CNN brought me the news on Christmas day of the under wear bomber. I can't tell you how this made me feel, being 7000km from home across the Atlantic. What if all the airports had to close? How would I get back to my family; to Canada? I felt very stranded. The all consuming work (96hrs this week!) help keep my mind form the world falling apart around me.
Why am I telling you this? Well, on the flight home, in my Executive First seat on Air Canada, I watched 3 movies and drank 1 (or 2) bottles for really nice red wine. These movies (oh, and the wine) really help me unwind and come back to 'earth'.
First movie: It Might get Loud. Though I don't exactly play guitar, this is the best guitar movie I've ever seen. If you grew up in the sixties or seventies listening to rock and roll, do your self a favour and see this movie. Sidebar: on Dec 31st, I bought myself a Zoom G1X guitar effects pedel, complete with built in drum machine. Rock on....
Second movie: Pond Hockey. I do play hockey a tiny bit better than I play guitar and I found this movie very compelling and inspiring. Skating on frozen water is a forgien thing in the UK, but this movie did even more to bring me back to 'earth'. My first experience skating was on Lake Simcoe in the mid-sixties with my brother Brian. The movie so inspired me, that the very next day, on Elgin Pond in Uxbridge, my 3 kids and I performed our own version of the movie. The weather had created the perfect skating surface. You could pass the puck from end to end that day.
Third movie: Taking Woodstock. Due to certain issues around royalties etc, this movie feature not a single scene or sound clip from the original Woodstock. Dispite this fact, this movie was still not too bad. A good way to finish off my wine before landing in a chilly Toronto, back on 'earth'.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Monday, December 21, 2009
Two More Steps Completed
This week I received the invitation to pickup my uniform and accreditation. I'm getting an shell jacket and pant combo, with 2 long sleeve shirts and a toque. This will be at 8pm on the day I arrive (Tues, Feb 9th). My flight gets in to Vancouver at 11am, so I have plenty of time to find my way up to Whistler, though I'm quite sure things will be really buzzing by then.
A day later I received my venue training invite. This won't happen now until Thursday (the 11th, one day before opening ceremonies) at 9am. I'ts a 3 hour tour of the Venue etc. I may bring my skiis along, as some course crew divisions will require going out onto the course!. I will have to wait and see what Dave Willis (my Crew Chief) has to say about it. So, I'll likely spend most of Wednesday getting food and stuff for up at Wommies place in Pemberton. Jeff has kindly offered me accommodation for this trip. In his words, I will be sleeping "...in a heated garage with working beer fridge and couch..." This is due mainly to the fact that Ferd had requested the spare room in the house over a year before I got the offer to go to the Olympics.
I have to say I am excited about Christmas this year. I am about to experience a very unique version of it. On Christmas morning at 6am, a taxi will pick me up at my hotel right next to the Gloucester Road tube station (I'll be at the Holiday Inn in Kensington London UK) to take me to the Neasdon station where the Jubilee line central control centre is located. Normally, you could just ride the tube to get there, but this year, my company has purchased the rights to shut down the entire line for 4 days straight starting Friday so we can continue field testing the signalling upgrade that we are providing. I fly out on Tuesday nite at 11pm on the 'red-eye'.
I'm going to miss my family alot, but this trip will pay me enough to help in a major way towards covering for the 25 days off I will have coming next February!
Merry Christmas everyone.......
A day later I received my venue training invite. This won't happen now until Thursday (the 11th, one day before opening ceremonies) at 9am. I'ts a 3 hour tour of the Venue etc. I may bring my skiis along, as some course crew divisions will require going out onto the course!. I will have to wait and see what Dave Willis (my Crew Chief) has to say about it. So, I'll likely spend most of Wednesday getting food and stuff for up at Wommies place in Pemberton. Jeff has kindly offered me accommodation for this trip. In his words, I will be sleeping "...in a heated garage with working beer fridge and couch..." This is due mainly to the fact that Ferd had requested the spare room in the house over a year before I got the offer to go to the Olympics.
I have to say I am excited about Christmas this year. I am about to experience a very unique version of it. On Christmas morning at 6am, a taxi will pick me up at my hotel right next to the Gloucester Road tube station (I'll be at the Holiday Inn in Kensington London UK) to take me to the Neasdon station where the Jubilee line central control centre is located. Normally, you could just ride the tube to get there, but this year, my company has purchased the rights to shut down the entire line for 4 days straight starting Friday so we can continue field testing the signalling upgrade that we are providing. I fly out on Tuesday nite at 11pm on the 'red-eye'.
I'm going to miss my family alot, but this trip will pay me enough to help in a major way towards covering for the 25 days off I will have coming next February!
Merry Christmas everyone.......
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Okay, I've finally made it to blog land. This blog will be used to keep track of all the stuff going on with me as a prepare to go to the Olympics as a volunteer with the Men's Alpine Course Crew. From Feb 9th thru Mar 6th 2010, I will be living a dream of being on a mountain all day with skis under my feet. Can't wait.
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