Monday, November 28, 2011

Ice Skating

 skaters3

The year I was in the 10th grade was the year I learned to ice skate.  I remember going to the local ice rink with a friend of mine who aspired to be an Olympic figure skater.

First we would stop off at her house and she would let me borrow one of her little skating dresses.  She even gave me a pair of ice skates she no longer used.  As she’d gotten better at skating, she had gotten better skates.

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For a couple hours, lost in that world of ice, I would practice staying upright, while my friend skated circles around me, spinning and doing the occasional double axel, or some other skating stunt. After several weeks, I was quite comfortable on the ice.  I never learned to do any tricks other than skating on one foot, but I still remember the exhilaration of skating around the rink as fast as I could go.

skaters

I had a tight little group of friends that same year, and all of us went to the rink every so often, as did the youth group from the church that I belonged to.  The worst accident I can remember is that a boy fell down and some other kid skated over his finger. Mostly I remember how the ice rink was one of  my favorite places to be-the brisk coldness of the ice, the rock music blaring over the loudspeakers, the laughter shared with my friends.

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My family moved at the end of my 10th grade year-from Arlington, Virginia to Puyallup, Washington-and I don’t remember ever ice skating again.  I kept my skates for a while and eventually gave them away.

skating sailors

From time to time, I miss those ice skating days, but now that I’m older, I certainly don’t miss all those spills I took on the ice.

ice skates and red bow

I bought these skates last year, to use in my Christmas decorating.  Still, if I loosen the laces enough, and wear the right socks, they just about fit…

Did you ice skate as a kid?

9 comments:

  1. I never did ice skate, but it always looks like it's so much fun! Maybe Santa will leave you and your daughter skates under the tree, and you'll start skating again, with Amy this time around?

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  2. Amy would love that Joanne! Maybe I can wear lots of pillows:)

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  3. I never enjoyed ice skating as a kid...my ankles were too weak I think. Plus we always went to the pond near our house and the water had frozen bumpy and uneven so that it made it hard to glide over the ice. Deaglan starts skating lessons on Wednesday. I'm excited about it. I love, love, love what you've done with those skates.

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  4. I did ice skate as a kid. They had free public skate once a week, and I always went. I don't get out on skates much now - as an adult I've been once in Breckenridge Colorado, and once at a conference in Charlottesville. It's always fun, even though I'm a little shaky these days!

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  5. I never went ice skating until I was an older teenager. I don't go very often, but it's such a fun holiday activity. Your skates look wonderful as a decoration! :)

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  6. What nice memories!
    And I love the old skating pictures. I always had weak ankles, so ice skating was hard for me. But we did hang out at the roller rink a lot. :-)

    Kimberly

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  7. Kim-Deaglan will have so much fun!!

    Lisa- wish my town had a place to skate. I know I'd be really shaky too though!

    Crystal-it is a fun holiday activity-I'm thinking of all the great old movies where they ice skate:)

    Kimberly-thanks! I love the old photos too:)

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  8. ... never ice-skated and never been on a bicycle... I think I'm balance-challenged... sounds like loads of fun though!

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  9. LOL Mish! :) I think I would be balance challenged now too!

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