It is pretty obvious walking around the city of London that the Olympic countdown has begun. One more year!

Pretty much everyday there is an article in the newspapers about tickets to the games themselves (or lack therof). I remember watching all the coverage on the BBC during the Vancouver Olympics. They would have live video from 3 to 5 different sports plus live comments and scoring. I could do my work online and be at the games at the same time. But if I had the chance to actually sit in one of those stadiums and watch it all live, I can imagine that would be really something. When I was younger I was fortunate to be part of the opening ceremonies of the World Track and Field Championships in Paris, and afterwards got to watch some of the races live! That was quite something, and I imagine the Olympics are 1000 times better.

So understandably everyone in London wants a ticket to the games and everyday in the newspaper they report on how many people have been lucky enough to get tickets. Hmm no, that’s not quite right. Everyday there are articles in the paper about how many people have NOT been able to receive tickets. “More than two thirds of Londoners missed out on tickets to the 2012 Olympic Games”!

The games are supposed to be a positive experience, for the athletes, for the city, for the world. So why, already before the games have even begun, do we need to be so negative about it! Perhaps it is true that two thirds of Londoners missed out, but what about the thousands of Londoners who did received tickets?? Everyone knows that there’s only a limited amount of seating available anyway, so why twist it around?

I watched a movie trailer yesterday with a little girl who says “I choose whether to be sad or happy and I chose to be happy”. Think the media could learn something from her.