My love affair with Matti Nykänen in the '88 Olympics in Calgary...

Image source - Kaspar Stromman on Tumblr

Wow. It's been awhile. I had quite a crush on Matti. He was 11 years older than my 14 years... but he had the power to make my heart go into powerdrive. He was it. My ideal guy. Maybe not the sad backstory on him, but hell, the way he OWNED the slopes, his cute as pie looks, I fell for Matti hard.

Then shortly before the pandemic, my Finn friend Outi Pesu Pollock told me that he had died... 💔💔💔💔💔💔 I was devastated, I went on Wikipedia to see if he really was gone, and yes.

I will never forget your sweet face, your wins over Eddie the Eagle. You were the Flying Finn. You always will be to me.

I love you Matti. RIP

Yours always, Sammy