Carpe Diem, The Series: Brain Activities When Winter’s Too Cold
Author: Paul Stevens
Carpe Diem (but in a relaxed sort of way)
I’m on the verge of excitement today. This evening, I’ll be participating with another group of hockey-player-wannabes for what I hope will become my second weekly game. Playing twice a week has a significant systemic and cascading effect; it means once less day that I have to hit the stationary bike to get some exercise and or take our pooch for a run. Given the choice, I prefer to hit the ice and have a fun game, hands down every time.
Winter has been very slow in coming to this part of the world although the last few days have been a significant reminder that we live in a northern land. With nothing short of bitter cold for the past week, it takes an extra effort to get out there and do what might come very easily in milder weather. Having an opportunity to have that second game though reduces the urgency to get out there.
As you may recall, we recently moved to Sarnia from Mississauga (a suburb of Toronto), and getting involved with some organized activities has been a great way to meet some of the locals. Given that they too are there to have a fun game, you immediately have a rapport with your new community. You now have some resources to get answers to simple questions like, “Where’s a good place to take my car for repairs?”, answered from those with local experience. Since Sarnia is a smaller city, there is a good chance that the respondent is related in some way to the repair shop. I’m not hearing banjo music when I say this, it’s just a convenient fact of life in a smaller community.
With a recent blast of cold weather, the large pond in the main park in town that borders Lake Huron is solidly frozen over. Without much snow cover, this means that the ice that has formed is very smooth. Let’s connect the dots here: frozen pond, smooth ice, even some sunshine, in a Canadian town. Do I have to spell it out for you or does an image come quickly to mind? How great to see parents and kids lace up the skates and partake of a twirl on the ice or get a pick-up hockey game going with anybody that is willing to participate. It is not unusual to see three, four, or five games going on all at once on different sections of the pond. There’s a family game over there, the younger kids playing further along, or even the teenagers not hanging around the mall or playing a video game and actually enjoying themselves in the great outdoors.
Since we’re half way through February, we realistically only have few weeks of ice forming weather left this winter. Once we hit March, we’re on the upswing of temperatures and the days become discernibly longer at the same time. This means that the biking season (and BBQ season too!) is not far behind and I have already taken a few initial steps to get my two-wheeled companion ready for another season of roadwork.
I do not want to leave you with the impression that I do little else but hang out at the rink and wait to go for bike rides. I am self-employed and work out of a home office so it gives me the time flexibility to manage my day as needed. I doff my cap to those who continue to work at an office, factory, or whatever on a daily basis as I did that routine for years and I am well aware that it can put a crimp in your desire to do other things. After a day of commuter traffic and work, it can be a challenge to get up and out to take of yourself, especially if you have younger children who are waiting for Mom or Dad to come home to take them to their game, to their lesson and the like. I have been through that and I truly miss it. We met any number of really great folks through the activities of our two boys; these people remain as our good friends. Now that the job of being the team chauffeur, coach, guy with the chequebook are done, it, along with working from a home office does indeed give me some time I previously did not have. But damn! I miss that stuff! Maybe when we have grandkids…
Other than physical activities to keep myself from rusting shut, I have a few other hobbies that I hope will keep my mind from going numb. I have been tinkering with an old acoustic guitar that I have had for years and now have a selection of about 35 opening riffs to popular songs that I can bumble through. If anyone ever wants to participate in “Name that Tune”, I’m game. I’ll go to You Tube as you can find a very helpful tutorial for just about any song you can think of. I am continually amazed at the number of people out there who will share their skills on a platform like You Tube with the common folk for zero payment. May we all learn to be so generous with our time and talent.
This is strictly a fun activity for me and I have no delusions of grandeur whatsoever. I have no inner rock star waiting to burst forth on the world. I have always enjoyed music and finally reached a point in my life where I can be patient enough to actually try to learn something totally new. This just wouldn’t have happened in my younger years.
Our house here in Sarnia is an older building and upon asking at City Hall last week, I discovered that it was built in 1925. Now, that is not ancient by any standard but it does mean that we are creeping up to having a century home. In new-obsessed North America, I guess that is a meaningful milestone. What it also means however is that a lot of the house needs some serious TLC. The place is structurally solid (we had a detailed house inspection done before we closed the deal to confirm that we weren’t buying a basket case) but there is a healthy laundry list of things to be done. I have been cursed with a burning desire to do it myself. Either that or I’m just cheap. I’ll stick to the former and I long ago convinced myself that there is no mistake I can make that can’t be fixed. Again, You Tube has come to the rescue more than once to help solve some very vexing household issues.
When the dust settles around here, both literally and figuratively, I have a few other things that I’ll want to do. One is to resume my French lessons as I think we should all try to learn a second language if we don’t know one already and I’d also like to take a course in Astronomy at the local community college. That means I’ll have to get myself a decently powered telescope and search out the red spot on Jupiter and the rings around Saturn. I’ll wave to any aliens I see, maybe invite them to come by for a refreshing beverage or two.
All this adds up to what I think is a fairly active schedule but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Your friend, Paul.
And remember – Carpe Diem (but in relaxed sort of way)!
