We will report how it went, and we hope Joe will when he can.
Back to the ice…wish us luck. And luck to Joe…
by CJ | Oct 13, 2009 | Journal | 10 comments
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Good luck to all!
We neither one fell. That was the good thing.
The bad thing was how tired we got how fast. I have a blister on one foot and that wasn’t comfortable in the boots; but the weird thing was—well, you should understand, a skater’s balance is not the ankles, but the knees. Turning is with the ankles: stability involves the knees. If you bend your knees enough (and have your boots laced properly), it locks your ankle into an attitude that centers your weight exactly where it needs to be. You want to move forward? You shove sideways with one foot while shifting your weight to the other in that ‘locked’ position. Straighten your knees and your balance goes to blazes instantly: you’re likely to go down on your backside, or worse, on your head.
And my feet have gotten so sloppy from wearing flipflops all summer that my boots were a bit tight, and weren’t letting me ‘lock’ the balance point. Ordinarily I can slop around with perfect abandon, shifting my weight accurately fore and after, and turning (going on to another edge)knowing that my blade is going to stay under me. Wasn’t happening this time, especially in the first few strokes. I knew what the trouble was, but I couldn’t find the lock-spot for a second, and I came close to losing it. But I slowly got my feet under me. So did Jane, same story. It’s weird, kind of like being a beginning skater again for a few strokes, until we could find that spot that you never can convince a beginner really exists. 😉
I got steadier. Practiced a little on-the-wall waltz jump, came down accurately (you don’t want to know what happens if you don’t land balanced)…and did a 3-turn without losing it. I was noting a father-son-grandson hockey set out there teaching a very small kid to skate. And I was standing by the wall, luckily resting an arm on it, when all of a sudden a body skidded into me. I assumed at the moment of collision it was the little kid or one of the adults.
Nope. It was our friend Hank, a practiced adult pairs figure skater, who had skidded past the gate and caromed into my feet. We had a good laugh about it.
Joan was there, too: that was unexpected—good to see her back on the ice. She was looking good.
And we went over to Freddy Myers and did our shopping. I stuffed our freezer again, and now am not going to run out of bread. Jane made a try at her broken fan switch, but the piece she had didn’t have the right wiring, so that’s going to take a trip to Lowe’s, probably.
It’s warmer today, mid thirties, and the ice on the pond has all melted. The sunscreen we have on the pond turns transparent when there’s water on it, so we were able to get a look at the fish, who look just fine.
And that’s today. I hope everything went fine for Joe.
LOL, re: Hank!
My boots are always tight after a lay-off — it’s like the leather shrinks. Miserable, until they re-conform to the foot. Glad you are back — see you tomorrow!
Leather shrinks, ha! Feet get fat and wider in flipflops! But we got our memberships back and we are back on the ice for sure. Pretty good ice, yesterday, too.
I hope you get back to your comfort zone on the ice soon.
So, has anyone heard how Joe’s doing?
Haven’t heard a word — but didn’t expect to until today, when he was scheduled to be discharged. I’ve been posting on his Facebook, to make sure he lets us know ASAP.
(For those who are wondering: Joe is a long-time CJC fan & all-around great guy who had scheduled surgery 4 days ago.)
I contacted one of Joe’s Real Life friends — and he’s fine. I’m relieved!
That’s good to hear.
Oh, good on that!