Yardbarker: Olympics

Have you ever seen a water polo game?

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 16:48:12 -0500

Now is your chance to see the United States Women play! (all the details are below) Hope to see you there! :)

11 Weeks?!?

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:34:10 -0500

When I found out I needed surgery the first question I had was... "What is the recovery time?" Of course soon follows the standard "4-6 weeks" response. (Oh, I am tottaly going to be that 4 week part of the standard deviaton.) The surgeon, the therapists and doctors all saying the same thing: "You will be up and moving around right after the surgery, and back doing what you do in no time!" As an athlete, 4-6 weeks was already too long. This theory of "no" time was going to be interesting.

I hit the 6 week anniversary of the operation and had a follow up appointment with the surgeon. He told me at this point the incisions and tissues in my knee were healed. I still had a bit of swelling and I would now be in a battle with scar tissue for range of motion. With 5 1/2 weeks of therapy, I could walk normally, I could do all minor strengthening excersices, and from what I could see (photo) I had lost a LOT of muscle in my leg. (How hard it is to build up the muscle and how fast it departs!)

So began the battle. Playing water polo requires a rather awkward rotating motion we do with our legs. "Eggbeater" had never seemed stange to me. I could do it for hours, maybe days. Supporting myself in the water was as easy as breathing. Yet the scar tissue on either side of my patella tendon and through my capsule was creating a loud"pop" doing even the simplest of things. Like bending me knee from a straightened postion. Wait, that happens when you walk. Yup, not too comfortable with normal linear motions. So doing anything even close to water polo was not going to happen. Yet.

It became quite clear that what I was going to struggle with most at that point was maintaining a positive outlook with my (what I feel is WAY TOO SLOW) progress back to an athletic level I think is satisfactory for playing on the National Team again.

I know everyone is different. Our bodies heal at their own rate. And I am quite frequesntly reminded I am no spring chicken anymore. (I'm not? Age is a number....I guess until you try and heal something and realize, yes, you really are 31. Boo.) But, I think my lifestyle- staying fit and active and absorbed in this pursuit of something I am passionate about, has made me feel a bit invincible. I attack things thinking I can achieve anything if I just try hard enough. And I still believe that to be true....it just might take a little longer than I previously envisioned. I was not leaping around after 4 weeks, or 6.....not even 10. Uggh.

Now in the 11th week I have seen the most progress. I think I have clawed my way up the mountain I had in front of me. Breaking holes in the sheets of ice, slipping back down a few times, but finally nearing the summit. And what kept me going, besides the images and sensations of future practices and games floating through my head, were appreciating the small moments of joy.

Like dressing up for Halloween at the therapy clinic. I broke out my tutu from my ballerina costume two years ago. And our trainer Lance, sported an amazing Spiderman costume. :)

Or making a trek up to LA to see Joshua Radin in concert for the first time. I got Joshua's CD Simple Times from a friend last year. It was about the same time I was trying to decide what path I should set out on post Olympics. And for some reason the sound of his voice was really calming to me. I would listen to his music as I walked around Greece, or when I was reading or hanging out at home and it would help me think. When I found out about his show I had to see him live. And again, those songs helped to calm my anxiety about the healing process and focus me back on the good.

And of course taking more pictures...... Black Friday getting brighter as Christmas lights start to come on!

Lysaceck wins Japan's Grand Prix final

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 07:23:52 -0500

World champion Evan Lysacek won the Grand Prix final Saturday, becoming the second straight American to capture the figure skating title. Lysacek finished ahead of Nobunari Oda of Japan, who was second with 243.36. Johnny Weir of the United States was third with 237.35 points.

Why #2

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:44 -0500

In this cell phone driven world, why do people think it is alright to text and be glued to their phone even when they are with other people?

Is it really necessary to sit right next to someone while having coffee, and text or talk to someone else on the phone? Why go interact with real people at all then? Just stay at home and conduct all your correspondence through your phone. Because it is rude to the person you are with. Basically says to them.....you are not as important as this person I am talking to on the phone.

Worse yet is to be driving in the car and be texting so much you almost kill everyone in the car. Get lost or better yet never say one word to the living breathing person in the car with you while on the way to your destination.

Maybe we need to cut the umbilical cord with our cellies. What did we do before cell phones existed. We planned on meeting up and chatting in person. We called home phones and talked. Or left messages so talking could happen when both parties were not otherwise doing something else. Is that lost now??

Maybe not....but we all could do a better job of realizing it. Incorporate the best of both worlds....basically just be more considerate.

Why #1

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:44 -0500

Why do people feel the need to steal???

I mean, is it so hard to get a job? Even one at a place like McDonalds. Make minimum wage. But earn your own money. Once you have SAVED a little cash, you can buy your own things. Instead of taking someone else's stuff. For f*%k sake people!!! Are we really that lazy???

I mean, you tell me, but.......I think it takes a whole lot more effort for a person to, lets say, stake out someone who locks their bike in the same place behind their house (way in the back, underneath some stairs) for months. Notices the day the person buys a nice shiny new basket for the front, to carry groceries home from the store in. Goes home, gets lock cutters. Comes back to the house. Cuts the TWO locks that secure (and obviously not very well) the bike to the cement stairs. And steals the bike.

Ok, so someone did this to me yesterday. And maybe you say I am stupid for locking it outside. But I'm sorry. I sure as hell figured TWO different locks would keep it safe and deep down I want to trust that people don't do this kind of ****. But they do and I hate it. Makes a person feel violated. So, I put a sign outside where my bike used to be, that reads... "Thanks a lot for stealing my bike, asshole." Hopefully other people living around me, will read this and take their bikes inside. More likely they will think..."That girl is stupid. People are inherently stealers. Protect your worldly belongings at all times."

Great. I have no bike. Boo.

The Happiest Place on Earth

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:43 -0500

Oh how I love a day at Disneyland. :)

This is us having fun on The Tower of Terror.

Great ride. It is actually in the California Adventure part of the park. Did you know that you can buy beer over there? Whole new Disney experience. Ok, back to the ride.....

These small children on the ride with us were not having as much fun as we were!

Because we loved it so much we had to go on it again once Monkey had arrived. I loved it as you can see. Darcy can not stop giggling. Monkey doesn't understand. Betsey can't explain it to her in mid-ride so she gets caught between a scream, laugh and clap.

We went on rides.....and ATE!!!! The inspiration for the trip began with my craving for funnel cake. I feel like Disneyland may be the only place you can get that delicious pile of fried dough and powdered sugar. Well, maybe except for the county fair.....but I am not really sure where to find that here in LA. Churros and cotton candy were also consumed. Then there were the corn dogs.....about as big as my arm and fried to perfection as we watched!

Basically if it was fried or had sugar we ate it.

I was seduced to the dark side.

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:43 -0500

I tried. Really hard. I wasn't going to give in to the posh Hollywood popularity that is Pink Berry.

I mean who pays over $6 for frozen yogurt? Or fresh greek style yogurt in ice like form. Whatever it is, it should not cost that much. It probably costs $1.50 for them to make.

But it does cost this much. And I can't stop eating it. Because it is deliciously addictive. Kind of like crack. But I like to think of it as a more healthy form of addiction. So it is ok. (This is just me being delusional) You tell me....I just forked over $13 for a 13oz. green tea yogurt with strawberry, kiwi, granola and the secret ingredient. At this rate I will not have money for rent next month.

The fruit they pile on top IS fresh. And cut up small, not drenched in sugary syrup. SO they must charge this much because someone is in the back kitchen actually cutting up fruit. I mean hard labor means cash. WARNING: If you choose to put fruity pebbles on your yogurt, you are really cheating yourself out of your own money, because you know the person that pours the cereal into the container from the Costco sized box in back didn't have to work very hard, and it costs the same as the fruit.

SECRET: For those of you that love the thing called mochi.....they have tiny little balls of it that you can add too. But it is not up on the menu so it is a "people in the know" kind of thing. Like at In and Out.....you have to be a regular to really get the good stuff.

I have become one of the masses and can not live without a little Pink Berry in my life. I say try it once. If you have the will power to "stick it to the man" and not pay a ridiculous price for such things.....you are a better person than I. But enjoy that one that you do buy.....cuz you have paid gold for every decadent bite! :)

Enjoy!

The Chronicles of The Traveling Pig- Montreal

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:42 -0500

I wanted to introduce you to the one and only Traveling Pig (aka. Giggles) who has come with us on our summer polo advetures. She is here to inspire us and remind us of all the work we did at home these past months. Giggles's mother, Carnitas, has stayed home to hold down the fort in Los Alamitos. I think her weight belt was too much of a burden for travel. (One day I will get you all a family photo of our training pets)

Anywho, Giggles immediately found a Canadian relative, named Bacon, in the Metro during the ride to the pool for trainng, our first day in Montreal. Apparently he is famous here or something.

We have come to Montreal for the World Leauge Super Final. It is the tournament before we head to Rio, Brazil for Pan American Games later in the month. Everything is written in French here.

***Lesson for today: SORTIE means EXIT (If you already knew this than you are smart)

Fourth of July marked the beginning of the tournament. (I HOPE YOU ALL HAD A GREAT INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!) Sadly we missed out on fireworks and hot dogs being up here.....but we tried to bring the holiday here. With festive swim suits and sparkly plastic necklaces.

(A big Thank You to Fig's grandmother for that added flare!)

We won our game versus Spain. 12-3

Today we played against Australia. It was a close match. Mostly because we had a beast of a practice this morning, so we were a wee bit tired. On top of that I think the referee's did not want another blow out game like yesterday. Or maybe it was their goal to allow the crowd to see what it would look like to have two people inside one swim suit. (Maybe it just felt that way.) We won 9-8. And a win is a win. I'll take it. :)

Highlight of the game for me was when an Aussie player tried to break my finger. When I asked her if she was in fact trying to break my finger, she was responded with..."Well, you were holding onto my suit." To that I said...."We are playing water polo, dear. That is the nature of our sport." Then I added....."By the way, what do you think you are doing to the front of my suit right now?" She didn't really have a response when she looked down to see her fist full of speedo polyester. Hmmm?

Chronicles of TTP- More Montreal

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:41 -0500

It was a monumental day today!!! We played China with a semi-full squad!!!!

Back after many weeks of rehab and recovery from an injury to her groin is- Natalie "Nasty" Golda!!!!!!
That white tape around her leg supports her injured groin muscle while playing and also helps to lift and sculpt the buttox region for a better looking bum. Maybe we should all go out and buy a roll of tape.

Back in the goal after almost two weeks of a very debilitating stomach/intestinal infection is- Elizabeth "Bets" Armstrong!!!

Nat and Bets got to play the first half and they both did a fabulous job. It is good to have them back in action.

Due to the fact there has been thunder and lightning storms here in Montreal. There has been some very awesome views of the sky. Dark rainclouds in contrast with the sun and blue sky. I took a moment during warm down to capture a little of the beauty. Though the pics do not do the scene justice....still fun to share.

With the win today over China, we have secured ourselves a spot in the final match to play for the gold!! Great job girls!! Bring another one home for the US! :) The games tomorrow will determine who we play.

Giggles last day in Montreal

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:41 -0500

Our goal in coming to the Super Final here in Montreal was to prepare for Pan American Games in Brazil next week. But also to improve as a team, play some good games.....and kick some butt. Which we accomplished!!! :)
We beat Australia today in the final 8-4.

The venue in Montreal is on an island. It is where they held the World Championships in 2005, only we got to use the permanent pool that was used for the swimming events two years ago. Our pool for that event was temporary and was built behind this pool in a field. Giggles watched us do a few swim sets while we were here. She made sure we kept to our ultimate goal of qualifying for the Olympics and so we continued working on our conditioning throughout the tournament.

What else have we been doing here in Montreal besides eating, sleeping, practicing and playing games????

Walked by the Notre Dame Cathedral of Montreal, rode the metro a few times, and ate sushi. (Which may have made Moriah sick....but there is a bug going around and I prefer to think the sushi wasn't tainted!!!)

Escape to the district.

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:40 -0500

We had a day off before we left for Brazil. So we all escaped the dorms we were staying in and found our way into the heart of DC. It was Giggles first metro ride.

We popped out of the metro right behind the White House. It was rapidly approaching 100 degrees so on the walk around the gated Nation's capitol I decided to run through the sprinklers....I dried completely before we took this picture....and it had only been 4 min.

As we were talking this glorious picture thunder and lightning crashed above us. Yet looking up at the freak clouds above there seemed to be no impending rain ahead.....I mean it was hotter than blazes, it was just an electrical storm right? WRONG!!!!

We began to wonder through "The Mall" of monuments laid out in front of the capitol when we realized a torrential downpour was chasing us. We thought we could outrun it and stay just ahead of the water. We were too slow. Just at the beginning of The Reflecting Pool, the storm caught us and had its way with us. There was no shelter to be found from there to the Lincoln Memorial so all just looked at each other, laughed and began a very wet trek to see Lincoln.

One of the things I wanted to do one day in my life was to sit next to Lincoln way up there on that huge throne of his and take a picture. I mean....I would probably get arrested but good ol Mr. Bush would let a nice patriotic Olympic Athlete out of the slammer. Don't you think???

My plans were foiled. :(
I settled for this nice and legal pose.

While we were inside hanging out with Lincoln the sun came out right above us. The clouds parted and tried to help dry us off. But out in the distance another crazy storm was charging up the reflection pool towards us. (You can see the disturbance in the water of the pool) Luckily those clouds unleashed all the water they could hold before they reached us and we stayed damp instead of getting drenched all over again. :) Great day in DC!!!!

HEY BRAZIL!!!!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:40 -0500

We have been in Brazil for almost a week. It feels like I have not stopped moving since we got here. So many things to take in. The village, other athletes, the venue. Bus rides to and from places have given us a glimpse of what life is like outside our Pan American bubble. We have yet to see the beach or the famous Redeemer statue, cuz right now all the focus is on the games at hand. Maybe there will be time for that later.

We are 3 for 3. Beating Venezuela, Cuba, and Canada so far.

Here is a look at our village. It is set up as a series of high rise buildings. Situated in a cirle around a man made lagoon. There is grass and lots of tropical plants and flowers. There are even infinity pools placed between every other building. The organizing committee did a great job constructing this village and everything runs quite smoothly.

We have not had any major problems either. Four years ago 1 of 2 toilets broken in an apartment with 13 girls, the ceiling caved in and there was NO way to cool off. Here we have wireless internet in the lobby, 3 AC units and 3 bathrooms per apartment. (There are 6/7 girls per apartment) I think the biggest issue right now is avoiding the dreaded mosquitos! Ali G seems to have the sweetest blood. Right now you could either diagnose her with chicken pox OR a zillion bites on her face.

Right now we are just......

ready, set, go

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:40 -0500

Before going to Pan American Games we stopped in Virginia for processing. This is where the entire American Delegation of athletes meets up and goes through a series of informational sessions to prepare for the Games. We got the overview on the Brazilian culture, the village (where we all stay), security, and maybe the best part....outfitting!

I think I have told some people about this before but if not it goes like this.....you walk into a large room where they hand you a laundry basket and a clipboard with a list of things on it. Then you go around to the stations and they hand you all the gear. Shirts, hats, shoes....basically it is kinda like Christmas! Having done something like this once or twice before, while the experience is really cool the key is to try things on and make sure they fit.....instead of just standing there eyes big as saucers holding your basket out waiting for more. Cuz if you don't most likely you are going to get things home and something will definitely NOT fit. Plus for some unknown reason.....with all the thousands of designers in our country the organizing committee ALWAYS manages to put us in the most unflattering of outfits. Here are some previews of our sweet clothes.

Wangs is sporting the Opening Ceremonies Outfit. Its "golf" meets "I borrowed my little sister's t-shirt" sheik.
Jess is rocking the shorts with built in chones. Why we got those lovely built in do-hickeys i have no idea. But the men's version that our coaches got did not have them.....and they are the ones that need a little support. Go figure.

So we are lookin hot and ready to go kick some ass in Brazil. :)

Opening Ceremonies: Pan Am 2007

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:39 -0500

Opening Ceremonies was held in the Maracana soccer stadium. It is the famed stadium that Brazilian soccer star Pele scored his 1000 goal. It holds more that 100,000 people and there was not an empty seat in the house. Holding true to the theme of the whole ceremony, "Viva essa Energia!" or "Share the Energy!", the brazilian people did not disappoint!

We got all did up in our USA delegation attire. (Remember that sweet outfit from a few posts back?) I have to admit once we were all wearing them in one huge pack. We didn't look so special. Golf shorts on. Brand new white shoes beaming. We were ready to march.

Our Team dominated the US procession line. Being the first athletes behind the flag bearer. First to bust out of the tunnel into the stadium and shake it with the thousands of people playing drums and dancing along the path to our seats in the stadium. We tried to focus on the crazy positive energy that surrounded down amongst the other athletes and volunteers. Yet a lot of what we heard was "Boo!". We all pretended that they were cheering like crazy for us. Smile and wave. Smile and wave. Dance a little somewhere in there too.

Unlike other Opening Ceremonies I have been to, the athletes were allowed to sit in the stands and watch the rest of the show instead of being corralled together in the middle of the field while the festivities go on around you. As our team did in the athlete procession, we dominated the seating too and sat in the front row! Go polo girls!

To conclude the ceremony they had some very important Brazilian sports teams and athletes carry the Pan American torch around the stadium. Then they lit a huge metal orb on fire which happened to be sitting just to the left of us. It was an amazing thing to see. Olympic caliber.

The End.

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:38 -0500

A few reasons I know that my vacation is definitely over:

1. I had forgotten in my post major tournament haze what it felt like to be sore/out of shape. My leg muscles are now reminding me every time I try to walk up stairs, get out of the car, sit down on the couch, go to the bathroom.....that they do not like what I am doing to them. This is only day three! More advil please.

2. The clean clothes I made sure to have ready for the beginning of training are still sitting in piles on my floor. It will take way to much energy to put them in the closet.

3. The last time I bought milk was almost 2 months ago. I need to go to the store now that I will be staying in my apartment for longer than 36 hours at a time. Which was about the maximum time I spent in Long Beach between all my crazy adventures.

4. It is back to acting like the rest of the world that wakes up around the same time every morning to go to work. Alarm at 6:30? No likey.

Back to work for now....but I'm already dreaming up the next vacation spot to hit. :)

Costumes in Action!!!!!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:36 -0500

I LOVE Halloween. Spectacular holiday. You can be or wear anything you want. And you shouldn't feel stupid about it because it is a requirement of the day. I think that more places of business should look positively upon the wearing of costumes.....it promotes the act of smiling and that produces endorphins.....which make you feel good. So you would work better right?

Good thing I work where I do. :) We started our day off playing dodge ball. In costume. I was a ballerina. Was I ever one in real life? Maybe for a split second back in the eighties.... before i was seduced by the chlorine fumes, and my ballet teachers told me i was never going to be flexible if i kept up that swimming stuff. Well fine then.....off to the pool I went, and out the window went my opportunities to wear a tu-tu. Until Today. I made it out of an abundance of pink tulle, elastic sequins, and a lil ribbon. Thanks to Ali G's sweet old school sewing machine, my adult tu-tu is spectacular and will be around for years to come. Nat got her fantastic costume right off the back of the guy working at the Halloween store for only $10.

I got pegged in the tu-tu during the game....the dirt adds a little character to my costume. :) It was a sight to behold. All of us running around in costume. Bets demonstrated excelent technigue when battling for the ball. Squishing it away from the opponent works perfectly!

Our pet.

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:36 -0500

Meet Bangkok. He is our beta. We acquired him after attending the wedding of our goalie Jamie. Her center pieces were beautiful glass vases with orchids and river rocks. And fish! Swimmin around while we ate and celebrated the night away. When we were leaving we were able to take the fish as little momentos. Brenda got Bangkok into a plastic bag, put the bag in the little bowl you see, and put him in my trunk. Then forgot to tell me! So the next morning when i was packing the trunk to go home I found him. He was alive and probably hungry and really wanted to be out of that bag. But we got him home and he has been quite happy on our book shelf.
Until recently. He has moved from his very tiny living space into a much bigger vase. Just like the one that we first met him in. Ever since we put him in this upgrade of a tank he has been quite agitated. Betas by nature are fighters. When they see other male Betas they puff out their gills and if they were in the same tanks they would fight till the death. Bangkok has never puffed up for us.....until today. We put him in his new home last night and when I came to feed him this morning he made a menacing shark-like swirl around the bowl and then faced me.....and PUFF. Out came his gills and he undulated backwards, in what I am sure he thought was a very intimadating fashion. When I fed him he snapped so fiercely at the food pellets it almost launched him out of the bowl. Dang....what aggression. Where the heck did it come from???

Do Betas hate space? Maybe he liked his teeny-tiny original bowl? This is a whole new persona our fish has adopted. I am thinking I liked the old one better. Geez.

Traditions.

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:35 -0500

A few years ago I decided to make a new Christmas tradition. My family had not had any big ones when i was growing up....other than having dinner together at some family members house....but that seems pretty normal to me.

Other families have train sets they set up every year around the tree.(My teammate Natalie Golda and her fiance Eric, liked this tradition. They bought a kick ass train that generates real steam this year.) Or some folks always go and cut down their own Christmas tree. (That would be real festive if you lived in a wintery, cold forest type land.....which Southern California is not....Target sold me a sweet tree. Who knew?)

But I was looking for something that my family and best friend's family could do together. Instead of sit at home and eat more and more and more.

So began our annual Christmas trip to the movies. In our pajamas. Yup....I said pj's. They are comfortable and cozy and great for watching movies in at home. Why not out in public? At first it was just me and my best friend Jamie braving the world in our sleepy time outfits. But then, I guess when we didn't get stoned to death or banned from public places for sporting fleece oversized pants striped like candy canes with white snowflakes, the trend caught on. My mom went out and bought special pajamas just to wear out last year. I am not going to lie....I am always on the look out for great festive pj's to wear, whenever I shop. Our first movie together was Harry Potter(the first one) and last year was DreamGirls. What about this year?

WE BROKE TRADITION!!!!! Sadly this year there was no movie. Logistically this year was a hard one. My mom had to work until 4pm. My best friend's sister had to catch a flight to San Diego at 5pm. People would be coming and going. Eating would end up being a little more potluck style and less formal sitdown style, leaving everyone on the move and unable to be in the same place at the same time.

But we had to do something together! So I got Cranium! The spectacular boardgame with a little of everything. Word puzzles, factual questions,acting, drawing, and sculpting with playdough(my favorite!). So all was not lost in terms of the real root of why I started this movie tradition in the first place....I just wanted everyone to do something together. We did and it was fun. :) Only we are really bad at spelling words backwards in groups. We will need to work on that if we play again next year. Brandon and Sus (and the growing niece/nephew) were missed as they stayed in Seattle this year. They would have been a great help on the Petri Cranium Team. :)

So next year....movie or Cranium????

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:35 -0500

The holiday season has arrived. Just after Thanksgiving Mom, Dad, Betsey and I went to Target....yes, you read that right....Target to get a tree. They were the only folks selling trees the day after Turkey Day!!!
We picked out a 6 ft. beauty and took it home. Let the decorating begin!!! I went crazy and purchased a million things for our lil apartment to make the atmosphere nice and festive. I wanted to get it all done because we left for Canada two days later.....now we can come home to a cozy place. Lets just hope the tree doesn't die while we are gone. :)

We got to Montreal on Tuesday. Canada, Russia and Australia are the other teams here and we will play five games before heading back home for our own tournament, the Holiday Cup, next week. Brenda has been giving regular updates about the games on her blog if you want to check that out. She is far better at recapping the games than I am! :)

How is Canada you ask? COLD!!!! It is snowing up here! Today it was -20 degrees C. We take the metro to the pool complex and it requires a little walking outside. Which means I wear all of the clothes that I brought with me to and from the pool. But despite the way the frigid air numbs your face it is rather refreshing to be out in the fresh air when you spend the rest of your time inside an indoor pool complex or a hotel.

Speaking of hotel rooms...Betsey is my roommate on this trip and we have embraced this winter wonderland. No....we do not go out and have snowball fights or make snow angels. Instead, we keep the curtins in our room wide open so we can watch the snow flakes floating down to cover all the buildings outside. And have a constant flow of Christmas tunes emitting from one of our computers, while we play Text Twist on the internet. Much warmer than the alternative plus we should conserve energey for our games. :)

Oh the life of a water polo player! I love my job.

NOTE: If you don't know what Text Twist is.....well it is a great way to pass time, procrastinate, or learn to spell, in my case. It is addicting! TRY IT! Just google it. It is a Yahoo game.

Random Acts of Kindness

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:34 -0500

First off, I should apoligize for falling of the face of the earth for a month and a half. How did it get to be February 14th already?!?

Second, HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!
I hope that you all have spread some love around and ate some chocolate today. :)

Because today is so centered on love I found myself thinking about those people in your life that just do incredibly generous and kind things for you just because they want to. For example, almost 5 years ago I met a chiropractor in the bar at the restaurant we went to for my birthday. He could tell we were athletes. Ten tall, muscular, extremely sunburned girls was not a tip off at all. When he found out we were Olympic water polo players training at the Armed Reserve Base in Los Alamitos, he said if we ever needed chiropractic work to come to his office which was right around the corner from the pool. He gave me the number to his office and told me to call and make an appointment.

So, he seemed like a really nice person....but I was still wary. I never called. A week later I stopped at 7-11 to grab a Gatorade before practice and who was in there?? The chiropractor! This was too much of a coincidence to ignore. I told him would come into the office the next day. I had been having problems with my back at the time and no amount of therapy had been working.

After the first visit my back felt better and he had me come in every day that week to keep working on things. After that I went in once a week for a while and then whenever I felt I needed a tune up. What he does has an incredible effect of how I feel physically during training. I can not imagine the last five years without his help. He has never asked us to pay for the treatments. Only a photo to hang in his office, next to the other athletes he helps. Plus he offered to help any of my teammates that may be hurting. Now at least six of us go in and see him on a regular basis. I never know how to thank him enough when I leave his office. I wish there was something more I could do or say. He makes a huge impact on my life and is so happy to help.

His name is Randall Stark. I would recomend him to anyone looking for a chiropractor in the Southern California area.
I just love him!

Its WAR!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:34 -0500

In Novemeber, during a spectacular session of retail therapy at Target I brought home a beautiful $12 piece of floral flare for the front porch. Coming home to a drab cement wall was not boding well for the chi and I though this little number was just what we needed.
It was dark when I got home. I put the plant on the cement wall just outside our door while I took all the rest, of my probably unnessesary (you know how that $1 ailse can suck you in) purchases, inside. I came back out and saw there was a tag sticking out of the side of the plastic pot which was totally unsightly. Thinking the pot would be more substantial than it was, I tugged hard on the tag to break it off. Being that the pot turned out to be very flimsy plastic and I am SO strong, the backlash force as the tag broke free sent the pot over the cement wall falling 5 ft to the grass below. OOOPS! Looking down on it from above all I could see was dirt everywhere, plant parts in dissaray, and the stupid plastic pot sitting on top of it all.
In my training induced brain retardation it had taken me a good 20 minutes to pick out just that plant from all its friends in the garden center. I had picked it because it had the biggest and brightest red flower in the center of the pot. And that was now at the bottom of a big ol mess. I ran down there, and in the dark, scooped up the dirt and shoved the plant parts back in the pot. The next morning when I could see my hurried handywork, I realized that I hadn't done that bad a job at repotting the plant....but that beautiful big red flower in the center......was broken off where the stem met the plant. I vowed that this poor plant had had enough trama in its short stay at my house and I would do whatever I needed to help it flourish.
With regular grooming and lots of water it has done just that.....thus becoming a healthy plant beacon in our front yard. Which has attracted EVERY snail in the Long Beach area. They have taken up residence in my plant, feasting on it at will. Every morning I will check underneath all those pretty flowers and find at least six! At first I was nice to them, simply taking them out and dropping them the five feet to the grass below. I naively thought it would take them a long time to make their way back to the pot. HA! The next morning they would be back! Little poopers! Now I throw them into the yard next door. And one bounced off the neighbor's steps and bounced into the street. Maybe that will teach the darn gastropods to invade my plant.
I think I felt bad for the snails at first because I thought they did something good. If they had at least ONE redeeming quality, I still may. But no. I read up on them and they are just slimey, eat plants, and destroy gardens.
If there are a few casulaties of war as I throw them FAR away from my plants....well, it happens. Anyone have any other good strategies for ridding plants of snails....that aren't poisonous chemicals? Do tell green thumbs out there.

CHINA

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:33 -0500

There were two things I was hoping to see on our trip to China this week. And I have seen them both!
1.Blue sky.It does exist here! The day we flew in I was expecting haze, and smog far worse than LA. We exited the airport to find a light breeze, blue sky with little fluffy white clouds, and a clear view of the surrounding city scape. As far as first immpressions go this was first rate.
First observations from the bus were that while things are definetly still under construction here, it looks like the Chinese are well on their way to getting things in order for the Games. There are so many freshly potted trees and plants lining the higway and streets on the route from the airport. Thousands of baby plants are being protected and reinforced by sticks and netting. Just to make sure they make it through their first few months and are still growing come August. Could this be the reason the sky was so clear? All those plants pumping oxygen into the Beijing air has to help....but not enough to make it this nice.
It has been two days since we got here and the air quality has not stayed as pristine as the day we flew in. :( Today in the bus on the way to practice there was 10 times the traffice we experienced yesterday.....Ah! Today is a Monday. Back to work for everyone. Which means the factories were closed two days ago for the weekend and no one was driving. That definetely made a difference in the air. Some are now taking pictures everyday to mark how much worse the air gets every day. I have a feeling by Friday we will not be able to see the building across the street.
2.The Great Wall of ChinaIs truely impressive. The section we saw was in the Juyongguan Pass. It was about an hour outside of Beijing. We had an hour to climb as far up the steps as we wanted and explore the watch towers situated every so often along the wall. I think a really cool trip would be to back pack and hike the entire length of the wall. But I think the Chinese governement may throw you in jail for such things.
Pictures to follow....I didn't bring the cord to upload them to my computer!

China Recap

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:33 -0500

Here is a belated picture montage of our trip to China last month. We went to Beijing to play in the Good Luck Beijing Tournament held in the Olympic venue we will use in a few months. The Chinese people were conducting a trial run of how the Games will be run. To work out the glitches. And we used it as a way to aquaint ourselves with the pool, and routine that we will use come competition time. Plus on days off we got to do some touristy things. We saw the Great Wall and then went on a scavenger hunt which encompassed almost all the rest of the major monuments.

Scavenger Hunt Highlights:
1. Taking out a person on a bike when our taxi pulled over in a bike lane. Opened the door to get out.....oops.
2. The Temple of Heaven is massive. (look for me in the bottom right of the picture....i look like a miniture.)
3. Playing a version of hacky-sac with some Chinese people in the gardens surrounding the Temple.
4. Going in a rickshaw through the Chinese "ghetto".
5. Bartering at the Pearl Street market.

I added a couple pictures of typical chinese things we saw while there.... the potty is just a hole ....the "Bird's Nest" is the stadium built for Track and Field and the Opening Ceremonies.......and does that guy not look like he and his pile of sticks are about to get strewn all over the highway?

An hour of darkness.

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:33 -0500

Sydney started this trend a year ago. Trying to spark some interest in the green movement this city, in conjunction with the World Wildlife Fund, turned off their lights for just an hour. Resulting in a 10.2% energy reduction. Maybe numbers do nothing for you. This picture might make a bigger impact.
I have been to Sydney a few times and think the city has a magical charm. It may be because I experienced my first Olympic Games there. Those two weeks, in 2000, I was riding a natural sport-induced high that made everything sparkle....but it could have just been the lights! Look at the way the lights reflect off the cloud cover illuminating the whole area!

This year cities across the globe participated along with Sydney. Creating a tidal wave of darkness that crept across the world for a day. I wish I had been up north to see them turn the lights off on the Golden Gate Bridge. Hopefully I can catch it next year. :)
Here in Long Beach, my apartment remained dark. No lights. Not even for my roommate's boyfriend who wanted to take a shower after getting to our house after work. Hee hee.

After spending time in the dark for an hour, I am far more conscious of extraneous lights than I was before. You really don't need many. My parents have been aware of light usage since I was little. They would go around reprimanding us for leaving lights on. Even now when I go home, I often I think they are not home, only to find them watching TV with not a single light on in the house. I think they mainly wanted to save some cash for the family when I was a kid, but they were also ingraining in me the hippie vibe I carry around now as an adult.

I have jumped on the Green Train. I have bought a Prius, which was expensive but I believe worth it. My team and I recycle the plastic water bottles we use at practice. And now I use a lot less light at home. Leaving fewer carbon footprints every day......

The Bean

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:32 -0500

Prior to my recent trip to Chicago when someone said "The Bean", I assumed they were referring to the glorious coffee chain The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf that sells those delicious things called "Ultimate Ice Blended Drinks".
I went to Chicago to attend an Olympic Media Summit where we spent 12 hours answering questions for journalists, filming short bits for the NBC Olympic telecast to be aired in August, doing still shots for the media and a few on-camera interviews. I have never done anything like this before and it made my head spin. We had our day scheduled from 7am to 9pm. Which room to be in and how many minutes for each interview/shoot. After fielding the same question (ie. What do you feel about the situation in China and the recent protests surrounding the Torch Relay?) multiple times, I realized that everyone wants you to slip and say something controversial or catch you in an awkward statement they can edit to use as they will. Meaning you had to be on it and focused the whole time. Exhausting!
Which is why I figured a little adventure outside the walls of our hotel was just what we needed. I googled the area and saw The Bean printed smack in the middle of the park two blocks from the hotel. I was curious. If it wasn't coffee, then what? This is what it is.......It is a huge metallic structure made of highly polished stainless steel plates and it weighs 110 tons!I went directly underneath the arch in the Bean and laid on my back, placing my camera on my stomach on timer. This is the result. See me- that tiny star fish shaped thing on the left. Find my reflections on the right. A hand here. Leg there.

The Year Of The RAT

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:31 -0500

It is a RARE occasion when a normally scheduled practice is cancelled. So you can imagine my surprise when i get a phone call on my way to practice. Caller ID says it is my coach.....what does he want, mear minutes before I am to arrive at the pool?

Coach- "Hi Pete, There was a rat found in the pool today. They shocked the pool(super chlorinated it) and the health department is here to inspectl, so they have officially closed the pool. Practice is cancelled. Will you call all the girls and let them know. So they don't show up."

Me-"Oh yes, sure. No problem. See you tomorrow then."

I hung up and started screaming. As did my two teammates(we car pool- saving the earth one trip to the pool at a time), yet they didn't know WHY yet. No practice. No practice! A mad dash to grab phone from purses, screams, three conversations at once, a rush of adrenaline- that certainly was not there as were headed back to the pool for practice #2, at the end of the week, of arguable the hardest week in training thus far. A whole three extra hours in our day, where we were not required to do any physical activity! This was a gift. A sign from the spirits.....and hey, maybe the Chinese are trying to tell us something. 2008 is the year of the Rat in the Chinese Zodiac. We needed a rest and the Rat gave us one!

How did I celebrate this monumental occasion? Got a large Pinkberry (green tea with mochi, strawberries and blueberries) and then went home to sit on the couch for a while. Followed by three loads of laundry, a vacum and dusting of my room. Finally, finishing off the day with an episode of Survivor. Exciting I know. :)

P.S. may there be no more rats in the pool because all the chlorine has now burned all the hair off my arms, given my skin a chemical peel and dyed my hair more blonde. i am scared of long term effects.

Bonding Bonfire

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:30 -0500

Most of our days are filled with little else other than eating, sleeping and playing water polo. I am lucky if i get a load of laundry done once in a while. (A half an hour laying on the couch catching up on a recorded episode of CSI or Survivor seems way more appealing than sitting on a bench in a laundry mat watching clothes tumble round and round. Good thing I have at least 40 t-shirts to cylce through.) With a schedule like that, day after day, for months things can get a little monotinous. So it is imperiative that we stay focused on our goals of playing well come game time. In order to do that we MUST stay together as a group and enjoy what we do and each other. Good team chemisty does not just happen. We have to work at it and spend time getting to know each other away from the pool.

The latest team bonding session was a post practice bonfire. We roasted hot dogs and sausages on skewers, made smores (try an exotic flare and use reeses pb cups or butterfinger instead of plain chocolate!) and we wrapped bananas, with chocolate and marshmellows in the middle, in tin foil and roasted them in the flames! DELICIOUS! Try it!!!!

I'm a Lenovo Olympic Blogger!!!!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:56:30 -0500

I was recently asked to be a part of the Lenovo Olympic Blogger Program. What is that you ask? Well, Lenovo (a Chinese company, based in Beijing, that mainly manufactures personal computers) has asked athletes from all over the world to blog about their experiences leading up to the Olympics. They will feature our posts on their "Voices of the Summer Games" site. So, everything I post here will automatically be posted there as well, allowing people from all over the world to read about my life leading to the Olympics! You can find athletes of many different countries and sports on the site as well. Giving everyone an unfiltered, real life account of what it is like to be an Olympic athlete.
You can easily find the website by going to the right hand side of my blog and clicking on Summer Games Blogger in the blue box, underneath the Olympic rings. (I also included the link in this post. But for future reference.....) Lenovo also sponsored a web page of all things Olympic. You can find that by clicking 2008.lenovo.com in the bottom of that same blue box.
I am really excited that my blog may be getting a little bit more traffic....thank all you family and friends who have been faithful readers of my randomness....and, WELCOME NEW FOLKS!!!!! To get ready for this I decided to enlist my good friend and computer/photo shop extraordinaire, Darcy Couch, to help me spruce up the look of my blog. She helped me....ok, she pretty much did it all...make a new header that looks AWESOME. All I did was offer a few creative ideas and send her the photos. In an hour or so she produced the masterpiece up see at the top of the page. Props to you my friend!!! She is Sports Information Director at USC and let me tell you she is the reason their media guide, websites and all things media are so FABULOUS. They are lucky to have her!
Thanks to Lenovo for letting me be a part of this! Happy reading to all of you!

Usain Bolt reveals his Workout and the TRUTH behind the 100m

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 22:12:21 -0500

So questions have been circling for months as to how Usain Bolt became so fast when he's working with a 6"6 body, and why he decided to literally pull up ranks with 20m to go in the Olympic 100m. He says it was because he was so overjoyed that he had to celebrate, while others think its to take ...

Full Pictures of Michael Phelps HOT New Girlfriend - Good Work Mike!

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 09:26:20 -0500

Stephanie Rice is Mr. Michael Phelps new girlfriend - and it might as well be his 9th gold medal. She is quite the looker and triple gold medalist swimmer to boot. A series of 8 photos of Stephanie from ads, the pool and Facebook... where she previously had photos censored! Photos after the jump. What do you think?!