Oh my, what a wonderful article. What incredible photos. My legs are all wobbly now. Wow.

First, hats off to Kathleen Bangs for a beautiful, insightful article. I just LOVED how she put Johnny's frustrations over the past couple of years in perspective. I so appreciated her remark about the US media "crucifying" Johnny after the Olympics. How refreshing to see a journalist finally put the truth in print.

The story of Johnny's decision to leave Priscilla and start training with Galina was very well-told. That could not have been an easy time for him. It's funny, you see something announced in the news, and it's so bland, so straightfoward. Then you read Johnny's account, and you see all the agonizing that went into the process. It sounds like Galina has given him exactly what he needed: tough love. She makes him work hard, and she encourages him to believe him himself. I loved the little tidbits about their personal relationship, and the piece that made me laugh the hardest was Johnny not revealing at the outset that he knows enough Russian to understand what she was saying, but that she didn't realize this until after he'd started training with her. Johnny, you sneaky devil! I was LOL at his initial inability to "charm" her.

Like everyone else, I hope the arrival of Lambiel in Johnny's training sphere won't throw him off his game. I would hate to see him have to make yet another coaching change so close to the Olympic season. He needs to keep building on his recent accomplishments, not start all over again from Square One.

And finally, those photos. Holy cow! Johnny is such an amazing model. What a gorgeous face! That personality of his just shines through in every picture. Jay Adeff, I bow to your awesomeness!

--EA Week


"Creating truth like glass from a furnace of inspiration."
--Gwyneth Lewis