BACKYARD RINKS

Nothing says Winter in Canada like having a backyard rink to play on.  While we wait for Gary and Don to sort out whose ego is bigger this is the winter to construct your very own backyard rink.  With pizza and beer sales down everywhere every guy has extra cash on hand as well.   Global warming is certainly doing its best to shorten the season for this time honoured treasure as best she can which still leaves us with a couple of months to construct something even Mike Holmes would be proud of in your own backyard.  When it comes to backyard rinks let’s face it – Size matters!  Men love to describe their rink in terms of feet and not inches, and then there is always that one guy who is over the top bragging about a 40’ x 70’ with a custom plastic UV rated white tarp, rounded corners, end boards, 2 sets of nets, a homemade flooding device concocted out of PVC pipe with separate hot and cold water feeds to get the ice perfect every single time and lighting that your favourite rock band would be proud to own.  We have even heard of  people in Brooklin that bring home survey equipment to get the backyard level before they tackle the  arduous task of erecting the frame on level ground.  These are the guys that snicker at the amateurs who have one corner that is 12 inches deeper than all of the others.   Then there is the rest of us... the guys that do their best Red Green impression by applying duct tape (normally a man’s best friend for home improvement projects) to seams in a tarp that closely resembles a quilt your grandmother made out of 7 different pieces of material.   However, using coloured tarps and duct tape only make for more mess then is necessary as the sun melts the ice away faster on those sunny days and water has a funny way of seeping out when you need it most.  If you are considering tackling this project go see a great local resource in Don and Chuck at Mitchell Lumber.  I think they have a sign that says – “helping men build rinks for many generations”.  They can get you all of the wood, plastic, screws and hoses you will need to get your backyard rink in order.  Last year Jason had to buy his neighbor 3 cases of his favourite adult beverage when his rink did not hold water so well. On the positive side he did create a perfectly flat and smooth piece of ice.  Unfortunately, it was covering his neighbour’s entire driveway and much of his detached garage.  Only the Canadian Army could have shored that monstrosity up properly.  Luckily his neighbour was pretty good natured about the whole debacle, considering he spread close to 100 lbs of salt everywhere just to avoid the lawsuit of him wiping out on the way to his vehicle for two months.  Check out the website we have included to get you started and if that seems too easy You Tube and Twitter are full of guys who thought they knew what they were doing.   

BUDDY TRIPS

Buddy trips can take on the form of so many things but they all have some common themes.    I mean seriously who just didn’t forget where you were and imagined you and your buddies on the links in Myrtle Beach, an NHL city, or in your favourite college town watching a football game.  A few things hold true for wherever you decide to go.  The place and reason are almost secondary as your real reason is to escape the normal life and drink the same amount of beer as you once did in College or University and devour more meat than would feed a small country.  Not to mention play pranks on your friends that only you or your group think might are remotely funny.  What is funny though is how men try to position the trips to their wives or significant others.  Regardless if you are the head negotiator for the NHLPA all of us have to “up our game” when it comes time to convince our wives.  There is the “Honey we are just going to support our (insert name of buddy in need of consoling)”.  Or the “I will do anything you want if I can just go on this one trip” which is usually followed by the pouting and sulking when really all we had to do was negotiate.  Try starting the conversation like this: “Honey, I want to invite your mom to stay with us for a week and I think you would look great in that new lululemon jacket or pants.  Another great one is: “Some guys are heading for a little golf trip and asked if I could fill in for someone.  They are stuck and need me or the trip falls through and none of them can go.  They are even cutting me a deal (not really) as I would be a last minute fill in”.  One thing is for sure though; we never mention the names of the guys that all women fear would be going on this type of trip.  When asked for a list of attendees the list usually resembles the roster of the church choir.  Never make the mistake of adding that your most wild and crazy friend that shows up hammered at your cottage or sleeps on your couch when he has drank all of your beer and eaten all of your snacks.  Regardless of who you include in the list - no one is ever a single guy.   Even when we are questioned about who is attending and someone asks if they are single you always answer with an emphatic – No, No, No … he has been in a serious relationship for quite awhile.  Then quickly get the topic back to more serious things like “how beautiful you look today, is that a new hair style, or I am thinking we should decorate the bedroom the way they did on that HGTV program you were forced to watch.  Men, you owe it yourself to go on at least one buddy trip in your lifetime and when you do try to stay up past 11 on at least one of the nights.  Here are some sites to look at when you plan your next getaway with the boys.

Best Buddy Trips .com

www.golftripgenius.com