Olympics

I am not a huge fan of the Olympics, particularly the coverage in the U.S.  But it has been a pleasant change watching them here.  One of the main differences is the lack of ads on the BBC and RTE.  In the U.S., the Olympics feel like a giant advertisement.

Even better is the random commentary from our kids.  We were watching the some gymnastics the other afternoon, and ORBJ pipes up excitedly “Look, he’s upside down” as one gymnast is, well, upside down on the rings.  There were other random comments that I can’t remember.  Perhaps a “You betcha Margie!” (it’s important to teach half-Iowan kids important phrases from Fargo.)

Another enjoyment is the random sports featured on BBC1 or BBC3 (BBC2 has other programming like El Cid, our friend RB’s favorite movie, no doubt).  I’ve seen some sailing, men’s (field) hockey, badminton (mixed doubles), women's weightlifting (not the highlight), synchronized diving (also not the highlight), and rowing, as well as the old favorites like swimming, gymnastics, and basketball.  Also tennis – saw Serena Williams destroy her first-round opponent, as well as Andy Murray losing his doubles match with his brother.

This evening, FABJ, LBJ, and I made the swimming more exciting by picking (different) swimmers to win.  Our attempts to teach FABJ basic probability fell on deaf ears, though.  I tried to point out that she did quite well by picking the person who finished second out of eight, but she was disappointed that her swimmer finished behind LBJ’s.

The Irish are still waiting to get their first medal, although they’ve had some solid results in sailing (two races done out of 11).  And they have a few good boxers, perhaps not surprisingly – it involves fighting and it is done by weight.

Oddly, the BBC call it “Team GB” here – what about Northern Ireland?!)  I loved how people at the University of Kentucky call the UK "the other UK", as though the University of Kentucky is the center of the universe.  (A friend of mine half-jokingly called Rupp Arena the center of the universe.)