Dems fightin' words

Now that the Olympics are finito, it's time to look forward to the next national event that will be overblown by the media: the November presidential election.

With only about two months left until we elect a new Commander-in-Chief, be prepared for some severe political overload wherever you look--except this Web site!

No one cares what I have to say about the war, oil, health care; if you really did, then I'd be running for president, not writing for a weekly newspaper that no one reads. So if there's something significant going on, then I'll mention it... otherwise, I'm sure you won't be too hard-pressed to find another site to read all about John Hickenlooper or if Cindy McCain's choice of powersuits rules supreme over Michelle Obama's.

That being said, the now-old news is that Barack announced his running mate this weekend: Senator Joe Biden. In more current news, the Democratic National Convention began today out in Denver. Headliners include the Bill and Hill (Wednesday and Tuesday, respectively), Michelle Obama (Monday) and of course, Barack himself (Thursday). For a full list of headliners and a day-to-day schedule, click here.

Olympics peacing out

I should probably mention that the Olympics are over, with the United States earning the greatest number of medals, but China earning the most gold.

This year's Olympics are being heralded as "truly exceptional Games," and even for an apathetic Olympic watcher such as myself, I thought a lot of it was pretty exciting.

To read some interesting stats, click here, and for medal counts, photos, news stories and more, click here.

Phelps v. Ocho

Michael Phelps may be going for eight gold medals in Beijing this year, but that's not the Ocho I'm talking about...

On ESPN's Pardon the Interruption last night, Cincinnati Bengal's wide receiver Chad Johnson gave Wilbon and Kornheiser "five good minutes," which included an outright challenge to the seemingly untouchable Phelps. Check it out below (about 4 minutes in). Apparently we had no idea that Olympic talent is swimming rampant in the inner-cities.



Overall, Chad --otherwise known as Ocho Cinco by way of my favorite interview ever-- seemed pretty subdued during the interview, even during the awkward and heartwarming threat against quarterback Carson Palmer, who was standing behind him. On this morning's Sportscenter, a clip of him at training camp showed that he was being threatened with fines from management to talk to the media.

And while we're on the topic of Chad... Word on the street is that the wide receiver has taken the first steps to officially changing his last name from 'Johnson' to 'Ocho Cinco' to avoid getting improper jersey fines when he wears the incorrect Spanish translation of his number 85 on his back. He's a headcase, but I love him.

More Olympic fun

I know I said I wasn't too into the Olympics this year -- and that's still true. But my boyfriend and I did happen to catch Michael Phelps winning his first gold medal last night; Pretty exciting stuff, I must say.

Sometimes it almost doesn't seem fair how good Phelps is, and last night, it was almost like he was just competing against himself and his own world record. But check out the video below from the 2000 Olympics --this guy actually was only competing against himself after his two competitors disqualified themselves. Sorry to say it, but I think even I could have beaten this guy. He manages to almost double the record for this event, while still setting a personal best.

Still, you gotta love his -- and the announcers'-- enthusiasm... and the constant giggling that takes place in the background.

Happy Olympics!

Today is 8/8/08, which means it's time for the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.


Sorry, everyone. I'm not super into these games, minus the soccer. In fact, I don't think I've really cared about the Olympics since the 1996 U.S. gymnastics team (you remember Kerri Strug, right?).

But don't let me get you down. Enjoy your shirtless Michael Phelps, USA's "Redeem Team" of basketball, smog-covered Beijing and 3,600 hours of Olympic coverage.

[click here to view a complete schedule of events] Yay America!

Actually, I'm much more interested in the bestial alternative to the Olympics: Animal Planet's 2008 Puppy Games. It's the most incredible show I've ever seen. Click here for a quick preview!

Look, a dolphin! Wait, that's a little Chinese girl.

Please, read this story from CNN and tell me this is not the most insane form of training ever.

First reaction to the headline is, "[gasp] that's child abuse!" But then you come to find the child asked to be thrown into the river bound by her hands and feet? And don't stop there...she also ran more than 2,200 miles in 55 days (approx. 40 miles per day) while her father drove behind her in a motor scooter?

I can't wait to see this 10-year-old beat us in the Olympics.