A FLASHY FINISH to 2010 OLYMPICS!

Fireworks explode over BC Place Stadium at the end of the closing ceremony of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics on Feb. 28.

REUTERS PHOTO: TODD KOROL

BY DWIGHT PERRY

THE SEATTLE TIMES

Among the top 10 signs you might have Winter Olympic withdrawal, from CBS's David Letterman:

1.) You exercise on NordicTrack with a rifle strapped to your back.

2.) Turned your closet into a 'kiss and cry' area.

3.) You're curling on your patio with a Swiffer and a fruitcake.

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"For all those Winter Olympics fans glad to see the last of Vancouver and longing to have the games back in an actual cold city," writes Janice Hough of LeftCoastSportsBabe.com, "I give you Monday's weather in Sochi, Russia: "High of 56, low of 47."

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With the national celebration over Canada's stirring sweep of the Olympic hockey medals, the spring thaw north of the border this year refers to the first day:

a.) It's safe to start planting spring and summer crops.

b.) The blood-alcohol reading of the average Canadian finally gets back under the legal limit.

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From The Orlando Sentinel's Mike Bianchi:

Question: What do you get when you cross a NASCAR race with a Winter Olympics event?

Answer: Billybobsledding.

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"A huge chunk of ice about the size of Oahu broke off a glacier in the Antarctic last week," noted comedy writer Jerry Perisho. "This week, Donald Trump announced he's building a resort and three golf courses on it."

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Portland, Maine, kid hockey player Oliver Wahlstrom, 9, as quoted by SI.com, on whether he'd consider autograph requests after his trick-shot goal became a YouTube sensation: "I don't know. I'm still printing."

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Comedy writer Alan Ray, on the difference between Olympic speedskating and an NBA game: "The starting official is usually the only one in the arena with a gun."

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Steve Schrader of the Detroit Free Press, on Chad Ochocinco joining ABC's Dancing with the Stars lineup: "So, if he nails his Paso Doble, will he celebrate with a touchdown?"

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Russian president Dmitry Medvedev is demanding that all his country's top sports officials be sacked after their athletes' disappointing performance at the Winter Olympics. Or as those ex-Soviet hardliners call it, losing another cold war.