An Olympic Year

Have you been watching the Olympics? Did you see the opening ceremonies? Something seems a little different about this year’s Olympics. For the most part, I’ve missed the Olympics the last 3 or 4 times around, but this year there has been more hype surrounding the Olympic athletes like Michael Phelps, the U.S. gymnastic and basketball teams and volleyballers Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor (who will appear on the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars).

NBC did a good job marketing the Olympics and it was accessible on TV several times a day for several hours at a time. Several people I talked to said they were tired during the two and a half week period of the Olympics because they were watching the Olympics late at night. So was I. As of matter of fact, I still haven’t caught up on my sleep.

One of the breaking stories many people were talking about was the allegations of the underage athletes from China. There were questions about the validity of their passports and documentation of their ages. We’ll see what develops in the near future.

China made a big impact on this year’s Olympics. The opening ceremonies were magnificent and the Chinese athletes won more Gold medals than any other country (the U.S.A. won more total medals). But at what cost?

There were questions about the ages of the Chinese gymnasts, there were comments about the grueling hours of training, and stories about young athletes being separated from their parents and families. Maybe they met their Olympic goals, but what about the long term effects. The past has proven that gold medals don’t make a country a super power.

Maybe the American way of life isn’t as bad as some critics would have you believe. Our athletes are given more freedom to choose (sometimes too much), freedom to act as they want (within reason) and the freedom to interact with their family and friends. It’s not always a perfect system, but I think we’ve proven that it works.

The U.S.A. is still the land of opportunity and so many athletes and families want to make their home here. Go Olympians! Go U.S.A.!

Sincerely,
Mark & Veronica

Appreciating the Help

Well, it certainly has been a busy two weeks at the studio. We had our Summer Showcase on July 27th, Mark’s Birthday Bash on August 8th and then the Youth Showcase on August 9, 2008. It’s been over four weeks without a day off, that’s quite a while to go without a break. But now I get to slow down a little before we begin to gear up for the end of the year.

It takes a lot of work and coordinating to produce a Showcase or a Friday night theme party with dance exhibitions. We must coordinate the decorations, catered food, set up of chairs and tables, ticket and program printing, music editing and more. Veronica and Charles are always by my side and they are very helpful to me and the studio. However, as organized as I may seem (some of you know otherwise!) I often need help to complete the showcases and events that are held at the studio.

I would like to thank some of the helpers at our recent events. Thanks to Andrea Haase (front desk), Huishi Yen (front desk), Dave Suess (programs), Eddie Ngo (camera), Jennifer & Jenelyn Ngo (food setup), and others. Special thanks go out to Anne Herron and Chris Hutson who really went above and beyond the call of duty to help with both showcases and the birthday party.

Both Anne and Chris did so much, they cleaned upstairs, they cleaned downstairs, they replaced the linoleum in the kitchen and have done much more. They don’t ask for any compensation, they just do it because they love the studio and in these economically difficult times, they’re just trying to help the studio succeed however they can. These comments are not just to “toot their horns” but to let everyone know that I can’t produce a showcase by myself and that I really appreciate everybody’s help.

Moral of the story: It’s a team effort to produce our showcase and special events. Your help is welcome and is greatly appreciated. If anyone is interested in helping at our future events, please ask me.

Sincerely,
Mark & Veronica