If I Build It ...

And for my first from-the-heart act that has nothing to do with my studio but everything to do with me?

I am consulting with my good buddy here at work, the mighty Gregster, about building one of these: If you're laughing, zip it. I'm serious. Greg being the skilled Mr. Fix-It person that he is, I first asked, 'Yo, hey, what kinda wood that won't warp, and what about the base?' He came up and said, "Yo yourself, and hey, does it have to be wood, necessarily?" Out into the construction yard here at work he goes, then comes back and summons me -- points out two pieces of I-beam ... one of which is galvanized and pretty light and comes in 20-foot lengths, 4" wide by 4" high ... as in PERFECTION. Since my skill level is not what it was in years-gone-by, I'm not trying to get anything but 4" wide and 16'-4" long and maybe 12" off the ground ... no rounded edges, no cushion, no extra bounce or suede covering. I want something on my patio that will lure me to work out as a gym membership just cannot do.

So anyway, Master Gregory is finding out for me the price of said I-beam, or if it's an extra piece laying around that could require a new home. If the price is right we're going to brainstorm the stands ...

I did gymnastics from the time of Olga Korbut's 1972 Olympics (I was 11) until I was 21 years old. Gym rat. Balance Beam was my favorite event. It still is. [Note: I HATE working out where people are around. Gyms, even at 5 a.m., tend to have other people around. The only exception: a dance class, or Pilates/Yoga class.] And masking tape on the patio 'floor' just isn't the same. I spent 2 hours over my miserable past weekend looking at the websites for every gymnastics facility in Phoenix, Tempe, Glendale, and surrounding metropolitan area for adult classes -- no such animal, only 'open gym'. Pffft.

Truth is, I haven't done gymnastics at all since I was 29 and pregnant with my youngest male child, nary even a cartwheel in the grass. To have a balance beam on my patio and to REALLY SUCK AT IT [at first] is going to jump-start my lazy carcass as nothing else can.

If I build it ...