Who watched the 80th anual Scripps National Spelling Bee last nite? May I have the language of origin? Are there any alternative pronunciations? Dang, the competition was feirce. Those kids were unbeleivable. Hats off to 13 year old Evan O'Dorney who walked away with the trophey after throwing down "serrefine" (SEHR'-ah-feen). The camera shot of the tear welling up in fellow eighth grader Nate Gartke's eye, when he realised he just took second, was more hart wrenching than George failing the Intern Exam. Intellectual athleticks, cerebral competition and reallity TV at it's finest. Take that Trebek!
But how 'bout that ending? First off, why was it that a Canadian almost won our National Spelling Bee? Second, did Evan O'Dorney understand that he just won our National Spelling Bee? At the close of the contest, ESPN's Stuart Scott jumps onstage to interview the Baby Einstein and gets absolutely no reaction from the kid. None. Zero. Zilch. Zot. Scott tried to create some energy, à la "Tom Brady, you just won the Super Bowl! What are you going to do next?" but failed to elicit any "I'm going to Disney World!" enthusiasm from the 4ft. dictionary in round rimmed glasses. The fact is, we were told by Evan himself, earlier in the broadcast, that he doesn't even like spelling. Mathematics, martial arts and composing piano concertos are his true passions.
Scott: Would you like to, maybe, reassess your likability of the National Spelling Bee?
(Evan had no response. No reaction at all. He just stood there.)
Scott: How do you feel about it now?
O'Dorney: Are you saying I'm supposed to like it more?
It was actually uncomfortable to see. Scott was twisting in the wind. O'Dorney seemed utterly ambivalent towards the whole thing. I just had to laugh at the awkwardness of it all. Now, I don't want to take away anything from Evan O'Dorney's decisive win or prodigious command of all things linguistic; he kicked some serious Bee ass. A-S-S, ass. But I couldn't help but think how children with autism spectrum disorders often can't differentiate between a smile and a frown. It was a strange moment. Sort of the triumph of victory and the agony of defeat at the exact same time.
I hope they have a replay!
ReplyDeleteI just checked the broadcast schedule at the official web site http://www.spellingbee.com/ & they only list the live event.
ReplyDeleteHey, wait a minute! Are you being snarky Mrs. M? I suggest you set your TiVo for next years spelldown and see the phonetic sparks fly for yourself. This is a serious, no holds barred, no spell check allowed, rumble.
Ha! You're a hoot Matt! I especially like your misspellings in the beginning. And it is weird how Autism fits into all this.
ReplyDelete