Well, counting down the hours until I return home to Maine. Never thought I'd be looking forward to a 14-hour flight, but I am.

Not that this hasn't been grand. But it is time to go home.

I'll catch you up on a few things.

My German buddy, Wolfgang, from Dresden, flew out Sunday morning. I met him Saturday afternoon in the cafeteria at lunch (I had the roast Peking duck, very interesting) and we exchanged addresses and hopes to see each other again. Then we shook hands, hugged and he left.

Apparently, a lot of foreign journalists left Sunday morning, before the upcoming Closing Ceremonies. Not sure why.

My flight is Monday afternoon. And I've been told to get to the airport at least five hours ahead of time, it will be that chaotic.

When I get home, there are a few things I need: a cold glass of milk, a cheeseburger on the grill and a hot fudge sundae (the ice cream here is like thick Cool Whip).

Today, Sunday, I went to the men's basketball gold medal game. What an atmosphere. The crowd was electric, the play was fast and furious. Very physical. The U.S. built the lead, Spain cut it to two midway through the fourth, then the U.S. pulled away, 118-107. The stars # Kobe, LeBron and DWade # were too much down the stretch.

I'm heading over to National Stadium for the Closing Ceremonies. I'm sure they'll close these Olympics in style.

Later.

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