is a Genius. I have been totally entranced by his most recent TV Show, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, just as I was with the West Wing and Sports Night. There are a lot of similarities between these three shows, which is part of the reason I appreciate all three as much as I do. Those of you that know me, realize that I have an obsession with the West Wing. This is do in large part to the excellent portrayal of the political world. Regularly taking on complex and controversial topics with care and sensitivity as well as thought and skill. Even though many of the actors, as well as the creator Sorkin are very liberal in their own life, they typically addressed both sides of an issue. Not surprisingly, the liberal point of view typically prevailed, which may be another reason for my fascination with the show, but both sides were at least mentioned. When the images from the West Wing are flashing on my screen, I am not totally rooted in reality. I sometimes get so entrenched in the show’s reality that I forget that President Bartlett is not actually the president, but rather a character that is played by Martin Sheen. There have been numerous times when I have had to remind myself that we actually are not led by a well educated, well spoken, well read president but instead by the disgrace that actually does inhabit the White House. Oh well, sadly fiction is usually better than reality, especially as demonstrated in this case.
Studio 60 takes on a relatively new field for me. Admittedly, I do not have much or any experience with late night comedy television, outside of the many episodes of Saturday Night Live I have seen in my life. That said, I am still captivated and enthralled with the witty and intelligent dialogue that has become a staple of all Aaron Sorkin works. The level of dialogue is so much higher on his shows than almost anything else of TV. This is the main draw of his shows and allows me to simply listen to the show. Last night, while “watching” Studio 60 I was busy doing other work. The rythmic bliss of the show’s dialogue kept me interested, even as I was looking at other things. This morning I watched parts of the show again and was even more taken with both the images and the dialogue. That is one of the best parts of his shows. They are highly rewatchable, in my opinion, much more so than anything else found on Television today. Unfortunately, the level of discourse is often so high that it goes over many people’s heads, resulting in bad rating and inevitable cancellations of his shows. Sports Night lasted a few short years to high critical acclaim and very, very low ratings numbers. West Wing lasted 7 years, but struggled throughout to have more viewers. The thing that helped keep the West Wing on the air was the fact that its audience was among the most affluent of any show on TV. I hope the same can be said of Studio 60. The ratings have not been great, but the writing and acting is phenomenal. I pray that executives for NBC will realize that good shows deserve to be on the air, even if they do not have the low brow appeal that so much TV seems to strive for. Studio 60 deserves your time. Please Watch.
10.17.2006
10.16.2006
Sports...
are kind of my life. I like to think that my life is more than just sports, or rather I need to think that my life is more than just sports. I like to think of myself as a renaissance man, interested in not just “manly” pursuits such as sports, but also many other things such as literature, food, music, even the theatre has occasionally been graced with my presence. That said, nothing captures my time and attention like sports. Part of this is, of course, that sports are a huge part of my job. I have spent hours and even days obsessing about a swim meet, or even a single race in a meet. I have spent sleepless nights trying to find a way to save one more hundredth of a second from a race that last less time than it has taken you to read this entry. But even more than this, cheering for my teams utterly and totally captivates me…and lately I have had a lot to cheer about.
The Tigers are good. They have made their way to the World Series for only the second time in my life, and the first time since I was three, living on Aleda. The metioric rise of the Tigers has captured the attention of people throughout the State, making fans out of people that have largely ignored the sport of baseball in recent years. The Tigers have been playing great baseball all season, but there was always a doubt in the back of many of our minds. They started the year so well and then faltered down the stretch. Many of us had the thought that oh no, here we go again. Just as they were getting our hopes up, they were going to let us down again. All they had to do was win one of their last five games to clinch the division. How many did they win? None! But then something strange happened, they started to win again. After an initial loss to the Yankees, they have since streaked through 7 straight victories and now find themselves in the World Series.
The Series starts Saturday and I find that I miss having a game at night to come home to in their week off. I know that I will watch each and every one of the World Series games and will look forward to a call from my dad following the final out so that we can go over the highlights and the lowlights. THis is just one of the many reasons why I love sports. They have brought me places that I would not have found myself if it were not for their presence. Lately, this has been one more thing to connect over. The Tigers have been a bond that so many of us in Michigan share. They are a mode of communication with complete strangers. Sitting in any public area, you can mutter… “how bout them Tigers” and you will suddenly have everyone around you to talk to. Sports are one of our countries primary ways of connection. The stadium’s of our pro teams are a place of community. The major sports have a uniformity and, for the most part, there is prevelant understanding of rules and how to play the game. These commonalities help form a connection between socio-economic groups that typically would have very little in common. Rich and poor, black and white, educated and uneducated in Michigan have united to cheer on our Tigers, and they have made no sign of letting us all down. GO TIGERS!
The Tigers are good. They have made their way to the World Series for only the second time in my life, and the first time since I was three, living on Aleda. The metioric rise of the Tigers has captured the attention of people throughout the State, making fans out of people that have largely ignored the sport of baseball in recent years. The Tigers have been playing great baseball all season, but there was always a doubt in the back of many of our minds. They started the year so well and then faltered down the stretch. Many of us had the thought that oh no, here we go again. Just as they were getting our hopes up, they were going to let us down again. All they had to do was win one of their last five games to clinch the division. How many did they win? None! But then something strange happened, they started to win again. After an initial loss to the Yankees, they have since streaked through 7 straight victories and now find themselves in the World Series.
The Series starts Saturday and I find that I miss having a game at night to come home to in their week off. I know that I will watch each and every one of the World Series games and will look forward to a call from my dad following the final out so that we can go over the highlights and the lowlights. THis is just one of the many reasons why I love sports. They have brought me places that I would not have found myself if it were not for their presence. Lately, this has been one more thing to connect over. The Tigers have been a bond that so many of us in Michigan share. They are a mode of communication with complete strangers. Sitting in any public area, you can mutter… “how bout them Tigers” and you will suddenly have everyone around you to talk to. Sports are one of our countries primary ways of connection. The stadium’s of our pro teams are a place of community. The major sports have a uniformity and, for the most part, there is prevelant understanding of rules and how to play the game. These commonalities help form a connection between socio-economic groups that typically would have very little in common. Rich and poor, black and white, educated and uneducated in Michigan have united to cheer on our Tigers, and they have made no sign of letting us all down. GO TIGERS!
10.10.2006
Recap of Colorado Springs Weekend
The trip was all I could have hoped for. As usual, a vacation has done wonders to refresh, revitalize and reinvigorate me. Just a couple of days away from home has always had some sort of positive impact on my demeanor, at least for a little while. The amount of time that this traveling high last varies, but it usually has at least a few days impact. The other result is that instead of satisfying my travel bug, it leaves it wanting ever more adventures. In a book I recently read, Stumbling upon Happiness, the fact that we remember trips so fondly is largely because of the brain’s ability to focus on the good, forgetting the bad. This is typically the case for me, or at least I think it is. I know that some of my trips have had moments of boredom, unhappiness, loneliness and wishing I were home, yet these memories are never the ones that pop into my head when reminiscing about past travels. The brain is amazing in this sense, it protects us by no remembering the bad, just the good.
Colorado Springs was marked by the amazing weekend at the training center, as well as the Thursday adventures in Mountain Life. It is no secret that I have a big desire to live in Colorado at some point in my life, preferabbly sooner rather than later. The scenery that surrounded C.S. just made this desire stronger, though the City of Colorado Springs left me less than impressed. That said, the Garden of the Gods as well as the trip on the Cog Railway up Pikes Peak were spectacular. The Garden of the Gods was one of the most beautiful natural rock formations that I have ever witnessed. The red rocks on the blue sky backdrop made for a incredible view that totally captured everything that Colorado is to me. It is one of my favorite destinations in the U.S. largely because the everday and normal differs so much from my everyday and normal. The mountains seem to be everywhere, constantly watching over the cities that lie on the Great Plains side of these majestic peaks. There is just nothing that compares to the ability to wake up and look out at the Mountains, in all of their glory. I hope that I never take this for granted if I do live near Mountains.
The trip was a huge success in every way. Elizabeth had some great workouts, the mountain air cleared my mind, the conversations with colleagues was inspiring and educational and the people I encountered were friendly and welcoming.
Plus…the food was good, and as you know, the food makes any destination complete.
Colorado Springs was marked by the amazing weekend at the training center, as well as the Thursday adventures in Mountain Life. It is no secret that I have a big desire to live in Colorado at some point in my life, preferabbly sooner rather than later. The scenery that surrounded C.S. just made this desire stronger, though the City of Colorado Springs left me less than impressed. That said, the Garden of the Gods as well as the trip on the Cog Railway up Pikes Peak were spectacular. The Garden of the Gods was one of the most beautiful natural rock formations that I have ever witnessed. The red rocks on the blue sky backdrop made for a incredible view that totally captured everything that Colorado is to me. It is one of my favorite destinations in the U.S. largely because the everday and normal differs so much from my everyday and normal. The mountains seem to be everywhere, constantly watching over the cities that lie on the Great Plains side of these majestic peaks. There is just nothing that compares to the ability to wake up and look out at the Mountains, in all of their glory. I hope that I never take this for granted if I do live near Mountains.
The trip was a huge success in every way. Elizabeth had some great workouts, the mountain air cleared my mind, the conversations with colleagues was inspiring and educational and the people I encountered were friendly and welcoming.
Plus…the food was good, and as you know, the food makes any destination complete.
10.07.2006
United States Olympic Training Center pt. 2
After spending over 24 hours here, my awe and amazement at this place, and at these athletes has not diminished in the least. The amazing things that I saw in the workout pool over the last two days has continually amazed me. I have seen supposedly disabled athletes do things that my other able body athletes could only dream of. The workout quality has been spectacular, especially considering that it has all been done at altitude. In addition to the workout mentality and accomplishments, it has been awesome to see the World Championship team come together and embrace each other, cheering each other on in workout, lending a helping hand and giving each other a hard time around the dinner table. The transformation has been quick, but at the same time it has been pretty complete. I feel lucky that I have been around to watch it occur.
The food in the cafeteria has continued to amaze me. I have enjoyed just about everything that I have had with very few exceptions. Not only that, but the amount of choice that has been present at every meal has been incredible. This is just one other aspect of this weekend that has added to an awesome experience. I can’t believe that it is already almost time to go.
Throughout the weekend, I have had numerous conversations with coaches, both in and out of swimming. These conversations that I have had with other coaches have helped to increase the number of tools in my coaching toolbox, hopefully to the benefit of each swimmer I work with. It has been cool to see that there are so many people out there united with similar goals and objectives, working to keep the United States at the forefront of the athletic world. There are sets that I will take away from this weekend, but also philosophies and coaching morals that I have been reminded of.
While this weekend has ignited a spark in my professional career, the fact that I have been able to rub shoulders with elite athletes all weekend has helped to renew the desire to be in shape again, something that I have let slide over the last few years. I started today, with pretty poor results, with a run through the streets surrounding the Olympic Training Center. At altitude I felt like I went about as far as I can in Grand Rapids, though the surroundings probably helped this out. It is far easier to motivate yourself to run looking our towards the mountains, that through the streets of Eastown.
The food in the cafeteria has continued to amaze me. I have enjoyed just about everything that I have had with very few exceptions. Not only that, but the amount of choice that has been present at every meal has been incredible. This is just one other aspect of this weekend that has added to an awesome experience. I can’t believe that it is already almost time to go.
Throughout the weekend, I have had numerous conversations with coaches, both in and out of swimming. These conversations that I have had with other coaches have helped to increase the number of tools in my coaching toolbox, hopefully to the benefit of each swimmer I work with. It has been cool to see that there are so many people out there united with similar goals and objectives, working to keep the United States at the forefront of the athletic world. There are sets that I will take away from this weekend, but also philosophies and coaching morals that I have been reminded of.
While this weekend has ignited a spark in my professional career, the fact that I have been able to rub shoulders with elite athletes all weekend has helped to renew the desire to be in shape again, something that I have let slide over the last few years. I started today, with pretty poor results, with a run through the streets surrounding the Olympic Training Center. At altitude I felt like I went about as far as I can in Grand Rapids, though the surroundings probably helped this out. It is far easier to motivate yourself to run looking our towards the mountains, that through the streets of Eastown.
10.06.2006
United States Olympic Training Center
Hello from Colorado Springs! This place is amazing. The amount of resources available to the athletes that are in residence here, or just visiting is a clear indication why we, the U.S. are firmly at the top of the international sporting hierarchy. Those athletes that are lucky enough to have these resources at their fingertips can totally focus on their training and preperation with the best facilities as well as an awesome support staff.
The cafeteria is open throughout the day and allows for a quick “recovery” snack as well as full course meals. The food this morning was among the best cafeteria food I have had. Everything in the line has nutrition and serving information to ensure that athletes that are closely watching what they eat are fully informed about what is going into their body. The walls of the cafeteria are decorated with pictures and posters from past Olympcis, as well as past Olympians and are highlighted with the words of famours athletes, including Lance Armstrong. Looking about the room I recognized some faces, most notable Apolo Anton Ohno, Short Track Speed Skater. The opportunity to rub elbows with athletes of this caliber inspires one to push themselves day in and day out.
The cafeteria is open throughout the day and allows for a quick “recovery” snack as well as full course meals. The food this morning was among the best cafeteria food I have had. Everything in the line has nutrition and serving information to ensure that athletes that are closely watching what they eat are fully informed about what is going into their body. The walls of the cafeteria are decorated with pictures and posters from past Olympcis, as well as past Olympians and are highlighted with the words of famours athletes, including Lance Armstrong. Looking about the room I recognized some faces, most notable Apolo Anton Ohno, Short Track Speed Skater. The opportunity to rub elbows with athletes of this caliber inspires one to push themselves day in and day out.
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