Thankful Thursday, Summer Olympics Version

Forgive my obsession . . .

1. I love that my dad sat down and watched the entire beach volleyball game tonight, thinking it was for a medal. When it was over and he found out Misty May-Treanor & Kerri Walsh beat the Belgium Amazon Women in one of many rounds, he got up and facetiously muttered, "What a waste of time!" LOL!

2. When Ryan Lochte won the gold medal tonight I saw his dad cheering for his son with tears in his eyes. And after the awards ceremony Lochte went over to hug his family and give his mom the flowers he was presented. I immediately thought of the reports we hear of how potential Chinese olympic athletes are taken from their parents at age 3 and only allowed to see them a couple of days a year. Watching Lochte with his family made me thankful that they're showing China that it's possible to be an olympic gold medalist without having to leave your family for rigorous training beginning at age 3. Of course the same can be said for Phelps & his family. And many other athletes, for that matter.

3. As I already made mention, I love how at the end of the medal ceremony many of the athletes climb onto the press seats so they can reach up to hug family and pass off their flowers.

4. When the athletes sing their national anthem while standing on the medal stand. It's even more touching when they're so emotional about their win they can't even get all the words out.

5. The predominately Chinese audience always cheers for the winner, no matter if they're Chinese or not.

6. Watching Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson win gold and silver, respectively, in the all-around women's gymnastics. My mom and I, along with the commentators, couldn't believe how low they were being scored at the beginning. Thankfully it all worked out in the end in for them!

7. Seeing the nations come together. Not just each nation competing on their own, but seeing fans intermixed in the audiences, waiving their flags, and cheering for each other.

Finally, this is more of a THINKful thing rather than a THANKful thing: I THINK, IMHO, that indoor volleyball games will go a lot faster if the guys stopped hugging and slapping each other's booties after scoring each and every point.