GMTS Newsletter: Can you unplug from the Olympics?

Wednesday , August 8, 2012

It’s good to be back home and good to be back in the newsletter fold. So let’s get going.

We have to talk Olympics.

I was on vacation last week with my family, and you’re welcome, Orlando NBC affiliate. We spent a great deal of time at the beach, and at Epcot, and at the pool … but when we were indoors, that television was tuned to WESH 2 News.

Why? If we turned the channel, we might accidentally find out what happened in London. We made the mistake one time, and ESPN’s bottom line made us regret it.

So, what about all the other distractions, you ask. The web, social media, that smartphone at the ready?

Being “plugged in” wasn’t all that much of a concern for me. I’m not one of those who has my cell phone at the ready, in one of those holsters, ready to pounce when it rings.

And sure, I had access to the internet, to Twitter, to Facebook … but I wanted to be on vacation from all of it. For the most part.

My point is this. I love the Olympics. Every silly trampoliney, rhythmic gymnasticy, speed-walking bit of it. And being on vacation allowed me to knowingly ignore the fact that this stuff happened 12 hours prior.

What I didn’t realize until I was mired in the medal count, though, is that had I been home, I would not have been able to fully enjoy the Olympics.

I would have found out the results before NBC aired them, because I would have checked all those media distractions.

And I would have had to go to bed too early to see the highlights even if I didn’t.

But being on vacation allowed me to enjoy them (at least the way NBC wanted me to) in all their red white and blue prime time glory.

Sure, you can berate NBC for not airing the events live, but we’re also to blame. We’re an arm’s length away from any bit of information the deep recesses of our brains want. And usually, I’m a big fan.

Heck, it pays the bills (have you heard of wcpo.com? Or the 9 News app ? Or our Twitter ,  Facebook or Pinterest pages?).

But in this case, it allowed me to sit with my 6-year-old daughter as she cheered the Fierce Five and declared that she was going to be McKayla Maroney for Halloween.

Both girls know Ryan Lochte from Michael Phelps and learned new swim strokes by watching Missy Franklin.

Sure, it’s fabricated. It's overly dramatic and it's tape-delayed. But isn’t that what reality TV is all about?

From Today’s Show:

-Back to School: My husband says there’s no one in the Commonwealth happier that kids are going back to school than me. And I’m pretty sure he’s right. We’re celebrating with a special Back to School special tomorrow night at 5:30, live from Lakota East. Join us!

-Nooooo!: Beer prices are going up. Both Anheuser-Busch and Miller-Coors say they’re both bumping up prices on brew in the coming months. Stock up the beer fridge now.

Today’s Distracting Link:

Check here to see which Olympian’s body you most resemble. You might want to suck in.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19050139