Up to your gills in the Olympics yet?
We’re not. We could watch as much as we could find time to sit in front of the tube.
All of its emotion, effort and intensity sure beats most of what else is broadcast on TV these days.
We became agitated toward irritation with the near-excessive coverage of Michael Phelps, in the swimming pool and in the studio. (He’s retiring already!) Upon review, however, we realize that his 22-medal career is a story that likely won’t come around again for a lifetime — if ever. Rather be guilty of overexposure than denying a historic event its due, we suppose.
Sometimes the splashing and bobbing in the pool was rivaled by the entertainment of watching Mr. Phelps’ mother, Debbie — as well as all competitors’ parents — tied up in emotional frenzy. We are reminded by the flashbacks of the athletes as toddlers that parents have as much invested in the Olympics as their children.
Every four years this human drama has the whole world transfixed. American athletes worked long and hard, for sure, but compelling lesser-known stories of foreign athletes, highlighted by double-amputee runner Oscar Pistorius of South Africa and his curved carbon-steel legs, had us shaking our heads in admiration.
’By next week, we’ll be waxing romantic over the memories of glimpses of Prince William and Kate in the stands, the titters over the skimpiness of beach volleyball “uniforms,” and the endless debates over sports with which we’re not familiar. In the last week, how many times have you heard, “Since when is (fill in the blank) a sport?”
Meanwhile, we’ll be soaking up the final events and applauding acts of good will, kindness and sportsmanship. It takes Olympic strength, too, to muster a smile and hug to congratulate an opposing competitor who just ended a lifelong dream.
The closing ceremonies are nigh upon us, and we’ll be watching to see if Queen Elizabeth will reprise her opening ceremony entrance with James Bond. We suspect she will more prudently hold back, realizing when playfulness becomes silliness.
And then we’ll sit back and wait for Olympic withdrawal to set it, and realize it’s two years before the winter games helps satisfy our fix.

