Thread by @Norlaine

Something a lot of people don't know about me... I play hockey. I have been playing hockey a long time, since about 1997. I was not too athletic as a child. My parents were older and I was encouraged to do quiet things, like reading. 1/15

I had adult onset athleticism. I watched my husband play hockey through high school and university, and then our children began to play hockey. I had never properly learned to skate. When I was a kid, the only option for girls was ringette... 2/15

And our local ringette team consisted of the mean girls, with their mean mothers coaching. And the outdoor rinks were always full of boys with pucks who really did not want girls on the ice with them. If we came onto the ice to try to skate, they would shoot pucks at us... 3/15

Hitting us as often and as hard as possible, until we left.

But hockey looked like fun. Finally, at 32, I put myself into the CanSkate program with my kids. I was the only non-teaching adult on the ice, and the parents of my kids' teammates were in the stands. 4/15

It was a deeply humiliating winter. I fell down. A lot. But, by spring, I could skate. I could go forwards and backwards and start and stop, and even spin. And the next fall I signed onto a women's team. 5/15

I played a coup[le of years in this women's beer league, while my husband playing in a men's league & the kids were all playing hockey as well. Some weekends it seemed like I lived in my car. And my husband and I were playing alternate evenings, so we hardly saw each other. 6/15

So we decided to start a co-ed team. A lot of the women I had played with had partners who also played hockey. Some of the guys he played with had partners who played hockey. We formed a team and entered it in the men's league at the University of Manitoba rink. 7/15

For quite a few years they were our main community. Play hockey together, shoot the shit in the locker room, go out for a late supper after the game together and hang out. It was nice. 8/15

Since moving to Alberta, I have found my way back into hockey, playing once again on women's teams. And now I'm a goalie. Long story. And it is totally not normal to switch from forward to goal at 50. But, hey, I'm weird. 9/15

I find playing in net very zen. It's an hour where I think about nothing except the puck. I am one with the puck. The movement of a small hard rubber object is the whole world for that hour. Cleanses the mind. 10/15

I'm a decent goalie too. I'm as surprised about that as anyone. But I get shut-outs. Sometimes consecutive shut-outs. My record so far is 4 shut-outs in a row. 11/15

The new season starts in a couple of weeks. I haven't played since COVID started. I hope I remember how to put all that gear on. But, I am excited. I have missed it so much. 12/15

The thing is, it's really good to do something just for you. Something physical, something that occupies your mind and takes you away from all the things you normally worry about. It often feels like a lot of stress gets carried out of my body with the sweat. 13/15

We are living in interesting times & looking after yourself is important. A fitness regime is only as good as it makes you feel. If you hate working out, you are not doing the right workout for you. You should feel invigorated and alive after playing a sport or working out. 14/15

There are lots of things to do out there, safely. Don't give up. You'll know when you have found the right one for you. You will feel happy after, whether you win or lose, and look forward to the next time. 15/15