Will McAvoy

I thought I should put an entry here before September fades away so I could be prompted to recall how time has flown these last couple of weeks.

Since the Olympics ended, I've gone on to follow the US Open.  Disappointingly, Djokovic went out of breath against Murray in a mechanical final and the Scott finally won his first Grand Slam.  Needless to say, Federer bowing out to Berdych in the Last 16 was more than disappointing - it made the rest of the tournament dull.  The Swiss is probably the only player capable of displaying finesse on the tennis court since John McEnroe - and without the tantrum.

Then, there's the 9-11 anniversary.  Each year around this time and for about ten years now, we're reminded of the terrorist strikes.  Frankly, except for seeing new photography, re-playing the tragedy has become somewhat tiresome.  I'm more interested in the place-making of Ground Zero and to see how it has taken shape since.  Hopefully, one day I could visit Mike Arad and Peter Walker's 9-11 Memorial (AND catch the US Open at Flushing Meadow!).  Having said that, there was one documentary that brought new information to me - according to the Editor of a London-based Arabic newspaper, the grand attacks on America since Clinton's days was to provoke and lure the Americans to invade Afghanistan so that Osama bin Laden would have a chance of taking them down.  Osama knew he could never defeat the Americans on their soil... and of course, Bush walked straight in to Kabul.  So what Obama had him killed?  Despite his death last year, Osama still wins - the unrest terrorism has created throughout the world since will never calm in our lifetime.    

By the way, I read that Osama's death is featured in my new favourite TV series, 'The Newsroom'.  Has anyone seen it?  I love it!  I've re-played the first ten minutes of the first episode more than ten times over - watch it here.  Whenever news anchor, Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels) berates, I won't hear my phone ring... and the last ten minutes of the fifth episode when he silenced a gossip columnist with his journalism spew is also worth tens of re-plays (not forgetting the 'Rudy' scene that followed at the end of that episode)!  I think the last such controversial TV character I so adored was Chicago Hope's Dr. Jeffrey Geiger (Mandy Patinkin, who also appeared in later TV series, 'Criminal Minds' and 'Homeland').  Yes, I adore Gary Sinise, too but he plays a predictable nice guy in CSI: New York.  It's probably the suit (and the fact that he, like Mandy Patinkin and Jeff Daniels, plays a musical instrument!)

Yes, I'm a TV junkie.  I'd save my comments on the 'Megafactories' documentaries (on Coca-Cola, Jack Daniels, the Swiss Army Knife etc.) for next time...

Meanwhile, the nesting instincts have finally kicked in - a nice feeling that brings about a sense of renewal.  We are after all entering a new phase of our lives.  Personally, I look forward to resuming 'normal' physical activity and massage routines amongst many other things.  I tried to imagine what it's like to keep a young in the pouch and hopping around so lively like kangaroos *pah.  It was impossible.

Starry-Starry Night

I believe the stars are always aligned and they're as perennial as the universe.  It's a question of whether yours are at a particular moment.  Roger Federer's and Lee Chong Wei's weren't last night.

Roger Federer was all smiles and gracious after his loss (a premonition he has felt before the match began) but Lee Chong Wei could hardly hide his anguish.  If you thought watching Dong Jiong sobbing uncontrollably at Atlanta (1996) when he received the silver medal was heart-breaking, watching Lee Chong Wei walking to the podium for the victory ceremony would leave you speechless.

Meanwhile, Usain Bolt thundered his way to a new 100m Olympic Record, 9.63secs - just 0.05sec away from his World Record that I would've loved see broken.  It might look like I'm asking too much but wouldn't anyone want a more spectacular finish given that the Jamaican is the current WR holder and is 'expected' to win the race?

Perhaps, my stars weren't quite aligned, either.

Quinh did not hum along the Chinese national anthem at Wembley Arena yesterday.

Olympic Glory

There is something about the Olympic Games that move contestants to tears, whether they win or lose.  If you happened to just switch on the TV and see someone crying after the final score is revealed, it's hard to tell if the athlete has won the gold medal or had to settle for a silver (again, like Russia's gymnast, Victoria Komova).  Your only clue is the reaction from the surrounding those or the coach.

It's Day 8 at the London Games.

I've pretty much got the Chinese national anthem stuck in my head.  Dad would be proud.  At the Aquatic Centre, you wonder if they should just default the gold medal song for the diving events to that tune... and of course, Wu Minxia and Fu Minxia are related...not.  May I also suggest to the Aussies and Americans to first compare the size of their swimmers' hands and feet to Ye Shiwen's before throwing doping allegations at the Chinese.

Meanwhile, I didn't expect to get that much badminton coverage here Down Under for a change - you have to love Foxtel Sports for broadcasting from Wembley Arena (and the amazing Foxtel iQ box for taking care of the time difference and clashed events issues... and-and the Foxtel mobile app for remote control!)... well, not just that but for everything Olympic.  It's definitely lifted my enthusiasm since Day 2 and reminded me what a badminton fanatic also I was!  ... and of course, the big news on the disqualification is no surprise and it started with the Aussies kicking a fuss.  I really think they should avoid group matches - this isn't soccer; there is no big money in it.  Instead, revert to playing single eliminations (perhaps, a 15-point-best-of-5 format?) like how they started in Barcelona (1992) so nobody would tank games in true Olympic spirit, or not.

Tomorrow, there will be two exciting rematches - the 2008 Beijing Olympic badminton men's singles final with Lee Chong Wei going against his nemesis, Lin Dan, and the 2012 Wimbledon men's single final between Roger Federer and Andy Murray.  Who will take gold?  I get the feeling two or three of them would end up crying regardless.

London Games

The official website for the London 2012 Olympic Games counts down 1 day, 21 hours and 37 minutes to the opening, as we speak.  Like the average Brit, I'm not overly excited about the summer Games this time around, oddly.

Maybe the host city, London as a place and Olympic venue doesn't interest me as much as Havana would but the bidding Cuban city unfortunately never made the shortlist.  I missed a lecture yesterday, 'From Showcase to Place: London 2012 Athlete Village' by Greg Deas, the Chief Architect from LendLease assigned to jump-start the urban revitalisation program at Stratford, East London.  Deas wanted to talk about the "urban design, and sustainability strategies" his team of 17 architects have put together for what essentially is 'a housing project' fashioned as a world-class Olympic Village at the heart of the brand-new English Olympic Park.

I never quite got why London should host the event.  Then again, the 1940 Games was awarded to Tokyo (and it never took place there).. did they really not see World War 2 coming?  Would the romantic spirit of the Olympic Games really have had prevented the nuclear strikes?

Spoken during the bid back in 2005, the Brits hoped to "inspire a lasting change" and they believed that they "understood the recipe for (a) magical Games" which would include having a "superb technical plan".  That's exactly the kind of pitch a Chairman of the British Olympic Association would sell - the kind that corporate executives are so used to throwing out there to look and sound good.  For starters, didn't the Brist whinge endlessly about how much harder it is to get to work on the tube of late?  They do it without the Olympics anyway but this time, they get to whinge on TV.

At wrap-up, they boldly guaranteed that the Games would "create a community where sport is an integral part of everyday life - a model for 21st century living, the embodiment of the philosophy of Pierre de Coubertin".  Didn't they know the Olympic Games founder was a romantic writer who believed that struggle is more important than triumph?  He won an Olympic Gold Medal for literature!  Yes, literature - and they won't even make chess part of the summer Games as a contending medal event.  I digress.  If only Coubertin knew that the Olympic Oath has been changed to include this phrase:  without doping, and without drugs... 

Still, I'm interested to see how London takes shape in the coming years; how those "lasting changes" would effect London so we can then quantify the 'success' of the 2012 Games.  Whether or not the Games would be "magical", I only care for two events this time i.e. the tennis men's singles, and the 100m dash on the men's track.  Hopefully Roger Federer clinches the Gold at Wimbledon (even better if he beats Murray again *wide grin), and the 9.58secs mark gets broken - by Usain Bolt or not.  A few rare inspirational stories here and there on sportsmanship will also be refreshing.

Let the Games begin.

Popular Culture

A few weeks ago, I received a whatsapp slap from a former colleague, Sha whom I last saw in 2008.  It read, "Woman, your Facebook performance is lacking!" 

At first, I laughed - at the notion that my Facebook presence is regarded as some kind of "performance".  Then, I felt guilty - for the fact that I've had selfishly gone AWOL for the most part since 2010 - on Facebook or not.

It appears that Facebook has taken popular culture centre stage, and there is little escape of it in order to remain relevant.  Being on it and having The App on your mobile device is simply not enough - you have to actually check in regularly enough so that others can track your digital footprints at their will.

As Charlie Brooker (TheGuardian) wrote: when you lose touch with popular culture, it's tough to get back.  Except for MasterChef Australia this season and American Idol last season,  I have, like Brooker developed some sort of an aversion to anything that appeals to the mass.  I gave up watching The Voice before the last blind audition ended - Jessica Sanchez has set too high a standard for amateur singing contestants!  I haven't seen The Apprentice since my flat mate left two years ago and I certainly have no plans on wasting any time on The Shire.  I also don't tweet and can't tell the Kardashian siblings apart.  I can neither name contestants nor describe acts from the Australia's Got Talent show, even though Kyle Sandilands cracks me up usually... and Facebook, I almost don't use anymore. I'd never commit Facebook suicide, though.

Brooker suspected all of that has either to do with his departing youth or his spending hours being a Dad to his newborn.  In my case, I'm a different kind of Facebook user, one who isn't quite willing to spend more time than necessary online because of the gazillion other things - mostly offline, that require attention.  Still, I find Facebook handy as a directory at my fingertips, or a bulletin board for announcements and this currently works out better.

I suppose at the end of the day, I do appreciate the nudges I got from friends and those who care to see if I've had died in my sleep.  Such lack of "performance" indeed deserves a good smack, and I hope to do better - on and/or off Facebook.

Quinh met  up with Sha for lunch as soon as she wrapped up her full-time job a few weeks ago for a career break and she recently got back on to LinkedIn after a 9-year hiatus.

Lawn Tennis

I very much wanted a Roger Federer victory at Wimbledon this year - it's a more meaningful piece of history to write than that of a Briton, any Briton for that matter winning the crown in 76 years. As the French saying goes, 'A loeuvre on connait l'artisan', Federer indeed crafted tennis history yet again - simply a class (or two) above.

Many said Murray played well, but probably not well enough. I thought Murray generally still needed a lot of work. He paced himself poorly from the start of the game, called out challenges senselessly and wrestled himself to the ground on occassions. At the peak of his career without still a Grand Slam winner trophy, Murray is one of the many poor sods who has to deal with a Roger Federer getting in the way at Grand Slams. It must also be hard playing for a nation whose high hopes unnerved more than inspired and whose support seemed so divided: yes, we want you, Murray to win (because Great Britain needs a Wimbledon victor in modern times to call her own) but we actually don't mind Federer winning again (because the Swiss is a living legend and we adore him).

This is my first 2012 entry! My Wimbledon campaign, while proved worthwhile has fatigued me in a brandnew way. We're expecting our first newborn this November and sleepiness has never been this hard to fight!