Family Ski's Again Today

I woke Sunday morning at 7a after struggling to fall back sleep after waking first near 6a. I felt completely rested and ready to ski again. It was Sunday, and that meant no calisthenics. So, after starting coffee I went right to my PC. One of the first things I checked was the weather forecast and then the final score of the late NFC playoff game. It was 18 degrees and sunny. Oh, and the Packers won big, 48-21. I enjoyed some coffee then eventually took Frankie out back. Right away, I sensed something not quite right out back. First of all, it looked like a lot of foot traffic out around the tree house and swings that wasn't there the day berfore. Typically no big deal. As I looked around, I noticed that all the extra wood from the tree house was launched into the pond and half embedded in the ice. Not a huge deal, right? As Frankie and I made our way back up to the house I noticed that the kids sleds were missing, and I could see lots of foot prints on the icy pond between my house and John’s, too. I eventually found Bella’s sled about half way in the pond. Jacob’s sled was gone. I wasn’t too thrilled. There was also the tell-tale signs of urine on the snow covered ice. I guessed it the handy work of neighborhood kids. I figured I’d follow the tracks across the ice into John’s yard during or after my run looking for clues to Jacob’s missing sled. I finished my coffee then readied for a run. It must’ve been 845a when I headed out. Everyone else in the house was still sound asleep. As I made my warm-up lap I decided not to pursue those tracks until my run was complete. As I set out on my run I happened upon three young boys probably no older than about 11 or 12 playing on the ice in the creek. One of the boys was much younger than the other two and apparently the victim of their terror. He was pouting about frozen feet from stepping through the ice. I felt bad and stopped to see if he was OK. Said he was. One of the boys looked vaguely familiar. As I ran on I happened to see them again continuing their venture down along the creek. It dawned on right then that these might be the very boys who terrorized my yard and took Jacob’s sled. I figured they were likely heading back towards my house by the way of the creek. I finished my run eager to see if my hunch was correct. Lo and behold, I was right. They were busy playing on the frozen creek across from my home and tossing large sticks into the water. I causally walked over and struck up a conversation. They remembered me as the helpful runner whop stopped a few blocks away to see if they were OK. They had no idea I owned the house across the street. As we talked I casually asked if they were playing in that yard over there yesterday. All three agreed that they had. Oh? I then asked if they knew where my son’s sled was and how all that wood got tossed into the pond. In a bit of a panic their loyalty to one another waned. Finger pointing ensued. I quickly interjected that unless they made it right in a hurry I intended to call my buddy who was a cop. They all agreed to come get the wood and then retrieve Jacob’s sled, which they said now was halfway upstream along the creek. They debated briefly over who would do what. I said we all would go together. We went to clear the wood from the pond first. One of the boys asked if I knew his friend Jacob. Yes, that’s my son. Instantly, I remembered him as Jacob’s friend, Keith. He became even more apologetic then. None of the three boys were rude or ‘bad’. Just got a little carried away, I am sure. I shared that they were always welcome to come play in our yard as long as they respected our property and treated it like their own. They worked together to get all the wood from the pond, and then sent one upstream to get the sled. After returning the sled they asked if they could play out back. Yes, again, though, treat my yard with respect. They all eagerly agreed. I headed inside where Mindy and the kids were just waking up. I shared the story with Mindy and Jacob. A few minutes later one of the boys came to the door asking for Jacob to come out and play. Jacob didn’t want to play. Now about 10a, we discussed skiing and if everyone was still up for another day on the slopes. Everyone was in. We took our time getting ready. Most of our gear was already there in the family room. Our skis, however, still in the Honda. I had hoped to get an earlier start than Saturday but that wasn’t to be. Mindy replenished the sandwiches and snacks while I restocked the cooler and lemon nip. By the time we were leaving the house it was after 11a. We called Kenny & Chrissy to see if they were still heading up. They were, but not until later. Chrissy was at the hospital again with her former mother-in-law. Said they’d call once they were on there way up. I texted our new friend Darwin. I was surprised with his response a while later. Said their house was broken into while we all skied yesterday. Took a laptop, watches, and X-box. Had to stay home and deal with that mess. I hated hearing that. We weren’t sure what to expect crowd-wise: bigger, smaller, same? I guessed a bit smaller than Saturday. It was a gloriously sunny afternoon with temperatures in the low 20s. We arrived around 1205p. To my surprise, the lot was even fuller than Saturday. We lucked out and got a parking spot a bit closer than Saturday after someone unexpectedly pulled out. Cool! We geared up and had our daily lift passes before 1230p. While waiting on Mindy at the lift, we happened upon Bob I. Said he skied Snow Trails again the day before. He said Scott and Zach were here today too. We skied together for a couple of hours changing up the lift rotation every so often. The lines were long and the slopes dangerously busy. People coming at us from every angle it seemed. In fact, on my first or second run I collided with another skier entering my trail from my right side. He went down hard. I stayed up. I stopped to make sure he was OK. A ski patrol skied up and asked me to be careful. Sure. But truth be told, there was nothing I could do. He skied into me. The lift lines were a zoo, far longer than I’ve ever seen them and with little organization beyond the yellow plastic barriers. Several people were ditching almost at will. A few skiers passed Mindy, the kids and I. At some point two male skiers got ‘red’ with me after I called them out for ditching. One guy even put his finger in my chest and asked that I not touch him or his skies. Funny thing is, he was the one doing all the touching. It was all I could do not to defend myself. The two gents egos fed off one another. I thought it might come to blows. Somehow or another cooler heads prevailed. I ignored their inflammatory and derogatory remarks as we progressed through the line. Truth is, I was just as angry with myself for feeling so much angst inside during and after. We met up with Bob & Scott atop Four Star and skied for another hour or two before taking a break. Jacob eventually took off with Trevor, a friend he made a couple weeks ago. I’m guessing it was near 3pm when Mindy, Bella and I went in for break. I got a glass of wine for Mindy & a pitcher of beer for me. Mindy left Bob I. a VM, but later remembered that he left his cell phone at home. Mindy helped me with the pitcher, and we eventually finished it. It’s a sin to waste good beer, you know? Enjoyed our packed sandwiches too. At some point Kenny texted Mindy that they’d be up around 4p. We headed back out to slopes and skied hard well past dark. A work night for Bob I., I’m guessing that he peeled off around 6p. At some point, Scott and I decided to head in and get a beer. We got another pitcher after Mindy agreed to drive home. We watched the Bears beat the Seahawks earlier and were watching the Jets put a hurtin’ on the Patriots then. Mindy and the neighbors came in for a break and found a big table. She flagged Scott and I over. Prior, we were standing with our beer. Mindy excels and finding tables. She had no trouble at all asking folks if they’re leaving soon and then squatting until it’s hers. We spent the duration of our evening in the lodge having fun & listening to the live entertainment. Thought we might get in a few more runs but never did. It was 7p and we agreed to meet Ashley at our house near 8p to intercept Olivia. We’d be keeping her overnight. By the time we were packed up and heading home it was 730p. We called Ashley once we neared I-270 to let her know that we’d be home in 10 minutes. She took that as her queue to leave her house. We arrived home around 810p. Ashley pulled up a minute or two later, or just as we were carrying in the last of our gear. As always, Olivia was more than excited to be there. Heart warming! Ashley left after just a couple minutes. Mindy asked that I inflate and ready the air mattress for the girls to sleep on. Everybody readied for bed in a hurry. It was 930p when Mindy and I headed up. The girls wanted Frankie to sleep with them, but that was causing too much commotion. I upped and took Frankie back downstairs, but left her out of her pen since she’d been in there all day long. However, after a brief time, she cooked her own goose by howling and barking for attention. Determined to nip that in the bud, Mindy quickly leaped out of bed and put her in her pen. Good night moon!