Frustration and Determination

One of the groups I follow on Instagram suggested posting ten adult skaters you follow. I viewed everyone's picks and after watching all of the videos, I felt 1000 times worse about my skating than I did the day after I severely sprained my ankle years ago. I felt better when I failed my driving test. I felt better after having to have surgery. In short, I felt awful. I know some of these people and they are improving by leaps and bounds. They started after me and they have left me in the dust. I don't need to follow these people to feel this awful. If I look around during a freestyle session, I can SEE them in person. Hey you, guy with the curly hair, who started a year ago, during the pandemic and now working on an axel, thanks! And you, working on your Gold Moves when I remember when you first showed up at the rink. Thanks to you too. Although you're told not to compare yourself with anyone else, it is difficult not to do so. You see someone who six days ago was struggling to stay upright and now they're doing triple jumps. It hurts. It hurts and you can't figure out why. Not that I'm asking to be as great as Ashley Wagner, Alissa Czisny. Nope. I want my ability from six years ago. Yes, we are all older, but I'm more appreciative and I would really appreciate being that good again. Meanwhile, I'm back to off-ice training. Back to healthy food choices. Back to daily cardio, weight training and stretching. And with all of that, I will be back! On a totally separate note: Stephen Sondheim, genius of musical theatre went home recently and joined his good friend, producer/director Hal Prince and mentor, lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. Very few people can say they do not know any of the wealthy musical catalogue that was Mr. Sondheim. Some know of West Side Story, Into The Woods and Sweeney Todd, while some know of Follies, Assassins, Anyone Can Whistle, Passion, Merrily We Roll Along, Company, Pacific Overtures, Sunday In The Park With George and A Little Night Music. Regardless of what you know, a brilliant man has graced each one of us with his talent and his passion. Please do not say "So sorry for your loss" because we have ALL loss someone absolutely unique and superb. The heavens have gained another giant from the theatre and we who are left are all the better for having known him through his creations. If you have the opportunity and if PBS will air them again, go watch Company. Or Passion. Or Sunday In The Park With George. Or Into The Woods (not the movie). Or Sweeney Todd (again, not the movie) There you will see the pure genius that is Stephen Sondheim. If possible, listen to the Original Broadway Cast recordings where you will hear every ounce of passion written into every song, knowing that you are listening to the person and the voice the song was written for. That's what he did and he did it brilliantly. We will miss you Mr. Sondheim. Your wit, your style and flair, your ability to write a complicated underscore, your unconventional manner of ending a song, your ability to take a subject that no one thought would "sing" and make it sing. We will miss the projects you weren't able to finish and always wonder what might have been. "What's hard is simple, what's natural come hard Maybe you could show me how to let go Lower my guard, learn to be free Maybe if you whistle, whistle for me."* Thank you Mr. Sondheim. *Anyone Can Whistle" Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim -1964

Ramblings

Yesterday, I found out a coach at my rink passed away. Impossible, I thought. I just saw her. But no, I last saw her in August and she did indeed pass away. Where does the time go? Today, a co-worker who I really enjoyed working with, left my team (we have teams at my job, like we're all playing Center Field for the NY Mets) and moved over to another team where previously another co-worker moved to. I'm sure it's a lighter workload and after eighteen months of working on my team (which I do not "own". I am a worker bee, not the queen) she saw the opportunity and grabbed it. Can't say I blame her, but I'll miss her just the same. Yes, she still works for the company, but I will miss seeing weekly pictures of her cats dressed up in baby clothes. Don't ask. I have not been keeping to my skating schedule lately. Between coaches out of town, headaches and just general ennui, I have been skipping sessions left, right and center. I have continued working out, but I think my diet might be contradicting the efforts of a 30 minute workout. Maybe I need more sleep. Maybe we ALL need more sleep. How is it that Daylight Savings Time only generates more sleep for the first two nights and then your body gets used to it and you aren't getting that additional hour? Recently, I saw a posting on Instagram about a tee-shirt for sale online that said "Meet me in the Lutz corner". I replied, "No, stay OUT of the Lutz corner. That's not a place to congregate." They wrote back: "He he." He he?? What is it about the Lutz corner? Is it the big red circles that aid in finding your center when practicing your eights for the Bronze and Gold Adult Moves in the Field tests? I have never seen anyone allowed to do those figures on the red circle in the corner, so I'm a bit confused as to why everyone practices it there. Suddenly everyone places their jumps in the lefty Lutz corner, another thing I don't understand. Between someone laying out a figure and someone else doing jumps, I can't figure out what is so attractive about the lefty Lutz corner. Please don't say no one uses it because apparently, they do. Outdoor rinks will be opening soon and I can't wait to wave so long to the kids who spin in the lutz corners. Some rinks allow that; there was a rink in Westchester where you spun in the corners opposite from the Zamboni. That made no sense to me because... well just because. Spinning in the corners or in the track are hazzards. And they're in my way. Next week I will make every effort to skate my four days. I was thinking about doing two sessions on one or maybe two days per week. For now, one step at a time: I'll get up for a practice session. Or three...