2012 London Olympics. Day Fifteen
Saturday 11th
August 2012
Evening
people.
Again, more apologies for the late arrival of this E Mail.
As I type it is 14th August, actually its just past midnight so it’s now the 15th... Anyway, let me get on with it. Those 72 got get extended by some weird time travel thing that I don't really fully understand.
Today was another one of those days set aside for other stuff and things. The stuff and things that we usually get up to when Anna is down here. Combine that with the effect of THAT Saturday and any chance of getting any more tickets simply wasn't worth the effort trying to get them, let the bandwagon jumpers have their moment, so, the normal trashing of London by us it was. We decide, well Anna decide that we should continue to do the Wenlock hunt.
I have to say that London and other cities for that matter should do more of this. It really is a lot of fun. Now you would think that trying to spot a six foot tall brightly painted London Olympic Mascot would be easy. Very easy. Well you are wrong. Very wrong and that’s the point, it doesn't just get you "looking" it gets you "seeing".
We did two of the walks, leaving two to finish the set. You will not believe how many people were doing the same thing. You will not believe how many people had the same story as us. We all talked of the Olympics and the lack of hassle. Just how good the volunteers had been. The armed forces and all of their good work. Rio 2016. That Saturday how it had affected family, friends, tickets, we talked of stories we had seen on TV or heard on the radio or seen in the press. How the printed press especially had changed their tune, they had spent months predicting doom and gloom and now, NOW, they had performed a U Turn that would make any Government Minister proud.
Here is another effect from the 2012 London Olympics. People were being nice to each other. Smiling. Looking each other in the eye. Nodding. Being polite. Friendly. Helpful. I never thought I'd see the day... It’s as if someone went through London the night before the Olympics and got rid of all the miserable bastards that clutter up London and make it a piss awful place to be. More of this please and thank you very much for their disappearance. I know this doesn't make much sense, or maybe it does, but it was literally like someone had rounded them all up and locked them away. There were times that parts of London looked and felt like a scene from Glee. I kept expecting people to break out into random acts of singing and dancing. They didn't. Part of me was grateful and part of me was sad and disappointed. It’s the ex-choirboy in me, still, it could be worse, it could be me in the choirboy... *cough cough... moving on...*
As we travelled across London on the tube to Covent Garden a women looked over to Anna and Myself and said, "You were at the football the other night". "Uh?" replied me, "Us?" I continued and I started to grasp at my fading memory, "Which day?" I asked, "Thursday, I was stood behind you on Olympic Way as we queued for the train"... she answered. WTF!? Really? What are the odds? There was a crowd of 80,203 at that game and we stand on a tube next to women who was stood behind us on Olympic Way... The magic of 2012 strikes again.
That reminds me. Last week, we dived on the tube at Liverpool Street and made our way to Tower Hill and we ended up standing in an empty carriage with two other people, both Canadians. One was a female and one was a male. The male was wearing an Olympic pass. We just acted like normal everyday people. Just interacting with each other. Small talk. Making sure we were all going to the correct station. Once I got home I Googled him (because I hadn't got a clue who he was) his name was/is Andrew Brynes. He had just won a Silver medal in the rowing (he got gold in 2008). Now what I need you to do is name one English football player that would use the tube. No really. In your own speed. This is what separates the Olympics from football and other sports for that matter.
Right. I need sleep. More to follow.
Noggin xx
Again, more apologies for the late arrival of this E Mail.
As I type it is 14th August, actually its just past midnight so it’s now the 15th... Anyway, let me get on with it. Those 72 got get extended by some weird time travel thing that I don't really fully understand.
Today was another one of those days set aside for other stuff and things. The stuff and things that we usually get up to when Anna is down here. Combine that with the effect of THAT Saturday and any chance of getting any more tickets simply wasn't worth the effort trying to get them, let the bandwagon jumpers have their moment, so, the normal trashing of London by us it was. We decide, well Anna decide that we should continue to do the Wenlock hunt.
I have to say that London and other cities for that matter should do more of this. It really is a lot of fun. Now you would think that trying to spot a six foot tall brightly painted London Olympic Mascot would be easy. Very easy. Well you are wrong. Very wrong and that’s the point, it doesn't just get you "looking" it gets you "seeing".
We did two of the walks, leaving two to finish the set. You will not believe how many people were doing the same thing. You will not believe how many people had the same story as us. We all talked of the Olympics and the lack of hassle. Just how good the volunteers had been. The armed forces and all of their good work. Rio 2016. That Saturday how it had affected family, friends, tickets, we talked of stories we had seen on TV or heard on the radio or seen in the press. How the printed press especially had changed their tune, they had spent months predicting doom and gloom and now, NOW, they had performed a U Turn that would make any Government Minister proud.
Here is another effect from the 2012 London Olympics. People were being nice to each other. Smiling. Looking each other in the eye. Nodding. Being polite. Friendly. Helpful. I never thought I'd see the day... It’s as if someone went through London the night before the Olympics and got rid of all the miserable bastards that clutter up London and make it a piss awful place to be. More of this please and thank you very much for their disappearance. I know this doesn't make much sense, or maybe it does, but it was literally like someone had rounded them all up and locked them away. There were times that parts of London looked and felt like a scene from Glee. I kept expecting people to break out into random acts of singing and dancing. They didn't. Part of me was grateful and part of me was sad and disappointed. It’s the ex-choirboy in me, still, it could be worse, it could be me in the choirboy... *cough cough... moving on...*
As we travelled across London on the tube to Covent Garden a women looked over to Anna and Myself and said, "You were at the football the other night". "Uh?" replied me, "Us?" I continued and I started to grasp at my fading memory, "Which day?" I asked, "Thursday, I was stood behind you on Olympic Way as we queued for the train"... she answered. WTF!? Really? What are the odds? There was a crowd of 80,203 at that game and we stand on a tube next to women who was stood behind us on Olympic Way... The magic of 2012 strikes again.
That reminds me. Last week, we dived on the tube at Liverpool Street and made our way to Tower Hill and we ended up standing in an empty carriage with two other people, both Canadians. One was a female and one was a male. The male was wearing an Olympic pass. We just acted like normal everyday people. Just interacting with each other. Small talk. Making sure we were all going to the correct station. Once I got home I Googled him (because I hadn't got a clue who he was) his name was/is Andrew Brynes. He had just won a Silver medal in the rowing (he got gold in 2008). Now what I need you to do is name one English football player that would use the tube. No really. In your own speed. This is what separates the Olympics from football and other sports for that matter.
Right. I need sleep. More to follow.
Noggin xx
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