And so the flame has been put out and the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London have come to a close. And a very rockin’ one at that! Last night’s closing ceremonies featured a music and visual extravaganza that took us on a fifty year journey of British Pop and Fashion. 
From live performances by George Michael, the long-awaited (I guess) reuninon of the Spice Girls to The Who, to tributes to The Beatles, David Bowie & Queen… it was pretty amazing.
Among my favorite moments was Eric Idle, of Monty Python fame, leading not only the characters on stage, but the 80,000 people in the stands, in “You’ve Got To Look On The Bright Side Of Life” from the movie “The Life Of Brian”.
And I especially loved the three Rolls Royce automobiles they used on stage… even though the car that has always been the symbol of England is now owned by Volkswagon and is made by BMW in Germany.
As for the games themselves, the US had an incredible run — taking home the most medals overall — a whopping 104! — followed by China’s 87, Russia’s 82, and Great Britain’s 65.
We also came out on top in the Gold category… with a total of 46. China was next with 38, Great Britain earned 29 and Russia got 24.
Over the two weeks, 204 countries participated in 302 events. Congrats to all the athletes, but in particular to Team USA who did such an astounding job! So much for the “Decline of America”!
On a side note… I was so inspired by Michael Phelps and the entire US Men’s and Women’s Swim Teams, that later today, I begin my official training for the 2016 games in Rio. I’m hoping to compete in the “Solo Syncronized Swimming” event.
-Dick
BTW…The Games may be over… but you’ve got until 5pm tomorrow (Tuesday, August 14) to nominate your favorite local charity for their share of $40,000 being given away by the Suburban Collection in their “Great Charity Giveaway”! That’s right… the deadline for nominations is TOMORROW at 5pm. Just click on any one of the Suburban Collection ads on this page before time runs out!