Lazy Sunday

Well, thanks to NBC's spotty coverage of the men's slalom (and one of the greatest Olympic stories of the year) even if you wanted to, you couldn't watch Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong. Despite being covered by media from London to D.C and appearing on spots like the Today Show, NBC chose not to show Kwame competing in the men's slalom yesterday. To say I'm a little disappointed would be an understatement. I have enjoyed watching all of the Olympics and am beyond stoked to watch the gold medal hockey game tonight, but I was looking forward to seeing Kwame compete since I first saw him walk out in the Parade of Nations proudly waving the Ghana flag. I read his story, figured out what day he would be competing and then...nothing. I had to resort to reading a newspaper article that described the magic on the mountainside after he finished. Chants of "Ghana! Ghana!" apparently kept on going an hour after he left the slopes. I should add, for those who are curious, that on a slalom course so difficult and covered in fog 50% of its competitors finished with a DNF (including Bode Miller and the reigning world champion in the event from Austria), Kwame made it down the slope. AND he attained his Olympic goal of actually competing, beating an Albanian skier by more than twenty seconds. I loved his story, to me it summed up the true 'Olympic spirit'.

He is a competitor. That was one of the most appealing parts of his story. Finishing was not enough for him. Maybe it's the old cross-country spirit in me. I just love competition, even if the only person you're competing with is yourself. It even got me excited to start coaching. The head coach informed me the other day that I will be in charge of the 8th and 9th grade girls team (YIKES!). While a daunting task, I am excited at the possibility of working with young runners who are new to competitive running.

I am having a lazy Sunday morning trying to motivate myself for a big day., sitting on my couch reading newspaper articles my dad sent me last week and watching Meet the Press while I eat a leftover cinnamon-cream cheese brioche from the new bakery down the block. I don't feel that guilty about my lazy morning so far - especially considering the fact that I had a very productive morning yesterday getting laundry done and cleaning my house. It really is ridiculous how much of a morning person I am. If I stay in bed for a good chunk of the morning or stay in my pajamas 'til 11 AM I feel like I've wasted half the day and I hate it! Since it's almost 10 AM, I probably ought to hit up the grocery store as my cupboard and fridge are starting to get bare. I need to finally finish grading my senior's projects on the executive branch and plan 4 engaging intro lessons on the judicial (that doesn't involve me just showing them episodes of Judge Judy and the People's Court). I also need to figure out how to plan my 10-day unit on World War II. I'm still determined to be past the Cold War by Spring Break, which is currently only 25 instructional days away. It will be challenge, and a painful challenge at that considering World War II is the reason I became a history teacher in the first place. I'll have to post more on that in another blog post. For now, it is off to make a grocery list and head to my favorite Kroger.

I am equally sad/excited for the hockey game this afternoon! Excited because I think it has the potential to be an epic game and sad because the Closing Ceremonies will follow and then comes Olympics withdrawal and the long wait 'til baseball season. I have really enjoyed these Olympic Games. I loved always being able to have them on in the background while I graded and planned into the wee hours of the night. Baseball season is just around the corner though and with baseball comes spring break and the wonderfulness that is a teacher summmer.

Will you be sad to see the Olympics go? Did you have a favorite Olympic story or athlete this year? What sporting event will you be looking forward to next?