Signing Off From Colorado Springs

A few years ago, right after my first close-but-no-cigar situation with regards to getting an internship out here, an episode of Castle aired about the murder of an Olympic hopeful swimmer. The night before he was killed, he'd broken up with his high school girlfriend. When they brought her in for questioning she told them about it and howled, "Like suddenly I was a distraction! Suddenly I wasn't good enough for Colorado Springs!" At the time, that line was a reminder of what I hadn't accomplished.

That episode was on TV yesterday. I watched it as I took a break from packing up my room at the very same place that girl was crying about. Considering this is the last blog post I'll write from inside the Olympic Training Center, potentially ever, I appreciate the eerie timing. Now that line is a reminder of what I have accomplished, which is pretty cool.

But I hate lasts. I hate leaving. I hate goodbyes that hang. Not "bye, but I'll see you in a few months!" but "uh, I'll see you again sometime in the future, probably, right? Maybe...?" And that's what this is. You'd think I'd be better at this by now. I've figured out how to get some sort of closure on a chapter of my life before ending it, but does anyone know how to make it, y'know, hurt less?

It's always the little things that sneak up and make me nostalgic out of nowhere. Of course I'll miss the beautiful views of the mountains, living with an awesome built-in network of other interns, unlimited swipes into the dining hall, walking around the OTC and thinking about who has trained here in the past, the fact that it's acceptable to be friendly to strangers, and of course my amazing internship.

But I know I'm also going to miss things like waving at the security guards as I pull into the OTC. I got my parking pass back before my internship was extended, so it expired on August 31... and when I got extended, I never got another one. The security guards already knew me and my car, so nobody looks at the date on my pass. I'm actually weirdly proud that I managed to never need a new one. I'm going to miss seeing my name on the mail board. I'm going to miss needing to take a running leap to get up onto my bed. I'm going to miss microwaving water to make tea in the lounge. I'm going to miss my classic rock radio station, the one that was playing in my car the very first time I turned it on. I'm going to miss knowing Charlie is approaching my cubicle because I hear the telltale sound of him dribbling his volleyball. And shoot, I might have to start getting coffee from McDonald's just to keep those styrofoam cups in my life.

Why? WHY? Does anyone else get so hopelessly attached to places and the familiarity that goes along with with your life in them? I've always been like this, and I think that quote up there sums it up. I like the way things are, and I know they'll never be quite the same from this moment forward. In the past that's always ended up being a good thing. Here's hoping that trend continues.

And with that, it's time for me to check out.

Colorado Springs, it's been real. Thanks for seven months I'll never forget.

#GladToBeHere

Flash back with me, if you will, to the spring of 2012.

I was studying abroad in London, topped-up Oyster card in my wallet and an email saying, "hey, we'd like you to volunteer with London 2012 Ceremonies all the way through the end of the Paralympics!" in my inbox. Life was good.

And then reality happened. My student visa expired in June, which meant I would no longer be allowed to work and would have to leave the country. I attempted to get a work visa, which you need a sponsor (aka your employer) to sign off on, only to find out that L2012C didn't sponsor visas. I went to the U.S. embassy for help and was literally turned away at the door (thanks a ton, America). So I grudgingly packed my bags and bid a tearful adieu to my hopes of working at the London 2012 Olympics.

It sucked. Goooood times.

Now, let us return to the present. As I'm not working or interning for the USOC (*pointed look in their direction*), I applied to be a volunteer with them at the USA House during the Sochi Olympics. The USA House is basically the USOC's hospitality center during the games, for sponsors, athletes, athletes' families, etc.

It's where Shaun White meets Wayne Gretzky. Because, y'know, why not? [via]

It's also where Jim Craig speaks to the media in front of a GIANT CHALK MURAL (!!!) that was also signed by Bonnie Blair, Peggy Fleming, Scott Hamilton, Dan Jansen... [via]

Basically, it sounds like the coolest gig ever. And as of very recently, there's an email in my inbox that says, "hey, we'd like you to come to Sochi and volunteer with us!" Super cool, right?

Welp. Reality, once again, kicked me in the shins. Round trip flights to Sochi are almost $2,000, Russian visas cost $305, and the USOC doesn't cover any of its volunteers' expenses. So that means I'd have to find a hotel to stay in (HA) for three weeks (DOUBLE HA), as well as pay for transportation to and from Olympic Park and meals (and the exorbitantly expensive souvenirs, because let's be real). Basically, if I wanted to get myself to Sochi and stay in a hotel -- not going anywhere else, not eating anything, and not buying souvenirs -- that would cost me a cool $5,000. And that's a conservative estimate.

Considering I, a) make minimum wage, which is barely enough to cover my living expenses, b) don't have five grand to my name, and c) am biding my time before student loans come and hit me like a truck...

For the second time in under a year and a half, I have the opportunity to volunteer at the Olympics, and have to turn it down.

How. Is. This. Even. POSSIBLE?

I feel like this is becoming a joke. Applies for USOC internships for four straight years? Rejected. Tries to volunteer at London 2012? No visa. Tries to volunteer at Sochi 2014? No money. That's funny, universe. Reeeeeally funny. At this point I think it'd be easier to become an Olympic athlete and get there that way.

I could totally rock those pants and be a curler, right? PyeongChang or bust! [via]

But I'm not here to whine. (Well, okay, I'm here to whine a little bit, because... I mean, seriously? Seriously?) This whole situation has made me take a step back, take a deep breath and appreciate what I'm doing and what I have.

Since being out here in Colorado Springs, life has sort of fallen into a rhythm, and it's really easy to lose perspective of how freaking cool this all is. But sometimes I'll be returning to the OTC from work, and there'll be tourists posing in front of the Olympic rings that I see so often it's become routine. Or I'll be eating lunch on a Saturday and spot a tour group being led around outside. And just the other day, when a shooting coach asked me what I was here for, his response to hearing that I'm an intern was, "Oh, so you're someone, huh?"

It's interesting going back and reading my old posts about how badly I wanted what I have right now. Two and a half years ago (omg) I wrote this post that says:

And being vocal about my passion will one day lead to blog entries written from inside one of the Olympic training centers as I eagerly await the start of my internship.

I'm kind of impressed with myself, to be honest. Granted, things didn't happen exactly how I pictured them, but I came pretty damn close. And then there's the added benefit of being the resident ceremonies expert during London 2012, and the resident volleyball expert when Rio 2016 finally rolls around! Working for an NGB is incredibly cool, as is working for an organizing committee. Had everything happened the way I originally wanted it to, I might not have gotten the chance to learn this firsthand.

So even though I'm about to decline yet another awesome volunteer experience (just allow me one more moment of bitterness), what I have been able to do has been 100% amazing. And I couldn't be any more #gladtobehere. (Hashtag credit goes to the awesome Chris Yandle! [Twitter//blog])

And hey, now I can put the $2,000 I won't be using on airfare towards buying souvenirs! I think that two grand will be able to buy me one t-shirt and a pen.

Favorites Friday: Life at the OTC

I've been living at the Olympic Training Center for a few weeks now, and I've got to say, it's a pretty bizarre experience. We've got elements of "the real world" (working from 8-5 every day), sleep-away camp (everyone more or less wakes up and goes to sleep at the same time, and most meals are eaten as a group), and college (double occupancy rooms, communal bathrooms, and struggling to shave my legs in the tiny shower stalls). As someone who's had her own room and bathroom for the last year and a half, it's been an interesting adjustment back to very little privacy and dining hall food.

But everyone here is wonderful, and it's exceedingly nice not to have hours worth of homework and/or research and/or writing and/or work on the weekends!

And also... I'm living at the freaking Olympic Training Center. It's like I've died and gone to Olympic nerd heaven, where my building is named after a Games most people don't know or care about, and where I realize only after talking to someone all through dinner that he's a bronze medal-winning Paralympian.

Basically, it's the coolest. So I've attempted to condense my constant inner squeeing into a (relatively) short list of my favorite things about living at the OTC. :)

1. This is the first thing you see as you enter the complex, aka where I live.

2. My address is 1 Olympic Plaza. Seriously, is that not the coolest thing ever?

3. People I meet ask what sport I'm here for. "Oh, no, I'm actually here to sit in a cubicle for eight hours a day, but I'm flattered!"

4. I can walk past this:

and this:

whenever I want!

5. There are Olympic murals on the walls of the dining hall for London, Sochi and Rio. :)

6. I get to look at Eric Heiden's face on the window during every meal.

This also means I'm surrounded by people who actually know who Eric Heiden is!

7. At least two other interns have read The Boys of Winter, and another wants to borrow it from me when I'm done with my re-read. I have found my people.

8. Exploring all the facilities!

9. Everyone here watches sports. Everyone. I mean, duh, but I've never been a part of a group of people in which you automatically have a) something in common with everyone, and b) rivals. And then there's the experience of, "Oh, you hate the Gators too?! Let's be friends!"

10. Youth/junior national teams come here to train. And practices are open for anyone on complex to come watch. So...

11. I live a short walk away from an official Team USA store. (Hey, this is a list of MY favorite things, not my wallet's favorite things!)

12. I share living spaces with the likes of Allison Schmitt, John Orozco and Vitaly Scherbo, and those are just the ones I know of! 

13. Knowing that some of America's greatest Olympians ever have lived here in the past, and hearing stories about them. It's like the OTC's own urban legends. "When Apolo Ohno used to live here, he would hop up the Incline on one leg!"

...Yep, sounds about right.

EDIT: This blog is Apolo-approved!

A Mile High

What's got two thumbs and is NOT an unemployed graduate living at home with her parents?

THIS GIRL!

(I would apologize for the fresh-out-of-the-shower hair, pajamas, and bags under my eyes, but listen, the real world ain't no picnic.)

I feel like the world's biggest slacker for not mentioning it here, but I'm spending the summer as a communications intern for USA Volleyball out here in Colorado Springs. I also happen to be living at the Olympic Training Center. *brushes shoulders off*

I've been in Colorado for about a week, living at the OTC since Tuesday, and it's been awesome so far. Everyone is really nice, my address is 1 Olympic Plaza, work is good, I have friends, and I may or may not be sharing a dining hall with the likes of Missy Franklin, Allison Schmitt and John Orozco.

But all of this also means getting up at 6:30 every day, full days in a cubicle (that's all mine!!!), and rush hour commutes. So by the time I get home at 5:45 pm, all I want to do is eat and go to sleep. Which, basically, is what happens (because I'm on a floor with all interns, and we're all in the same boat. We all crash uber early.) Blogging is not so much on the agenda.

Right now it's midnight (and the latest I've stayed up in a whole week!) and I'm exhausted (see Exhibit A: those bags under my eyes). But I wanted to get something out to the universe ASAP so, while I may not be functional enough for words, here's my week in photos!