Bucket, part deux

It's now been a year since my first posting of my Bucket List, and I thought it time to add/update the list. I think it's important to keep setting goals and achieving dreams, so if you don't have your own List going, get moving.

Since last year, the only one on the previous list that I've checked off (and really, if it was only gonna be one, it's a good one) was the WPS game. I came close to the hotdog stand by getting a Chicago dog at Wrigley Field, and got to ride the L, which mostly fulfills my While You Were Sleeping dreams. For other things I've done this past year, which weren't necessarily on the list, but were still awesome, see the first part of this post.

Additions to the Bucket List:

Go to Ireland
See Shakespeare performed live (high school theater doesn't count)
Make Greek food
Learn to dance
Fly first class
Hike the Incan Trail
Brewery Tour
Learn more Spanish (working on this one)
A Vesper martini

Should get a few more checked off in the next year...happy listing!

Going for Gold

Some favorite Olympic moments so far:

Lindsey Vonn's Gold. For me, hands down, probably the most triumphant moment of the games, just barely ahead of

Evan Lysacek's Gold. The gracious way he handled the ridicule from silver medalist Plushenko made it even better.

Kelly Clark singing to her iPod before dropping in to the half-pipe. She's totally tone deaf and doesn't care. I love it.

Adding to what Tess and I have termed our "Olympic Dance Montage"--seeing athletes do funny things as they warm up or celebrate. Among them: Lindsey Vonn's "visualization" of the course, that one freestyle skier that we dubbed "The Pointer", and pumped up dances by Louie Vito, Julia Mancuso, and others


The American snowboard team, men and women: they are so laid-back and goofy--"It was the savvy and saucy thing to do"--and are probably having the most fun of anybody

The triple chocolate bundt cake that came over for the opening ceremonies and stayed until Fat Tuesday. Nothing like diabetes to go with those Olympics.

Mary Carillo's day as a Canadian Mountie. If you can find a clip of this, watch it! It's hilarious.

Commenting on all the cool uniforms. I pretty much want one of everything. Besides the men's figure skating costumes. You can only take so many feathers.

Morgan Freeman's Go World Visa commercials. I'm not kidding, I get choked up talking about them. Ask Mary. They're great.

Amman's interview after his first gold. He was so ecstatic, he would say half a sentence and then go, "Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!! I can't believe it!" The poor interviewer couldn't even get a full sentence out of him. It was fun to see that much joy.

And finally...

The fact that we're only halfway done! Keep watching kids!

Summon the Heroes

It's hard to explain the feeling that surrounds the Olympics; I'm sure for most people it's that way. Every 2 years (now that we've split the Winter and Summer Games), the whole world stops, comes together, and celebrates the human spirit. It's about athletes, yes, and I'm certainly one to appreciate the quest for greatness and glory in sports. But it's more than that. It's the joy and fire of the tap-dancing fiddlers and the quiet pride of the aboriginal people in the opening ceremonies. It's seeing countries of millions represented by one, proudly waving their flags for all they're worth. It's story after story of triumph in the face of extreme trial--recovering from injury, competing in memory of lost loved ones, somehow continuing after losing a teammate to a freak accident the day before he takes the world stage. It's tears and awe and fear and relief. It's pure and over-the-top at the same time. There's nothing like it. So, excuse me while I glue myself to the TV for the next 2 weeks to cheer on 216 of our country's greatest.