Odds and ends

A features editor (who shall remain nameless) was incensed this morning by the NBC announcer who consistently called the competitors in yesterday's women's halfpipe competition "girls."

"These are world class athletes. They're not girls," she said.

Technically, 16-year-old competitor Elena Hight could probably be fairly described as a girl, but I do see the larger point. After all, many figure skaters and most gymnasts are considerably younger than the snowboarders, and they're generally referred to as women. And nobody called 19-year-old men's gold medalist Shaun White a boy, although he looks young enough to get carded for an R-rated movie.

I also heard some complaints about commercials during the games. We're seeing the same five spots over and over and over and over. It's like watching curling. Little joke there. I suspect it's because NBC signed up a handful of major sponsors and they, in turn, get their ads plastered everywhere, every night.

Look on it as a blessing: Spend four hours a night watching the Olympics for three weeks and you will be in no shape to fit into one of those latex speed skating suits by the time it's done.