SUPERVISORS CORNER
People keep asking about the activities at the Community Center. I keep telling them that we have lots of great things going on and you really have to come up and visit them. But that too can be difficult, so I am going to take some time here to explain some of the most popular, pickle ball, cardio drumming and Yoga.
Pickle ball, which was recently called the fastest growing sport in America, is played on a hard surface court, with a net similar to a tennis court net using a hard surface paddle and a whiffle style ball about the size of a baseball. The rules are very similar to ping pong only on a much larger scale. Serves are made corner to corner; on a serve only, the ball must bounce inside the service box before it can be returned; once returned a ball can only bounce once per side before it must be returned but it can be returned with no bounce. Points can only be scored by the serving team. Serve is rotated on the team and between teams as a service faults. Games are played to eleven points as long as the lead is by two. This game can be played fast or slow depending on your level of skill. Since the court is small, the size of a badminton court, one agile player can pretty much cover it and when you play doubles you really have to communicate with your partner to avoid conflicts when going after a return. The game is fun and fast paced and really helps with your eye-hand coordination as well as being a great workout.
Another item in our exercise regimen is cardio drumming. Do you still have one of those large workout balls that Jane Fonda made popular? Well cardio drumming combines old, older and new into a real workout. For all of us who tried to work with the ball but just couldn’t stay on the thing, and those that always dreamed of being one of the great drummers , Buddy Rich, Keith Moon, Ringo or John Bonham and you like the today’s new music well cardio drumming has found a way to fuse all of these into a workout. Placing the workout ball in a plastic tub and using round headed drum sticks you beat to today’s music using the ball as your drum and dancing to the tunes. You can pace yourself to the beat and work up to a more vigorous pace or jump right in if you feel empowered. Either way it is a good time and a great workout for both upper body and cardio.
Yoga classes have been growing in popularity at the center for the last few years. We now have classes multiple times per week. Call for the current schedule as the times and days change based on the time of year. More classes in the spring and summer that the winter and fall.
Pickle ball can be played anytime the center is open but open play to anyone is Monday through Friday from 9-noon and all skill levels are welcome to come and join in. Cardio drumming is on Monday and Wednesday evenings from 6 – 7:30. All are welcome and they usually have extra equipment to let you give it a try
On another note, with Spring comes the uncovering of all our Winter junk. The waste site is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 AM through 4 PM and Sunday from 9 AM through 2 PM so everyone should have an opportunity to get rid of our Winter debris. We take just about everything from all your household garbage to your recycling to your big stuff like furniture even tires and scrap steel. We cannot take anything that is a contaminate, like paint and oil and chemicals. We also cannot take contractor debris. So if you hire someone to remodel your house or cabin remember to ask them to remove the demolition debris themselves and with their own dumpsters. We also have a receptacle for used American flags. We collect them and turn them over to the American Legion. Every year the Legion has an official flag retirement ceremony in the Spring for used flags.
One more request is that anyone interested in assisting our Garden Club this Summer in tending the planters downtown, please contact Linda or Janet at the Hale Hardware. They are always looking for additional help.
As always if you ever have any questions, comments or concerns regarding our community please contact me. I am in the office Monday – Friday 7:30 – 4:00 at 989-728-2811 or my cell at 989-984-7073 or by email supervisor@plainfieldtwpmi.com.
Fred Lewis – Supervisor Plainfield Township