The struggle is real

It’s 8:30 p.m. on Saturday. Today has not been a very long day. In fact, I slept in the latest I have since I’ve been able to leave my hotel and I only covered two events today.

But I am fried. My brain is just not functioning. You know that feeling you get when you’re almost on auto-pilot and things are just floating by you. That’s me.

I have had longer days. I have had stretches of days where I’ve worked more hours and not felt this way. I think, more than anything, the tiredness is a mental fatigue more than a physical fatigue. 

I am not tired of the Olympics. However, there are things about this particular experience that I am tired of. I am tired of having to remember which day it is so I can be sure to take the COVID tests on the right days. I am tired of having to fill out a health questionnaire every morning. I am tired of making sure I have enough time to catch one bus to another bus to get to a venue. I am tired of the security checks and the temperature screenings before you go into any building. I am tired of the long walks from the bus stop to the venue entrance. I am tired of idiots asking the bus driver where he’s going when there are very obvious signs stating the destination of every single bus. I am tired of wearing the mask outside. 

I am just tired.

I have one full day left in Tokyo, plus a partial day on Monday. Tomorrow is the women’s basketball championship game and then the closing ceremonies. I also have a lot of packing to do to prepare for the trip home.

It may be the heat, which is seemingly unending. It may be the fact that this process has been in the works for more than two years. But truthfully, it’s the COVID that has made this a tiring experience. All the protocols (I know they’re necessary), all the paperwork, all the extra steps, they are all taking a bit of a toll.

So yeah, I am tired. But, soldier on I will. Tomorrow is another day.

The Tatsumi Water Polo Centre is the final venue I will see for the first time in Tokyo.