With Remote In Hand, I Welcome The World!!

Sometime around the Watergate Scandal I remember looking at my Mom and telling her what I thought would be perfect for Vancouver. Something that would set this city on fire, and live on in our Hearts forever. Okay so the NBA team epiphany wasn't one of my better ideas, but I also remember some time later saying that Vancouver was one of the few cities in the World that could probably host the Winter or Summer Olympics. (The others being Cairo and Yellowknife). It was a dream of mine that one day the Olympics would come to this fine city and beautiful Province. In fact I am so excited about the next two and a half weeks that I'm going to write a new blog entry every day for the next nineteen days. Each enty will contain a photo of me in various Canadian Olympic attire. Hey, there's nothing wrong with a little narcissism. Speaking of narcissism, I really hope Sarah Palin doesn't show up. I wonder if we could turn her away at the border?

I have done hours and hours of extensive research (Google). I have talked to Sports Legends and Political Leaders (Wikipedia) and come up with some predictions about the Games and particularly about Friday night's Opening Ceremonies. There is so much happening in the city and it looks beautiful right now as you would expect. I would love to be there to witness all of the excitement. But let's see, standing for two hours to hop on a Skytrain or laying on my comfy couch and eating nachos? Umm, waiting in line for three or four hours to be searched and frisked before getting in to see the Opening Ceremonies, or having a nice pre-show nap and then some French bread with Spinach Dip and a nice Chardonnay? No, I think I'm good right here in my living room with remote in hand.

I'm very excited about the Opening Ceremonies and I have a lot of predictions, but first let's back up a bit. The year was 2003 (Or so I think , Google it, I'm too lazy) that Vancouver won the right to host the Games. I remember being surprised that it was as close as it was. Then I went out and bought a cake to celebrate. I tend to do that. Some people shoot heroin. I'm good with a nice Black Forest or Ice Cream Cake. But I digress. I tend to do that. Get used to it. Anyways, it's been a long road ever since. There have been many battles between the Politicians and those that think the money would be better spent elsewhere. It has been a fight every step of the way. There have been many challenges, including the Athletes' Village on False Creek, the Canada Line, The Vancouver Convention Centre and the Sea-To-Sky Highway. All of these, particularly the latter three, are essential if Vancouver is going to continue to grow and prosper as a city. Yes they cost a lot of taxpayer money. But it was money well spent. I think one of the best ways to overcome a recession is to spend your way out of it. The early Eighties in Vancouver was very bleak. There was a pretty bad recession. I think Expo '86 really helped to get us out of it. Fast-forward twenty-four years and we are in the midst of another recession. Hopefully the Olympics gives us a big boost but time will tell. I don't blame people for not being happy about the way Gordon Campbell has handled things. I don't think they should be closing Emergency Rooms and postponing surgeries. But I do think that when all is said and done (and keep in mind I'm talking in a decade or two) the Olympic Games in Vancouver will be viewed as an overwhelming success. I'm very confident of that.

Whatever your position on the Games is, you have to realize that they are coming, and if they are not successful then it will cost you the BC taxpayer money. I think there are quite a few people out there who hope that the Games fail. Somebody made a comment on the Vancouver Province website that they hope there are thunder and lightning storms for the entire Olympics so skiing events will be cancelled. The Games are here whether you like it or not. A lot of taxpayer money has been spent. The only way to break even is if these Games go off without a hitch and Vancouver is viewed by the World as the great city that it is. If there is a big riot outside BC Place on Friday (which there could well be but I'll get to that in a minute) then this city, this Province, this Country could have a black eye that could take decades to heal. Let's use a little common sense people.

I've followed the shaping of the Olympics every step of the way. From the unveiling of the Inukshuk (which I didn't like at first but it has grown on me and now I think it's great) to the unveiling of the mascots (Sumi, Quatchi and Miga and their little sidekick Mukmuk), to the revealing of the Canadian Olympic Team Uniforms. I have been impressed every step of the way with how great of a job Vanoc has done. Particularly the late Jack Poole who was instrumental in bringing the Games to Vancouver in the first place (too bad he couldn't live long enough to see his dream come to fruition) and John Furlong who has inspired everyone around him every step of the way.

Another big step towards Opening Day has been the Torch Run, which began in Victoria a few months ago. (You want the exact date, Google it.) It has crossed this great country of ours and hit every nook and cranny of our home Province. I went to see it a few weeks ago when it came to Penticton. I thought it would be a once in a lifetime opportunity so I brought my camcorder and my camera. But seeing that torchbearer running with the flame reaching for the sky affected me in a way that I was unprepared for. I found myself wiping away tears as I videotaped. I'm not sure what it was exactly. It could have been the little kids nearby dressed in their Canada outfits who were chanting "Eh Oh Canada Go". Maybe it was because that flame slowly moving through the sunny streets of Penticton represented everything that is good in this World at a time when there has been so much bad. So many tragedies. I don't need to mention them. You know about them. They are on the news and in the papers and in your face on a daily basis. This Olympics brings hope to us all. Particularly our kids, our future. I think it took seeing the Torch on that day for me to realize that. It's a day that I will never forget.

Now let's fast forward to today. It's Friday February 12, 2010 and we are only hours away from the biggest event in Canadian History. (It surpasses the previous biggest event which was Rita McNeil's 50th Birthday Bash, what a party that was!!) There has been a lot of speculation as to what will take place during the Opening Ceremonies. We do know that Celine Dion, Bryan Adams and Sarah McLaughlan will perform. (umm, is it too late to say SPOILER WARNING?) Beyond that we don't know for sure. It's hard to believe that it has been kept a secret for this long, but I think it's great. I'm going to go out on a limb and predict there will be a very big Canadian Flag, there will be Ice Skating and Native Dancing and that Gordon Campbell will be kissing babies and hugging old ladies. There will probably be many more performers. I really hope to see my favorite Canadian band Blue Rodeo. Not sure about them but I predict we'll see Michael Buble sing the Scooby Doo hit "I Would've Gotten Away With It If It Wasn't For You Medalling Kids" and Bryan Adams sing "Winter Of '69". We'll probably also see Nickelback, Nelly Furtado, Anne Murray and kd lang. I'm guessing there will be one big ass sheet of ice and we will probably see many famous figure skaters. I'll predict Kurt Browning will skate to a Paul Brandt song. Canadian Man perhaps? I've heard rumors that the torch will be carried by a Hologram of Terry Fox and he will pass the torch to his mother Betty Fox who will then light the cauldron. If this happens I'm going to need some more Kleenex. (Vanoc apparently was in the early stages of preparing a Hologram of Jason Priestley carrying the torch but those preparations were halted when they realized it was only his career that was dead.) I'm sure it will be a night for us all to remember. I really do wish I was going to be in BC Place to watch it but I figured I could use that $25,000 for something else and my easy chair was just too comfy to be away from for that long.

Back to the protesters for a moment. They are planning a rally near BC Place three hours before the festivities begin and they intend to march to BC Place and apparently try to block traffic. I guess they are under the impression that traffic will actually be moving. I've now recently heard that there is another group, a Pro-Olympic group that is going to rally to keep the Protesters from BC Place. Stay tuned to this one folks. Things could get ugly. While I think the protesters have a right to march (peacefully), everyone else has a right to enjoy these games without disruption or fearing for their own safety. I hope these protesters don't expect any sympathy if they are pepper sprayed by a Vancouver Cop, knifed by a member of the Pro-Olympic group or bitch slapped by Gordon Campbell's wife.

It's time for a few Olympic predictions. I predict that all events at Cypress will be postponed until Monday and at that time they will go ahead without further problems. I predict that the first Canadian to win an Olympic Gold Medal in their home country will be Moguls skier Jenn Heil. If that's the case she will be a National Hero, even more so than other Gold Medal Winners. I will also predict that Canada will win the Gold Medal in Men's Hockey and that Gordon Campbell will somehow find a way to take credit. Russia will win the Silver and the US the Bronze.

In Whistler the Men's Downhill will be run on the Dave Murray Downhill Run. Dave Murray was a Crazy Canuck back in the day. He was also my cousin. I don't have the vocabulary to properly express how great of a person he was. He died in October of 1990 at the age of 36. My Brother and I drove to Whistler for the Memorial. The Whistler Convention Centre was full to capacity. They played a video of him and the silence that filled the room was shattered by the screams of a little girl. His daughter Julia was 22 months old at the time. It was a heartbreaking moment for everyone. Julia is now 22 years old and is competing in the Olympics in Ski Cross. Whether she wins a Medal or not, it will be a great story.

I will talk more about Dave Murray in future blogs. I will also give my thoughts on the Opening Ceremonies and anything else that I've forgotten. (Which tends to be alot, I'm old.) I hope that all my readers (Darren) enjoy my blogs over the next few weeks. Anything I don't mention, feel free to Google. I just hope that we have at least a few sunny days so that the Billions of people watching at home can see how beautiful Vancouver is, and that we don't have any serious attacks. Thanks to security that makes 24's CTU look like a Food Bank, I feel pretty confident that we will be okay. So for you Canadians, sit back and enjoy the ride and be proud. For everyone else, welcome to our Province, and enjoy! I'll be here, at Mission Control, with a beer in one hand and the remote in the other.