Sunday January 17, 2016

Sunday afternoon at 1700: Bitterly cold this morning, 12 with wind chill below 0, but what should we expect for mid January. Today is the first time that both Nancy and I swam at the Y. I swam 20 laps and Nancy did 25. The pool was empty when we entered at 0800 but was full at 0900. Timing is everything. Today I filled the Taurus up for less than $20. First time in years. Meijer’s was not crowded this morning, must be the cold. Nancy fixed her world famous scrambled eggs for breakfast. I watched some morning news shows and read the funnies before taking my nap. Ms P did not want to take a walk. I bundled up and took a 2.5 mile walk. I got my 30 in despite the cold. Nancy is fixing black bean soup and burgers for dinner tonight, perfect winter evening meal. We will watch the football game and then 60 minutes before turning in. In 1956 we had a very cold winter in Alpena. I was very happy because that meant we could play hockey. The City maintained a large outdoor speed skating rink and also a hockey rink. In winter my life revolved around hockey. We started playing around Thanksgiving and the season would end, weather permitting, around St Patrick’s Day. On Tuesday and Thursday nights I would play in the City League. This recreation league was sponsored by the beer companies. Team names were Drewry’s, Strohs, Frankenmuth, and Goebel’s. Anyone over 16 could play. The city merchant sponsored two teams called Alpena Merchants and Alpena Junior Merchants. I played on the Junior Merchants. We would practice Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Games were played Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. We played surrounding towns. Midland, Petoskey and Traverse City all had junior teams. It was great fun and I have fond memories of Tommy Collins and I walking to the rink. It was about a mile from our homes to the rink. Tommy and I were on the same teams. There is nothing like play hockey outside.