Whistler: Day 3!
6 February 2010
Every morning, I need to get up at about 6:15. My phone alarm refuses to go off before 6:20. Some mornings, it goes off on time; others... not so much. On this particular day, Kathy wasn't working til 2, so I didn't have a ride. Back to the bus for me! The night before, I went over the bus schedule with Kathy and Lorrie, the condo owner, to figure out what the best route was. These buses run every 5-7 mins from 5am to midnight Monday to Friday. I forgot that this was Saturday and the schedule would be different. I waited at my stop for 20 mins and saw 3 buses go in the opposite direction and none coming down. Finally, I got fed up (and really cold -- dancing for warmth wasn't cutting it anymore and I'm pretty sure everyone on the buses thought I was bananas) and started walking down the highway after some course workers. They set up everything on the ski runs. Eventually, I came to Creekside, a small Whistler neighbourhood that serves as the finish line for what I think is the run for the women's Nordic Combined Alpine events... Kathy will did correct me if I'm wrong, I hope! I found someone to point me in the right direction to a bus stop and my bus drove by. Great. But, I didn't let it bother me -- there'd be another one soon. Sure enough, less than 5 minutes later, a better bus comes by, one that takes me right to the entrance to WVL!
This being my 3rd shift, I got a pin for my lanyard! My first one was actually from Gordon Campbell, our fearless provincial leader, the night before in the Whistler Village. The real one, not the Olympic one. I was really worried that I'd be late to help Msgr Jerry set up for mass, but then realised that it was only 7:30 and I wasn't due at the MFC til 8! Looks like I can sleep in a bit from now on! Who knew I, who considers 9am to be too early, would call 6:30am a sleep-in?? Not my mum, that's for sure. All the morning chaplains, Dave Klassen and Charis, arrived on time, which was great! We're pretty relaxed about start times right now because not everyone is staying in Whistler and have to come on the buses from Vancouver or Squamish.
Dave & I spent a loooooong time finding the right size and font to fix the typo in the banners that stand in our foyer and in the hallway. The banners say "Welcome" and "Multi-Faith Centre" in English, Russian, French and German, respectively. The Russian "Welcome" is supposed to be "Добро пожаловать" and the very last letter was missing! It's still clear what it says, but the last letter changes the way the last few letters sound, apparently. We knew about it, though, so it wasn't really embarrassing when a Latvian athlete pointed it out. This little exercise of ours made me rather familiar with the Cyrillic alphabet.
This Latvian athlete (he's a luge-er) was one of the first to come in and use the MFC. The night before, Dave spent some time talking one-on-one with a Brazilian athlete. We're not supposed to broadcast the identities of the athletes who come in to everyone, but the Latvian won Bronze for Men's Luge in Torino, 2006. I tell you this because the chaplains and I really seem to be drawn to him. He's very personable. He uses one of our rooms for meditation exercises that look like Tai Chi. When he came in around the same time as the Brazilian, he invited Charis to join him and she did. He extended an invitation to me, but I had my office things to do. I'd love to take him up on it, though... He has unofficially booked time with us for every morning. I am very much looking forward to getting to know him better - Dave, Charis & I spent a bit of time talking to him about his sport & country before going back to work. Apparently, he started luge when he was 9 and was only able to do so because the one practice track in the USSR at the time was near his hometown.
Charis & I decide to check out a bit of the village because it's quiet. We check out the HBC Olympic store in the Plaza and I ended up finding a 5-subject notebook for the office! Organization is on its way! After browsing, I've got my eye on a really nice Canada hoodie (and no, Mum, I don't have enough hoodies) and one of those blue backpacks with the diagonal stripe that don't hurt my back. I sense Christmas shopping is happening early this year...
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, our international chaplains are arriving at the MFC! Matthew from Australia; Joerg from Austria/Switzerland; and Derek from Lake Placid, NY. Something happened there in 1980, but I can't remember what ;) By now, my shift was just about over, but I stayed on to tour the village with Kathy and the new guys. Matthew had to take off part way through to do a TV interview for an Aussie station (but not before I snapped a photo of him and the infamous Boxing Kangaroo flag!) and we unfortunately forgot to make our way back to get him! Kathy, Joerg, Derek & I went all through where the athletes are actually living. I have photos, but won't post them til after the Olympics because I like having my accreditation, thanks. We're not allowed to "report on village life" and I'd rather not deal with VANOC being mad at me. I pointed out a group of Chinese athletes jogging around and around to Derek who joked that they probably didn't have housing and were running to keep busy. There actually is a skier from Ghana who doesn't have a place to live in Whistler. It was on the news a week ago; I hope someone opened their home... The poor guy's not even being backed by his country because Ghana can't afford to support a skier.
The four of us made our way to the Olympic Store and Joerg was delighted! Unfortunately, when he flew Zurich-LA-Vancouver, his bags decided they liked the LA climate better than Zurich or Vancouver's and stayed behind to hang out with Joerg's countryman, Governor Schwarzenegger. Yes, Ahhnold does actually have a nationality to go with that accent, and no, not all Austrians sound like that. They are, in fact, quite easy to understand. So, the store presented our new friend with the opportunity to purchase some clothes if he needed to.
Next, we headed to the Far Coast Cafe, a little coffee shop with a really cool, Eastern feel to it. We went in to see a musician called Dana-Marie -- she was quite good! She played Van Morrison's "Brown-eyed Girl," but changed it to "Brown-eyed Boy" and it was just as good! After that, we headed into the Polyclinic to cash in an offer for a tour... Easily the best part of my day!
On our first night, Kathy & I ran into two men she'd met at lunch - a pharmacist and a physiotherapist - at the IGA. Apparently, the best temporary clinic in the world didn't have bags for ice. Or pens. Go figure. Our physio friend must be an MD because he was getting ready to stitch up Paul Paris, our orthotic supplier, who cut his finger unpacking equipment. Paul got to sit for a little bit while I-Can't-Remember-His-Name, the physio guy, took us on a tour of his corner of the Polyclinic. They have stationary bikes and treadmills, exercise balls and Bosu balls, a vibrating plate and a Nintendo Wii. Sure, they have Wii in the Games Room, but this is a medical clinic! So cool! The physio area has a hot tub and an ice tub, as well as a traction machine. They're fully set up to start an athlete's rehab after an injury and communicate with their team's therapists throughout the Games so they can continue rehab in their team dorms.
We toured through the x-ray and ultrasound rooms and made our way past the pharmacy to the dentist, who gave us sunscreen chapstick! There's an optometrist, too, which would be useful for Joerg because he wears contacts (his replacements are a little useless in LA). Eventually, we came to a door that took us out to a big cement patio -- by the way, this whole clinic is in a giant tent. Seriously, it's enormous -- and up a ramp to the coolest thing I've ever heard of in my life: an ER. With an operating room. In an 18-wheel semi-truck. Did I mention that this is the best Olympic clinic ever? Or that there is a sterile operating room in a TRUCK?! This just blows my mind! There's also another 18-wheeler that is home to an MRI (by Panasonic. You know the ads... "What you see in HD, we see in MRI." It's all over the bus stops. You should get out more.) There's also a heli-pad in case they need to evacuate someone to VGH. Yes, they're sending the world's best athletes to the same hospital that played Quarantine HQ to the swine flu. Don't worry, I'm pretty sure everyone in the world's been vaccinated by now.
Eventually, we made our way back inside the clinic where we gave out our office number to the receptionists. Derek received training in the area of hospital chaplaincy and was amazing at getting the ball rolling on a working relationship between our staff and the clinic's. Everyone gets a little scared when they're injured or sick, but to be sick or hurt and so very far from home gives way to a need for comfort, which is what we're here for. It's a clear no-brainer, so now they have our number and have the option of offering their patients the chance to have a chaplain come by. And we're right next door! As we were leaving, a team rep for Britain was at the front desk and I wanted so much to just stand there and listen to him speak. I know that sounds creepy, but he was from Manchester by the sound of his accent and I find it very calming. It reminds me of my Great-Papa :)
Matthew was reunited with the group when we returned to our building and we all went for dinner. I hadn't gotten around to taking a lunch break because, surprise surprise, I was actually working instead of updating my ever-growing flock of Lindsay-watchers. I guess you're like British royal-watchers, only I'm less British and much more fun! At dinner, we met Dr Bob Lawrence of Boston, Massachusetts. Another amazing accent! He caught me trying to hide a giggle when giving me his mobile number... I can't help it if I think he sounds like my favourite version of JFK (from Clone High) when he says "fowah"! He's an amazingly interesting man. I'm really looking forward to getting to know all the chaplains better in the coming weeks. I've already gotten off to a great start with everyone -- and somehow, everyone in the office thinks I'm doing an amazing job. It's really nice to hear I'm appreciated.
Teams I saw today: Italy, Romania, Czech Republic, and.... CANADA!
Every morning, I need to get up at about 6:15. My phone alarm refuses to go off before 6:20. Some mornings, it goes off on time; others... not so much. On this particular day, Kathy wasn't working til 2, so I didn't have a ride. Back to the bus for me! The night before, I went over the bus schedule with Kathy and Lorrie, the condo owner, to figure out what the best route was. These buses run every 5-7 mins from 5am to midnight Monday to Friday. I forgot that this was Saturday and the schedule would be different. I waited at my stop for 20 mins and saw 3 buses go in the opposite direction and none coming down. Finally, I got fed up (and really cold -- dancing for warmth wasn't cutting it anymore and I'm pretty sure everyone on the buses thought I was bananas) and started walking down the highway after some course workers. They set up everything on the ski runs. Eventually, I came to Creekside, a small Whistler neighbourhood that serves as the finish line for what I think is the run for the women's Nordic Combined Alpine events... Kathy will did correct me if I'm wrong, I hope! I found someone to point me in the right direction to a bus stop and my bus drove by. Great. But, I didn't let it bother me -- there'd be another one soon. Sure enough, less than 5 minutes later, a better bus comes by, one that takes me right to the entrance to WVL!
This being my 3rd shift, I got a pin for my lanyard! My first one was actually from Gordon Campbell, our fearless provincial leader, the night before in the Whistler Village. The real one, not the Olympic one. I was really worried that I'd be late to help Msgr Jerry set up for mass, but then realised that it was only 7:30 and I wasn't due at the MFC til 8! Looks like I can sleep in a bit from now on! Who knew I, who considers 9am to be too early, would call 6:30am a sleep-in?? Not my mum, that's for sure. All the morning chaplains, Dave Klassen and Charis, arrived on time, which was great! We're pretty relaxed about start times right now because not everyone is staying in Whistler and have to come on the buses from Vancouver or Squamish.
Dave & I spent a loooooong time finding the right size and font to fix the typo in the banners that stand in our foyer and in the hallway. The banners say "Welcome" and "Multi-Faith Centre" in English, Russian, French and German, respectively. The Russian "Welcome" is supposed to be "Добро пожаловать" and the very last letter was missing! It's still clear what it says, but the last letter changes the way the last few letters sound, apparently. We knew about it, though, so it wasn't really embarrassing when a Latvian athlete pointed it out. This little exercise of ours made me rather familiar with the Cyrillic alphabet.
This Latvian athlete (he's a luge-er) was one of the first to come in and use the MFC. The night before, Dave spent some time talking one-on-one with a Brazilian athlete. We're not supposed to broadcast the identities of the athletes who come in to everyone, but the Latvian won Bronze for Men's Luge in Torino, 2006. I tell you this because the chaplains and I really seem to be drawn to him. He's very personable. He uses one of our rooms for meditation exercises that look like Tai Chi. When he came in around the same time as the Brazilian, he invited Charis to join him and she did. He extended an invitation to me, but I had my office things to do. I'd love to take him up on it, though... He has unofficially booked time with us for every morning. I am very much looking forward to getting to know him better - Dave, Charis & I spent a bit of time talking to him about his sport & country before going back to work. Apparently, he started luge when he was 9 and was only able to do so because the one practice track in the USSR at the time was near his hometown.
Charis & I decide to check out a bit of the village because it's quiet. We check out the HBC Olympic store in the Plaza and I ended up finding a 5-subject notebook for the office! Organization is on its way! After browsing, I've got my eye on a really nice Canada hoodie (and no, Mum, I don't have enough hoodies) and one of those blue backpacks with the diagonal stripe that don't hurt my back. I sense Christmas shopping is happening early this year...
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, our international chaplains are arriving at the MFC! Matthew from Australia; Joerg from Austria/Switzerland; and Derek from Lake Placid, NY. Something happened there in 1980, but I can't remember what ;) By now, my shift was just about over, but I stayed on to tour the village with Kathy and the new guys. Matthew had to take off part way through to do a TV interview for an Aussie station (but not before I snapped a photo of him and the infamous Boxing Kangaroo flag!) and we unfortunately forgot to make our way back to get him! Kathy, Joerg, Derek & I went all through where the athletes are actually living. I have photos, but won't post them til after the Olympics because I like having my accreditation, thanks. We're not allowed to "report on village life" and I'd rather not deal with VANOC being mad at me. I pointed out a group of Chinese athletes jogging around and around to Derek who joked that they probably didn't have housing and were running to keep busy. There actually is a skier from Ghana who doesn't have a place to live in Whistler. It was on the news a week ago; I hope someone opened their home... The poor guy's not even being backed by his country because Ghana can't afford to support a skier.
The four of us made our way to the Olympic Store and Joerg was delighted! Unfortunately, when he flew Zurich-LA-Vancouver, his bags decided they liked the LA climate better than Zurich or Vancouver's and stayed behind to hang out with Joerg's countryman, Governor Schwarzenegger. Yes, Ahhnold does actually have a nationality to go with that accent, and no, not all Austrians sound like that. They are, in fact, quite easy to understand. So, the store presented our new friend with the opportunity to purchase some clothes if he needed to.
Next, we headed to the Far Coast Cafe, a little coffee shop with a really cool, Eastern feel to it. We went in to see a musician called Dana-Marie -- she was quite good! She played Van Morrison's "Brown-eyed Girl," but changed it to "Brown-eyed Boy" and it was just as good! After that, we headed into the Polyclinic to cash in an offer for a tour... Easily the best part of my day!
On our first night, Kathy & I ran into two men she'd met at lunch - a pharmacist and a physiotherapist - at the IGA. Apparently, the best temporary clinic in the world didn't have bags for ice. Or pens. Go figure. Our physio friend must be an MD because he was getting ready to stitch up Paul Paris, our orthotic supplier, who cut his finger unpacking equipment. Paul got to sit for a little bit while I-Can't-Remember-His-Name, the physio guy, took us on a tour of his corner of the Polyclinic. They have stationary bikes and treadmills, exercise balls and Bosu balls, a vibrating plate and a Nintendo Wii. Sure, they have Wii in the Games Room, but this is a medical clinic! So cool! The physio area has a hot tub and an ice tub, as well as a traction machine. They're fully set up to start an athlete's rehab after an injury and communicate with their team's therapists throughout the Games so they can continue rehab in their team dorms.
We toured through the x-ray and ultrasound rooms and made our way past the pharmacy to the dentist, who gave us sunscreen chapstick! There's an optometrist, too, which would be useful for Joerg because he wears contacts (his replacements are a little useless in LA). Eventually, we came to a door that took us out to a big cement patio -- by the way, this whole clinic is in a giant tent. Seriously, it's enormous -- and up a ramp to the coolest thing I've ever heard of in my life: an ER. With an operating room. In an 18-wheel semi-truck. Did I mention that this is the best Olympic clinic ever? Or that there is a sterile operating room in a TRUCK?! This just blows my mind! There's also another 18-wheeler that is home to an MRI (by Panasonic. You know the ads... "What you see in HD, we see in MRI." It's all over the bus stops. You should get out more.) There's also a heli-pad in case they need to evacuate someone to VGH. Yes, they're sending the world's best athletes to the same hospital that played Quarantine HQ to the swine flu. Don't worry, I'm pretty sure everyone in the world's been vaccinated by now.
Eventually, we made our way back inside the clinic where we gave out our office number to the receptionists. Derek received training in the area of hospital chaplaincy and was amazing at getting the ball rolling on a working relationship between our staff and the clinic's. Everyone gets a little scared when they're injured or sick, but to be sick or hurt and so very far from home gives way to a need for comfort, which is what we're here for. It's a clear no-brainer, so now they have our number and have the option of offering their patients the chance to have a chaplain come by. And we're right next door! As we were leaving, a team rep for Britain was at the front desk and I wanted so much to just stand there and listen to him speak. I know that sounds creepy, but he was from Manchester by the sound of his accent and I find it very calming. It reminds me of my Great-Papa :)
Matthew was reunited with the group when we returned to our building and we all went for dinner. I hadn't gotten around to taking a lunch break because, surprise surprise, I was actually working instead of updating my ever-growing flock of Lindsay-watchers. I guess you're like British royal-watchers, only I'm less British and much more fun! At dinner, we met Dr Bob Lawrence of Boston, Massachusetts. Another amazing accent! He caught me trying to hide a giggle when giving me his mobile number... I can't help it if I think he sounds like my favourite version of JFK (from Clone High) when he says "fowah"! He's an amazingly interesting man. I'm really looking forward to getting to know all the chaplains better in the coming weeks. I've already gotten off to a great start with everyone -- and somehow, everyone in the office thinks I'm doing an amazing job. It's really nice to hear I'm appreciated.
Teams I saw today: Italy, Romania, Czech Republic, and.... CANADA!