Hmmmm......

Public transportation is iconic to NYC. Without it, the city would grind to a halt and most people would stand around wondering how to get from points A to B.

That's been happening almost every weekend in NYC. "Track work" has caused almost every subway line to re-route to a slightly different course, resulting in most riders having to scramble, leave early or do some extra walking. I don't mind walking. I don't mind leaving earlier. However, when a 45 minute trip to the rink takes nearly 2 hours, I mind.

I have been getting to the rink later and later, and leaving to travel earlier and earlier. Sometimes, it's the Long Island transportation that is causing the problem. Signal trouble, congestion ahead, whatever. All I know is, when I'm supposed to be on a 5:32pm train to get to Manhattan at 6:20, I don't want the train to arrive at 5:45 and not arrive in Manhattan until 6:40. I, like everyone else in the world, have someplace to go.

The subways have been working my last nerve too. Last weekend, it took 2 hours to get to the rink. Most of that was waiting for the crosstown bus. I would have walked, but it was pouring rain and I was shielding an older woman whom I didn't know, with my umbrella. I could have just given her my umbrella, but I didn't want to leave her in that downpour waiting alone. I'll take some of the credit for being late to the rink on that one, but not all of it.

What are you doing MTA? And why are you messing with my ice time??

That being said, I am now forced to wonder: can your feet shrink?

For the past week, I have noticed more space than usual in my skates. Maybe I'm not lacing them tight enough, but I can now lift my heel in the back. If you are a skater, you know that you should NEVER be able to lift your heel. Oddly, I seem to be able to compensate for the extra movement because it's not really effecting my progress. Every time on the ice, I improve a little. Consistency seems to be the nemesis at this point because what I could do on Sunday, I can't seem to keep for Monday or Wednesday. Oh, let's be honest, Wednesday.

That brings me to another issue: I haven't made it to my Monday morning session in like, ever. The session begins at (please sit down for this) 6:00am. It's in Long Island, not far from work. Yes, I would get to work really, really, really early on Mondays (and beat my boss in so I don't end up getting the "stink eye" when she gets in before me...), but it means getting out of my house at 5:00 to drive there. And since I've never been there, I'm not sure I won't get lost. (One day I will explain my direction issues, my GPS not working in my car and my general hatred for getting lost.) I have the directions, I just don't seem to have the motivation to get up. All I would/could do at that unsociable hour is Moves in the Field and back spins. I have to be awake to do more than that and at 6:00, I'm not awake.

Since I have decided to re-dedicate myself to the sport of figure skating, I need to get off my duff. Plus, I've put so much money into this sport, I feel I just should. I'm really not a bad skater, just a slightly undisciplined, under-trained skater. I used to have so much discipline. I didn't date because I wanted to be on the ice. (Was I crazy? Now I can't get a date!) I was on a constant diet, didn't drink, went to bed at 9:30 and worked out for no less than an hour every day. All while still working a full-time job. I was an adult doing this people, not a kid being driven to the rink by my parents. I've had the will, the discipline, the drive. Now I just need to get it back.

It's Thursday and I could have brought my skates in to skate after work, but I chose not to. Mostly because my feet are swollen. Don't ask why, I have no idea. Instead of skating, I will be icing my feet, trying to figure out why they hurt all the time. I suppose I could give up my heels, but I don't see that happening any time soon.

As far as my skating is going, I am still pleased. I am occasionally amazed when something goes really, really well (like my back spins yesterday) just as I am annoyed when it doesn't. The sessions are still entirely too crowded, no one seems to realize that I too am working here. There's a really obnoxious 20 year old on my Wednesday session who seems to take pleasure in skating really close to an adult skater who isn't moving as fast as she can. She's a good skater, too bad she's such an unpleasant human being. I take that back; she's very nice to people she considers to be a good skater. However, all in all, things are still going well.

I'm off to ice the balls of my feet in hopes that the swelling will go down. I plan to skate a session on Saturday night and I need to figure out why my skates feel so big.

See you on the ice.