Blades, baby boys, and boots.
Skating was nothing special today. My left outside edge felt weird. Among other things, I managed a few nice spins and practiced lots of three turns in all directions. The lady who I think is a coach working with the kids at the local figure skating club was there today - she may be in her mid-thirties. Lotsa jumps from her (and lotsa falls) - in the end, she worked her way up to doubles, or was it triples? She came to chat to me before she went home - she wanted to know how long I've been skating and where I train. When I told her that I've been skating (regularly) for 2 years and that I'm mostly self-learned, with the exception of a few group lessons and those 3 months with Yulia in Russia, she said that the coaching definitely shows and that my skating looks better than it normally would after 2 years. I was, of course, delighted to hear that, because she knows what she's doing.
Then, towards the end of the session, a little boy appeared. He was blond, about 12 years old, incredibly cute, and wore a pink polo t-shirt and jeans and gloves. He spun and jumped clockwise, which instantly made me like him even more. He practiced some step sequences and jumps and spins. It's always so humbling and fun to watch little kids totally pwn. This boy had a wonderfully lively way of moving over the ice, while he was also very fluid and just... I don't know, aesthetically pleasing and that despite his young age. His 1A was very pretty, as was his 2S and his camel spin. He even tried one death drop entrance into a spin. ♥ As I was leaving, another little boy came by and started chatting to this one by the boards. Blondie was like come on, get your skates, too! They were standing close to each other while they talked and obviously were very good friends. It was adorable. And it was just so endearing to see them kids be so excited to skate. Watching that boy, you could tell that he loves to skate. Also, when you watch kids skate just for fun or in a competition, most of the things look so fun and easy - but then you remember the hard work that leads up to this, the bruises and hours spent on the ice, and you have so much respect for them tiny people.
This boy was exactly the type of young boy I used to "crush" on when I was younger. When I was in high school, I'd often see some cute little thing somewhere (on vacation, for instance) and then I just couldn't take my eyes of him. (They were usually blond.) Boys of that age - between 12 and 14 or so - can just be so beautiful, all soft features and big eyes and pouty lips. But don't worry. While I may have had my Humbert Humbert phase, in which I was fascinated by boy-nymphets, it was certainly not in a sexual way at all. ;)
I spent the rest of the day in Dresden, trudging from shoe shop to shoe shop, hunting for boots. The situation on the boot market is catastrophic. There were many boots, but none fit and/or were what I wanted. In the very last shop, where I'd only gone to see if they have my size of boots I'd tried on previously (they did), I discovered a pair of very simple Vagabond boots made of soft leather. They were even on sale (though it's a new model), they are comfortable (I am almost sure they will not be after I've walked in them for a longer time - almost all shoes I own give me blisters in the beginning/always). They fit both my foot and my calf and aren't too warm. Perfect. I honestly didn't think I'd be successful, but I was, hallelujah!
Off to watch Heroes! (I only discovered last night that this show was back on as well!)
Then, towards the end of the session, a little boy appeared. He was blond, about 12 years old, incredibly cute, and wore a pink polo t-shirt and jeans and gloves. He spun and jumped clockwise, which instantly made me like him even more. He practiced some step sequences and jumps and spins. It's always so humbling and fun to watch little kids totally pwn. This boy had a wonderfully lively way of moving over the ice, while he was also very fluid and just... I don't know, aesthetically pleasing and that despite his young age. His 1A was very pretty, as was his 2S and his camel spin. He even tried one death drop entrance into a spin. ♥ As I was leaving, another little boy came by and started chatting to this one by the boards. Blondie was like come on, get your skates, too! They were standing close to each other while they talked and obviously were very good friends. It was adorable. And it was just so endearing to see them kids be so excited to skate. Watching that boy, you could tell that he loves to skate. Also, when you watch kids skate just for fun or in a competition, most of the things look so fun and easy - but then you remember the hard work that leads up to this, the bruises and hours spent on the ice, and you have so much respect for them tiny people.
This boy was exactly the type of young boy I used to "crush" on when I was younger. When I was in high school, I'd often see some cute little thing somewhere (on vacation, for instance) and then I just couldn't take my eyes of him. (They were usually blond.) Boys of that age - between 12 and 14 or so - can just be so beautiful, all soft features and big eyes and pouty lips. But don't worry. While I may have had my Humbert Humbert phase, in which I was fascinated by boy-nymphets, it was certainly not in a sexual way at all. ;)
I spent the rest of the day in Dresden, trudging from shoe shop to shoe shop, hunting for boots. The situation on the boot market is catastrophic. There were many boots, but none fit and/or were what I wanted. In the very last shop, where I'd only gone to see if they have my size of boots I'd tried on previously (they did), I discovered a pair of very simple Vagabond boots made of soft leather. They were even on sale (though it's a new model), they are comfortable (I am almost sure they will not be after I've walked in them for a longer time - almost all shoes I own give me blisters in the beginning/always). They fit both my foot and my calf and aren't too warm. Perfect. I honestly didn't think I'd be successful, but I was, hallelujah!
Off to watch Heroes! (I only discovered last night that this show was back on as well!)