First Morning, Departure to Stratford and Olympic Park

Woke up earlier than expected.  Olympic butterflies. 

Enjoyed the view from my window, and the comfort of my room.  Placed a few perishable food items from California in the refrigerator knowing that food prices were quite dear before starting my journey to Stratford.

Headed around the corner to Lancaster Tube Station and purchased a travel pass for a week.  Thought is would be a lot less because of the inexpensive Olympic transport passes from the past Olympics. Wrong. There was no special deal for the games, just the regular Oyster Pass that most Londoners use on a daily basis.  And once this pass runs out "topping it up" is costly.  Almost four dollars for a very short round trip within a boundary.  London residents had advantages, tourists did not. (My thoughts quickly went to Hawaii where a senior can travel miles for a dollar, no boundaries, no zones. Transfers were permitted, unlike London.  And NYC where you need no transport pass to exit and no matter what time of day, the price remains the same.)  All in all, my transport expense was aprox 12.00 per day including Heathrow Airport Connect, not Heathrow Express to and from Paddington Station.

Arrived at Stratford and followed the crowd...

My London 2012 Beginnings Across the Street from Hyde Park Olympic Venue

Will back track to give a bit more detail of the "first" hours.

When I rang the door bell of this very posh home in this very posh neighborhood, I felt a bit intimidated.  I was at the front door waiting and ringing the bell thinking that nobody was home.  But then, a musician/singer from Ireland who had been renting one of the rooms opened a window on a lower level.  He popped his cheery head out of the window and asked if he could help.  I explained who I was and he came up to the ground level from inside and let me in.  We chatted about music and a few other topics before the owner of the home arrived with her two sons, age 10 and 12.  After that a Russian music teacher arrived with a bundle of red roses. She would soon be leaving for St Petersburg and didn't want the beautiful flowers to be wasted. She then began to give violin and piano lessons to the boys after we had a chat.  I then headed off to Hyde Park Olympic Event.  

Hyde Park Olympic Venue is across the street!  Sweet, so sweet, aye?  And more importantly, this family is so so sweet!

Here I am in LONDON

...Thinking about Sunday, August 5th.  

Was chatting with my daughter who was in Hawaii, listening to her good news, and noticed a gmail reply on my computer screen.  Had received other replies to a request to exchange a room but wasn't interested.  Then suppose because I had been so busy and it was the first day that i had no agenda for a long time, because my plan of "not wanting to go to London because of the huge expense" was not working,  and because the email from London on my laptop was well written...everything changed.  

The response was from a young single mum who had an extra room in her home.  I replied and found myself ringing up Virgin Atlantic Airlines.  There was a "reward seat" cancelation, booked it, and bingo started packing.

Arrived in London within 48 hours, early Tuesday evening.  Headed for Hyde Park Olympic Event and slept well that night, really well. Next morning headed for Stratford, bought an Oyster Card and was able to find a ticket for the Olympic Park from one of the sponsors and spent an incredibly wonderful day inside the exciting park.  And the Olympic Park, just being in the Olympic Park, has been my favorite part of the Olympics. 

to be continued...

My London 2012 Experience; My Plan Did Not Work : )

My plan was to stay at the beach in California.

I suppose I now qualify as an Olympic Bum.

I fully intended to enjoy TV, many awesome iPhone Apps, and the incredible streaming technology that has come a long way...baby! Watched Opening Ceremony with Mike and Fran Sawdei in Laguna Beach.  Had fun experiencing the "digital games" for a while. Then Sunday came, August 5th, I woke up and everything changed.

Here I am in London!!!
Speechless in UK!  Listening to all these voices saying, "How can I help you, luv?"

So will try to capture in words during the next few weeks just how this all happened, yet again.

In the meantime, am off to the Railroad Tavern on Angel Way in Stratford, where the Olympin members and many others are meeting.  A post-games meetup. It's a great little pub and a good meeting place where the Olympin Club began many years ago. (Went last night and loved meeting the delegation from Cuba, Catherine Saluan from Russia, and the Wickstrom Family, the awesome Wickstrom Family and Bud Kling.  Some go months before to scout and prepare and bingo, here I am, low budget CWC! Such a buzz. haha)  Oh, did I get in?  Yes.  Will explain later!

The Electricity Over London's Opening Ceremony

Everything else in the world paled compared to the electricity in the air over London last night!

After the torch ran "the spirit" throughout the streets of UK, the blanket of magic covered the UK and the glory of the Opening Ceremony eradicated the ever present pessimism that comes prior to every Olympics, in every country.

Brilliant reflection of the humanity of the British!  Hundreds of years history unfolding from quiet pastures to the heavy labor of the industrial revolution, to present day upbeat life in that royal blue stadium with bright gold Olympic rings

...dynamic...funny...artistic...thousands of performing...kids jumping, sleeping, singing...Poppins dropping...Rowling reading...even handicapped reaching out to others.

...dancing digits displaying runners around the participating "spectator performers"!

Royalism...Bondism...Bechamism...musical mastery and meaningful symbolism grabbing our senses!

The hill of flags, flags of 204 countries decorating, flags standing in honor giving dignity to THE Olympic flag's entrance and the Olympic athletes of the world.  

And the lighting...the future ones lighting the 204 petals that rose up to the incredibly symbolic magnificent Olympic Cauldron!

The electricity now flowing around this fragile beautiful world...can you feel it?

Technology and London 2012, Part #1

http://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-blog/carry-on/2012/6/28/tech-thursday-must-have-apps-for-the-2012-london-olympics?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Technology and the Olympics

Technology and getting online was a big help for me during Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008.  Looks like I will be using technology more than ever during 2012!

The fans, the Olympic committee, the athletes and the sponsors will be tech savy as they post, navigate, check the maps and tweet away.  In Beijing six million were using Twitter, that figure will be at least 140 million during the London Games.

With so many portable light weight devices the London fans will carry them into the stadiums and catch the action close up even if their seat is far away. No doubt the athletes and fans will be tweeting away.  Fans around the world who are unable to attend, will be able to interact with those attending the games; their family, friends or just folks they follow.  There is nothing more exciting than the feeling of being right there, but 'almost being there' where it all happens will be a close second!

Wimbergs Proud of Our Family Winner

Opa!  Our Lindsey Petrosh became Miss New Jersey this weekend.  Lindsey's mom, Joyce Wimberg Petrosh, my first cousin, is a Wimberg from Egg Harbor City in Southern part of NJ.  Egg Harbor, our family, and the entire state is bursting with pride!

Amazing Mascot Creations

Such creative juices must flow while the creators of these Olympic mascots begin their work of art. 

Jing Jing, Sumi, Sochi, Miga, Gliz, Hodori, such fun names! 

Olly the kind Kookaburra from Australia, Sam the eagle who danced into our hearts, Izzy the Olympic spirit with stars for eyes and Cobi the stylized Catalan sheepdog...I can still see his huge balloonish body disappearing in the sky above closing ceremony.  Amazing how so many who grew to love him so much so that sad sayonara tears fell from their eyes.

Amazing creations.  Amazing art.  Amazing creators.

The Magic of Olympic Mascots

Today was sitting and chatting on the beach with Fran Weems Sawdei.  Fran is a great sports fan who has attended the Olympic Games and It was her mom, Eleanor Olsen Weems, who first encouraged me to go to the Olympic Games. Eleanor, who is now 96 taught aviation and was one of the female pilots (WASPS) in WWII. (Incredible family)

One of the topics that came up as we chatted away by the ocean's edge was the mascots of the Olympic Games.  Fran mentioned that they were a rather recent addition.  And even though some think the design of the mascots are not so appealing, they sure do grow on you, just like E.T!

Thousands of real doves were released and The Dove of Peace was the symbol/mascot in Mexico ’68.  The Dove was pictured almost everywhere.  Although the dove was not a character walking around, it still spread the spirit of peace and the spirit of the Olympics during the games. 

A small stuffed animal, a dachshund, Waldi was sold in novelty shops throughout Munich in ’72.  

And now we have Wenlock and Mandeville.  Like several Olympic mascots of the past, a bit strange at first glance.  Then as they work and spread their Olympic spirit they become more lovable as the games progress.

Wenlock and Mandeville represent the start of the Industrial Revolution with their camera eyes.  No need for two, one with peripheral will do! They are named after the village “Much Wenlock” in Shropshire which hosted a precursor to the modern Olympic Games in the 19th century and “Stoke Mandeville” where the first paralympic games were held in 1948.  They’ve got some history to share, aye?

So get ready, no doubt they will be successful in sprinkling their “Mascot Magic” on you tool

Graduation, Lanakai Beach Day and a Great Olympic Invention

Glorious ceremonialism at the University of Hawaii this week during Marion Cadora's graduation from grad school.  Am so proud of my daughter's achievements.  Even though the ceremony was long it was delightful.  My son flew in from New York.  We were with a spirited group from HK, Marion's hale.  We went to post celebrations on campus and for me to have both of my awesome kids in one place was pure bliss.

And what beach was the best beach to chill and relax after all the pomp and parties?  Lanakai.

We met Carmen Enriquez and her daughter at Buzz's in Lanakai for a delicious lunch before the beach.  Both mother and daughter, Eva, are from Spain.  Carmen, a journalist, worked with Juan Carlos of Spain who was on the Olympic sailing team in 1992.  (Very much a part of the Olympic movement.)  Eva, fun-loving Eva, who also graduated, is a good friend of my daughter's.

At lunch interesting conversations flowed.  Among the topics was "inventions".  Later as we walked to the amazing beach at Lanakai, we saw that there were no trees to give a bit of shade.  In my beach bag I pulled out one of my favorite inventions that I've been carrying around now and then since the summer Olympics of '92.

Because it is often hot and sunny at the summer games, finding shade is desirable indeed.  Around '92, someone came up with an idea to assist the Olympic fans for the Barcelona games.  Someone from "la Caixa" funded the idea.

It was a large hat, a light weight paper hat, that could be folded up so small that it could fit into a small cd sleeve.  So small therefore easy to transport.  (I believe it was made in Korea and am not sure who came up with the idea.)

So Eva, Marion, Carmen, Don and I drove then walked to a beautiful spot on this heavenly v e r y sunny beach.  "Finding shade was desirable indeed."  So I reached in my beach bag for my protection, a very small item that became very large indeed!

Along with the popping open of that protective head cover, came laughter and giggles of recognition of "la Caixa" and the wonderful Olympics in Spain twenty years ago!

Great invention, great day, great functional Olympic memorabilia!  : )

Kitesurfing in Rio 2016

Yippy! The ISAF recently voted affirmative!  A "grandioso" new sport for the games, kitesurfing.  Am thrilled for our Orange County Kitesurfers.  Am thrilled for the future Olympic spectators as well.  And...for the kitesurfers who so often can be seen all over the Hawaiian Islands and wonderfully windy Kailua.  No doubt all the kitesurfers around the world will be celebrating and many preparing to go to my old home town in BRAZIL, BRASIL!

Cancellation Fun in Canada

Hundreds of olympic fans filled the central post office of Vancouver in order to cancel whatever they could cancel; post cards, envelopes, and almost anything that was made of paper!  Long high tables were set up in the main entrance area of the office.  Excited stamp collectors were permitted total freedom to cancel...almost anything.  They stood and canceled then moved slowly around the table to access all the designs for every winter sport as well as opening ceremony and closing ceremony.  Happy people meeting each other and chatting and exchanging olympic experiences as they canceled away and politely made room for curious newcomers.  

Something easy to transport home to family and friends to share a bit of the Olympics for no cost at all.

So for those of you on budget, take note : )  !!!

Art and the Olympic Games, Postal Stamps

There are thousands of various Olympic stamps from many countries.  They depict a variety of Olympic icons; athletes in action, logos, Olympic rings, Olympic coins, venue architecture, the Olympic flame, the Olympic flag, the Olympic torch, historic Olympic figures, and of course, the whimsical Olympic mascots!  

Quite often they include an object of cultural importance of each host country.  Occasionally a series of stamps would feature the entire Olympic Park or Olympic Village.

During the last twelve years or so, anyone who wanted their own photo made into a fun souvenir stamp of the Olympics could do so. Neat, aye?

A few of my favorites:

The Olymphilex designs in Australia 2000 including the Opera House

A large five-sided stamp of the famous Bird's Nest, 2008 

A large book "One World One Dream" containing a series of Beijing stamps

The Greek Discus Thrower issued in Athens and during the Centennial Games 

The Sidney 45 cent stamp with a collage of the Acropolis, the Olympic flame and flag  

The entire Olympic Park in a series of connected stamps from Munich, 1972

Art and the Olympic Games, Postal Designs

Am I a serious stamp collector? No.  But with a background in technology, fine arts, eleven olympics, and my Munich '72 experience, how could I not have great appreciation for postal art and collect a bit.  

Some of the finest artists and illustrators in the world design olympic stamps.

I mentioned my appreciation for the design of the Mexico '68 logo in a prior post.  (Which, by the way, was similar to the design for one of Microsoft's first logos after the games. Might possibly be the same artist. )  I began looking closely at stamps during my work with CBS News in Mexico City.  Then, in Munich, low and behold, i became "Mama Graf's" assistant for her international house on WilhelmStrasse in the fabulous Schwabing district of Munich.  Now there was the stamp collecting guru!  She would point out designs, and in instill in me a deep appreciation.  She would carefully arrange her stamps, the beautifully designed stamps of Germany, on her envelopes and post them to me in the USA during the post olympic years.  Mama Graf, Elisabeth Graf, would tell me not to drop my cards in a post box, she would head me to the post office for a proper cancelation.

Among my favorites...

Art and the Olympic Games, Olympic Parks

Artsy Parks.   The parks throughout Sydney, Barcelona, and Los Angeles were exciting, Beijing's was massive and colorful (contained the awesome and famous bird's nest and cube), Atlanta's had fountains of fun, Old Town Montreal, Whistler, Mexico City and Park City Utah were incredibly festive but...for me, two parks were true WORKS OF ART, Athens and Munich.

A large pool of water reflected and magnified the splendor for crowds as they entered the Athens Olympic Park.  Animated moving walls where projected video delighted the crowds as they walked to and from their venues.  In Munich a master plan of venues where sidewalks gradually widened and swirled us around our olympic wonderland.  Interactive continuous music along Theatrestrasse, huge dramatic, beautifully functional tent like structures above our heads gave us shade for comfort yet light for delight!

Art and the Olympic Games, Tee Shirts and Logos

Such a delightful part of the Olympic Games...art!

I'll begin by continuing one of the threads from a previous post.  When I opened that drawer of old Olympic tee shirts upon my return from New Zealand, paused, smiled and thought of all the great art that is, for me, such an exciting part of the games.  The Mexco 68 tee shirt is one of my favorites.

Multiple lines were incorporated in the font of the logo for Mexico 68 which was everywhere.  While working for CBS News at the Mexico Olympics large signs with a P for Prensa guided us to the proper gate.  Again multiple lines incorporated in the design, stood out from all the rest, and were easily recognizable, and timing was tight in between venues.

Logos first seemed just simply interesting, well designed, unique and often colorful.  As the olympic days unfolded those designs became symbols, profound symbols that could light up the olympic fire within.  

Monthly Posts will now be Weekly until London 2012!

Now that 2012 is well underway will post more often to celebrate the olympic spirit.

Back Home After Months in the Pacific

Exchanged our little beach pad while I was gone in order to help my son get a start in New York City.  As my parents always would say, "Give your children experiences". So although during the departure for Hawaii and later New Zealand, I worked continuously for forty eight hours, it was worth it.

Don knew he needed a change from the San Francisco life and job that he had.  Although it took courage to head for New York City without a job beforehand during The Great Recession he decided to do so.  The exchange I arranged was for an apartment on W. 17th Street, which was a great location.  It took a while but he landed a job and he now lives in Brooklyn.

Now one of the first things I did when I returned was to head to the Senior Center in Laguna Beach where I had been teaching computer technology to a great group of seniors.  Laguna Beach has some incredibly interesting seniors.  At home one of the first drawers I opened was my olympic tee shirt drawer with a few notes about the olympics of my past and related stories; some about surfing, some about my experiences at my eleven olympics.

Was reminded of the Duke Kahanamoku story and the Kawananakoa cousins who came to a military academy near Santa Cruz and Uncle David who blessed our outrigger canoes in the year 2000. The cousins carved their own surf boards and brought surfing to California in the 1800's.  The Duke, also introduced it to many and popularized this great sport as well in the early 1900's.  I was able to meet Carol Kawananakoa in Hawaii because of a Laguna Beach Senior, Johnny Garau, Laguna's oldest living veteran lifeguard.  To be continued.

A Living Museum in Auckland New Zealand

A Living Museum in Auckland New Zealand

Suppose it would be interesting to see The New Zealand Olympic Museum in Wellington.  There I could see the Maori Cloak that was presented to the NZ Olympic Committee by the Maori Queen, Te Arikinue Dame Te Atairangikaahu. Could also have a look at Peter Snell's running shoes, but instead, I've had an extended stay not only with my daughter at The East West Center, University of Hawai'i but with my sister and her family in their LIVING MUSEUM in Auckland.

The Webster's would surely win the Gold Medal for "living", not wasting and leaving our world a better place.  Hmmm.  It would be interesting to have some sort of "Global Olympics" to see who, which family household, or, for that matter, which country does the very best at just THAT!

Waste?  They waste almost nothing and like several others they have a compost, of course.  Sharing the work?  it happens every day...and most of the time, joyously.  Buying presents?  They give deeds, experiences, handmade items and occasionally items from the Op Shop or trademe.com, similar to craigslist.com.  Two recent items from trademe.com : a bread making machine and a lawn mower.  Two handmade items, a tea strainer made from old nylon stockings and a bamboo curtain.  Yup, curtain.  When the grandchildren come it  is writing to read time as the kitchen, with their 1928 stove which is tucked inside the fireplace, becomes "Nibbles and Gobbles Restaurant" with squeals of giggles.  Grandkids that make new year's resolutions like "I will not whine." and "I will not shout" and kids that play violin and "Bob the Builder" with a song, "YES we CAN!" 

Laundry is usually soaking in the sun in their back yard next to the rugby field.  Days unfold under the hard-to-notice orchestration of the household managers, Lois and Steve, with laughter, porridge, and homemade everything.  Construction of the backyard building is ongoing, slow but steady, (Just as the house painting job was years ago when Friday was the only designated day for painting.)  Grandma, Violetti and The Atiga Family next store in #10 are the highlight for anyone staying at #12.  Some even get to go to the Tongan Church that Grandpa started.  Lois's clever shopping for fresh veggies makes every meal a delight along with Tumoana's cooking and the herb garden out back.  Japanese and Russian house guests give an added texture to "talk story" evenings.  Entertainment? Well that's ongoing as well; friends popping by, the game Thirteen,  Carolyn's buddha books and blended fruit cocktails, family readings and just being around Tim and Tumoana, and listening to Marion's laughter.  Everyone's treated when they take their 1912 wooden mullet sailboat out for a spin or head for the famous surfing town, Raglan to visit son, Ste'en.

Sounds fun, aye?  Well it is not all perfect.  Nope! There is a leak in their roof.  

But, n, n, no, not to worry, it is a small leak and only a few drops might occasionally fall.  

So if you entered their New Zealand home today, you would see a beautiful bucket hanging high above your head. Yep, adding a wee bit of ambiance and decoration of their many celebrations!!!

(And if you ever read this Lois Anne...mahalo, domo arrigato gozaimasu, muchas gracias, merci bien and DANKA DANKA for everything. Mom and Dad are proud of you TOO.)

From the Land of the Long White Cloud and The All Blacks

Here in Auckland, just dropped Lusi Atiga off at the ferry to Waiheke Island.  As we drove off spotted The Cloud, one of the centers for the Rugby World Cup.  Glanced quickly and imagined the excitement that surrounded this place during the competition, especially during the finals.  New Zealand was in its glory and those who attended and participated, no doubt were experiencing the same type of thrill of the Olympic Games. I imagined also, while in Raglan, NZ, one of the world's greatest surfing areas, (where we brought in this new year of 2012) what fun it would be to see surfing as well as Rugby as an Olympic sport. 

Beautiful Hawai'i 

My life has been filled with the aloha of Hawai'i that i knew so well in the seventies.  No wonder I never wanted to leave! My days are unfolding very pleasantly as I do my best to be a "good mommy" in order not to interfere with progress.  I work half the day and bus down for an ocean swim and browse the hotels, the shops and usually stop for very fresh Udon whenever I'm on Kuhio Street.

Made Maryann Mulholland's breadpudding recipe for Thanksgiving, went to two pot lucks and caught the end of the East West Center's Thanksgiving.  The Newman Center which is where I attend Mass, had an open house for their parish members, students and ALL. Then a former classmate of mine, Marie Riley, turned her backyard into a very local organic Thanksgiving Pot Luck for about twenty four interesting and friendly guests. Her punch was simply made up of her green tea, grape juice and selzer with a few star shaped fruits floating festively on top.

The Hale Kuahine is a large well built building. The architect was brilliant and the materials he chose were strong indoor-outdoor type.   The sounds of birds from the Japanese gardens below wake us pleasantly, soft laughter from in the evening echoes around the indoor/outdoor halls, and chatter from the indoor but again, sort of outdoor kitchen can be heard on the fourth floor.

I would tell anyone who first comes here to hop on any bus that they've never been on before to explore the island.  One of the funniest bus drivers I got to know was born and raised here, yet is retiring on the mainland.  Long story.  He composes poetry as he drives and he's memorized most of them!  What a buzz.  His book, get this, is called Reflections of a Human Being.  I learned a lot about him as we drove deep into the valley by Woodlawn. Also learned a lot about a ninety year old Michael who goes to the coffee shop in Manoa.  When he was young he didn't want to marry the woman his parents chose for him and loves the wife he chose so much because of her big heart.  That is another long story and really, she chose him!

Then there was Marilu who I met while waiting for the bus one day.   Had a delightful afternoon visit with her the next day where she was delighted to show all of her crafts and, once again, talk story!

Among some other highlights; lunch with Carol Kawananakoa, part of the royal family, attending U of H classes and APEC sessions, a great visit with a former student who I bumped into on campus, and attending Obama's sister's presentation and several other East West Center activities.  Loved getting to know the students but most of all, what a pure pleasure just to be with my daughter, Marion! 

Maya Soetoro-Ng

Today after a Newman Center Service on the campus of the University of Hawai'i, I attended a presentation given by President Obama's sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng at the East West Center.

A few of my thoughts and recollections:

Maya is, no doubt, a gracious, centered, elegant, educated person who shared and "talked story"with us on a personal level.  Her topic was her mother Ann.

She spoke of the courage and humor of her mother while she wove in the life of her mother as an Anthopologist who would often ask her children to look at their surroundings from many perspectives.

She wanted her children to work in the rice paddies and wanted them to understand what it was like to be very poor.  She took them on her research trips and continuously encouraged them to open their eyes not only from their viewpoint but the viewpoint of others.  Ann started microbanking long before others because she knew of the needs of the village people.

During her mother's illness she was able to laugh.  At first she told Maya that she would like her ashes to be high on a hill under a large tree and then she changed her mind.  Her friends were spread in many lands and somehow being spread out in the ocean she felt she awould be able to travel and reach out to them some way.

Her mother never had a large home to display her collections.  After her death there were many boxes of cards and many things that her mother collected.  For example her 48 rice paddy hats!  There were many artefacts and Indonesian puppets that, in time got moldy and had to be tossed.  Maya wanted to keep more but again, space was a factor.  With the things that Maya saved there is, at present, and exhibit in the East West Center Gallery.  A must see!



what I will call her mother's broadminded Olympic spirit.

Two Summer Olympics Not Attended

A few posts back I mentioned that I would explain how I missed two Summer Olympics during the nineteen eighties.  Quite simply, my babies had priority.  I gave birth to my son Don in 1979 and to my daughter in 1981.

Most of you know that there were three Oympics during that decade '80, '84 and '88.  Oh how fortunate for us that the '84 Games came to Southern California.  The freeways were wide open between Dana Point and Los Angeles.  Yes, incredibly wide open.

Prior to the games went to Long Beach Post Office to purchase first day issue sailing post cards so we would have something to trade.

Prepared my home for company beforehand.  Even had a loft built in order to be able to house family and friends.  Had my mother come from the East Coast and my sister and her children come from the Northwest, Tacoma, Washington.

As always, Opening Ceremony tickets were difficult.  But for some reason, these were more difficult than ever.  So we stayed outside the coliseum and gave the only ticket we had to the most important person in our group, my mom.  Was that a good decision?  Yes indeed.  And I reaped even more pleasure from it when I would hear her rave about it for the rest of her life!  Opah!!!

iSad

Thanks Steve Jobs, using your tools enhanced my experiences at the Olympics.  And your words enhanced my life.

Rest in peace.


"Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice."
Steve Jobs

Weather and the Olympic Games and Hurricane Irene

Having experienced Hurricane Irene at the South Jersey Shore this past week am reminded how weather effects so much during the Olympic Games. The preparation before the games and the ripple effects after the games.

With Irene warnings were given more than three days beforehand. Fears, mandatory evacuation, and sandbagging were in full force. Absecon Island looked like a ghost town when my brother and I rode bikes on the boardwalk during the eve of Irene. Everyone was given notice to leave. In the old days, when I was a child we were given five hours. The weather reporting is so advanced, no doubt the olympic committee is grateful and although none of the games were hit by a hurricane there are some stories worth noting. Warm weather in Canada melted the snow but because of advance planning, the games went on because of the "imported" snow.

Necessity encourages creativity and during the summer games the heat is sometimes unbearable.  During the '92 games in Barcelona one of the businesses, I believe it was a bank, helped hundreds of spectators protect themselves from the heat.  They handed out folded paper hats.  They hats could be twisted and folded into a small pocket and when unfolded they popped out to make an incredibly great white paper hat.  Too cool.  (I stilll have one of these clever inventions :)

Parking Ticket in Park City and the Olympic Spirit

During February of 2002 my son and daughter worked in Salt Lake City during the games. Don in food concessions and Marion, who had been shift manager at the Starbucks at Ritz Drive in Monarch Beach, California during her college days, asked for a transfer during that busy exciting month in Utah. I drove over for a week with a good friend Shirley Lind. It was only about a ten hour drive from Dana Point. One night we filled the car to its capacity and drove up the mountain where Park City was humming with olympic activity. Although the printed information brochures said that there would be public parking, almost everywhere we went said "no parking". Finally we saw a large "Public Welcome" banner hanging outside one of the hospitality houses, drove in their lot, and parked. After a fun night our group headed for the car and bingo, a parking ticket on the windshield made this high flyin' olympic heart of mine drop VERY low for a day or two. It was over a hundred dollars; a big one for my budget, a very big one.

Sheez, it must have been the olympic spirit that helped to bring this one to a happy ending. It just flowed through me and although I never wrote about unfair tickets prior to this, I wrote. I gave a clear concise explanation of what happened to the city commission of Park City and they emailed back that they reviewed and verified my information and everything was hunky dori!

Transportation Costs During Olympic Games

Must preface this by saying that during every Olympics there is always delightful WALKING, walking often near interesting olympic fans from around the world.

Everyone has there own transport experiences during the games, but here's some notes from my experiences and from my observations.

In Mexico 68 my transport was primarily with the CBS News Crew in vans, cars and occasionally limo to escort incoming vips from the airport. Air transport in private planes after the games to resorts like Acapulco was given to most broadcasters and some press journalists by the Electric Company of Mexico and the Mexican government. (Cannot think of Mexico without bringing to mind, one of the highlights of my life. After the closing ceremonies we jumped on the field with thousands of others,and danced and sang to mariachi music. Security guards not only danced with us, they encouraged others! ) Anyway, working the games has definite benefits in most cases. But often when you work the games and/or volunteer, transportation is "not included." Munich 72 transport for me was primarily underground between Schwabing and the Olympic Village and a bit pricey. Trains outside the city to places like Bayerischzell were great. During Montreal 76 there were reasonable rates on the subway, bus and and there were free rides from locals who would ask us if we needed a ride. In Los Angeles '84, after all the fear of huge traffic jams, the the freeways were clear, wide open! These games were almost local for our family and I could offer rides to others. Naturally because it was an hour north of Dana Point, we always drove. During Barcelona 92, the Olympic Transport Passes were sold for about $20 or $30 US dollars. These passes were not only cost effective but saved time, valuable olympic-time! During recent Olympics, all transport to and from Olympic venues have been included in the price of a ticket to an event. During Beijing 08 there were so many people in long long lines waiting for buses to get to the events that it was simply easier to catch a cab and splurge, sort of. Taxi cab cost was never more than $3.00, before sharing!

To be continued. Coming up; Australia, Greece, Utah and risks of driving and cost of : ( yup, parking tickets!

The Economy and Olympic Expenses, (it is almost Aug 2nd )

Now that Apple has more cash than the USA and August 2nd is right around the corner I'll touch upon the topic of money.

If you asked me to give an exact itemized list of my Olympic expenses, I'd have to decline. But I'd return home after some Olympic Games with more money in my wallet, some with less and some I simply broke even. Having been raised by parents who some considered upper middle class yet having been a single parent with little help, far away from any home support, I've learned to do something almost everyone in the world needs to know how to do, to be frugal.

Generally I get only what I need, not what I want. And most of the things I want do not cost money. And even if it is hard to believe, that is true for the Olympics as well. As I have mentioned in previous posts, the festivity in the host city has always been spectacular. From Theatrestrasse in Munich to Darling Harbor in Australia, much of the host city's festivities would be enough even if you never were able to purchase a ticket for an Olympic event. And of all the Olympic Games that I been to I have never met anyone who couldn't get a ticket to at least one event! So if you have a block about going to the Olympics and you know how to be frugal..think of the Olympic Spirit and.just go. When in doubt DO IT!

Congratulations Korea! Winter Games 2018 in Pyeongchan!

모든 한국인과 Pyeongchan을 축하 위싱! 2018 계속 1988 년에 우리의 마음을 따뜻하게 조화 수 있습니다!