Just keeps getting better...

So recently I had my annual physical. It was a good one, as I am about 40 pounds lighter than at my last physical, and in general I seem to be in pretty good health. My blood pressure is good, everything seems to be in order.

Except one little thing.

I apparently have a reasonably serious Vitamin D deficiency. I guess your normal level is supposed to be 30 whatevers per the hoosey whatsit and my level was 13. Not the biggest deal in the world, my doctor put me on 4000 units of Vitamin D (four little pills once a day) every day for 2 months and then we will re-test.

Now Vitamin D is one of those things that is pretty easy to get low levels in when you live in a place like Chicago where you don't get a lot of sun in the winter, since your best source of Vitamin D is direct sunlight. It is hard to get in food, especially if you don't drink a lot of Vitamin D fortified milk, which most of us over the age of eleven do not.

Of course, most people who have recently spent over 20 days IN SOUTH FLORIDA over the past three months might not have a problem with Vitamin D, what with all the sun they are so flipping famous for...

Florida: EXTRA FAIL

AGAIN!

At the moment I am feeling even worse since my parents are currently down there hanging out with my grandmother in the lovely low 60s temps with gale force winds, oh so desireable for hanging out by the pool, as long as you don't mind wearing a parka.

At least they are expecting rain tomorrow, so that should be entertaining. Not very.

Speaking of entertaining, as in not very, am I the only one who has found this Olympics singularly boring? I mean, yes, I was mightily entertained by the female cross country skiier who managed to fall off the course into a ravine for no apparent reason. And nothing really beats a tiny little figure skater who spins around with such force and speed that she gives herself a bloody nose. Yes, Shaun White was awesome. But the sum total of his performance was only slightly longer than the Progressive Insurance commercials that bookended it. The vistas are gorgeous, it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, and I remember my visit to the area very fondly. But with all apologies to my Canadian pals, the dullness of the opening ceremonies has been eclipsed by the dullness of the games themselves, prompting Charming Suitor and I to begin to invent new potential sports.

We like the idea of combinbing some of the Biathalon of Cross Country Skiing and Shooting with other activities, like ski jumping...we think the jumping part would be much more exciting if a Biathelte might accidentally shoot you while you were in the air. Even better if instead of the loud buzzer at the top, someone just yelled "PULL!"

We also think that figure skating and hockey should be combined. Yeah, let's see you land that triple axel when someone is trying to check you into the boards! Talk about bloody noses! Or making the hockey goalies do a sit spin without knocing into the goal. Try that with all those pads.

Snowboarding, already fairly high on the excitement list, could be even better if the half-pipe has a polar bear or two wandering around that you might not want to bump into. And don't even get us started on the patent-pending Ejecto-Moguls.

We also think that no one should be allowed to wear clothing so specifically designed for speed and aerodynamic performance. I personally want to see those speed skaters have to wear Mascot uniforms, complete with the big heads. If for no other reason than we might actually hear Dan Jansen say "If Apolo Ohno can just maintain his balance as the St. Louis Chicken, he should be able to stave off the Hello Kitty that is Japan's best contender."

One note, in every Olympics there is a heartbreaking story or two, so in spite of my cheekiness about the games, I do want to send my most sincere and heartfelt condolances to the family, friends and colleagues of Nodar Kumaritashvili the luge competitor who lost his life the day the games began. And condolances tempered with congratulations to Joannie Rochette, who skated beautifully despite the recent loss of her mother, and was an inspiration to all who watched and wept with her and her family.