WHY IS FIGURE SKATING AN OLYMPIC SPORT?

WHY IS FIGURE SKATING AN OLYMPIC SPORT?

A cranky opinion for

CRANKY OPINION SATURDAY

The following is the opinion of a cranky old man who has very little knowledge on the subject opined.  Opposing opinions are welcome, they are wrong, but they are welcome; and please, no name calling and that means you, you big stupid head.

Don’t get me wrong, figure skating at a high level takes tremendous athletic ability, endurance, dedication and physical and mental strength.  So does tightrope walking, so does juggling, and so does a high wire act.  Ice skating is a circus act, a spectacle, an exhibition…it is not a sport.

The winner of a sporting event should be the one who is the fastest, the strongest or scores the most points.   Any activity where the winner is determined by subjective scoring based on form and grace and musicality is an act or an exhibition and should not be an Olympic sport.

Well Cranky, what about gymnastics, diving, synchronized swimming, gnarly snow board half-pipe crap; should they not be Olympic sports? 

Well, I’m talking strictly about figure skating now, but no…those events should not be Olympic sports either.  

Figure skating is beautiful to watch. 

Ball room dancing is beautiful to watch. 

Ball room dancing takes strength, endurance, athletic ability, and physical and mental strength.  Should ball room dancing become an Olympic sport?  I don’t think so either.

Look, you want figure skating to be an Olympic event, make it a sport.

Each participant should skate the same routine.  There must be a double and triple Lutz, a flying camel, various spins and jumps.  Whoever completes the set routine and successfully completes all the required jumps and spins in the fastest time wins.  Grace, musicality, flair, facial expressions, costumes and winking at officials would have nothing to do with winning.  Skate the routine, complete the jumps and spins, and do all faster than anyone else, and you win. 

Graceful smiling poised skaters who have that certain flair and musicality can show off at the Ice Capades!

The preceding was the opinion of a cranky old man, and not necessarily that of management…Mrs. Cranky.

PUT THAT I-THING DOWN

PUT THAT I-THING DOWN

 

My children are facing a situation I never had to deal with.  They are sailing through unchartered parenting water.  How do you control their children’s technology addiction?

From Matt’s three year old to the oldest Crankette in North Carolina the Cranky grandchildren are addicted to PC’s, i-pads, i-pods and i-phones.  My son recently found himself yelling something never even remotely conceived of in my day, “Would you kids put those computers down and watch TV!”

When I was parenting little people, it was a constant battle to limit TV watching time.   Reading was encouraged, even though I read very little myself.  Play with blocks, Legos and action figures were also encouraged. It was my belief, from personal experience, that too much TV would turn a mind to mush.

Computers teach this generation numbers, the alphabet, reading, geography, animals and their sounds, chemistry and history.  They also have games and can deliver movies and cartoons. 

Clearly these computers will not turn minds to mush, but they are anti-social.  TV is at least a social experience.  Sponge Bob Square-pants can be enjoyed and discussed jointly.  Computers act as companions which isolate the children from parents and friends.

Therein lies the new parent dilemma, raise intelligent introverted children, or socially well-adjusted mush-heads?   

A MRS. CRANKY REBUTTAL

A MRS. CRANKY REBUTTAL

 

I often submit posts which Mrs. Cranky feels are less than flattering to her.  She sometimes even thinks I make fun of her.  She is sensitive to these posts.  I assure her that my characterization of her is all in good fun, and those that read these posts recognize I exaggerate.  Many comments from readers suggest that I am  lucky that Mrs. C puts up with me.  Some comments, however, suggest that if Mrs. C doesn’t like these posts, she should blog herself and rebut my assertions.  This will not happen, but just this one time, I will post a rebuttal on her behalf.

Some readers of the Cranky Old Man may find the posts to be interesting and maybe even entertaining, especially, apparently, those posts which poke fun at Mrs. Cranky.  Imagine if you will the many opinions and nonsensical chatter that make up the Cranky Old Man posts, and make believe you are subjected to this constant blather of opinions, thoughts and theories on everything ALL DAY!  That, blog readers, is my life.

If he is not spouting opinions, random thoughts, and theories, he is making fun of me.  He calls it teasing.  “I tease because I love.”  I call it making fun of me.

Oh sure I can’t throw anything away.  I still have appliances that technology has made obsolete.  Yes, I still have the receipts from the appliances that technology has made obsolete.  Yes I have a VCR tape rewinder, and yes I did use it three months ago.  It is true that even though I am half-Italian, I don’t cook and won’t eat tomatoes, mushrooms or garlic.  I do know the dialog of movies and I will recite it just before the actors.  I may rearrange six different pillows in various places before I roll over to go to sleep; one at the end of the bed, one beside me on the floor, one by my leg and three to lay on.  I won’t let him drive my car because he will mess up my seat adjustment.  I keep twenty pairs of shoes in my car, and I won’t carry a pocketbook…ever.  Sure some of these things may be different, but…

He never shuts up.  He watches TV with one eye on the computer and constantly asks me to fill him in on stuff he missed.  He never listens to me.  I have to repeat stuff over and over and still he forgets.  He will ask if I want something from downstairs when he goes for a glass of water and when I request something he will come back upstairs with just the glass of water. 

“Oh yeah, I forgot.” And he makes fun of me? 

He couldn’t find a phone in a phone booth; and he makes fun of me?

He gets lost driving to the local Wawa three blocks away; and he makes fun of me?

He hollers at his computer constantly because he is so technologically illiterate; and he makes fun of me?

He couldn’t spell CAT if you spot him the C and the T; and he makes fun of me?

And he IS cranky!

There you have it, Mrs. Cranky’s rebuttal.  It is all true.  It is why she calls me a jerk. But there is one more thing,

I am adorable…she may disagree, but then she never throws anything away.