Although I’m due to be working tomorrow, today was a very sad day, leading up to the end of the Olympics, and my unemployment.
I was on the morning shift, so
made my way in nice and early. However,
I was held up by a guy at the newsagents where I buy breakfast, who started his
conversation with ‘Mo did really well last night’ and ended with ‘I hate those
damn immigrants coming in and stealing our jobs’. With some random abuse about the French thrown
in the middle. I have no idea how that
happened, and if I hadn’t been in my Games Maker uniform I probably would have
said something more helpful/witty/intelligent than ‘but Mo’s an
immigrant and he just won us two Gold Medals’.
However, that was all I could say, and chuckled when the (immigrant)
shopkeeper made a comment about the fact that the man was reading too much of the Daily
Mail. I gave the shopkeeper an
apologetic look and excused myself. The
man was making me late. I can't believe there are still people who are still so prejudiced.
Before I had even arrived, I
had phone calls to do with luggage instructions I had spent all day yesterday translating. It was a busy day from the start. But I was grateful for that. I didn't want to have to dwell on the end.
In the end, we decided that we
had given them the information, and they could use it as much as they
wanted. I think I noticed someone
bringing in some scales a little later, so maybe I was successful. I never found out.
As the morning became the
afternoon, Christina and Mike arrived for their shift. I suddenly became acutely aware that my
penultimate shift was almost over. Reluctant
to leave, I stayed with Christina and Mike, helping out with interpreting. As the day grew quieter, it was
agreed that Christina would help with the Closing Ceremony. We wandered down to the gift shop to look
around, and then I left to go home.
Still clinging to the last
threads of the Olympics, I changed my mind at the last minute and headed
towards Victoria Park, where BT had huge screens showing the Closing
Ceremony. I wanted to be a part of
it.
I queued for the best part of
an hour, with Mike and his girlfriend queuing just behind me. The Venezuelans had given me a box of
chocolates (the ones saying ‘Made in Socialism’ on the side), and LOCOG had
given us all a relay baton as a keepsake, so I’d had to carry my book. Handy for a long queue. The kids in front of me played, and someone
behind started playing crowd-volleyball with a beach ball, which was great fun.
The Closing Ceremony was
amazing and emotional to watch. Everyone
sat calmly and sedately until the Spice Girls, when everyone stood up until the
end. Seeing the torch go out, and Boris
handing the Olympic Flag over to the Brazilians, brought a lump to my
throat. I wanted to run up there and ask
for another go. I wasn’t ready for it to
end. Being only a mile away from the
Stadium, we got to watch the fireworks live rather than on TV. They were amazing – much better than any
display I’ve seen before.
The walk back to the station,
and the trip, was long and slow. Hungry,
and sad, I sat on the sofa in front of the News when I reached home and munched
on some Prawn Crackers from a Chinese we’d had a few days ago. I can’t believe it’s over. I know I’m going in tomorrow, but, really, it’s
over. I’m dreading saying goodbye
tomorrow.
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