So I live right off of the eclectic Commercial Avenue, and there’s a house on my way to the bus stop that’s painted its windows a vibrant and patriotic red-and-white, with a lovely, painstakingly traced script that reads, “Let’s get this over with.”

As far as anti-Olympic signs go, it’s pretty ingenious, and as much as I’ve had three Canuck playoff-run’s worth of debauchery over the past two weeks, I so need the 2010 Games to end just to get back to a normal schedule and get some work done.

I mean, the 2010 Winter Olympics are a defining moment for Canada, let alone Vancouver, and for those us in a Vancouver-based Masters graduate program with real-world deadlines and assignments, it’s the proverbial elephant in the room.

Sure, that guy from Rockstar Games is coming down at 5, but dude! The Canada-Russia game is on at 4:30!

As for today, it’s been tough to get anything done when you’ve got one eye glued to the clock and the other to a live feed of the USA-Finland men’s hockey game. I mean, pretty much no work’s been done in this city over the past two weeks, right?

Anyway, not much happened at school this week, and my group mostly worked on our portfolios before the big Portfolio Showcase next week.

This afternoon (Friday), an administrative panel consisting of Dr. Gerri Sinclair, Jeanette Kopak, Dennis Chenard, Alison Robb and Grace Battiston listened to pitches from some students who hoped to represent the MDM program at the Game Developers Conference in San Fransisco.

One by one, we each went up and talked about what made the program so unique, what prospective students could gain from the education, and the amazing networking strands that open up as a result of being here.

It’s funny, as I kept hearing everyone’s pitches, I kept thinking to myself, “I want to go to there.”

Since you’re reading this, you’re likely also convinced and don’t need much more persuasion. But since I forgot a list of embellishments in my GDC pitch this afternoon, I’ll share them here.

• We breed and raise unicorns here. Everyone gets their own unicorn for the duration of the program. Bonus? The unicorns have racing stripes.
• Jean-Philipe, our Michelin five-star chef, employs a delicate balance of biometrics and astrobotany to determine the daily nutritional needs of each student. Today he made me crawfish soup and rack of lamb with nougat scallions. It was transcendent.
• When first-year students arrive, they are guided by the Keeper of the Keys, Game and Grounds to small fishing boats, which magically sail across a mystic lake to the school’s entrance. Oh no wait, that’s Hogwarts.

Anyway, looks like women’s curling on TV is giving way to men’s semi-final hockey (Go Canada!) Also, my unicorn, Wesley Snipes, needs to be fed.

Nick Lewis is a 1st year MDM graduate student. His hobbies include spectator sports, raindrops on rainbows, and whiskers on kittens.