The Games

Watching the build-up and preparation for the Olympics from afar, I couldn’t help but have the constant feeling of “London, pleeeeeeeease don’t screw this up!”. I landed here the day after the opening  ceremony, and expected to be surrounded by collapsed buildings and guerrilla warfare on the streets, but surprisingly, everything is very calm and working virtually flawlessly. I’m impressed.

London is absolutely buzzing right now. I went to the weightlifting last week, and wanted to go to a few more things, but there wasn’t much left, and what was available was very expensive. The cycling was ₤250, and the athletics was ₤450. I thought it a better idea not to invest in those, and watch the rest of the games on the massive screens they’ve built in various points around the city. It’s incredible fun, and the atmosphere is amazingly positive, as team GB is doing really well, and after England didn’t really make an impression at the recent European football championships, people are warmly remembering that football isn’t the only sport in the world, and that Britain is actually quite good at a lot of other stuff.

My parents are back in the country from Nigeria, and are renting a house in Cambridge, so my siblings and I went to stay with them last weekend. My siblings and I are immensely close, and have a crazy relationship in that we can make each other laugh 24 hours a day. In between laughing fits, we managed to fit in watching 10 hours of Olympic sport each day. I don’t think any British person could forget Saturday night, when team GB won 3 gold medals in spectacular fashion. After we all got our breath back, we were staring at the TV in silence, which I broke by saying “That would have been worth ₤450”. Everyone nodded in agreement. I couldn’t get tickets for the following night, but by some miracle, I got tickets for the day and night sessions of the athletics for yesterday (Monday). It was mixed fortunes for Team GB, but it was still great to be there. The next time the games come to London, I might not be alive, so I thought “screw it- pay for it. Worry about it another time.” I’m glad I did. I’m going to the football and track and field this week.

One of the nurses at work commented on my love life a while ago saying that I’m always seeing someone. That’s probably true. I don’t like to write about every person I go out with, as that might seem like I’m trying to prove something. I think I’m a fairly interesting person, and I know I’m pretty nice, and I dress fairly well, as well as being quite a good conversationalist, so getting dates isn’t really a problem for me. I just don’t see the need to go around singing “Area Codes” by Ludacris, as if it makes me something special. I responded to that nurse by saying (apart from all those other things) “that’s because, when I see someone I like, I do something”. Admittedly, having a decent idea what to do is a big help when it comes to taking action, but if you don’t do anything, you’re dead in the water from the start. I really don’t understand people who do nothing, and expect something to happen. I don’t think that there are many areas of life for which that holds true.

After watching the sailing on the screen at Tower Bridge, I was walking along the Southbank of the Thames, when I walked past, probably one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen. I stopped and thought “What the Hell should I do?” My heart was in my mouth, but I walked up to her and told her how beautiful I thought she was. I wasn’t sure how she’d respond, but it turned out that she was really flattered. I introduced myself, and we spoke for a few minutes. I guessed that she was brazilian, and we spoke about my travels there, and capoeira. I then said “You look really sporty- what do you do?”

She told me “I’m a gymnast. I’m here with the brazilian team for the Olympics”. She handed me a Team Brazil badge.

The next minute or so was a bit of a blur, but I do remember saying to myself “OK Victor- keep it together! Don’t collapse! You’re doing well- she likes you: she’s smiling! Don’t screw it up!” I managed to stay standing, and politely told her how impressed I was, and asked if I could see her again, so we swapped Facebook details, and she added me the day after. I’m not sure if anything’s going to happen, as we’re both only in the country for another week, but there’s a chance. I’m glad I made that approach. You should be glad of any approach- if you don’t go, you don’t know. Or, as a great man once said:

Hesitate.

Masturbate.

That’s one successful approach that I’m happy to share. Stuff like that doesn’t happen that often. And it makes a nice change from writing about girls who are flakey and rude. I much prefer to be positive, but life isn’t always like that.

Until the next time.

Victor.