On Christmas Day in 1974 I received a powder blue Schwinn Varsity 10-speed bike. I couldn’t believe it was mine. My dad presented it, rolling it out from the bedroom, and joked to me, saying he got it for himself for Christmas. I actually believed him, and was trying to be brave about him having MY fantasy bike. Then he felt bad, and said, “Catherine, it’s for YOU, silly!”
I loved that bike. I rode it to school, around town, everywhere. And I kept it until grad school (whereupon it was stolen at MIT. I’m still not completely over it).
This year (as readers of last week’s weekends with Womack post already know) I presented myself with an early Christmas (and all self-gifting occasions for the foreseeable future) brand-new two-tone Brompton foldable bike. Because I love it so much, here’s a picture of it again.
This year, several of my relatives are receiving fitness-related gifts. My nephew Graham, who is an ultimate Frisbee enthusiast, is getting not one but TWO cool Frisbees. My aunt Pat will have a Simply Fit balance board under her tree. They come in lots of pretty colors:
Apparently these boards were made famous on the show Shark Tank. I admit I’m not a big fan of TV-promoted fitness gadgets, but let a thousand movements bloom. However, I don’t think I’ll let my niece and nephews convince me to buy them these rocket skates.
Although it would far too unwieldy to fit under a tree (much less fit down a chimney), I’d be most delighted if Santa brought me the following:
It’s a Nigel Dennis Romany classic fiberglass sea kayak. It handles well and is high performance but not too tippy for me. It’s also probably in my far-off gear future, but a girl’s gotta have her dreams.
For those of us who observe Christmas, it is a holiday for giving as well as receiving, and also a holiday celebrating beginnings of spiritual stories. However, this time of year does, in many parts of the world, get associated with gift-giving for all sorts of reasons.
So, readers, let me ask you: what would you wish to see under/beside/around the corner from your tree (either actual or metaphorical) this year?
I’ll close with wishing all of you– bloggers, readers, friends and family of readers, Facebook and WordPress followers, and anyone else who has come into contact with Fit is a Feminist Issue– Merry Christmas!
