OMG. My dream women’s figure skating Olympic podium came true. Yu-Na winning gold, Mao silver, and Joannie bronze.
This NEVER happens.
AND my favorite US skater Mirai Nagasu had a terrific free skate and bumped herself up to 4th!
The skating gods must be trying to make it up to me for the results of the 1998 and 2002 Olympics. This doesn’t *quite* make up for either Tara Lipinski or Sarah Hughes (UGH) but it’s a start.
😉
Totally behind but YAY for Evan Lysacek winning men’s figure skating Olympic gold!
Before the men even did their free skates, I honestly thought Plushenko was going to win. But once I saw Plushenko’s program, I knew that Evan had done it. Even despite Plushenko’s quad. There seems to be so much emphasis on landing a quad but figure skating is so much more than that to me. Otherwise, why do footwork sequences, transitions, spins, spirals, etc. also earn points? Unfortunately for Plushenko, there’s been some minor changes to the Code of Points since he won gold at the last Olympics and with his absence of 3 years, I just think he and his coaches didn’t “play the game” so well this time around. His free skate was completely front-loaded — if he had just rearranged his elements to earn some extra bonus points in the second half of the program, that might have made the difference. On the other hand, Evan knew he couldn’t land the quad (he fell on it at Nationals) so he capitalized on his strengths, made sure that every single piece of choreography would earn him points, and found himself on top of the podium.
So happy Daisuke won the bronze medal too! His free skate was amazing and so technically difficult, even with the fall.
Jeremy Abbott didn’t have the Olympic experience I wanted him to have so here’s hoping he sticks around until Worlds next month.
Ahhhh!!! Ice dancing was so great this year! It wasn’t the splatfest that Torino was! I am so, so happy that Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir and Meryl Davis & Charlie White captured gold and silver respectively. They were fantastic in all 3 of their programs. And is it weird that I totally ‘ship Tessa and Scott? They are so freaking cute (yes, I know she’s dating someone else)…
This free dance was FAN.FREAKING.TASTIC.
As was this free dance. Even despite the cliched Phantom of the Opera music selection.
But it wouldn’t be ice dancing if there wasn’t questionable judging and I really believe that Tanith Belbin & Ben Agosto were sacrificed in order for Oksana Domnina & Max Shabalin to win the bronze. I have to admit that I don’t care for Belbin & Agosto’s free dance but it was the best they’ve performed it all season. Domnina & Shabalin had the edge in the compulsory dance but I think they should have been ranked below B & A in both the original and free dances. Oh, well. I’m really going to miss Belbin & Agosto if they retire. They really paved the way for US ice dancing.
*sniff*
Oh figure skating, don’t ever change. Off to watch the Ladies short program now…
Thanks NBC Olympics for the pics.
I’m officially giving up on the 30 Day Meme. The rest of the prompts require way too much thinking… also, L-A-Z-Y.
So what have I been doing? Mmm… watching WAY too much Olympics coverage. I’m an Olympics junkie. I’ll watch anything that NBC “packages” up in primetime — speed skating, alpine skiing, luge, etc. And of course, I’m following figure skating! I follow individual men’s and women’s skating more closely than I do the other disciplines but I’m really happy that Shen/Zhao won pairs despite the almost-spill on their lift in the free skate. They’re the total package — they have the tricks and the artistry. Which brings me to the men. I can’t believe Plushenko is the leader going into the free skate. He is ALL jumps and no artistry. There’s no real choreography or footwork between jumps — he’s just skating around doing as little as possible until the next jump. I much prefer Evan Lysacek (despite the questionable arm-flailing he does in his programs), Daisuke Takahashi, Stephane Lambiel (his spins!), and Jeffrey Abbott (too bad he imploded in the short program). I hope they all have amazing free skates on Thursday and overtake Plushenko. A girl can dream.
This past weekend was Valentine’s Day and Rob and I celebrated by…
1. Going to Starbucks. LOVE their Valentine’s Day cups. 😀
2. Taking Diesel to the park. He’s in desperate need of a haircut, LOL.
3. Watching the NBA All-Star festivities (the slam dunk contest, which I normally enjoy, was laaaame) and the Olympics (again, figure skating!).
4. Renewing our Disneyland annual passes. We decided that this would be our annual Valentine’s Day present to each other. YAY!
5. Looking at model homes and going back and forth (and back and forth) about the pros and cons of buying a townhouse versus single family, new versus resale, now versus later, etc. It’s kinda stressing me out. Seriously, the home buying process is not fun.
Off to watch more Olympics. Speed skating tonight! 🙂
I just realized that my blog celebrated it’s 8th (!!!) birthday last Sunday. Wow!
On to the 30 Day Meme. Ok seriously… “whatever tickles your fancy” sounds weird to me so I’m changing the name of today’s prompt slightly to…
Day 06 — Anything!
So I’m a huge figure skating fan and it’s that time of year when the US National Championships roll around. For the first time in a long while, the US women’s field is… lacking. To put it nicely. Even our ice dancing teams have a better chance at medaling at the upcoming Olympics. I never thought that could happen. I don’t care for any of the US women — their skating has no spark. No fire! Ugh, it makes me so upset. They have so much potential, especially Alissa Czisny. And I’m still pissed that the women only have 2 spots in the Olympics thanks to their low placements at the last Worlds (we’ve been sending 3 women to the Olympics for the past few cycles).
Anyway, I’ve been nostalgic for good skating and my absolute favorite figure skater is Michelle Kwan. She wasn’t the biggest jumper nor did she have insane flexibility but she really combined grace and artistry with basic skating technique and her programs still amaze me. So I thought I’d post a couple of my favorites. Thanks to YouTube.
1998 US Nationals – Free Skate “Lyra Angelica”
2003 Worlds – Free Skate “Aranjuez”
She won her 5th World title with this program. So good!
My head hurts but I really want to post something so… here’s some random thoughts in list form.
1. I’m not really a fan of the Twilight series nor did I enjoy the first movie but for some reason, I still want to see New Moon. The clips from the trailers already make it look light years better than the first. Plus, I can’t help that I’m highly amused by the actors off-screen. Kristen Stewart is so uncomfortably awkward in interviews and Robert Pattinson looks high ALL THE TIME. Seriously.
2. I just found out Star Trek is being released on DVD today. I think I’ll have to pick up a copy. Mmmm Chris Pine (GO Bears!).
3. I watched Skate America yesterday (yes, I’m a figure skating fan despite NBC relegating non-Olympics coverage to their lesser network Universal Sports) and I have to say that overall, I’m really disappointed in the (lack of) depth on the US women’s side. Especially with the Winter Olympics coming up! Normally, the US has strong medal contenders but I think whoever makes the team will be fighting for the bronze medal at best. I just don’t think Rachael Flatt, Alissa Czisny, Caroline Zhang, Ashley Wagner, etc. are that good. Technically, they’re ok but they don’t have “it.” I’ll be rooting for Yu-Na Kim all the way.
4. I realized that the reason I can’t watch The Office regularly is because I get second-hand embarrassment. Every episode Michael does or says something ridiculous and I have to look away.
5. Just came back from taking Diesel outside and it is FUH-REEZING out there. I’ve become more and more wimpy to cold weather since moving to Southern CA.
6. I (ok, Rob and I) have been doing a good job at keeping up to date with all our TV. Except for poor Fringe. We’re 3 episodes behind. Argh.
7. I haven’t read a book in months. EEK. So embarrassing. I used to do all my reading during my commute to and from work and now that I work from home, I use that extra time to get more sleep (hehe). I got the first 3 books of the Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood series for my birthday so hopefully they’ll get me motivated to read again.
8. The Starbucks red cups are back!!! I get my fave Nonfat Peppermint Mocha year-round but there’s just something special about getting it in the official holiday cup.
9. I can’t believe it’s almost Thanksgiving. A little more than a week! Turkey festivities will start off at lunch at my cousin’s house and I can’t wait.
10. Then of course, the day after Thanksgiving is another day I look forward to. BLACK FRIDAY. YAYAYAYAY. Rob and I never really have “big ticket” items that we need to buy… for some reason, we just like checking out the random items that are on sale. Thanks to Black Friday Ads I feel very well-prepared to hit the sales at Best Buy, Target, K-Mart, etc. I’m planning to get some DVDs and also a new wireless mouse for my laptop. ALSO. And possibly more importantly, Black Friday is the day we get our CHRISTMAS TREE. OMGSOEXCITING.
… That’s it for now. Back later.
I just finished watching Red Eye… you know, the movie with Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy.
I haven’t laughed like that in such a long time.
Heh.
Anyway. I know we’re in the middle of March Madness (yay UCLA!) but it’s ALSO the week of the World Figure Skating Championships. Woot! Spoilers/results ahead…
For me, the best event was the men’s competition. Lambiel and Joubert really battled for the gold — both of them landed 2 quads in their free skate! Amazing. And Evan Lysacek pulled off another clutch performance to win the bronze. He’s my new favorite male skater. Plus, this year’s podium is definitely easy on the eyes. 😀
The women were a different story. Gawd, I am SO INCREDIBLY disappointed. I *knew* Sasha Cohen couldn’t pull it off (she has pretty much never skated 2 clean programs) but without Slutskaya and Arakawa, I thought she would have to have a mental breakdown in order not to win. And what do you know, she did! She’s such an awesome skater… I really, really wish she could get it together. 🙁 But OMG. NOT Kimmie Meissner. *pulls hair* World Champion? With her awkward, gangly arms and lack of artistry? Argh. I like her but I think she’s more of a technician than a package skater. Oh well. At least Fumie Suguri medaled. It’s a little redemption after coming in 4th at the Olympics. I just love her.
I can’t believe it’s the first time since 1994 that Michelle Kwan hasn’t been at Worlds. *sniff* I miss her.
SQUEE. The results of the ladies figure skating competition are pretty awesome.
Since Michelle Kwan withdrew from the competition, I didn’t have a favorite for the gold… I just wanted to see some good skating! Didn’t really get that — in fact, I think this Olympics was kind of lackluster compared to the last 4. It wasn’t the best day for the top skaters (oh Sasha — I really wanted her to skate cleanly; she has such a problem with putting 2 clean performances together) but I am SO SO HAPPY that Shizuka Arakawa won.
Worlds next month! That should be fun. 😀
So I wasn’t going to watch the ladies figure skating competition (still sad about Michelle Kwan not being able to compete *sob*) but… I’m a sucker.
Some thoughts as I was watching…
Kimmie Meissner – Very clean program. Good for her. I think she’ll be a force to be reckoned with if she sticks it out another 4 years to get to Vancouver. Right now, she has the technique down but I think she needs to work on her artistry. I just don’t connect with her skating. It’s too formulaic. I don’t see her medalling in these Games but she should easily be in the Top 8 or 10.
Elena Sokolova – 🙁 She’s been around a long time… that must have been such a disappointing skate.
Elene Gedevanishvili – WOW! Where did she come from? She was totally awesome. So enthusiastic and explosive. Loved her. I can’t wait to see more of her.
Emily Hughes – Loved her costume… didn’t love her program that much. She had a lot of heart and really attacked her skate but most of the time, she looked like she was flailing her arms around. So distracting.
Irina Slutskaya – I’ve never loved her skating but she is amazingly talented. She has so much speed and power on the ice. I just can’t relate to her performances, though. It seems like she’s out there jumping and spinning and not really connecting with the audience. But barring a major mistake, I’m sure she’ll be on the podium.
Shizuka Arakawa – She’s so awesome. I loved when she won the gold at 2004 Worlds. She’s in a good position after the short program.
Fumie Suguri – Aww, I loved her. She’s one of those skaters who reminds me why I love the sport. Her choreography and artistry is so beautiful. She’s my personal favorite for a medal. SQUEE. PLUS. Her costume was gorgeous.
Sasha Cohen – Yay! It is SO HARD to be a fan of hers. She has the technique, flexibility, grace… but she is also incredibly inconsistent (and sometimes she strikes me as a diva — but that’s neither here nor there). It’s frustrating. When it counts, she can’t seem to keep it together. But she found a way to be perfect tonight. So great. Now I’m just praying she doesn’t meltdown during her long program. Cause that would be typical. 🙁
Bring on the long program!
Also? The Torino medals look like CDs! Hee.
I am inconsolable. 🙁 I know Michelle Kwan didn’t have the greatest chance at winning gold but she was my sentimental favorite. I *love* watching her skate and I was hoping she would at least pull off a brilliant short program and free skate.
*sniff*
OMG. I seriously want to kill Gallery. My boyfriend is trying to help me reinstall it for High Anxiety and let me tell you, it is A ROYAL PAIN IN THE ASS. The stupid thing won’t work correctly. I’m *so* close to chucking it out and trying to find some other photo image gallery. Does anyone have any suggestions? I’ve heard of 4 images and Adobe Web Gallery — does anyone know anything about them? Like if they can easily be installed? I need something pretty much fool-proof or I’m liable to bash my head on the wall in frustration. 😛
There was a bright side to this weekend though —
Michelle Kwan won her 8th national title!!!!!!!!!
🙂
I’m so happy for her. She’s my all-time favorite figure skater and she was positively amazing in her long program. She landed all her jumps flawlessly and her artistry was, as usual, top-notch. I always get tears in my eyes when I watch her skate a perfect program. Silly, I know. I really really really hope to see her take on the Olympics in 2006 and finally win that gold medal.
I finally enjoyed an episode of Friends in who knows how long… Joey was SO funny. Joey doesn’t share food! BWAH. And Ross’s pink shirt! I was dying. That shirt was awful. And can I LOVE Chandler anymore?!? He was so sweet when he was talking about wanting the baby. Awww. Chandler rocks. I didn’t think I really would be so sad about this being the last season but now with all the promos… 🙁
You know, I seem to be the only person who doesn’t watch Joan of Arcadia. Humph. Every time I read people’s blogs, they seem to be gushing over the latest episode. I feel so left out. But seriously, Fridays are not good! I don’t watch TV on Fridays. It’s a… thing. Or something. Guess I’ll have to attempt the download route if I want to be one of the cool kids. 😀
Ooohhh… yay for new Smallville this week! If you’ve seen the promos (or read spoilers), then you know that there’s going to be a guest star and I cannot wait! Hee. [edit] If you want to know who…