On a Clear Day...

One work week has gone by and I can't tell you how exhausted I am. I don't know what kind of mix-up there was that a building (ie. hotel) can be built for athletes where there is no provisioning for TVs in each room! Now you might say that the Americans are very demanding to want a TV in each room but let's just take a second here! These rooms will be sold as rooms/condos after the medals are safely stowed in garage drawers and the only buyers that will be interested are Taoist monks and convicts because two days worth of sweat and copper will be torn out and recycled. Just wanted to get that off my chest! I'm tired and I feel like I'm always at work. In these few days all I have done is sleep, eat, go to work, return to the hotel, eat, have a few laughs with the guys I work with and start the cycle all over again.

It might be the weather because it just seems to be cloudy and dark or just outright snowy these days. We had one day of sunshine which really brought everybodies spirits up. I don't know how the guys that have been here for a longer period could stand all this gloominess. It is probably the few days or hours of outright brilliance when you can finally catch a glimpse of the mountains. Now I know all three Lim girls will want a few pictures of mountains, so here are a couple just to satisfy their craving and maybe make up their minds to visit.Now before you start saying that I'm just here on vacation, the first picture was taken on our way out to work. Please notice that all the clouds just opened up and I happened to be in the right place at the right time. Okay, so it cleared up that day and the second picture was taken when we went down to "Function Junction" for lunch.


The sunshine did not last for long as the third picture greeted me out the front door on the next day of work. I get a kick out of the conversation during our morning meetings. You would hear things like, "I'd like you guys to go the USA and do such and such, you guys go to France and do that" etc. If a stenographer copied all this you would think that we are all world travellers. Today, I personally went to the USA, Latvia and SVK (Slovakia, I think).

During the Games, this Olympic village will be heavily guarded by our RCMP and augmented by our Armed Forces. But for now, the only augmentation to security are these coyotes. According to Blaise, one of the security guards, these coyotes show up every day at about 7 am. He jokes that when they're late, he docks their pay. I have to admit that on this particular morning, we were all bushed from pulling coaxial cable for the American's TV viewing pleasure on the day before.
All of us had only seen the gloomy weather outside or the pipe filled, impossible to move ceiling tile covering a twelve inch ceiling space. We asked that a few minutes were granted to familiarize ourselves with all the buildings that comprise our venue. That is when we ran into our canine security guards. Who knew that the training I received for wild life encounters would actually come in handy at our venues. The rest of the guys want to see a bear (me not so much)! This venue was built on top of a garbage dump and many provisions were put in place to ensure that methane gas does not pose any problems for the athletes. The wildlife however still remember it as a feeding ground.

At the risk of spoiling the big surprise for our Olympic athletes, since I don't really know any, I will try to get as many candid shots onsite. Our Bell Team will shortly consist of about 70 people at this hotel. I have to say that I am envious of some of the pictures they are able to get of the athletes training. I am told that everybody feels that way so we have decided to share our favourite pictures. I am awed by a few of these pictures I was able to take, inspired by the sights worth remembering and hopeful that I can see some of the sights my team mates have recorded.
I will be skiing tomorrow but only after I can sleep in (but no later than 9:00 am since that's when breakfast ends). I promised Christine that I would record a run, so I hope the weather holds up.