The Olympics Are Here...

I live for the Olympics. I love the patriotism, the competition, and the unknown athletes who become household names before our eyes.

Last night's Opening Ceremonies were not with out controversy; Many felt they should have been cancelled due to the tragic death of the 21 year luger from Georgia. Or comparison; Was Bob Costas driving anyone else nuts with his constant chatter about Beijing???

But I thought they were magical. I loved the entrance of the snow boarder through the Olympic rings in to the arena. So dramatic.

I thought David Atkins, the producer, did an amazing job of turning an indoor arena into a winter wonderland. You got the sensation that everything was cold and icy. The way they used different materials to create that feeling was brilliant.

My favorite part were the 3-dimensional whales that came swimming through the stadium floor. I was mesmerized by them.

Didn't the podium the IOC president, Jacques Rogge, use to address the crowd appear to be craved from a block of ice? It looked like something the witch in C.S. Lewis's The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe would use to address Narnia. There was so much speculation surrounding the lighting of the torch. Who was going to be the person honored with doing the lighting? Gretzky? Michael J. Fox? Steve Nash? I heard many the theory around the proverbial water cooler, so I thought it was great that they chose 4 people to do it. So unexpected. It was a nice twist.

I know there was a snafu with the 4th arm of the indoor torch, but to be honest I don't think I would have even noticed if Bob Costas (I am not a fan in case you haven't gotten that undertone yet) hadn't harped on it the entire time they were scrambling to raise it up.

To be honest, I think the outdoor, four legged, cauldron looks a little clumsy compared to the indoor three post version. What do you think?

I get my love of the Olympics from my mom. She was such a fan and would watch all the coverage, no matter the sport. These are the first Olympic games without her and I was struck by the sadness I felt last night.

I hope she was watching right along with me....

Cheers,

BBS

All images were taken from Google image. The snowboarder image is credited to Pinto/Getty; The Arena pic is by Mark J. Terrill/AP, and the outside torch picture is AP Photo/Canadian Post. I would have used my own had I been lucky enough to be there.