Like much of the world, we here at the Bunker have been glued to our TV for the past week while the best athletes in the world compete in skiing, figure skating, bobsled, speed skating, and more. To me, this has been the most exciting Winter Olympics in a long time (no offense to past Olympic athletes). We each have our favorite sports and athletes (for me, it’s Apolo Ohno in speedskating and Bode Miller in downhill skiing; for Bunker Hubby, it’s pretty much any of the female figure skaters), and have thoroughly enjoyed following their competitions and cheering them on. Suffice to say, the Olympics has been on pretty much constantly in this house.
I’ve tried to get Bunker Monkey interested in the Olympics – not just because it’d be pretty damn awesome to have an Olympian in the family (oh please, you all know you’d LOVE it if one of your kids decided to become an Olympic athlete), but because I honestly think he’d love it and make an amazing snowboarder or skier. After all, this is the kid who rode his tricycle down the front stairs ON PURPOSE. You can’t tell me he’s not destined for X-Games glory.
Unfortunately, as so often happens, Bunker Monkey has thoroughly resisted my attempts at Olympics indoctrination. I’m not sure if it’s just because the games start at his bedtime, but he’s fallen asleep every time we’ve tried to get him to watch (and not during something relatively tame, like figure skating, but during events like snowboard cross. C’mon, snowboard cross? It doesn’t get any more exciting than that!).
Yesterday, though, I was given some AWESOME news. Evidently, the aunt took Bunker Monkey to the ski slope to do some tubing. It didn’t happen (I think the tubing park was closed), but when the kid saw people skiing, he suddenly became INSANELY OBSESSED with it. He’s never skiied before, but he almost cried when he was told that he couldn’t ski that day because they had no equipment. A complete meltdown was avoided only by promising him that he would be able to go skiing next weekend.
So there’s still hope. I know he’s pretty old to begin the sport for the first time; most Olympians seem to start their sport as soon as they can walk. But I have no doubt that Bunker Monkey will make up for lost time and be competing before he hits the ripe old age of ten. Watch for him in 2014!
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
TOTALLY not too old!
If this guy can do it: http://www.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/02/22/olympics.bobsledder.homeless/?hpt=T3 – so can BunkerMonkey!
Oh Trish – second commenter here? Priceless! I thought you moderated comments?? If yes, I love your sense of humor. Again!
lol I took off moderating a while back and instead installed a spam blocker. One or two occasionally get by….
I love how you just said you installed a spam blocker, and yet two still got by. Evil spambots, they’re out to get us all! Sometimes, they are pretty offensive on my blog.
If Bunker Monkey becomes an Olympic (Olympian?) athlete, I am so sacrificing work to watch, just so I can say I sort of know an Olympian athlete. (I got to see some events, but not as many as I’d like to since I’ve been so busy with clients’ projects. 2014, watch out! I am so there.)
@Elizabeth I know – stupid spammers! I hate to go back to commenters needing approval, but I might have to. Aww, you’re so sweet to say you’d watch Bunker Monkey. If he made it, I’d mae sure he did a shout out to you
And yeh, I’m totally there in 4 yrs too! Would LOVE to be able to go to Russia for it, but I doubt that’ll happen. Damn.