What Else?

I am fascinated by the logistics of the Olympics. Like how it all comes together, how they make it all work behind the scenes, etc. It’s why I like the movie Olympic Dreams. It’s not the best movie ever, but it was shot on location during the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, with unprecedented backstage access to the Olympic Village and athlete areas. It’s neat. Anyway, pole vaulters have to bring their own poles to the Games! Not as big of a pain in the ass as flying horses around the world, but arguably the biggest pain-in-the-ass equipment to bring to the summer Games that isn’t alive. (Popsugar)

So…um…I have some questions about Noah Lyles competing days after testing positive for COVID, especially in light of what appears to be an outbreak at the Games. It’s not on him, individually, clearly the IOC had zero plan for COVID and instituted no mitigating factors and now athletes are fully competing while testing positive, which I’m sure will have no lasting consequences for anybody. (Celebitchy)

A history of quirky roadside espresso shacks in the Pacific Northwest. The white coffee sounds good! (Eater)

This week marks the 20th anniversary of the Dave Matthews Band Chicago River Poop Incident, in which the band’s tour bus unloaded around 800 pounds of poo on a boatload of unsuspecting people below while crossing a bridge over the Chicago River. I wasn’t even living in Chicago when this happened, and I remember it making the national news. Here’s an oral history of that moment, which involves phrases like “wall of smell”, “I’m throwing up, while I’m driving, and my husband is screaming”, and “That’s not water, buddy.” Truly horrible it happened, but the resulting improvements in environmental/waste disposal in the city were real. (Chicago magazine)