"Sticky wicket" means a difficult, awkward or uncertain situation. The term comes from the game of cricket and describes conditions when the ground is partly wet, resulting in the ball bouncing unpredictably.
As our Olympians face their sticky wickets in Salt Lake City this week, we face our own back home: budget cuts, tax season, the dilemma of what to make for dinner. My personal sticky wicket for the day: a drippy nose that requires me either to treat my cubicle neighbors to Kleenex-related noises or to abandon my desk for the ladies' room every time the floodgates open. Ah, the challenge! May all your wickets be stickless.