Longevity, longs and muscle, and ...

Hard to believe, but there is actually snow falling, so there is a possibility that we will be on skis this Saturday instead of on grass and in the rain. Thank you to the hardcore skiers (and their parents) who came out and showed us that we can learn and play under any set of weather conditions.

And this learn and play can have very positive effects. A recent article extolls all the health benefits from xc skiing (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/fitness/grab-life-by-the-poles-science-says-you-should-take-up-cross-country-skiing/article37762224/), especially towards life expectancy and end endurance. However, it forgets to mention the mental strength you acquire from xc skiing. Maybe this mental aspect is more restricted to Southwestern Ontario, where every winter we learn how to handle the disappointments and joys of the finicky winter weather we are exposed to. Here we continuously look at the snowy side of life ("Is that dusting enough to go skiing? Of course!"); here we build character from the repetitious sisyphean victories of having perfectly groomed trails by Wednesday and seeing them rained away by Saturday; here we commiserate in the rain together while we learn ski bounding on a muddy slope.