Early thoughts on the Eve of Sochi 2014

Anyone who has been following my blog for a number of years knows that I’m a fan of the Olympics, especially the Winter Games. Heck, it’s the only sporting event I actually care at all about except maybe an occasional Philllies game. I’ve been a fan pretty much all of my life and can name the host city for each winter and summer Olympics since I was born. I think I became interested when my mother bought me a little eagle mascot from the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles.

Typically, as the games get closer, I get my television viewing schedule all set (a task that is made infinitely easier now that the DVR has been invented), load up the appropriate apps on my phone, sign up for e-mail alerts, etc. I’ve done those things this year, but even though it’s easier than ever to follow what’s going on at the games these days by following Twitter or Instagram, the excitement isn’t there as usual; at least not for me.

With less than 24 hours until the opening ceremonies, most of the news coming out of Sochi is about topics such as the abysmal condition of many of the hotels that the media are being housed in. I know people love to hate the media, but I do think they deserve water in their hotels. Other articles talk about the risk of a terrorist attack. Every Olympic Games carries a certain level of security concerns but when the Summer Games were in London 2 years ago, we didn’t park warships off the coast in case the need to evacuate Americans arose. On the bright side, if any terrorists show up (and I hope they don’t), perhaps the Russian government can send one of the contracted dog murder squads after them.

Regardless of all this, I’ll be watching the Olympics as usual. After all, it only comes every 4 years. I just hope Russia can pull it off and manage to avoid making regret taking the time to watch. At least I’ll be watching from the comfort of my home where I have running water, doorknobs, shower curtains and no ferrel dogs or construction workers living in my bedroom.