The first time in my life that I have felt old is when I last visited Paradise Ice Ring. Not having been ice skating in well over a decade, there was a major discrepancy in what I thought I could do and the reality of my aging body. The hubristic attitude I held when I first hit the ice lasted all of 10 seconds. Ice is hard, far harder than my body it turns out. Nothing affirms the fragility of the human body more than a hard hitting encounter with a bed of ice. After a couple of bad bails I moved around that ring with an abandon of courage so high, that anyone watching me might have thought that my bones were made from glass. Little kids skating rings around me, laughing and smiling, encouraging me to go faster. I watched them carefully, terrified that I might collide into them and take another hard trip down.
Not to say that there is anything wrong with this place. Ice skating just isn't my thing. read more