Time for a Nap

Sigh. It's over.

The last two weeks have been so emotionally charged that it was hard for me to put our experiences into words. There were several times that I wanted to post so badly, but I was so full of pride, adrenalin and exuberance that I couldn't really figure out a way to express it in writing!

This weekend was no exception. With the Canadian team winning gold over and over and over again it was all too much! Friday night I almost had a coronary watching Charles Hamelin win his gold medal in the men's 500 m on the short track. Then he and his teammates did it all over again an hour later in the relay. Their strategy was incredible, the race was a joy to watch and their winning faces....ahhh......see? Too much to put into words. I can't do it.

Then Saturday, the fellas did it for us again on the long track (GOLD), bobsled track (BRONZE), snowboard slalom (GOLD) and the curling rink (GOLD). Be still my heart.

I read that after Salt Lake City, there was a collective hangover, followed by a bit of a depression in the city. I wonder what will happen here? Everyone is riding so high at the moment, it's hard to imagine...it definitely feels like Vancouver is changed forever. Walking downtown on Saturday night, I high-fived more strangers in 30 minutes than I have in my whole life, and it was physically impossible to stop smiling. Yesterday after Sid scored the winning goal, there was honking and shouting on the streets of North Vancouver for two hours - everyone just wanted to party together. Carloads of young men drove up and down waving flags on hockey sticks, kids waved from the sidewalks. It really was remarkable, how everyone has come together to celebrate the achievement of our athletes.

I don't have a ton of photos, and certainly no incredible ones, but I thought I'd just finish off my Olympic posting with a few more pictures to give you a sense of it all.

Although it looks daunting, we never waited more than 20 minutes in a line (this one for Men's Aerials Qualifying on Cypress Mountain)

The volunteers were AMAZING everywhere - this gentleman was the sweetest as he happily wished us a 'fantastic evening'.

As my friend Dianne said "the city has her party dress on" - so many buildings downtown wore these incredible wraps featuring our athletes.

Even constructions sites looked good!

The exposure for Canada's First Nations culture was unprecedented.

I love flags. Every venue displayed them in a unique way...this was at the short track & figure skating rink.

This is in BC Place, site of nightly celebration ceremonies and the opening & closing.

The sportsmanship on display at every turn was incredible to witness - especially, I think, for children.

...and here he is. Sidney Crosby, hockey wonderkind. It takes a whole team to win a hockey game, but Sid really nailed it, both with the shoot-out goal that kept Team Canada in the tournament at all, and the gold medal winner yesterday. I'm sure there was a party in his home province of Nova Scotia last night to balance out the one happening here on the opposite side of the country!

It's out now, but on Saturday night with the harbour rings lit up to celebrate our gold medals, the cauldron was aglow with national pride.

It really has been phenomenal - better than I ever imagined, to be living in this place I love and sharing in this party that our country embraced with undeniable enthusiasm. That said, I am happy to return to family meals at the kitchen table (instead of convenience food in front of the TV) and reasonable bedtimes.

And now for some sewing.....