I love about what they've done is that they've taken a whole range of music and added something fresh to it by making it classical. We've all heard the Hendrix version of the Star Spangled Banner. This is the flip side of the same cleverness, and it reminds me why I like classical music to begin with. If you haven't heard of it yet, you totally need to check it out. Here, have a listen to their covers of Bohemian Rhapsody, Kanye West's Gold Digger, and Linkin Parks' Numb.

2) Lately I've been finding some pretty awesome posters that either retro-ize or remix certain sci-fi and genre favorites. Take for example, this group of Battlestar Galactica Propaganda posters. By far the most awesome in that scary, disturbing, oh-god-why-are-you-killing-my-childhood kind of way, thing I've found is the series of Sin City posters redone as if they starred Disney Princesses. (And before you say it, no Mulan is not Miho. Because 1) that would be too obvious, 2) Mulan is technically not a princess even though Disney seems to lump her together with them for the sake of promoting ethnic diversity, and 3) Mulan does not need to be revamped to become bad-ass; she already is bad-ass.) Anyway, take a look for yourself after the jump: ( Disney Princesses Star in Frank Miller's Sin City )

So in conclusion: Remixes can be awesome, but like halo-halo, it sometimes requires an acquired taste.

In other news, the Olympics are coming to an end, much to many people's relief, including the people around me because I readily admit that I'm obsessed with it and can get reaaaaaaally annoying about it. Like, seriously, I never follow any sports, but every 4 years, I become this walking, talking encyclopedia of random factoids on sports ranging from swimming and gymnastics to things like sychronized swimming and handball (which is basically dodgeball on crack). All the same, I wrote a recap for the 2004 Athens Games, and I'm debating writing another one. So what do you think:

[Poll #1247328]

And if my objectivity worries you at all, don't worry. I promise not to rag on other countries as much as the NBC commentators do. Not like they've set the standard very high. I mean, their basic stance is this:



But still. So yeah, let me know.

So, who else wants to hang out at the Olympic Village where all the athletes are staying? (I call Eamon!)

China: 28
United States: 9
Michael Phelps: 8
Australia: 8

And hey, good job, Canada on your first gold medal! I think I will enjoy rowing next. Helloooo, Adam! And of course I can't forget Koji. Track and Field never looked better.


I love the Olympics.

Dear NBC commentators,

I love swimming. If forced to pick only one sport to follow in the Olympics, as a former swimmer, it's my sport of choice. I am a HUUUUUGE fan of Michael Phelps. Homeboy is my boo. That said:

MICHAEL PHELPS IS NOT THE ONLY OLYMPIAN ATHLETE COMPETING IN THE BEIJING GAMES.

There are a lot of interesting people for us to fall in love with, so why don't you tell us their stories and break up the all-Phelps-all-the-time coverage you are so intent on running into the ground? I mean, really. Was it really necessary for us to see Mama Phelps scream into the mike as Mikey raced to the finish, when we had *just* seen the race ourselves only moments before?

It's been less than a full week of coverage and already people are sick of hearing about it. Worse yet, you're setting the boy and any relay team he is on up for disaster by making it seem like if Michael Phelps does not win 8 gold medals, the terrorists win.

Seriously. Lighten up on Phelps, spread the love to the other athletes, and please, please, please institute a moritorium on the word, "quest" for the rest of the Beijing games. And while we're at it, please tell Andrea Kraemer to stop asking inane questions before someone "accidentally" knocks her into the pool.Natalie Coughlin deserves a gold medal for not bitchslapping the woman silly.

Thank you,
the management

PS. STFU, Al.

So I realize I've been MIA. Apologies to all if I haven't returned any phone calls or emails. For some reason I've been this weird combination of really busy and really anti-social as of late. In any case I'm working on catching up on the FList and emails etc.

That said, I've come out of lurking because it is that time again, just in time for the "biggest snow storm to hit the DC area in 3 years (in other words, 3 inches): The Winter Olympics. Now, I'll be the first to admit that I'm not too excited about the Winter Olympics as I am about the Summer Games. I'm sure it has something to do with the Olympic Gods of Swimming. But, the Olympics are always fun to watch, if only to see the absurdity that comes with doping scandals, judging stupidity and NBC's *fantastic* coverage. If the Opening Ceremonies are a sign of things to come, it's gonna be another doozy of a Games ala Al "Funnel of Drama" Trautwig. Way to be a mood killer, Brian Williams. And as long as we don't have any more of that "American beats Kwan" shit from four years ago, I'll tune in, I guess.

Plus I'll have Jeremy Bloom, Chad Hedrick, and Apolo Ohno to help me through it. Le sigh.

My question to you is, do y'all want another recap at the end of February like I did for the Summer Games? Just let me know.

Meanwhile, I'm curious as to what you thought of the Opening Ceremonies. Funky weren't they?

[Poll #671407]


Also: Cuz all the cool kids are doing it: How do you see me? (Johari Window)

(Cue the overdramatic NBC Olympic music)

The Athens Summer Olympics have certainly provided much of the news in the last few weeks (and for me, ample distraction from researching grad schools, packing for Boston, and starting research for my thesis.) First there were the ridiculous doping scandals. Then came the whiny protests on the judging. President Bush decided to take advantage of the Olympics to further his campaign. And of course, one cannot overlook the ineptitude of the commentators and asinine interviewers and NBC’s fantastic inability to show more than 45 minutes of uninterrupted coverage.

It's enough to remind you why we only ever hold the Olympics every two years. (And why it's ok to hope that NBC leaves Al "Funnel of Drama" Trautwig rotting in the pits of Tarturus, never to comment on gymnastics again.)

But all is not lost, because we learned quite a lot too. I mean, who knew NBC had that many cable channels? Or that glitter, not chalk, is what improves gynmasts' grip? (There can be no other explanation for using THAT much glitter.) The Athens Summer Olympics have also yielded some of the best moments to grace our televisions, namely any time Ian Thorpe, Pieter van den Hottiebody, and Michael Phelps climbed out of the pool.

But, all things, good and bad, must come to an end and while I'll probably read up if the Men's Basketball team managed to pull themselves out of a lurch or flip to check out the Closing Ceremonies, these Games are done for me. So I've narrowed down my favorite moments for your enjoyment (borrowing heavily from the Olympic TWOP boards).

And I promise, no sappy violins will be played to create artificial drama and no graphics will take up 1/4 of your screen to let you know that my next post is coming up in 7 minutes.

( the Best and Worst of the Olympic Games )

Michael Phelps is my hero.

The boy could not be cuter. He's adorable when he takes the wreath of his head and puts it over his heart like a baseball cap during the anthem. He's gracious in defeat. He's magnanimous in victory.



And he's HOT in those low riding swimming shorts. (Heh. Gotta love the abs with the V.)

But in all seriousness, I love that Phelps appears to be a well adjusted, nice guy too. I mean, it's nothing to him that he doesn't swim since he still gets an eighth medal if/when the USA medals in tomorrow's relay (and hey that's gotta be the best way to win a medal- cheering from the stands). But to let your rival take your place in the relay so he can come home with a medal too? If I didn't like Phelps before, I absolutely love him now. He's a team player and not like the cocky Gary "My ego is actually bigger than my hair" Hall Jr. Hall might proven to be the fastest swimmer in the world tonight, but that doesn't mean anything if you're an arrogant and bitter jerk outside the pool. Ten years younger than Hall, Michael Phelps has already shown that he's more of a man than Hall is now.

So rock on, Phelps. Rock on. Enjoy your McDonalds tomorrow and get some rest. It's well deserved.

And yes I do follow other sports other than swimming and diving. Olympics are the only time you will catch me reaching for the Sports section ever. I hope Wariner wins gold in the 400m. Gotta love a guy in shades, and I hope Lopez medals in Tae Kwon Do because he'd look cute on the podium. I'm rooting for Misty May and Kerry Walsh for beach volleyball since they ROCK. Speaking of which, damn are the women schooling the men? Not just in beach volleyball, but also in other sports, the US women are just dominating. I loved Hamm's come back and all, but Patterson just nailed it solidly in the all arounds gymnastics. I am hoping the men's bball team can take tips from Lisa Leslie and the women's US team, and I am waiting to see if the US team can do in softball what the Dream Team did in basketball in 92. As for track, I am cheering for Williams, although Devers would be cool too. Seriously, the women are all OVER the sports this year, which is awesome.

Huh. I just realized, I'm only following sports I've ever played. Cool. Oh well. Go USA!