Nightlife & CBS Radio Paul Kariya's Mother While walking today, I bumped into Sharon Kariya. Even though Paul was unable to participate in the Olympics, Sharon came over here with Paul's grandmother - who sounds quite amazing by the way. She just celebrated her 82nd birthday here in Nagano and has had a chance to catch up with some relatives. Sharon told me that she has attended all of the Canadian games and is impressed at how well they are playing as a team. I was glad to have a chance to talk with Paul's mom, she is such a positive, energetic person. She leaves a smile on your face. Night Life in Nagano The nightlife here is pretty different. There aren't any big clubs like in North America - space is at a premium. It is amazing how people from every corner of the earth have congregated in Nagano. The other night I was at a party and I met such a diverse group of people. There were 3 or 4 staff members from the IOC in Switzerland - they were handing out Swiss chocolates. Then there was Jason, the Jamaican bobsledder. This was prior to my bobsled run so I chatted him up for awhile. There were also a couple of guys from the Virgin Island bobsled team - what's the deal with all these warm weather countries entering into bobsledding? Anyway, it's a lot of fun to talk to the other athletes. Tommy Moe, this off the wall U.S. skier, was fun to hang with. He won the gold medal in Lillehammer in the downhill but didn't fare so well here - he finished eighth. These parties are different from back home because everybody is very open and friendships are made immediately. Perhaps, I'll do some more research after the game tonight! CBS Radio Well, I have to do some prep for the Kazakstan/Canada game before I head over to the USA/Czech game. CBS Radio has asked me to do their color commentary today with play-by-play man Gary Cohen. I did this for the Canada/USA game and it was a lot of fun. It is amazing to sit up in the commentators' booth and see all the media from around the world. The way it works is that one broadcaster is chosen to provide the world feed - for hockey it's CBC. All the networks get the visuals from the world feed and provide their own commentators. I saw guys from CBC, CBS, Turner, Japan's NHK, Channel 7 in Australia. When I took my headphones off, I heard about 15 different languages. What's Next? After Canada's game tonight, I hope to catch the end of the women's free skate. Check in tomorrow for details.
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