What my Dad did this Weekend

First, consider this - what do you hope to be doing when you are 60, on a sunny but windy autumn weekend (in Alberta, Canada)?

You might have thought reading a great novel, enjoying a walk with the spouse and the dog, spinning the slots at a casino, or taking in some live theatre or a symphony event. All of these seem to me to be reasonable things for a 60 year old to do on a brisk Saturday in September.

Hell, I did two of them (reading, and enjoying a walk with spouse, sans dog) myself - great ways to spend time as the days grow shorter and the temperature drops.

My father, however, had different ideas. Yesterday, while I was reading and/or walking in the fall woods, he was . . . fracturing his tibia while avoiding a collision between a man in a catamaran and himself, windsurfing. Yup, Dad spent the first part of Saturday windsurfing on a chilly Alberta lake, and the second part in emergency, having his fractured leg prepped for surgery.

I just got word that he came through the surgery well, but is now the proud owner of a plate and some pins. He will be joining my younger brother in the list of family members who always set off the metal detectors at airports. Dad may be released as early as Tuesday, so long as he takes to the crutches and pain killers well.

I wonder how long until he is back on the windsurfer? Because he just started taking windsurfing lessons at age 57 - until then, water sports for Dad had consisted of margaritas on the beach, and cursing a misplaced umbrella during a heavy rain. Now he owns a sail and a harness.

Also, he has always wanted to learn to hangglide. Maybe when he's 70...