comfort zones - Hockey!!!

This is it, Sunday is the final men's hockey game of the 2010 Winter Olympics. I think the world knows who the two teams are going to be in that final game - Canada and the US.
Naturally, I am hoping Canada gets the gold.
I wonder what the stats are going to be for how many people all over the world are going to be watching that game?
Who sits in comfort while watching a game like that? While I'm thinking of it, I wonder if there are going to be moments when people at home are going to be standing and jumping, too.
While I'm not thinking of comfort and warm fuzzies when I'm watching great hockey, I do think of the comfort I feel with the people I share watching the game.
The barriers come down, and we state opinions and cheer knowing that we are all comfortable with each other.
Regardless of the team we cheer for, we share a common bond. Even for those of us who don't regularly watch hockey but will watch this one, it still becomes a common bond we share with everyone in the room.
Bonding. It's so important. And once we find a common bond with someone, it's easier to feel comfortable with them, even if it's only for one small interest.
Here's my thought/question of the day/weekend. When you are in a situation with someone you don't know, how do you strive to find that common bond? Of course, once we find one bond and actually start talking, isn't it often surprising at how many other common bonds there are?

end of January

Where did January go?
Usually January is a dreary month, so I gladly wave goodbye.
With Februrary, starting tomorrow, I'm going to plan something new. I'm going to run a different topic every month, and my plan is to update my blog every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I invite everyone to comment, and let's see what we come up with.
But in the meantime, I gladly wave goodbye to January.
With Febrary will come... the 2010 Winter Olympics.
And traffic restrictions. Clogged roads and highways. They're even closing a bridge tomorrow.
What's really going to be interesting is the weather. It's been unseasonably warm, and that means... no snow has fallen. It's got to snow for a week in order to get the amount of snow that would be ideal.
They're going to start trucking snow down the mountain.
This I gotta see.