love cycling. hate crashes.

After working a few days in the Velodrome while actual events are taking place, cycling now has a very dear place in my heart. I can't get enough.

If you've watched any of it on TV (and from what I have heard, there isn't much) you might be a bit turned off... but like many sports, watching it live changes your mind. Especially when you are watching it from the top of a turn in the track... where you can hear the athletes talking to each other and see the expressions on their faces.

Although, based on the size of some of the lenses my photographer friends are using, you can probably see the expressions on their faces too... down to the whites of their eyes. Seriously, these guys' equipment is the size of a Chinese gymnast. And they just toss it around like kids toss around toys... they leave cameras and lenses lying around everywhere in the moat (which isn't very big to start with). I think it's cool though that they can do that. All the photographers are very professional and obviously, if they are at the Olympics, they're pretty good at what they do.

Yesterday there were a ton a photogs because the Women's Points Race was the first event, and there are lots and lots of riders in the race. And when there are lots and lots of riders... bad things happen. Bad things like crashes.

Sarah Hammer (USA), Satomi Wadami (JPN) and Verena Jooss (GER) went down... and didn't come up. I saw the whole thing about 12 feet below me and it was nasty. Some others went down too and got up, but the Japanese girl got her head/neck run over and I seriously thought she wasn't going to move. All I could hear were shutters clicking and the sound of the other riders flying past the crash.

Honestly it wasn't even some huge crash in the cycling world, but watching people get run over by bikes isn't cool no matter how big or bad the crash is. In fact, it was at this moment that I learned how little I like watching people get hurt when I can't do anything to help them. Had I been able to leap over the bar and slide down the track to help the situation (If Ho, call Pro) I think I would have been fine, but because I could only watch from above my reaction was less than desirable.

I felt all the blood leave my face, felt the heat wave and sweat start pouring out of my body, felt the weak knees and heart pounding... to the point where I had to go sit down for a moment. Seriously, Alysha... really? You can't even keep it together when you see a cycling crash? No. I couldn't. I'm so lame.

Once I regained composure I got back to work... keeping photographers in check and making friends with them so they will sneak me coffee out of the media lounge. The NBC guys have even offered to bring Starbucks from the fully functional 'bucks in the NBC headquarters here... where they all get whatever coffee they want... for free. Sounds like heaven.

The rest of the races were pretty excellent, but I realized how much I like the Australia/New Zealand situation during the Men's Team Pursuit where they were riding against each other. I came up with an analogy for the two countries; I feel like AUS/NZ is kind of like Purdue/IU. Both countries are kind of on their own down in their corner of the world (like two schools in Indiana). The two countries compete in races against each other, and everyone goes nuts for their respective team, but in the end, they all party together anyway (maybe like a certain favorite football rivalry weekend). Whatever it is, there's a cool, friendly but competitive vibe (maybe a mate from either country would disagree with me completely, but from where I'm sitting, they look like they get along). And honestly, I have yet to meet someone from either country that is not completely chill.

After the events ended, I was off to meet up with good friend and colleague Kyle Sloan (older brother of Bridget Sloan, crazy good Silver medal-winning Team USA gymnast). Pretty cool when your friends are hanging around Beijing when you are. Never really thought that would happen. So we took him to Luga's, our favorite Mexican restaurant that serves (not even kidding here) the BEST burritos I have ever had. Ever.

[K.Dools: Remember how our favorite Mexican delivery place was really owned and operated by Chinese people? Who would guess that the best and maybe only Mexican food in China is operated by a Hispanic person? If this isn't globalization, I don't know what is.]

And after an evening reminiscent of some good times at Purdue, we cabbed it home and ended another successfully fun day in China. Pretty sad that this is my last week here, even though I am excited to get back home.

But that reminds me... I had this crazy napdream the other day... sooo good. One of the photographers was talking to me, asking me what my plans were after I left China. Upon telling him that I'm in the process of securing employment (sounds much better than "begging for a job") he said, "Well, some colleagues of mine and I are going on a three month trip around the world, starting in South Africa, documenting the way people live. We'd love to have you along to help out, write down everything we see, help us stay organized." My napdream response to this was, "Omigosh YES. But I don't have much money, and I have a lease in Chicago." Then he said, "Well, we wouldn't be able to pay you, but we would cover all of your expenses on the trip and we would also pay your rent while you came with." And this is where my napdream ends... but it leads me to believe that maybe this could happen.

I really would pack up and peace out to travel around the world. Some of you know about my latest plan (I know one person in a similar job-hunt predicament does... let's call him L.Reed or Luke R. to protect his identity) which is that if I don't have a job by October 1, I'm going to drain my savings account and do the whole "backpack Europe" thing. I am maybe 45 percent serious about this plan right now. I would put a job on hold for another month and just live it up traveling. Right now it scares me that a real job means no more vacations longer than a few days. The ol' Daytner travel bug has bit me.

As I write this, Megan just got doused with coffee shower... the brown is back. I've gotta go. This situation demands my attention.