has anybody here besides me ever curled? Bean? BelM?

Uhhh...no...but most of the rest of the country has. I'd like to. My husband says it's fun.

I have, however, played sponge hockey. I even have a T-shirt to prove it. I played for four years. It's like hockey, but you wear broomball shoes instead of a skates and the puck is a sponge puck rather than a real one. (It's great if you can't afford the full hockey equipment, or if you can't skate but love the game!) It's totally fun, but apparently pretty specific to Winnipeg. Or so I hear. However, "hog on ice" make me think of myself on sponge hockey shoes. Lots of motion, no net displacement of my centre of mass!