Darcy and Me
Mississauga Celebration Square hosted a "Hometown Hockey" this (Saturday) afternoon. Since I normally walk through the mall, past the vast Civic Centre building, to get to and from my apartment, I followed my usual itinerary and was pleasantly surprised when I returned in time for lunch. There was a hockey legend waiting to sign autographs.
I don't watch sports. Occasionally I will watch gymnastics, figure skating and diving competitions. But that's about it. Oh yes, and tennis.
But I appreciate what hockey players do, swiveling around the ice at top speed, following a flat hard plastic (that puck) to score into a miniature goal guarded by a giant padded bear.
It is a high velocity game which requires a high degree of skill, and Darcy appears to be one of the game's champions.
I had read about the event but forgot about it.
I got an autograph and a photo. I look a little coy in the above photo, with the generous Darcy posing amiably. But I was looking down at the autograph as the camera clicked.
But the quintessential Canadian game also needs the quintessential Canadian entertainment: comedy. A very funny Hockey Circus Show starring "Paz" was going on at the same time. Paz aims to throw around burning hockey sticks etc. at his circus, show but he never stopped throwing out his jokes at us.
"Why doesn't he get on with it?" says a frustrated elderly lady. But I was happy to laugh at his verbal acrobats, and left before the hockey sticks started flying around.
