why yes, i am particularly grumpy today
i’m watching the closing ceremonies of the olympics, and the “handover” of the flag and flame to london for the 2012 summer ceremonies.
i wish i could be excited about the prospect. i wish i could say i’d still be here and be proud to be hosting the festivities. watching the olympics live and in person has been one of my lifelong dreams ever since i was a little girl. i should be ecstatic at the opportunity.
however day after day, i am continually astounded by the sheer ineptitude and poor infrastructure of this massive city. when i can’t reliably get to work on time, do errands after 6 pm, or get customer service that even remotely resembles anything like *service*… well i despair of the idea of adding *millions* of tourists to the mix.
i mean, they couldn’t even get the bloody logo right, the budget has ballooned from an initial £2.3 billion to over £9 billion, and the london olympic committee is already downplaying expectations.
whilst i have no doubt that four years from now it will be a sparkling televised affair, i can only breathe a sigh of relief that i won’t have to be subjected to the unmitigated disaster it will make daily life for ordinary londoners.
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Comment by noble savage
24.08.2008 @ 18:13 pm
I think they’re going to totally cock it up. Some facility won’t get built in time or will be falling apart, transport will still be in a shambles, security a mess, Boris will be making gaffes left and right…I just don’t have faith that London is going to pull off an immaculate Olympics like China did.
Not that they have to be the same but like you said, after living here for a few years it’s plain to see that it’s part of the British culture to get itself in a tizzy over some big event and then royally screw it up. I hope I’m proven wrong but I’m not holding out that much hope.
Besides, I still can’t look at the logo without seeing Lisa Simpson giving a blow job. It makes me shudder every time.
Comment by Jen
24.08.2008 @ 18:26 pm
ah yes, remember the “river of fire” for the millenium that wasn’t? and the footbridge that had to be shut because it swayed too much w/ people on it??