skaters: Browse The Strips

Sunday February 19, 2017

Lynn's Comments: I didn't learn to skate until I was over 35! What gave me the courage to try was a really good pair of skates and the lure of a rink made by the neighbours on Trout Lake outside of North Bay, Ontario. It was one of those perfect days. The ice was thick and the snow was fresh. Just a few passes of the snow blower and a small private rink was cleared. The kids both had skates that still fit, and my mom-in-law had borrowed skates for the rest of us. She’d made hot chocolate in a big thermos and the Harrisons, whose house we were visiting, had built a fire in the pit down by the dock.

For the first time since I was a kid, I strapped on skates (dull rentals) and shoved off from the snow bank. To my surprise, I discovered the bite of a sharp blade and was actually scraping my way forward. That’s it. I never went again, past those surprising few turns around the ice, but it was enough to let me know how it’s done and why some people become champion skaters. You just have to experience this exhilaration when you're young!

Saturday December 21, 2019

Lynn's Comments: For many years I went on book tours, which took me to major cities all over the US and Canada. When I was invited to go to New York by "People Magazine," I asked my mother-in-law, Ruth, if she'd like to come. My husband and "Grandpa" took care of the kids for the 3 days we were away. It was the first time Ruth and I had travelled together, and I wanted her trip to be the best it could be. The one Broadway show I wanted her to see was "A Chorus Line." I had seen it twice before and had enjoyed it so much I wanted to see it again. All through the show Ruth kept looking at her watch. When the show ended and the curtain fell, I was annoyed with her. Thinking she had disliked the show, I asked why she kept checking her watch. With eyes full of tears, she looked at me and said, "I didn't want it to end!"