Yes. Yes it is!

Made with one of the final batches of cherry tomatoes and tomatillos from the garden, along with some onion, jalapeños, and cilantro.

Between that, the Pope’s visit and the awesome super moon eclipse last night, it’s been quite a couple of days. I wasn’t sure I could take any more excitement. But add to that some amazing skating insights, and whoa, man, adrenaline rush!

Okay, I didn’t actually see the Pope (this photo was taken by my sister) since his visit brought him nowhere close to Minnesota. But the amazing skating insights are mine, all mine.

Of course, many of them come from ASCs Laurie and Ari, and now they are yours to try too if you are reading this. So they also belong to many others–which is more than okay because, like fresh salsa, papal blessings, and the wonderful moon, there is more than enough to go around.

ASI #1: My left hip has never really been beneath me. If I move my hip forward, engage my glutes, and allow the left hip flexor not only to extend but also to stretch, then it is finally beneath me. I have been doing this off-ice stretch to reinforce this.  Oh, and by the way, my right hip is sometimes not beneath me either.  But now I know what to do!

ASI #2: I need to use my feet to push. Not just my leg, but the foot, the whole foot (and nothing but the foot) which moves down into the ice and then stays there. Boom. That stop motion of the foot extending everything back is what I’ve been missing whenever I push onto a forward outside edge. Laurie told me to think of the foot as the tip and the rest of me squirting forward as if I were a pastry bag. It works for me, okay? Pastry bags I can handle.

ASI #3: Everything is about circles. Legs go in, legs go out. Feet come in, feet come out. Brain kicks in, brain. . . . Everything is about circles.

Lots of other things to think about, but those will need to wait for another post. That’s enough adrenaline for now, and besides, the salsa is calling me baaack. (Yoo hoo! Jooooo, I’m still here!)