A few updates about how things are going in my world:

Opportunities

There is no lack of them being presented to me right now.

Last Wednesday, I was lucky enough to represent one of the charitable organizations I work with, Play  It Cool, as we presented VANOC with a bronze medal for its environmental achievements (having finished fourth in an Olympics, I can certainly attest to the value of a bronze).

VANOC took incredible measures in its effort to lessen its impact on our environment. Highlights of the organizing committee's achievements include offsetting 100 per cent of its direct carbon footprint and leaving a legacy of venues that are energy efficient and at the forefront of environmentally conscious structures.

I have also been offered the chance to take part in the Olympic closing ceremony. I'm not sure I'll be able to with my knee, but if I can, I will.

At the moment I'm averaging about two interviews a day. I'm constantly amazed at our nation's excitement as the Games near. It seems even the biggest skeptics are getting excited and engrossed in the festivities. On Wednesday when I was in Vancouver for the Play It Cool press conference I got my first look at the city in its Olympic state. I don't think I've ever seen Vancouver look so good.  It made me want to run around and check every tent, venue and activity out there.

I've been talking with the girls (my teammates on the Canadian alpine squad) regularly as they finish up their final days of training before racing begins.  I'm so excited for them that I have trouble containing the emotions. As I've said before, I'm our team's No. 1 fan. So if my commentating on CTV is a bit biased in favour of our Canadian athletes, well, you'll just have to deal with it!

Weight

Since my crash just before Christmas, I've lost a total of 18 lbs. I have to admit, I didn't know I could lose that kind of weight. I also didn't realize how heavy muscle is (since I know it isn't fat I'm losing!).

I always thought I wasn't great at putting on muscle mass, but I've been proven wrong as I now see how much muscle I had built up over my career. Luckily the muscle memory is all there and I know it will come back fairly quickly once I start lifting again.

Workouts

In order to keep some weight and muscle on I've started a new workout regimen. I
call it the beach workout! Since I can, for the most part, only do core and upper-body exercises, it's perfectly suited for creating a great beach body. Though I have to admit, I am missing my diminishing booty, so I'm doing lots of one-legged squats to keep what I can.

Photography

Subject matter is the element that's currently lacking in my photography. My subjects are mostly those within a two-metre radius of my nearly permanent couch position, or else whatever I can see from my car window. I figure if I can find beauty in my crutches, then maybe I'll actually learn some skills as a photographer.  

My new hobby is also helping my soul. Without the passion for the Olympics and skiing as my fuel, I needed something to replace it. Just studying and working wasn't going to be enough to keep my heart and soul intact. So, for the moment, my soul's passion drug of choice is learning the art of photography.