ABC Wednesday - I is for Ice Rink

Humble thanks to David over at authorblog for recognizing this as Post of the Day.

Kerrisdale Arena had long been the spot where my sisters and I had ice-skated since our early teens. Before we received real figure skates for Christmas one year, we'd rent our skates and wobble around trying to look like Barbara Ann Scott or whoever was the current Olympic champion.
In 1969, I had just turned 22 years old and my girlfriends and I would faithfully show up every Tuesday and Friday night for "Adults Only" skating.
One night I was wearing a cherry red sweater with tight pants and, with my long flowing dark hair, caught the eye of a certain hockey player. We ended up dating for over three years and even talked of getting married one day. However, as things happen, we drifted apart and each married someone else. Neither of our marriages were good ones - he got divorced, I was widowed.
Fast forward 40 years and guess who's together again? And this time we ARE getting married! Not sure when yet. But who would have ever guessed that after all these years, we still (or maybe it's "again") love each other?
And it all started in an ice rink.
I have to add that both my daughters took figure skating lessons and one of the older one's first competitions was at Kerrisdale Arena. I'll never forget how sweet she looked (at age 8) in the dark blue lace skating dress I made for her as she skated to music from "The Nutcracker." I'll never forget the lump of emotion and pride I felt throughout her performance. Now If I can only find the old tape made of that performance and have it put on a DVD.