Skate-skiing

A childish glee escapes me as I sheepishly peer over the crest of a ski slope.
I say to myself that there is nothing to worry about, I have been down the bunny hill a million times. However this moderate slope has turned into a giant, mocking me as I try to get the nerve to send myself over the edge.

This time is different than all others.
I glance at my feet and take note of the two long, thin, slick pieces of wood connected to my feet by only a tiny clip at the tip of my toes. My heals are free to lift and move. My feet feel wider than the ski itself.
I catch myself as I teeters to the side. At this point, just standing has been an accomplishment.

I laugh out loud as I see Erika and Elise launch over the side. Erika has grace, poise, and excessive style as she magically floats over the surface. Elise, well is slightly less elegant, but still is impressive as she fearlessly whizzes by me.

I can't stand here forever. There is only one way to get out of this situation...and that's to embrace it. Take the plunge and whatever happens happens.

Deep breath...A final push with my poles pushes me into the unknown.

Crap! I should've asked how to stop, control my speed, turn...all the essentials. An idea thought of too late as I am obviously flying out of control. I hear Erika's voice shouting muffled instructions my way. I hear none of it. Her words are carried away by the wind.

The inevitable happens. And it all takes place in a fraction of a second.
Legs begin to wobble,
Try to compensate,
Skiis shoot out from underneath,
Poles go flying,
Snow down my pants,
Face scrapes across the slope,
Finally the tumble comes to a stop,

Laughter erupts from all.

A big smile spreads across my face as I realize all is uninjured...well except for a bit of my pride:)

As I pick myself up all the snow, I think to myself..."I only have 10km to go!"

A few pictures

I have a few pictures from a night out at Manning Park. One thing I do love about this place is that there is alot of good times shared with good people.



This photo is Elise and Erika demonstrating how girls would use the guys urinals...bet they didn't think this shot would end up on the net!!

Creativity

(A friend of mine wrote this poem. Since it's so good, I thought I'd share it with you)


lake huron, your western coast chills me.

and the breath of winter whips at this town-
over the waves and onto the shoreroad
across our main street and through the gravestones at the
top of the town.

i see crows clinging to the sky like the kites of dead
pirates and imagine hooks in their burnt beaks; fishing line
leading to the waters below.

i wonder if these crooked sailors are attempting to
resurface, or do they fly these caw'ing creatures simply for
pleasure, after a short life of losing toes, teeth and
treasure.

i can almost see how purple their finger tips would be,
wound with the clear line shooting up at angles like
reflected sun
rays towards those blackened birds.

-and as quickly as the waves crash, the pair seems to desnag
and explode east like leftover patches of the previous night
suddenly realizing it's midday.


the gulls are up now.
but im uncertain just whose holding on at the other end. ..

---------------------------------------------------Nathan Whitney

Strange Dreams

Most of you who know me, know that I tend to have some very weird dreams. I do not know if the word weird can acurately describe what goes on in my head at night. Last night was no exception...

For some strange reason I was stuck in a 2 storey house awaiting the owners to return so that I could go home. The house had a strange feel to it. The dream became more vivid when i realized that I was in the basement and the bit of natural light that flowed in from the small windows was begining to fade. I turned around and was going to walk back up stairs. As I turned I noticed a stash of all toys in the far corner to the right of the stairway. Amongst the toys was a small tupperware box filled with dolls, and stuffed animals. All of a sudden to my disbelief, the box began to shake. As I looked closer I actually saw something move. Fear gripped me. The only explaination I could think of was that it was a battery operated toy that must have accidentally been turned on. I continued to stare, not able to walk any closer to the stairs because then I would have had to walk closer to the toys. Suddenly a doll sat up, shook it's head and stared at me for a second, and then layed back in the box. I was freaked out at this point because the dream felt so real. Finally, what ever was holding me frozen in place released and I rushed over to the box. I picked up the doll (which had somehow turned into a stuff animal dog...i know doesn't make sense) and shook the it like i was trying to wake it back up. "There is no way this can be happening, I must be seeing things...there is no way I saw what I saw!" But sure enough when I shook the dog hard enough it's eyes came alive, it shook it's head, and it looked straight at me. I threw the stuffed animal back into the box and ran up the stairs as fast as possible.