So tonight is the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. I can hardly wait for them to begin. The excitement of the crowd, the camaraderie of the athletes, the unending coverage on NBC. I am continually inspired by the stories of perseverance and dedication. I yearn to be a person who looks pain and fear in the face and says “Bring it ON!” like the competitors do each year. My favorite competitor, Lindsey Vonn, is currently injured and healing herself with cheese. I’m not making this up. What is there not to love?
I used to have great aspirations about being an Olympian. Unfortunately, I have no athletic skill to speak of. I have tried snowboarding (face-planting), downhill skiing (leg-breaking), ice skating (ankle-straining), and luge. I’m actually quite good at the luge, but that’s another story. I will admit that the photo on this page is not me, but rather Alex Gough of Canada. I’m usually too fast for people to snap good photos.
However, my greatest victory is my Gold Medal in the Silly Olympics. Every year, when I was young, my parents used to host the Silly Olympics at our house. Inspired by a rather famous Monty Python sketch of the same name, my Mom, bless her heart, wanted me to feel like I was good at something.
Our competitions centered around the wheelbarrow races, the egg in the spoon race (note: works better with hard boiled eggs), the silly animal walk competition, and as a clever parenting tool, the veggie eating contest. It was great fun, we giggled until we couldn’t stand it any more, and the prize was a large gold medal on a red, white, and blue ribbon. Later on in life, I learned that it was actually an “honorable mention” bowling award my Mom won in 1974. But to me, it was the best prize ever.
So good luck Olympians. And Lindsey, if the cheese doesn’t work, you can always come to my house for the Stinky Cheese game of the 2010 Silly Olympics. But you really don’t stand a chance to beat this Gold Medal winner!
Katie Hill
Latest posts by Katie Hill (see all)
- On being wrong… - August 31, 2011
- Introducing the new Promega.com - April 5, 2011
- Gold Medal Awarded to Promega Employee (for the Silly Olympics) - February 12, 2010
After writing this blog, and using silliness and sarcasm to denote my (in)expertise at the luge, I felt really terrible at the awful news of the death of the Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili. His tragic death really shook up the celebration of the Opening Ceremony, but I was proud of his team for marching in the ceremony anyway. I would bet that is what he would have wanted. I have a heavy heart for his family, friends, and countrymen.