Four (or Five!) Reasons Why

…China Should Be A Little Embarrassed

1. The perfect little girl singing the perfect tribute to the Motherland at the perfect opening for the Olympics. According to plan, it all went off without a hitch. Until someone figured out that it was a sham. The lip-syncing - not too many people with that. It would take one special child to sing in front of 91,000 people and a monstrous television audience. But the fact that the lip-syncer wasn’t even the girl who sang the song? It feels so Milli Vanilli. So the story goes, eagre to present a flawless Olympics image to the world, a member of China’s Politburo thought that Yang Peiyi’s buck teeth and chubby face weren’t suitable for the lead role. Enter Lin Miaoke. Cute. And she even carried the story on by giving interviews after the performance.

2.The Chinese are reknowned for the expertise with fireworks and you couldn’t help but be impressed with the display of the opening ceremony. But did they really have to resort to broadcasting a digitally enhanced sequence, filmed months in advance, of the most amazaing fireworks display ever?

3. Every event was a sell-out. Impressive by most standards, but not altogether true. When it first came out that the Chinese were using cheer squads, one can’t help but be skeptical on the popularity of some events. However, it also seems that the fear of potentially losing control of crowds, rumours swirled that the organizing committee help back many tickets, forcing overseas visitors to go to scalpers (who apparently were charging more than ten times the face value of tickets for some events).

4. According to IOC rules, a gymnast has to turn 16 in the year of an Olympic Games to qualify. Even to the most terrible judgers of age, the Chinese girls looked young. But as long as the IOC said they were good to compete, game on! (Passports are proof enough to the IOC.) Well, it seems an enterprising hacker found a couple of lists compiled by the General Administration of Sport of China showing that two of the gymnasts are well below the minimum age. As well, just nine months before the Olympics, the Xinhua news agency listed one of them as 13. Chinese officials say it’s a mistake and all records of the lists have been mysteriously erased. While there’s no proof, it all seems a little suspicous.

5. Originally claiming that the jade for the Olympic medal is from China’s Qinghai province, it may actually have been purchased on the Sino-Burma jade markets. This “Blood Jade” accounts for a huge source of income for the Burmese military junta.

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….I Love Hockey

1. I’m a Canadian. It’s part of who we are, along with curling, Tim Horton’s, maple syrup, six-months of winter and the word “eh”. Even if you don’t play hockey, you definitely watch hockey, particularly if a Canadian team is involved in the NHL playoffs.

2. You get to exercise without exercising. I mean, you skate hard but hardly realize it as you focus on the puck and the other players. It’s only when you finish playing, that you realize just how hard you’ve worked physically. Mind you, if you play at night, the physical benefits of hockey are quickly balanced with a couple of post-game beverages and an order of chicken wings.

3. It’s a team game. You can’t play well or win without playing as a team. It’s also a social game where friendships get made on and off the ice. In fact, I would argue that the post-game is as important as the game itself.

4. It makes waking up at 6 a.m. that much easier if it means getting on the ice at 7 a.m. I can’t think of a better way to start your day - other than making sure you have a big cup of coffee before you step on the ice.

Technorati Tags: hockey

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…Winter Olympics Are Better Than The Summer Games

1. While there is a lot of excitement is summer sports, the Winter Olympics has much more cooler and interesting sports. In summer, there’s pistol shooting. (Is that really deserving of an Olympic medal?) In the winter Biathlon, they make you cross-country ski with a rifle harnessed to your back, target shoot, and repeat a few more times. (I guess you could make the summer games more exciting by having someone run the 1,500 metre race, firing a handgun between every lap.) Summer has the triathlon - swin, bike, run. Winter has the Nordic Combined - cross-country skiing and jumping off of a giant ski jump. Add in Short Track Speed Skating, Skeleton and Snowboading, and you’ve got some crazy and really exciting events!

2. Summer is the time of year we should be spending outdoors. Maybe even playing the sports that the IOC wants us to watch. When it’s hot and sunny, it’s hard not to feel guilty sitting inside watching television. Winter, on the other hand, is the perfect time of year to spend cozzied up on the couch. When it’s cold, raining and/or snowing, you can’t beat the warm glow of television and some crazy athletes launching themselves down a half-pipe track made of ice.

3.Whether true or not, there seems to be much lower incidence of performance enhancing drug abuse at the Winter Olympics. This may be the nature of the sports involved, the fact that there are fewer sports, or that the Games have a much lower profile than its summer counterpart. In a poll conducted by USA Today, over half of those surveyed believe that at least some Olympic athletes in track and field use performance-enhancing drugs, while 1 in 5 say they are suspicious of doping when a swimmer sets a world record, and 1 in 3 believe that at least some Olympians in swimming use performance-enhancing drugs. During the Winter Games, it’s nice to watch an event and not be riddled with thoughts of substance abuse. (Of course, you’ll have to overlook Canadian snowboarder, Ross Rebagliati.)

4. Every Olympiad has stories of inspiration. However, it seems that the best stories have come from the Winter Games. The two most notable serve as a beacon of amateur athleticism, although they are often maligned for being “stunt” driven. The first, Eddie the Eagle. How can you not feel inspired by a tradesman from England who takes up ski jumping to become and Olympian?! The IOC was not impressed as they eventually banned him for making a mockery of the sport, but he became a media darling well before that happened. The second, the Jamaican bobsled team. While their debut in 1988 was seen as a novelty, the determination and hard work paid off as they sent two teams to the 2002 games in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Unfortunately, they did not qualify for the 2006 games.) Doesn’t it just want to make you go out and compete in something?! Running a 9.7 second 100 metres is amazing, but it doesn’t get me off the sofa. A crazy English guy jumping off a ramp and a group of “Cool Runners” makes me believe.

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…Fishing Isn’t As Boring As You Think

1. Most people think that when you fish, all you really do is sit around, get a tan and drink beer. The truth of the matter is that fishing can be quite meditative. Sitting in the middle of a secluded lake, disconnected from the rest of the world, gives one a chance to reflect and clear your mind. And there is a certain poetry in the act of casting, particularly that for fly-fishing. The elegance of feeding out a line takes years to perfect and can only be achieved when you focus your mind on only the rod in your hand.

2. For city dwellers, it is not often enough that your we get back in touch with nature. To some, this is torture. Why would you put yourself in a place that is void of cell phones and broadband connections? But there is something primeval and elemental about doing so. Not only does it remind us of where we came from, but also what we really need to live and survive.

3. Whether or not the fish are biting, you get a chance to connect with those out there with you in a circumstance that you might not otherwise get. You can talk about about anything. Or you don’t have to talk at all. And there’s always stories to tell over a beer at the end of the day. Bonding can take many forms. That’s the beauty of it.

4. If you’re lucky enough to catch the big one, there is a certain amount of ego and bragging rights involved. Maybe it goes back to the notion of being a “provider” or boost you get from the trophy catch. Regardless, it feeds to ego and is good for the soul. And given that there is always a bit of luck involved, nobody really feels jealous or envious. Maybe they wished is was them, but there’s never any ill feelings.

5. Nobody really knows what goes on during fishing trips or whether any fish were actually caught, and this makes for all sorts of tall tales. “Oh, the one that got away!” A little imagination goes a long way and covers up for the fact that all you did was sit in a boat, tan and drink beer. Oh, wait…

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…This Is The Perfect Time Of The Year

1. Crappy weather makes people cranky and sometimes crazy. Long, cold winters can bring heightened levels of depression, anger and anxiety, while lower levels of general happiness. We also tend to stay indoors, which means less physical activity, and feast on chocolate, meatloaf and other comfort foods. With the emergence of summer, things change. People change. Attitudes changes. Everyone becomes a lot nicer, we start smiling at each other and a city’s vibe begins to improve. It’s like a flower blooming. But take advantage while you can, because it doesn’t take long before we all become immune to the warmth and our friendliness cools off.

2. For those of us in geographies that have distinctive seasons, it’s nice to see people peeling back the layers. Gone are the parkas, boots, raincoats and umbrellas. Out come the shorts, skirts, flip-flops and sunglasses. Nicer weather brings better people watching and more people to watch you.

3. Office life starts to improve with the combination of improved attitudes, the prospects of going on holiday, and your colleagues (i.e. boss’s) absence as he/she goes on holiday. Everyone just seems a little more relaxed and work seems to get easier as the longer days feels like you get more time to do stuff outside of office hours. And if you happen to live in Europe, you score hugely by the fact that the whole continent seems to shut down for the summer.

4. The transition into early summer is a sports fan’s dream. You have the NHL and NBA playoffs wrapping up, the MLB gearing up, the French Open for tennis and golf’s US Open. This year we are blessed with Euro2008 as well. But it doesn’t take too long before you get into the dog days of summer and the only thing we are left with is baseball. And we’ve already blogged here about how “exciting” mid-summer baseball can be.

5. It is the perfect season for hanging out on a patio. Just like Baby Bear’s porridge – not too hold, not too cold. It’s juuuuuuuuust right. There’s nothing like that first opportunity to sit outside and appreciate the nourishment that warmer weather brings.

With the excitement of summer fun upon, don’t forget about the harmful effects of getting too much sun. Visit the Sun Safety Alliance for more details.

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