We once had a poor turn out when the Bulls were in a game 7, but Women's Curling knocked our attendance to a record low.  Just 17 skaters showed up!  Even Fred gave up his perfect attendance to watch Cheryl Bernard take on Team Sweden for the Gold Medal in Curling.  Is it wrong for a man to take an interest in a sport because he finds the women who play it strangely attractive? Click here to find out.

The Dupont sisters and Denmark attracted a large viewing audience, but they never made it to the Medal round in their tilted Kilts.

Our favorite waitress is back at Nicks.

Thanks to Karen, we had enough Duffers to have a 4 on 4 game.

Boris flew in from FLA. when he heard we were going to see Karen. 

My grandkids did a number on my cake.

Is it wrong for a man to take an interest in a sport because he finds the women who play it strangely attractive?

Yes, I'm sure it is. Absolutely. Let me be the first to answer my own question.  It's wrong. It's wrong. It's wrong. Especially for an old married guy.

To every daughter's mother and father, therefore, please allow me to apologize in advance. But if loving curling is wrong, I don't want to be right.

Ten days ago, I'd never watched 10 minutes of curling, let alone all 10 "ends" of a game. Now, thanks to Denmark's Dupont sisters, Canada's Cheryl Bernard and saturation coverage of Olympic curling on the "networks of NBC," I've got a fairly good understanding of the rules, a beginner's notion of the strategy and a powerful urge to get out on the ice and slide a few stones.  OK, let's be honest. That's not my only powerful urge, but I'm determined to keep this clean and stay out of the doghouse at home -- or at least limit my stay.  The blogosphere, on the other hand, is fairly teeming with more lustful observations from guys who seem to have similarly set aside the American prejudice against curling after developing an ardent appreciation for its female practitioners.  How can I explain the fascination?  There just seems to be something especially sexy about attractive women on cold ice.

It's not even as if any of the women curlers are going to make it as super models after the Olympics.  This is more of a girl-next-door kind of thing: women who are in shape (for the most part) and competitive, but not elite athletes; women who look like they wouldn't mind going bowling on a date -- or think twice about beating you.  They compete in full makeup and jewelry, but dress in team uniforms barely more fashionable than sweatsuits, all except for the Danish women, who wear kilts some of the time, in honor of the sport's Scottish roots.

Sadly, the Danes will be out of the Olympics after tonight, having failed to qualify for the medal round, and along with them the aforementioned Dupont sisters -- Madeleine, 22, and Denise, 25.  It was definitely a close-up of wide-eyed Madeleine delivering her rock down the ice in curling's distinctive Spider-man lunge position while screaming "hard, hard, harder" that first caused me to pause the remote control and linger on the curling action.

For those who haven't been watching, that's what the person sliding the stone yells when they want the sweepers to use their brooms to brush the ice furiously to make the stone go faster or to turn. What did you think?  One of the unique features about curling coverage is that all the competitors are miked, which allows you to hear them in their full-throated glory.  Madeleine, who is single and a student at Copenhagen Business School, according to the official Vancouver Olympics Web site, is definitely a screamer.  Her motto, and I'm not making this up (although I can't promise nobody else did) is: "Live life dangerous -- you'll not get away from it alive anyway!"  Sister Denise, who works as a chef in a day care center, has a boyfriend and a child -- which may cool the ardor of some of her new fans.  While the Dupont sisters remind me of Franka Potente, who played Matt Damon's girlfriend in the Jason Bourne movies, 43-year-old Bernard of Canada is more of a prospect for "Desperate Housewives" or "Cougar Town." She's also made the Canadians a medal favorite, which means there's still time to see her in action.

The folks at at the Chicago Curling Club in Northbrook tell me excitement over the Olympics has created a 400-person waiting list for their "Learn to Curl" classes. That's men and women.  I may add my name to the list, if my wife will still agree to go with me after reading this.

I Hit 70!

George Carlin on HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay them.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.  I play hockey every Friday and stay out late with my cheerful friends.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's. I enjoy writing and posting the Duffer News every week and can't wait for spring so that I can get out and till my garden.

4. Enjoy the simple things. I have been enjoying my snow blower and taking pictures of the beautiful snow

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath. I do plenty of that every Friday night and every time I see my grand kids.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive. I have done this

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge. I certainly have done this. Our grandkids make me smile, my garden gives me food and a work out.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help. I love my new hips.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is. I leave for Nashville on Thursday with my sons, click here for more Road Trips

10.Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.  I have done this, but I will do this more often now that I hit 70!

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. Hockey takes my breath away every shift.

George Carlin's Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

"How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key.

You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

"How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . .You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.

You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!

You get into your 80's and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30 ; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; "I Was JUST 92."

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!"
May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

Maybe Fred went back to Brazil