Vancouver.
I was glued to the screen these past two weeks. I don't know what it is about the Olympics that just draws me in, but I somehow get so invested in them. And yet, I could care less about sports most of the time (that didn't used to be the case; as a teenager, I was very much into hockey). Having them in Canada probably made me more interested, I'm sure. I spent all afternoon saving pictures from most of the events. Yes, even curling. When I finally understood how the scoring works, it made watching the game a whole lot more fun (and stressful).
However, all this said, I've always been so conflicted with my love for the Games. I love how it promotes athleticism and community, but I do hate that the top 10 athletes from a given race could all be within a tenth of a second apart from each other. Isn't that just crazy? I can't wrap my mind around that. Why should only the top three be awarded when the rest of them have worked just as hard and maybe placed lower in the ranks because of circumstantial elements?
My gripes don't stop there. I could write a whole thesis about the cultural appropriation of Canada's aboriginal culture. It bugs me a lot. The whole "First Nations let us play on their land" thing was all symbolic. I know they even encouraged aboriginal people to participate in the Games, but I still think that the organizers used their culture to make it look like Canada's culture. Yeah, I know this isn't a new thing, but given that the Games were broadcasted everywhere, I'm annoyed that they make it seem like we play nice with aboriginal people. I know there are many counterarguments to what I've just said. How would we feel if they didn't include the First Nations at all? Isn't it time we acknowledge them and give them a venue to promote their culture? Yes, but... I'll stop here. For further reading and as a bookmark for myself, here's garconniere's blog post about the issue.
---
On a lighter note, I cannot wait for the Scott Pilgrim movie, but it's hell following Bryan Lee O'Malley and Edgar Wright on Twitter because they keep alluding to it, but still won't tell us the release date! Actually, I'm honestly more anxious for the last installment of the series.
---
Sometimes I feel so bad writing about the mundane happenings of my life. There's so much more happening in the world. Chile... gah, I can't put it into words. It's hard not to associate all the horrible things we do to our planet with what it's giving back to us.
However, all this said, I've always been so conflicted with my love for the Games. I love how it promotes athleticism and community, but I do hate that the top 10 athletes from a given race could all be within a tenth of a second apart from each other. Isn't that just crazy? I can't wrap my mind around that. Why should only the top three be awarded when the rest of them have worked just as hard and maybe placed lower in the ranks because of circumstantial elements?
My gripes don't stop there. I could write a whole thesis about the cultural appropriation of Canada's aboriginal culture. It bugs me a lot. The whole "First Nations let us play on their land" thing was all symbolic. I know they even encouraged aboriginal people to participate in the Games, but I still think that the organizers used their culture to make it look like Canada's culture. Yeah, I know this isn't a new thing, but given that the Games were broadcasted everywhere, I'm annoyed that they make it seem like we play nice with aboriginal people. I know there are many counterarguments to what I've just said. How would we feel if they didn't include the First Nations at all? Isn't it time we acknowledge them and give them a venue to promote their culture? Yes, but... I'll stop here. For further reading and as a bookmark for myself, here's garconniere's blog post about the issue.
---
On a lighter note, I cannot wait for the Scott Pilgrim movie, but it's hell following Bryan Lee O'Malley and Edgar Wright on Twitter because they keep alluding to it, but still won't tell us the release date! Actually, I'm honestly more anxious for the last installment of the series.
---
Sometimes I feel so bad writing about the mundane happenings of my life. There's so much more happening in the world. Chile... gah, I can't put it into words. It's hard not to associate all the horrible things we do to our planet with what it's giving back to us.