I sit here now, in my den, with a lifetime of Olympics memories in my head and bagfulls of Olympics memorabilia on my floor. 

Attending the Olympics has been a lifelong dream for me, and now that the Olympics has come to a close, I feel a sense of fulfillment, of contentment. 

Driving home from Atlanta, I began to make mental notes of the most interesting events and items that I saw during my 2-week vacation in Atlanta. I pass those on to you, now, in category form: 

MOST IMPROVED ASPECT -- Transportation wins this category. During the first six days, transportation was utterly horrible. People were left standing in the sun for an hour or more, waiting for busses. Some bus drivers simply quit. There were accidents. Other drivers got lost. Some busses never came. But as time went on, the transportation situation improved. The waiting time was cut down to 15 minutes or less, and routes were changed so that busses got to their destinations quicker. 

BIGGEST JOKE -- Free water. We heard all these reports that free water and even free sports drinks were going to be handed out. During all the time I was there, I saw free beverages only three times, and they were being handed out in little cooler-like paper cups (the type that are V-shaped and can't be set down). 

BIGGEST JOKE, PART II -- Coca-Cola charged adults $13 to get into their Coca Cola city, which looked incredible from the outside. Inside, though, was nothing remarkable. In fact, some of it (such as its batting cages) was stuff you could find at any carnival. The only item of note was the giant, horizontal video screen that allowed you to stand on a track and race Jackie Joyner-Kersee, side-by-side. I really thought that with all the money Coca-Cola has, they would have made their pavilion a freebie (as Nike, AT&T and others did). 

BIGGEST SURPRISE BLESSING -- Scalpers. Yes, we usually regard scalpers in low esteem when we attend most sporting events, but the scalpers at the Olympics were often pleasant and gave many the chance to attend events for which tickets were not available during the original ticket-buying process. I would say that half the time, tickets were selling for below face-value price. I wanted to see the Dream Team play and was able to get a ticket for $50. 

MOST IRRITATING MOMENT -- I'm not making this up. Thousands of people left Opening Ceremonies BEFORE the torch was lit to beat the crowds out. Incredible. 

MOST WONDERFUL PEOPLE -- This will sound like a cliche, but the true champions of the Olympics were the volunteers. Folks, these people put up with utter hell, often standing in the sun all day long, and did so with smiles on their faces. I'm being honest with you when I say that even for $700 a week, I would not have done many of the jobs these volunteers were doing, and they were doing it for free. 

They gave real meaning to the term "Southern Hospitality." 

RUDEST PEOPLE -- Americans. Out of all the nationalities there, the people who complained the most, who huffed the most, who got angry the easiest, who were quick to yell at volunteers, who were quick to blame everybody, were the Americans. By far and away, the Americans were the loudest, most obnoxious group of people at the Olympics. (Man, am I ever going to get heat for this.) 

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT -- The Dream Team. Folks, this team is so good that it was boring to watch them. When I saw the Dream Team play, I sat with some Japanese folks, and they kept saying, "The Americans are just toying with them." Many times during the game, there was near silence as people read brochures and counted the flags hanging from the ceiling. Don't get me wrong. The U.S. should continue to send NBA players, but in the future, I don't think the hype will be as great. 

"COOLEST" ASPECT -- When I say "cool," I mean it literally. One of the best decisions Olympics organizers made was to put giant, spurting water fountains in the middle of Centennial Park in the shape of Olympics rings. Children and adults alike ran through the water, cooling off and having fun. At night, the fountains' spurts of water was choreographed to light and music. 

"HOTTEST" ASPECT -- Again, I mean this literally. Try using a port-a-potty that has been sitting in the sun all day long. The temperature inside those plastic structures had to have been 110 degrees or hotter. Some parents were so fearful of the heat that they stood with the doors open, their backs to the doorway, allowing their kids to use the toilets but with some semblance of privacy. 

BEST DEAL -- The city's newspaper, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, was absolutely, positively the best bang for the buck during the Olympics. Each day's paper featured hundreds of pages of content, including posters, charts and photos galore. The newspaper even had an afternoon edition that gave the latest news on the morning events. 

A special afternoon edition even included a photo magazine called "Click." This magazine featured some of the best photos of the athletes and fans. In an Olympics where water was $3 and T-shirts were $50, paying 50 cents for the daily paper was a wonderful thing. Mark my words -- the Atlanta Journal-Constitution will win a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the Olympics. 

BEST DEAL, PART II -- In a museum not too far away from the venues, some of the finest works of art in the world were on display. Museums around the world lent their art to Atlanta for the Olympics. Perhaps the most famous piece of work there was "The Scream." 

Called "Rings," with each ring representing a different type of feeling (including joy, love, triumph, awe and anguish), the exhibit took at least two hours to tour and may have been the single-greatest showing of art in history. The price for this? Just $11. 

MOST SHOCKING MOMENT -- At the "Rings" art exhibit, a woman got very close to one of the million-dollar paintings. Then she promptly reached out with her right index finger and rubbed it back and forth over the painting, several times, vigorously. We all looked on in shock, looking around to see if any of the security guards had noticed her. They hadn't. 

When she turned around and saw the looks on our faces, she turned to her friend and said, "I hadn't seen that one yet." 

FUNNIEST MOMENT -- During Opening Ceremonies, one of the delegates of the smaller countries was apparently late for the march into the stadium. During a television time-out, when nobody was walking down the giant walkway, this man appeared all by himself. 

The crowd loved it and immediately stood up to applaud him on. As the man walked down the runway, waving and grinning from ear to ear, he received one of the biggest cheers of the night. 

MOST "OLYMPIC" MOMENT -- By far and away, the sporting moment for which this Olympics will be remembered is Kerri Strug's second vault. I had the good fortune of being in the audience and witnessing this remarkable moment. Adults wept openly, and all of us carried away a lifetime of memories. 

BIGGEST STUNNER -- Imagine 80,000 people all gasping at the same time. That's what happened when Muhammad Ali's picture flashed up on the Olympic Stadium's giant television screen and the entire audience got to see who was lighting the flame. Tens of thousands of people called out Ali's name, then cheered until their voices were hoarse when the flame was lit. 

For me, there were so many moments at the Olympics. I will, of course, never forget the bombing, but the moments that most will ring in my mind will be of my experiences with the people. I will not forget all the friends I made, often with people who barely spoke English. I won't forget cheering with them, laughing with them, and, occasionally, shedding a tear of happiness with them. 

I will not forget the children and adults running through the water fountains. I will not forget Kerri Strug's tears. I will not forget the 98-year-old gymnast jogging to center stage at Opening Ceremonies. 

I will not forget the flame being lit. I will not forget the sight of the full moon, high over the flame a few nights later. 

I will not forget the promise all of us were asked to make at Opening Ceremonies: to embrace the dream. 

I have. 

And in embracing that dream, a dream of my own has come true. I've attended the Olympics Games.