The Sporting (Indoor) Life

BRINGING THE KIDS INDOORS The Sporting (Indoor) Life

by MICHAEL JOHNSON

Youth sports is big business. Kids across Forsyth Country partake in a wide array of athletic leagues and activities year round. The young athletes do not stop just because the temperatures drop. Many gyms, training centers and athletic facilities are positioned as the perfect locations for getting out of the elements. Being able to tap into discounts on year-round sports seasons and training sessions at some of these facilities also makes it so that memberships to these spots certainly can make sense.

YMCA

There are upwards of 12 branches in the Northwest North Carolina YMCA community. Branches across the county are hotspots of daily activity. All YMCA of Northwest North Carolina members have access to all locations and programs. With membership at one branch, you can enjoy full access and amenities at each of the 12 locations. Be sure to find out more at: ymcanwnc.org

RISE Indoor Sports

(riseindoorsports.com)

If you’re looking for a place for the family to play indoor sports, master athletic skills or improve health and fitness, you’ll find it all here at RISE. With more than 123,000 square feet of regulation courts, fields and amenities, they are dedicated to providing best-in-class health, wellness and performance year-round through: • local programming for leagues, camps, clinics and sport-specific training • tournament competitions for teams throughout the US • family fitness for all ages • court rental and special events

Diamond Xtreme (teamdxt.com)

Diamond Xtreme in Kernersville (263 Gretas Way Court) is a new kid on the block of sports facilities. Diamond Xtreme turns the per-session arrangement for baseball training on its head and offers a monthly membership for patrons. Diamond Xtreme Training (DXT) is a state of the art 28,000-square-foot baseball and softball indoor, year-round training facility. The facility offers a wide variety of services from individual instruction, baseball and softball hitting cages, performance sports training, equipment sales and glove repair.

A Sketch, a Tune

When the weather gets frigid, coming indoors to dive into artistic endeavors is another terrific pastime. Encouraging musical and artistic talents is key. There are myriad musical instruments on sale on Facebook marketplace and at local music stores. Art supplies are abundant at local craft stores, and YouTube has no shortage of draw-along lessons for young Picassos. Being able to watch along as instructors build a sketch into something life-like is a great way to build children’s artistic interests and arm them with an arsenal of techniques and styles.

Everybody, Jump!

The youthful collective is always up for a good bounce on a trampoline. Trampoline parks are now in a battle to outdo each other. There is a wide array of trampolines at any of these indoor parks, both semivertical and horizontal, even replete with basketball hoops for dunking. Games of dodge ball on these trampolines make for a spirited contest that keeps the kids hopping. Urban Air Adventure Park (www.urbanair.com) at 200 Summit Square Boulevard in Winston-Salem is a local hotspot. You can purchase monthly memberships that can allow your young ones access anytime they desire. Urban Air has a Skyrider attraction that has kids strapped securely into a track across the expansive park’s ceiling and flying high. The usual games of jousting above foam pits and challenging ropes courses are here, but plenty more as well. Urban Air Adventure Park has been voted BEST Gym In America for Kids by Shape Magazine.

Interactive Learning

Kaleideum has two locations in Winston-Salem. Both Kaleideum North (400 West Hanes Mill Road) and Kaleideum downtown (390 South Liberty Street) are filled with tactile and informative exhibits for kids. Kaleideum North - With more than 25,000 square feet of exhibits and a 17-acre science and environmental park, there is so much to do at Kaleideum North. • View the night sky in the Planetarium. • Meet and learn more about a resident animal during an animal encounter. • Check out the curiosity cart, which sparks curiosity about arts and crafts, museum collections, storytime and more. • Take part in a hands-on prism experience, part of Kaleideum’s engineering and innovation initiative. • Explore a science concept and engage with our staff during Science Live! Kaleideum Downtown is open on weekends at its current South Liberty Street location (Saturdays 10-5pm, Sundays 1-5pm), and its new home currently is being constructed. Extending five floors from ground to top and including a 13,000-squarefoot rooftop playground, the building will stand on the former site of the Forsyth County sheriff’s office, which was recently torn down. The intended opening date for the new facility is anticipated for early 2024! Kaleideum officials said the attraction will also be a link between the arts and cultural districts to the north and more historic and civic districts to the south. The museum will be the anchor of the southern end of Merschel Park, a downtown open space south of where Fourth and Trade streets intersect.

The

“For Days of Auld Lang Syne, My Friends” The clock strikes midnight on January 1st, and another year has begun. For most people, the lyrics to the song “Auld Lang Syne” are some of the first words heard or spoken in the new year. This famous song signifies the ending of the old year and the importance of friendship. The title words translate to “for old times’ sake.” While many people know its classic lyrics, the history of this Scottish tune is known only by a few. “Auld Lang Syne” was first written as a poem by Scottish Poet Robert Burns in 1788. The poem’s words, and now lyrics, describe the tale of old friends having a drink and reflecting on times long ago. Burns used another Scottish folk song and, as Burns once said himself, “the words of an old man” as inspiration. Many notice the similarities between “Auld Lang Syne” and the Scottish ballad “Old Long Syne” which was printed in 1711 by James Watson. Even though it was written in 1788, the poem wasn’t published and made public until Burns’ death in 1796, when it first appeared in James Johnson’s Scots Musical Museum. In 1799, the words were put to music. Various versions of the same tune of “Auld Lang Syne” were used in English Composer William Shield’s opera, Rosina, in 1782 and Johnson’s volume four of the Scots Musical Museum in 1792. George Thomson created the version we know today seven years later. “Auld Lang Syne” has been reproduced throughout the world. In 1877, Alexander Graham Bell aired the tune to show how the telephone worked, and in 1890, “Auld Lang Syne” was one of the first songs recorded by Emil Berliner on the gramophone. Lastly, the song gained more notoriety when it was sung at the end of the World Scout Jamboree in 1920. After this event, France, Germany, Greece and Poland created their own version. However, it wasn’t until 1929, that the tune became associated with the new year. During the Times Square celebrations that year, lyrics were shown on the electronic ticker, and the rest is history. Since then, the tune has appeared in TV shows and movies, famously closing the story of It’s a Wonderful Life in 1946.

History

by MEGAN TAYLOR When it comes to New Year’s, “Auld Lang Syne” has been added to many different celebrations and ceremonies. Each event has a specific tradition of their own for the song. One particular event is the Scottish Hogmanay New Year’s celebration. This town has a special tradition that dates back to the mid-19th century and the practices of the Freemasons. In Hogmanay, Scotland, participants stand in a circle holding hands while singing the classic lyrics. Then, when the last verse begins, everyone crosses their arms over their chest and reaches out their hands to their neighbors. Once the song is done, the participants rush to the middle of the circle, still holding hands, and then pull the circle back out. Lastly, they turn under their arms to face outwards with hands still together. The circle and holding of hands tradition appears in other areas throughout the world. Queen Elizabeth II followed the practice at the Millennium Dome celebrations for the 2000 new year. The song isn’t only used to ring in the new year. It has also been heard at funerals, parties and other parting events. In Japan, their song, “Hotaru no hikari” was played at graduations and is still used to close shops at the end of the day. However, the song may be used, its lyrics and tune binds people throughout the world. It is a song of friendship, of old times, and coming back together.

As the characters Harry and Sally once exchanged in the movie When Harry Met Sally:

HARRY: “What does this song mean?”...I mean ‘should old acquaintances be forgot?’ Does that mean that we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we happened to forget them, we should remember them…?”

SALLY: “Well, maybe it just means that we should remember that we forgot them or something. Anyway, it’s about old friends.” Let’s just say, the words to “Auld Lang Syne” will always be heard throughout the world on January 1st. “For auld lang syne, my dear.”

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