Summer of Sports
This morning I woke up to yet another sports bulletin. Someone was moaning the fact that the Summer Olympics are nearly over, but there appeared to be a light on the horizon, because the football season is nearly on us. Oh, joy!
The summer started with soccer. The Netherlands lost big time and there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Soccer was followed by the Tour the France. I don´t think we managed to win anything there either, but every normal radio and television programme was scratched because sport is, of course, much more important than anything else.
And then it was time for the Olympics. Over the past two weeks it became worse and worse. It seems there are now 24 hours a day of radio and television programmes on the Olympics.
There are two things you should know. First of all, I love listening to the radio. Usually I start listening in the morning and while I am getting ready for work I listen to the news. When I come home from work I switch on the telly for some more news. I love listening and watching programmes about books, art and topics of general interest while I´m doing the housework. I´m not a very good housekeeper and I always procrastinate when I need to do something even remotely resembling housework, but if I know there is a nice programme on the radio, it´s not nearly so bad to have to do the washing up.
The second thing is, that I absolutely hate sport. I don´t mind other people enjoying it, but please, please, please, don´t bore me with it! And don´t do away with all the programmes I like! It’s been weeks now since there was anything decent on the radio or the television. And it’s not just the matches and the games I hate. I can actually understand why people like watching those. But it’s the stupid talks before and after them. And the celebrities who want to show off their knowledge of everything to do with sports.
Please, when all this is over, can we have a special book week? A whole week long with nothing else but programmes about books on the radio and great films and series on the television. Only one week compared to the six we had of sports. That is not too much to ask is it?