Armchair Olympian

I love the Olympics, summer and winter both. I love the way they bring the world together in the spirit of friendly sports and competition. During the games, I can watch obscure sports that would otherwise not be able to grab my attention for a moment, and there will be little else on our TV for the remaining ten days of competition.

And that’s my dilemma. Watching others compete actively in such a wide variety of events at the Winter Olympics in Torino (Turin in English), has my ass in a chair. Take last Sunday for example. I was up early after a late Saturday night, taking pictures from the snowstorm. I shoveled snow, watched my daughter go sledding, went to the store, enjoyed two dips in the hot tub. But by about three o’clock, when the braodcast of the games began, I was in my recliner with a bowl of chili on my belly. And except for refills, I stayed in that chair until I went to bed ten hours later at one o’clock in the morning.

For now I’ll blame the snow and my recovery from two actual visits to the gym last week (a New Year’s Resolution which is not yet dead). Regardless, I’m not missing the irony that watching others perform amazing athletic feats is giving me reason to be more sedentary that usual.