This week, following a fairly good showing by both The Kids at the Saturday swim meet, I have occasionally been on YouTube looking up Olympic Swim videos. THIS is why the Internet was created--for me to discover, on a whim, just what I want!
Do any of you remember the 1984 Summer Olympics? That USA love fest in Los Angeles, with all the communist teams boycotting us because we boycotted them four years before?! I was almost 15 during those games and I remember just eating it all up. Now, I can recall watching Olga Korbut and Nadia Comaneci in Olympics prior to this one, but that was still when I was young (and small) enough to be delusional about someday being a gymnast. And even though I cheered for MaryLou Retton and Peter Vidmar, by the '84 Games I was well on my way to understanding there was no possible chance of me EVER being a gymnast, or any other Olympian for that matter.
I have old photos of my sister, mom and I joined by several other neighbors at the end of our mile long street where it meets the state highway to watch the Olympic torch run by. It was pretty cool. What I remember best of those games though, happened at the Olympic pool.
Recognize any of these names? Rowdy Gaines, Pablo Morales, Steve Lundquist, Rick Carey, Matt Biondi, John Moffet or Janet Evans--sound familiar? OK, I know, Janet Evans was awesome at the '88 Seoul Games. In high school I didn't have many movie star crushes--except Indiana Jones, understandably --but I think the next closest thing I had was a pretty major crush on that Olympic gold winning men's medley relay team. Whew. They were fantastic.
Each time I watch my own kids, or the other kids on our city team swim, and they are doing their best, I get the same feelings deep in my gut. I am proud of them for their accomplishments. I am proud to see them do well, and I am proud of their sportsmanship. And, in a corny way, it makes me feel like I can do whatever it is that I do even better too. There is an element of "practice makes perfect" with swimming, like anything else. But as I watch my kids enjoying something I loved at their ages, it makes be feel closer to them and more connected as a family.
And really, who couldn't enjoy a little "old school" swimming remembrances when it conjours up some patriotic pride and a little swimming envy as well? Since the Beijing games are only about 5 weeks away now, maybe in August I will watch another set of Olympic pool sensations with my kids and find a whole new batch of swimming heroes.
Do any of you remember the 1984 Summer Olympics? That USA love fest in Los Angeles, with all the communist teams boycotting us because we boycotted them four years before?! I was almost 15 during those games and I remember just eating it all up. Now, I can recall watching Olga Korbut and Nadia Comaneci in Olympics prior to this one, but that was still when I was young (and small) enough to be delusional about someday being a gymnast. And even though I cheered for MaryLou Retton and Peter Vidmar, by the '84 Games I was well on my way to understanding there was no possible chance of me EVER being a gymnast, or any other Olympian for that matter.
I have old photos of my sister, mom and I joined by several other neighbors at the end of our mile long street where it meets the state highway to watch the Olympic torch run by. It was pretty cool. What I remember best of those games though, happened at the Olympic pool.
Recognize any of these names? Rowdy Gaines, Pablo Morales, Steve Lundquist, Rick Carey, Matt Biondi, John Moffet or Janet Evans--sound familiar? OK, I know, Janet Evans was awesome at the '88 Seoul Games. In high school I didn't have many movie star crushes--except Indiana Jones, understandably --but I think the next closest thing I had was a pretty major crush on that Olympic gold winning men's medley relay team. Whew. They were fantastic.
Each time I watch my own kids, or the other kids on our city team swim, and they are doing their best, I get the same feelings deep in my gut. I am proud of them for their accomplishments. I am proud to see them do well, and I am proud of their sportsmanship. And, in a corny way, it makes me feel like I can do whatever it is that I do even better too. There is an element of "practice makes perfect" with swimming, like anything else. But as I watch my kids enjoying something I loved at their ages, it makes be feel closer to them and more connected as a family.
And really, who couldn't enjoy a little "old school" swimming remembrances when it conjours up some patriotic pride and a little swimming envy as well? Since the Beijing games are only about 5 weeks away now, maybe in August I will watch another set of Olympic pool sensations with my kids and find a whole new batch of swimming heroes.
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