Summer Goes Out With a Whimper

Even though summer technically ends around September 22, the real end of summer is Labor Day, which is also the last day the outdoor public pools in my town close.  Today was the last day before Labor Day with 90+ degree (Fahrenheit, of course) temperatures, so it would have been a perfect time for me to go to the pool.  I didn't bother.  I didn't feel like it.

Although I like to swim, although I watch competitive swimming whenever it's on TV (in America, that means only when the Olympics are on, at least since ABC's "Wide World of Sports" went off the air), and although my Olympic heartthrob is and always will be Janet Evans (above), who turns 53 today, I just couldn't be bothered to go swimming that often this year.  I think I went only five times with my pool membership, and one time  I was there for only five minutes because the weather had changed and a strong thunderstorm was coming.  

The problem was that I had what is called a "twilight membership," which meant that I was restricted to going only on weekdays after 5:00 P.M.  If it was a day when the hottest period was in early afternoon  or if it was a hot Saturday or Sunday, well, that was too bad.  I got this membership to save money; in fact, I think I may have wasted what I did spend, because I didn't go often enough to make the membership pay for itself.  And as the summer progressed, the days began to get shorter, which meant the pool couldn't be as open in late August as long as it is in late June. And when I did go, it was awkward to change into my swimsuit and back, because while my town's two pools have changing rooms and showers, neither one of them has lockers.  Where am I to put my wallet and my driver's license? 

And then there's cycling.  I still like cycling - I love it, in fact - but as the days got hotter (thank you, Exxon) and my surroundings got too familiar, it got hard to find a decent day or an interesting place to go cycling.  I did cart my bike to Manhattan back in June and rode up and down the island, but that was too expensive due to the fare for the PATH trains and parking my car in a garage.  I don't cart my bicycle to the country any more, because I'm trying to reduce my carbon footprint (thanks again, Exxon).   

As for taking day trips . . . well, I've been very busy at home, taking care of my kittens, my four-legged babies.  But I've also had to be mindful of my four-wheeled baby, my VW, which needs a new pair of shoes - i.e., tires.  I have to wait until October when tires go on sale at my dealership.

Oh, well, there's still the fall to look forward to, and this weekend I plan to go to Pennsylvania for a German-car show this coming weekend.  I plan to do something in 2025 that Janet Evans got to do this year - go to Paris.  Possibly next July.  I could end up going there even sooner if a certain real estate developer seizes power in Washington and plans to flee to Canada to avoid swinging from the gallows pole in a North Dakota concentration camp for dissing said real estate developer on my blog fall through.

One Last Time (And Two First Times)

The 2012 Olympics were supposed to be the last Olympiad not just for Michael Phelps but also for cyclist Kristin Armstrong, who came back to compete in Rio at the same time she turned 43.  Although she didn't finish the women's road race, she struck time-trial gold in that event, her third straight Olympic gold medal in the time trials.

And the Phelpster?  He won his twenty-third Olympic gold medal and his twenty-eighth Olympic medal overall as part of the U.S. team in the men's 4x100 relay swimming medley . . . right after the American women (including Simone Manuel) won the same race on their side.

I just have one thing to say to both of them . . ..  You sure you both want to retire now? :-D  

And here are some interesting firsts for swimming: Pernille Blume of Denmark won her country's first swimming gold medal in the 50-meter women's freestyle and Gregorio Paltrinieri of Italy won the gold in the 1500-meter "metric mile" freestyle - which was Italy's first gold medal in that event. His fellow countryman Gabriele Detti took the bronze, while American Connor Jaeger took the silver and set a new U.S. record in the event.

Who won the women's metric mile freestyle? Uh, there is no such race in the Olympics.  Gee, maybe if there were - it is included in championships - maybe Italy would have won a gold in the 1500 free already.

The Olympics: Here We Go Again

You know, I promised myself and you that I wouldn't bring up the same Olympic stories and topics I've brought up in the past, but the U.S. men's water polo team laves me no choice.  Back in 2012 I joked how American men, the water polo team especially, were so pathetic they were losing to Croatia.  Well, today, the men's water polo team lost 7-5 to . . . Croatia.  Well, there you have it, boys and girls, it's only the first day of Olympic competition in Rio, and our men's teams are already sucking.

Okay, it's early yet, but this is hardly what I call a good start . . .  

Again, we Yanks have to rely on the women to save us from embarrassment.  In the 10-meter air rifle competition, Virginia Thrasher thrashed two Chinese competitors for the gold medal.  I'm not going to take the obvious cheap shot here . . ..

Meanwhile, in cycling. specifically, the five-man road race . . ..  One of the race courses is paved partly in cobblestone and is doing a number on so many bicycles.  It turned out to be an endurance test, and a lot of cyclists weren't able to handle the uneven pavement.  Gee, whatever happened to simply getting across the finish line first?  (For the record, Greg Van Avermaet of Belgium did just that.)

Meanwhile, in swimming . . . First-time Olympian Adam Peaty of Great Britain set a new world's record in the 100-meter men's breaststroke . . . in a qualifier.

Wait until the medal round! :-O