Back To Blogging!

Just in time for my arrival at the Team USA Olympic Summit in Dallas, my blog was hacked or otherwise "taken over" by an unknown force in the universe. For anyone who visited this site May 13 through today, you may have seen the home page quickly switch over to a crud site. For this technical glitch, likely caused by user error on my part, I apologize. It was an excruciating process to get it fixed.

Before jumping back to blogging, I'll take just a moment to thank the helpful Google/Blogger message board contact who did his best to help me navigate a fix. I must say, it would be greatly appreciated if the wizards at Google would create a phone help center as a backup to these boards and chat rooms.

OK, there's TONS of cool Olympic stuff in the news, on the Web and around the globe. The London Olympic Games are popping up everywhere. And there are several ways folks may win their way to the 2012 Olympics if they are willing to click and code their way through some sponsor and other sweepstakes sites:

• VISA encourages entries via several banks offering credit cards, or through the Go World contest
• Proctor & Gamble has several contests underway, including an EveryDay product sweepstakes, a Pampers entry option and a Pro-Health dental competition (the Duracell contest apparently ended)
• United Airlines has an easy to enter contest including (surprise) airfare and all the fixings
• BP will let you enter if you buy eat here and get gas at one of their U.S. service stations (on the drive back from Dallas to Atlanta I picked up game codes in several states)
• Cost Plus World Market is adding some red, white and blue unofficial Games marketing to a big event in the U.K.
• Mini Cooper apparently will give away a trip later in the summer (I could not yet find a link)
• Citi created the Every Step program and contest through which participants may cheer on several key athletes and their charities of choice (I met two of these athletes in Dallas and will profile them in another post)
• Macy's with Ralph Lauren are giving away an Olympic trip
• The UPS Store has an Olympic sweepstakes open with VISA
• Panasonic's got an Olympic contest, too
• I wear my sunglasses at night, and so does Oakley, official supplier with Take London contest
• Dow wants you to know about Great Stuff to enter their London Olympic giveaway
• Hilton Honors rounds out the Olympic giveaways for this post

Special thanks to Shreveport, La., resident and ISOH member Brian Carberry for methodically locating these and other recent five-ringed sweepstakes. Good luck!

Photo via this site

USOC Hosts 2012 Team USA Media Summit

On the scene in Dallas at the U.S. Olympic Committee's 2012 Team USA Media Summit, it's been a whirlwind of interviews and photo opportunities to learn more about athletes for the London Games, now just 74 days ahead.
Lots of lessons learned, including some computer coding issues given the possible hack to this blog -- it's incredibly frustrating that I've not been able to post for 48 hours. Hopefully this post, including two photos with Olympians on site (Shawn Johnson and Michael Phelps) will work and be visible to readers.

Later today will attempt to post interview details and some information about Michelle Obama's announcement related to "Let's Move!" on site at the summit. Stay tuned for updates and send good vibes for an easy fix to the blog

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver