1993 Catches Up to Me

They are grey and purple, colors I would have selected in 1983, but the rollerblade fad of the early 1990s has caught up to me. Jason pointed out that I could have paid $25 extra for the Rollerblade brand which were powder blue and black, but I declined. My rollerblades make me think of unicorns. (Jason's, which are well-worn and carry the integrity of someone who plays ice hockey and roller hockey, remind me of a costume piece from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.) Not knowing exactly how well I'd take to rollerblades I wasn't going to worry about aesthetics. I was fretting about injury, so I donned my wrist pads, elbow pads, and knee pads. And helmet. I was a little dissapointed that Target has such cool helmets for kids, but Dick's Sporting Goods only had boring options for adults. This purple fairy helmet would have matched so well and it has LEDs for the fairy wands!
Jason lured me out on my maiden voyage on rollerblades by suggesting that we blade to the lake which is a few blocks away. "That tricky fellow," I thought to myself during the way there, "he knows I love the lake, and that I can hardly ever get him to go there with me. So manipulative to pick this as our destination!!"
I didn't fall down once, but my rollerblade skills mirror that of a little newborn foal trying to walk for the first time. I'd roll, then glide, then push off a little ... and then flail arms in the air desperate for balance, then roll again. As each pedestrian passed us I was eager to announce, "First Day on Rollerblades!! Make way! First Day on Rollerblades!" I did get a compliment from a neighbor sitting on his front porch watching the world go by.
I gained a new appreciation for a characteristic of our neighborhood I'd never noticed before: our sidewalks are both wide, and gratefully smooth. I guess our Alderman has been good for something after all.
Once we made it to the lake, Jason took a disturbing right turn, "Let's go a little further!" he exclaimed over his shoulder as he quickly advanced ahead of me. "NOOO! NOOOO!" I replied, "You said THE LAKE! We're at THE LAKE!" Even though I was doing fairly well, I wasn't quite ready for the long adventure.
To be fair, while we were shopping at Dick's, Jason also picked up a tennis racquet. He claims that he will now be able to beat me at tennis. We've played twice and I've beat him in 4 games. The weakness is attributed to his playing with my junior racquet. Now he's suggesting that we rollerblade to the tennis courts, once again using the lure of something I can't resist. So tricky!