Neighborhood Walk

Waking after only about an hour of sleep. I struggled to get back to sleep and ended up downstairs again for at least an hour, and even after my return to bed, sleep was light at best. And as luck would have it, my best sleep was just before it was time to get up. It was 610am, which was fine. However, on top of waking a little bit late, I was very slow to motivate.

I cranked out sit-ups, windmills, and push-ups, the first calisthenics I’d done since the Friday before heading out of town. While on vacation I stretched, meditated and ran, no calisthenics. Woke Mindy with coffee near 630am. She said that she was extra tired too. In a unusual move, I plopped back into bed for another 10 minutes or so. I got up again once Mindy was up and out of bed. Hey, I worked several hours over the weekend so I wasn’t about to sweat trying to get in the office by 9am. I decided to take my time. As such, I didn’t leave for a run until almost 710am. I let Mindy know to advise Bella to head out on her own if I wasn’t back in time.

The forecast looked decent – low 60s and partly sunny on Monday, sunny and near 70 on Tuesday. However, at the time of my run it was still pretty chilly – near freezing. I ran the full 4.1 miles, my legs perhaps a little tired but all in all no worse for the wear. Felt good to run on flat ground.  I made it back home near 753am. Mindy was long gone and Bella already in final prep mode. I saw Bella out to the bus stop then walked the pug.

By the time I was done with my breakfast, showered, and ready for work it was near 9am. Worked a little bit from home before heading out the door near 910am.Got to work by 930am. Spent the first hour cleaning up email. Busy day catching up on all the important stuff that came in while I was off. Stayed busy all day. Didn’t bother to take a real lunch break.

Left for home around 5pm. Talked with Mindy but not for long. She was busy grilling salmon for dinner. Before dinner was ready, Mindy said I had time to take a quick nap, something I used to do pretty regularly but haven’t for the last couple years. Felt good to slip into the recliner and dose off soon after arriving home from work.

Around 6pm we sat for dinner: salmon, corn on the cob, and a garden salad. The salmon was a tad overdone but still good. After dinner Mindy & I took a walk with the pug. It was a lovely spring evening. Eiknarf was breathing heavy upon our return. We both agreed that she needs to get out more.

Not much else going on Monday evening. Off to bed near 930pm.

Making Way for Spring & Meeting Riley

 

Seriously jet lagged, I slept in until almost 9am. Downstairs I started coffee then played on my PC for quite a while before finally heading off on for a run around 1030am. It was a partly cloudy start but with a coating of snow and slush on the lawn, streets, and walks. I ran the usual Sunday three miles.

Back home but before heading inside, I shoveled the thin coat of ice and snow off the stoop and steps. Elsewhere most of Saturday night’s snow had already melted, at least what was exposed to the spring sunshine. Mindy worked on a grocery list while I fooled with photos on my PC. Because of my somewhat late start, it was early afternoon in a hurry.

I finished more unpacking from vacation, and while unpacking and putting away all of my clean clothes I noticed that several articles of running/ski clothes were inexplicably missing. I checked and double checked before telling Mindy that I was completely convinced that I somehow left them behind in the Govy Camp condo. And believe me, just the thought of leaving something behind drives me crazy. I simply can’t let it go. All the trouble I go through making sure that everything is packed, including checking and double checking everybody else’s rooms and drawers. In fact, I even went back in the condo once everybody was out and waiting in the car for one last once over. But thinking back, I checked every room and drawer other than my own. Moreover, I remember thinking that the amount of clothes in my suitcase looked somewhat less than what I packed. At the time I simply shrugged it off.

I think Mindy was humored by the fact that I knew just what was missing down to the color of running socks. To calm the torment, I headed to the garage to unpack and stow our skis. Still bothered, Mindy came asking if I wanted her to call Collins Lake and ask them to check the condo. Why not? Couldn’t hurt. They called back ten minutes later sharing that they had in fact found my stuff and wanted to know if they should ship it home, of course at my expense. Without question, yes. Cool! I probably should’ve asked how much and for an inventory of items but failed to. I was simply elated that they had my stuff and that they agreed to ship it home. According to my mental inventory, it was three quality wicking shirts, a base layer, running shorts, and two pair of running socks. Granted, some of the stuff more than a few years old but by estimates a couple hundred dollars to replace.

Mindy soon left for the grocery citing the fact that she’d be gone for a while. I headed out to the garage where I took the time to collapse a couple large cardboard boxes so they would fit in the recycling can for Monday’s pick-up. Like a lot of weekend days, once I got the blood flowing I felt much more energetic. In fact, so much so that I thought I would get busy in the back yard chopping down last season’s tall grasses and then toting all the cuttings to the compost pile.

Cutting the thick grasses with electric hedge trimmers is becoming a pain. More than ever I am seriously considering buying a high quality gas powered model. However, for the time being, the electric hedge trimmers would have to suffice.

While getting a rake from the shed, I decided to try starting the tractor. Bought a new battery last spring so I expected it to be start without jumping. And despite our brutally frigid winter it did. I let it run for about 20 minutes while whacking down the giant grasses in the flower bed near the shed. By the time all the grasses were chopped down, I had amassed quite the pile. Took some doing dragging and dumping it in the compost pile. Felt good with my accomplishments. Soon headed inside, carrying my snow skis up the spare room for summer storage.

At some point the boys called and asked if they could come over and play. I agreed. I left the front door opened so I could see them arrive. I noticed a small silver sedan slow in front of the house but stop in front of Trena’s place instead of our house. It was similar to Lindsey’s Civic, but definitely different. And then here came the boys running up the drive. Immediately I leaped to my feet to look at what car dropped them. However, before I could get out there she was out of site. Obviously she didn’t want me to see the non-Civic. Just what in the world was going on, I was determined to find out. I quickly quizzed the boys. Rocky, of course, was quick to fabricate a story, sharing that she dropped it off for cleaning. Uh, no! Almost at the same time Landon shared a different, more believable story. His story was that his momma ran up over a curb and tore something off the underside that needed fixed and that it was being taken care of. Rocky insisted otherwise.

Unfortunately, Rocky lies all the time, and often to either save his own hide or to protect his mother, the truth be damned. I decided that I would text Lindsey to find out. She promptly responded that the car was at the Honda dealership having those deep scratches taken care of and that alone, nothing else. OK. In the end, the only reason I care is that I am the one paying for the car. It’s my financial burden.

The boys and I played until Mindy got home from the grocery. Once she was home, I enlisted their help carrying all the groceries inside. With the boys out of sight, I told Mindy about the Honda issue. She understood my frustration. Hell, she was frustrated with it, too.

Soon Jacob & Bella were home from their dad’s. Jacob’s girlfriend, Riley was apparently coming over to hang out and have dinner with us that evening. Up to that point Mindy or I hadn’t yet met her, this his third girlfriend in the last six months. For the time being, all the kids headed out to play. While they did that, I headed upstairs for a quick nap. I might’ve slept for 3- minutes or so.

I had to be near 5pm when I rejoined the family downstairs. By then Mindy was readying dinner – rotisserie chicken, salad, rolls, mashed potatoes. I asked if Jacob’s girlfriend showed up. Yep. Seconds later Rocky & Landon rushed in from out back. Rocky quickly shared that Jacob and Riley were making out in the tree house. Oh boy! From the dining room window I can easily see the treehouse but no sign of those two. Rocky went on that they were lying down. Ugh!

Mindy and I agreed that I should head out and check things out. I grabbed my camera and headed out back. Of course the boys followed. First Jacob, then Riley popped up. Jacob had dried leaves sticking to his clothes. I introduced myself to Riley and then asked what was up. He unabashedly shared that they were simply kissing. I didn’t make too big a deal of it. I let them know dinner would be ready shortly then headed back inside.

Soon dinner was ready so Mindy hollered out to Jacob & Riley, who exited the treehouse and came in pretty quickly. The boys, it seemed, were enamored with Riley, especially Rocky, both vying for her attention. Sorta cute! She was quiet but polite. We quizzed her on a few benign topics (grade, sports, etc) but were careful not to sound like we were prying.

Dinner was scrumptious, but then again, I love rotisserie chicken. The kids moved to the family room after dinner and during clean-up. Mindy promised to bake some chocolate chip cookies. She took care of that while I cleaned up. Didn’t take too long. Sometime during clean-up, Mindy sent Lindsey a text sharing that she would bring the boys home around 8pm and after dessert. She also agreed to take Riley home. The kids made quick work of the two dozen cookies. Gone!

Bella opted to stick home with me while Mindy ran the boys and Riley home. Of course Jacob went with.
While they were gone, I read my Kindle book. They were home pretty quick, certainly faster than I expected. Mindy shared that she chatted with Lindsey about the car and got a slightly modified story from what her text said. Apparently Landon’s version was in fact dead on. While having the scratches detailed out, she was having something that got knocked loose on the underside taken care of. She also shared that it had been there for 11 days and she didn’t know when it might be ready for pick-up. Oh boy!
While toiled for her return to work, I finished my Kindle book. We headed to bed early, all of us extremely exhausted and still a little jet lagged.

Occam's Razor, PC problems, & Work Beckons on a Saturday

 

 

Even from my own bed. sleep was just OK. It felt good to wake in my own home, though initially I didn't know where I was. It was just after 8am, late in my book. I headed downstairs a little stiff legged and tired and started a pot of coffee. Felt good to not have an agenda, at least one that I was aware of.

Enjoyed coffee for a while, that is until my PC crashed. The power seemed to flicker and then Windows wouldn't boot again no matter what I did. The hard drive indicator was a solid amber. Not good. Furthermore, when running diagnostics, the long hard drive test failed and the error given, which I translated via my work laptop indicated a cooked hard drive. Dammit! As luck would have, I had a work escalation needing my involvement pretty quickly too. So much for being on vacation till Monday morning. All the sudden my relaxing morning went south and in a hurry.

Next thing I knew I was deep into an ugly work matter and dealing at the same time with a broken PC. Of course I have all my files doubly backed up, but at the moment that was little consolation. Felt somewhat helpless. Mindy was up in short order. I shared my dilemma, doing my best to keep it together. Reminiscent of our first day back from Utah when I inadvertently downloaded malicious spyware. This time I chose to look at it a bit differently. Everything can be fixed no matter how big the immediate inconvenience.

Before heading out on a run I decided to run a Window repair utility. It seemed to be locked up or paused for a long, long time in one particular phase. Rather than shut it down I decided to leave it cranking while I ran. Lo and behold, by the time I got back from my run the repair utility had finally made it over the proverbial hump and was rebuilding my Windows files. Hmmm? I was hopeful but not convinced. I walked away to do more unpacking. Mindy, by the way, was head long into vacation laundry.

When I checked my PC about a half an hour later it was at a login prompt. And after putting in my password it began operating like new, and perhaps even a little more efficiently than it has for the past several months. Hmmm? Needless to day, I was both pleased and surprised, though still bit cautious. That work issue, by the way, eventually got resolved after about 4 hours of my time. The one bright spot about getting involved in a work issue right away rather than waiting until Monday, it would take the shock of returning to work away after a week's vacation.

Mindy and the kids went to mawmaw's to pick-up the pug. While they were away I did more unpacking. While at it, I took Jacob's electric razor apart since he said it wasn't working worth a damn anymore. Told me he hasn't ever cleaned it. When I pulled the face off, the entire face was clogged with facial hair. No wonder the rotary blades couldn't turn. I tapped the blade assembly against the bathroom counter top them cleaned each blade along with the shield with rubbing alcohol. Like new. Put it on charge, too.

Wasn't long before Mindy and the kids were home with the pug. Eiknarf seemed indifferent to be home. Somewhat excitedly, I called Jacob to the masterbath to show him what I found in his razor. He was reluctant to come until I invited Mindy along too. Mindy got a kick out of the hairy mess. Jacob said he had no idea that it came apart for clearing and cleaning.

Not too long after they got home for picking up the dog, Jimaken came to get the kids. As I shared earlier, Mindy and I didn't have anything planned other than agreeing to do date night at CBC - Mindy's preference. The weather was nothing to write home about but I guess also typical for March in Ohio. The day's high was only expected to reach 40 with rain changing to snow by late evening. Raw comes to mind.

Like most days with no real agenda, the day seemed to fly by with reckless abandon. Where had the day gone? Spent most of my day playing on the PC, working, napping and reading from my Kindle. I felt sleepy all day, too, even after a couple brief naps. We headed to CBC near 630pm, and for the first time in a really long time. we parked in the main lot up against the building. Vince and a new guy were tending bar. We were greeted warmly by Jen, Vince, Tara, and Aubree.

My first beer was a plain old CBC pale ale. Not as good as I remember. My next two were a guest triple IPA. Can't recall whose it was. We enjoyed some bread and risotto balls without actually ordering them. Vince always makes sure we have what we love. He's the best! For dinner, Mindy ordered their barrel cut sirloin while I enjoyed a plate of wings. Ate 'em all, too! Headed for home near 930pm. At home I poured a 4th beer but couldn't finish it. Wrapped the pint glass in cellophane and then joined Mindy who was already in bed. Didn't take long to fall asleep.

Columbia to Columbus - A Gift For You

 

 

 

 

My phone rang in the middle of the night. It was 2am PDT. Generally speaking, I wouldn't have bothered but being out of town, I didn't want to miss an important call. It was our security provider calling to report issues with our home phone line. Still half asleep I was slow to process, clarifying what the issue was. She explained that while they were detecting phone line issues there were no alarms. Wanted to know if we wanted them to dispatch the cops to check out our phone line. Uh, no! Spooked me. It was hard to go back to sleep.

I've made countless visits to the Portland/Vancouver area to see and ski with Glenn, and for whatever the reason - perhaps none - it seems to pour rain the day I leave more often than not. I keenly remember these occasions only because I wake having to run in a downpour thus having to pack wet running clothes for home. Ugh! This visit was no different. I was up at 7am and after glancing out the hotel room window could see that it was coming down in buckets.

Taking it in stride, I got into my running clothes then headed out to the streets of Vancouver. Rather than run along the river I decided to run north on Columbia Ave towards Glenn's house and back. It's all uphill from the river, but a gradual one. Ran to Glenn's place and turned around. Felt odd not stopping in. Ran back past the hotel all the way to the Red Lion at the Quay then finally back to the Hilton. I ran through Esther Short park both on the ascent and descent stopping to pat the bronze statue - "A Gift For You" - on the head, just as I have for the past 15 or so years. Notice numerous homeless folks gathered in the pavilion or park's ornate shelter house.

Back in the hotel, Mindy was already out of the shower but in the bathroom. I started the final packing while waiting to shower. Once out of the bathroom, Mindy shared that she was ill and had a UTi, a urinary tract infection. She was in tremendous pain, too, so she called brother Craig who called in a prescription to the local Fred Meyer. I hoped it was the one at Columbia Shores, just down the road from our hotel and our breakfast venue. It was. It's my guess that she got the infection from the all the hot tubbing we did all week. I was showered and packed by 800am. The kids were quick to ready. Jacob takes the fastest shower in the west. We left the hotel near 845am. Mindy called Glenn to tell him that we might e a little later for breakfast. Instead of 930am, she guessed 945am.

Missed the correct turn onto Columbia Shores drive and somehow ended up on 14 E. Yikes. Had to go to the next exit which was about two miles past our destination to turn around. No biggie. Bella headed inside Fred Meyer with Mindy while Jacob and I waited in the van. Rain, rain, rain. It was a gloomy day. I was looking forward to home but still a little melancholy just the same. That's pretty much par for the course. Mindy sent me a text. Didn't have the meds Craig prescribed. He had to call in another. Long wait. Maybe half an hour. Time-wise, we weren't in a big hurry. Our plane wasn't scheduled to take-off until 2pm PDT. I think it was near 955am when Mindy finally came out of Fred Meyer. In addition to the prescription, she bought some over the counter pain meds exclusively for Uti's. Seemed to already be taking the edge off. Speaking of off, we were finally off to breakfast.

Glenn was there and waiting at a table at the Quay already enjoying coffee. Not a lot of customers but still the same slow service as the Saturday before. The food is good and the staff friendly, just slow. I was patient. Finally coffee. Yum! At one point or another we all headed to the large picture windows overlooking the Columbia looking to spot sea lions. Yep, we saw them poking their heads up. presumably feeding on the salmon, or whatever else lurks in those waters. Glenn shared that there's a lively local debate about their presence and potential over feeding. Somehow I think that humans are much greater harm to the fish population than that of sea lions.

Ordered the same thing I did Saturday, an omelet with sausage, cheese, peppers, etc. It came with hash browns and toast. Very filling! Couldn't finish but came close. Glenn declared the breakfast check his. Thanks Glenn. Despite taking our dear old time, it was 1120am when we waltzed out of the Quay to our cars. Glenn pulled around to the minivan so we could transfer the cooler full of food as well as a box of dry goods and booze. Gave him the tire chains too, so he can return them for a full refund since they went unused now for the third time in a row. Said our goodbyes and gave him a hug and headed our separate ways. Shortly before that I clarified where we might best refuel before returning the rental van and then how to pick-up 14E. Easy directions. Columbia to McLaughlin to Chevron then the freeway entrance is right there. Cool! Honked as Glenn stayed straight on Columbia St heading north back towards home.

Filled up with gas. Took about 4 or 5 gallons. Not much, having just filled up in Govy Camp the morning prior. Off to the airport and Thrifty rental return. We've rented from Thrifty numerous times thus know the exit and area well, which is just east of the airport off Airport Way Dr on Holman St. Turn right at the Shilo Inn. Didn't take long for the return. Never does. They are very efficient. had our receipt and luggage curbside within a few minutes. Oops! Noted that we left Glenn's cooler tray in the rental. Also left several cans of soda and bottled water. Nevermind, the attendant said they'd dispose of the soft drinks. Sent Glenn a text about his cooler tray should he care to stop by Thrifty to get it.

There was a full shuttle pulling away but another right behind it. We were at the airport in no time at all, still before noon. Check-in and security were fairly quick. At our gate and waiting by 1215pm. Bella picked up a souvenir for her pal, Makayla- a miniature Oregon suck mascot. Soon joined by the McVey/Harmer contingent. As it often does, the wait to board went fast. Soon it was 130pm and we were boarding our plane for home. Still pouring rain in Oregon. All four of our flights were completely full, but we had favorable boarding numbers so sitting next to one another wasn't an issue. We ran into the same family we flew out with from CMH.

This time I grabbed an aisle next to Mindy and Bella. Jacob sat with Lane and Darwin while Jordan and Brad took seats one row back. Brad slept most of the flight into Chicago. I read mostly, but also did a little sleeping, especially as we sat waiting to take off on the tarmac. We were socked in with clouds and rain so we couldn't see much before, during and after takeoff. Too bad. The Cascades are gorgeous from the air. Sadly, didn't get to see Yellow Stone either. Instead, just clouds. Oh well!

As with most west coast/east coast flights, the day goes by incredibly fast. We landed in Chicago at 745pm CDT. Where had the day gone. Our departing gate for CMH was just down the way a few. Having not eaten since 10am PDT, we made a beeline to the McDs that was right there. Of course it had the longest line too, and they weren't very efficient. By the time we got our food, our flight for home was boarding. We opted to carry it unopened on board. We couldn't help but laugh at Jacob who in the short walk from McD's to our gate somehow misplaced his soft drink. Tisk tisk!

The flight from Chicago to Columbus is always a fast one - up and then down. I read most of the way - about 40 minutes - before they asked us to return our tray tables and to prepare for landing. Making it even faster, we landed from the west heading east. which hasn't been the case the last several years. Nice! Felt and smelt good to be home.
Baggage claim was fast. All 7 of our bags were some of the first off. Not sure how that worked out. but hey!

And since dad was picking us up curbside, we didn't have far at all to walk. I knew he was there waiting in the cell lot having sent him a text as soon as our plane landed. Loaded for home in a hurry. Dad wasn't very talkative, but I was. Shared lots of stories. Dad helped us carry everything in the house. The house seemed to be all in order - nothing amiss. By then it was near midnight. We quickly unpacked only those things absolutely necessary to call it a night, which wasn't too much. I quickly got my home PC back online and began downloading pictures while also enjoying a cold White Rajah. Yum! Good to be home.

Last Ski Day of the Season is a Whipper

Slept a little bit later than all the other days, but was still the first one up at 610am. Lots of fresh snow covering Govy Camp. Looked to be at least 6" and it was still coming down. Exciting, yes, but I was a tad worried about the drive up the mountain to Meadows despite having chains if necessary. Made and enjoyed coffee before setting out on my run. David was up by the time I left.

That early, nothing had been plowed, not the Collins Lake parking lot or the even main drag through Govy Camp. I ran in a couple of tire ruts and had to stop twice briefly just to catch my breath. Completed the run then took a few pics. With all the fresh snow, it was breathtakingly beautiful.

Back at the condo in one piece near 730am. Our internet service had been down for the past few days once the snow storm hit. I used my phone to check the conditions at both Timberline and Meadows. No word about chains/traction devices required, though during my run I could see a sign flashing at the foot of Timberline Rd stating that they were required. Meadows was reporting 7" overnight with that much and more on the way. Moreover, calling for up to another 18" on Friday.

I poured Mindy some coffee then took it upstairs. While she sipped her coffee, I started the packing process since we planned on checking out of the condo before heading up the mountain to ski for the day. We devised a brilliant plan to leave all of our suitcases and ski bags in Darwin's garage since they were staying the night and heading to the airport Friday morning from Govy Camp. That would make our lives so much easier.

Mindy prepared a breakfast casserole Tuesday night, and we enjoyed it on Wednesday and now Thursday morning. I was packed and ready to roll before all the others. Packed up the food in the kitchen for transport back to Glenn's place. We'd be sending him home with lots of food and booze. Glenn, David, Jacob and I hauled all the suitcases down to Darwin's through what was then about 8" of fresh snow. About the same time (near 9am) Collins Lake was plowing their streets.

We stopped at the office to buy discounted lift tickets then we were off to Meadows, Glenn following behind us. Still snowing pretty good but the roads in fairly decent shape. Got a little dicey as we hit the Rt 35 curves just before the Meadows exit. Had a couple chain-up areas opened. I was a tad panicked having never installed them before, and no longer was Glenn behind me. Yes, I was white knuckling it! Heading up Meadows Rd. they had spread aggregate but traction was sill dicey. It felt as though if we came to a stop that we might not get traction again heading up. Must've been about halfway up the road we came upon another opportunity to chain up and many were pulled over doing so. Sliding a little, I took that as an omen. Don't be stupid. Use the chains! I pulled over to chain up, and just as Mindy began to read the instructions Glenn cam up from behind. He and David shouted just to keep going. Heading their advice, we bagged the chains idea and barreled onward. By then we couldn't have been but a mile from the parking lot. We made it. Boy was I relieved to see the Welcome to Meadows sign.

Meadows employees were out guiding cars into parking slots like always. On a gradual uphill, it took everything the minivan had to keep progressing forward. Just as we were heading to the line to take the final spot next to Glenn and David in a parking row another vehicle came speeding by trying to pass us. I was pissed and scared. Gave him the single finger salute.

Because we purchased our RFI passes at Collins Lake, we were free to go right to the lifts. Mindy and Jacob had to pee. Bella and I waited. The others, Glenn and David were already up at the lift base presumably waiting. Clicking into our skis near the ticket window, I spotted David in line at one of the windows, why I wasn't sure. He walked away looking a little incensed. Explained that he tried unsuccessfully to turn in his lift ticket for a refund. Wasn't interested in skiing in these conditions. Not only was the snow deep, but visibility was minimal, at least for the time being. I encouraged him to ski on. They wouldn't give him a refund because he didn't have a receipt. However, even if he had it, they wouldn't have refunded his money since he bought it at Collins Lake.

Just before sliding into the lift line, The McVey contingent showed. Jacob and Lane were about to board off when Darwin pulled Lane to take him to get some food. Apparently he slept until the last minute. Didn't eat anything. Up Hood Express the rest of us headed. Visibility was at a premium, but I was giddy with excitement for the opportunity to ski in the fresh powder again.

We headed to the left over towards Shooting Star. The visibility was so poor that seeing what you were skiing was next to impossible. And what's more, we couldn't see too far in front of ourselves either. Ugh! As such, we all skied tentatively. We did two or three runs up and down Shooting Star before Glenn shared that he was feeling poorly (vertigo). Wanted to head back to Hood Express where the runs are tucked between two tree lines and likely to provide slightly better visibility. I followed while Mindy stayed over in Shooting Star with the kids since Jacob wanted to do Rock Garden a few more times.

Glenn started hitting the booze early too. Said it helps cure the vertigo. Taking his lead, I did a few nips of George Bailey, too, since I was feeling a little woozy as well. But even over there, visibility was at times at a premium, though far better than the Shooting Star runs. We skied it three or four times. It continued to snow hard all morning and early afternoon long. And at times visibility was near zero!

We took a nice long break around 1230pm I'm guessing. We got a nice table with view of the slopes. I drank only ice water for the day's duration since I'd be driving back to the Couv later that afternoon. I was sucking it down, too, glass after glass. David & I shared a plated of loaded waffle fries. Man, were they good. Must've been near 2pm when we headed out for the last hoorah. I was eager to ski the face, something we hadn't done all week. I would've done the bowls had visibility been better. Not going to get much better snow at Meadows.

We did a couple runs down the east side of Hood Express, David's favorite. Glenn suggested we do the west side, over where Chunk Swirly and One Bowl reside. Can't recall the run, but it was pretty easy. Takes you to Beaver Tail, which is a run I remember skiing back in '08' with the Imber's. Despite the fairly easy run, my legs were largely spent and I wasn't afraid to admit it. I told David & Glenn that I was done and heading in. It wasn't exactly how I wanted my ski season to end, but ending then was far better than ending it hurt. :)

I headed back inside where Mindy, Bella, Brad and I think Darwin were hanging out. Not too much longer, David and Glenn came in. Conditions were tough one everyone. Jacob, Lane, and Jordan stayed out until the last lift ride. Once we corralled Jacob, we said our goodbye's to David, who Glenn would be dropping at a friend's place in Milwaukie, Oregon where he'd be overnighting before flying back to S.C. on Friday evening. We also said goodbye to the McVey/Harmer contingent, not sure if we'd see them at their condo since we had to stop there to pick-up our luggage and ski totes.


Before stopping at the McVey condo, we dropped off the rented snow board at the Govy Camp ski shop. Took just a couple minutes. Darwin gave us the garage door combo so we could access our stuff. Took about 30 minutes to pack our skis for air travel home and then load all of our suitcases into the minivan. Mindy put the kids ski clothes in their dryer while we loaded up. However, they were still damp when we finally left. The McVey's were still not back when we pulled away. We stopped at the office and handed off our snow park pass, which still had another day's worth of parking on it. Hey, give it to a lodging guest. Next stop the Vancouver Hilton.

Doesn't take long to get out of the altitude and away from any signs of snowfall. Within ten minutes everything was lush and green as we descended the mountain into Rhododendron, Zig-Zag, and finally Sandy. And while MT. Hood behind us remained socked in in clouds, the sun was shining at least periodically in the rolling hills and finally Portland and the Couv. Very nice. Once again, it felt like spring!

Easy drive into the Couv. Avoided the usual traffic jam on the I-84/i-205 interchange that so often causes delays. Think it was 6pm by the time we were checked into our room at the Hilton. Nice! Before doing anything else, we did a repacking of sorts, making sure we had everything where it needed to be for the flight home. Once done, Mindy and I were aching for the hot tub. The kids, however, wanted to remain in the room. Fine. She and I headed to the Hilton hot tub, and even invited Glenn to join us, who was now at home after dropping David at his friend's place. We planned on meeting for dinner near 8pm at Joe's Crab Shack. He declined the hot tub offer for feeling gritty.

The hot tub was indoors on the 3rd floor overlooking the Columbia River. Nice! Very hot too, just like I wanted it. Ahhh! Mindy and I relaxed for 20 minutes or so before heading back to the room for showers. The partly sunny skies from earlier soon gave way to rain. And the forecast for Friday looked even rainier. While they were expecting oodles of snow in Hood, they were calling for 3-5" of rain in and around Portland. Ugh!

We left to meet Glenn for dinner near 8pm. We were seated at a table before he arrived. The greeter brought him to us shortly after we order drinks. I ordered a big beer, a Bridgeport IPA, but only one. We all ordered seafood dinners save for Bella who ordered a burger from the kiddie menu. Mindy, Jacob and I had our dinners served in steel buckets called steamer pots. I had queen crab legs. They were decent. We wrapped up dinner by 930pm agreeing to meet Glenn again for breakfast at 930am at the Quay restaurant, the same place we convened for breakfast the Saturday morning prior. Offered to handoff all the groceries right then but he said he was too tired to fool with it. Agreed. We were all tired too.

Back at the hotel all four of us were quickly in bed with the lights out. Hard to believe a week had already gone by.

Powdery Delight

With about 5" of fresh powdery snow, especially higher on the mountain, this might've been my best ski day of the season and perhaps ever. I was stoked, putting my new Line Sick Day 110's to work with abandonment. Early on, Jacob was off with Lane and Jordan boarding down a few steep shoots while Mindy & Bella were with me. At first. Bella had a challenging time navigating the powder but eventually got the hang of it. This was the kind of snow I'd been dreaming about all season. As the day wore on the snow near the bottom got a little heavy and thick, especially near Hood River Meadows. I spent most of my day skiing of Shooting Star. What fun that was!

We took a break but only a brief one. With epic conditions, I wanted more! The last couple hours Mindy, Bella and I went in search of the black diamond bowls off Hood Express. I wasn't sure how to get over to Two Bowl, the groomed bowl we skied two years ago. I found One Bowl, which had it own sign right off the top of the lift. I went out there while Mindy & Bella waited for my assessment. Oh shit! I told them not to follow. Not only was is steep, steep, but there were enormous moguls at the very top of the run too, though they were soft, at least the top 10-12" of so. They skied on to find Two Bowl. As for me, there wasn't really a reasonable way to get back up. I committed to skiing down. I picked my line and went for it.

I did fine on the top 2/3s, the powder in the bowl far deeper than it was on the main runs. Had to be more than foot deep. Near the bottom my right edge got caught in the snow and my ski popped off. Bam! I was down and buried in soft snow. One ski and pole were barely visible in the powdery snow, and the ski was just out of my reach. And because it was so steep and soft, it was hard working getting up no more than 3 or 4 feet to retrieve it. I worked up a sweat just getting my ski. By then David was heading up Hood Express and skiing down the groomers. He had fun with the fact that I was struggling to get my ski on after I poked fun at him earlier for not digging the powder. Hey, all's fair.

Looking southwest, I could see Mindy & Bella skiing down Two Bowl. They spotted me too, still struggling to get back in my right ski. No matter what I did I just couldn't get on stable enough ground to get my ski back on. I slid down a little looking for more level ground. Ended up skiing down a ways on one ski with the other still in my hands. Mindy and Bella made their way over to my way to assist. By then I was soaked in sweat though still having fun. The snow at the base of the bowl was a foot deep too, making it extraordinarily difficult to get my ski back on. Bottom line, it took a while and a lot of sweat to get my ski back on.

We did one more run and called it a day. It was 4pm, the end of the ski day. We headed back to the condo. The road down the mountain was just wet, now ice or snow. Good job Meadows crew! Even more snow forecasted for Thursday, our last ski day of the trip and the season. We stopped at the Govy General Store on our way back to the condo to pick-up a few things necessary for our planned Mexican fiesta.

Back at the condo we mixed up mimosa's (champagne & OJ) and headed to the big hot tub. This time is was chalked full of folks. Most folks weren't aware of its existence earlier in the week as it's tucked nicely into the trees and often mistaken as another outdoor pool. We squeezed in and conversed with the others. Met a nice local couple that offered to show me the ropes of Heather Canyons on Thursday, conditions allowing. Spent about an hour at the hot tub. The entire Columbus contingent was present - all nine of us.

We were expecting Glenn to join us around 7pm. Remembered we still needed taco seasoning. Texted Glenn asking him to pick some up between Troutdale and Govy Camp. Agreed. It was 7pm by the time all of us were showered and ready to walk down to the McVey/Harmer condo (just a few doors down). Glenn showed up around 730pm. We finished whipping up 3lbs of taco meat, tossed it in a crock pot then headed down the way.

Darwin whipped up some of his infamous guacamole. Man is it good. David helped in the kitchen. He likes to cook just as much as Darwin. Ate around 9pm I'm guessing, and boy was it good. Like we did on Monday evening, Mindy and I did kitchen clean-up duty. Lots of dirty dishes to wash. Didn't want to eat and run. We hung out with our friends till about 10pm when we'd all had it. Headed back to our condo for one last night of sleep in Govy Camp.

Ram's Head

A winter storm system moved into the Mt Hood area overnight bringing a mix of snow and rain to Govy Camp, snow to Timberline, and a mix to Meadows. However, when I got up at 545am it was cloudy but no precipitation. After a little coffee, meditation and stretching, I set out on my run opting for the same trail I’d run the two mornings prior. Why change a good thing?

I ran a little stronger than the prior mornings, having to stop only once on the trudge uphill from Mt. Hood Brewing Co. Back at the condo near 715am, I took Mindy a cup of coffee then retreated to the downstairs where I hung out with David while waiting for Mindy and the kids to join us. By then it was spitting a mix of rain and snow, though still fairly light. Given the forecast for both ski parks, I suggested Timberline a much better option. They sit a bit higher on the mountain than Meadows. I exchanged a couple texts with Darwin sharing as much.

We left for Timberline near 910am. It was drizzling at the base of Timberline Rd but turned to all snow with 2 miles or so left in our drive up. Not surprisingly, the lot wasn’t crowded at all. Parked about as close as we ever have. Darwin and company were right on our tail. And because we bought our spring passes on Sunday, we hit the slopes as soon as we were snapped into our skis.

The plan all along was for Jacob to ski/lift with David and I leaving Mindy and Bella to have a peaceful girls day. The previous day at Meadows, Jacob had Mindy almost in tears with his incessant complaining. And according to Bella, some not so pretty words were exchanged. I told Mindy that she needed to stay committed to our plan, which she followed I think all but one lift ride all day Tuesday. It worked well too. Jacob didn’t complain to David and I much, and whenever he’d utter something negative, David would offer a positive way to look at the same situation.

My plan was the same as Sunday, ski to the bottom of Flood then head up and to the Mile (Palmer wasn’t opened). The down Flood was fine, though visibility a periodic challenge due to snow. Could see the Magic Mile lift running once atop Flood so we headed there. What? Had a closed sign blocking the entrance to the lift house. Learned a few minutes later that it was running on stand-by. From that point on we kept a watchful eye on the lift chairs from afar, looking for dangling feet heading up. Anytime the weather is suspect, meaning heavy snow and or clouds, they’ll shut the Mile down due to poor visibility. I’ve been up there before it complete white out conditions. Because it’s above the timberline, there is nothing to use as a natural boundary in poor visibility conditions. It can be a harrowing experience. Just ask Bob Imber. 

Even though the Mile was on stand-by, they did have Molly’s opened, which has some of their best lower mountain terrain. We skied the crap out of that. We made a couple more trips over to the Mile lift after seeing it opened however briefly. But by the time we got over there it was shut down again. The mountain peak was once again shrouded in clouds. It must’ve been around 1230pm when they shut it down for good, removing all the lift chairs. We were stuck with only the lower mountain.

By early afternoon the bottom of Flood and Molly’s was grabby and slushy, and while it was snowing at the lodge level – 6000’, it was spittin rain at the bottom of Flood & Molly’s. Turned right back to snow after passing a lift tower poles. We opted to head in for a break around 115pm, agreeing to meet at Ram’s Head Lounge, the pub restaurant atop the historic main lodge.

We nabbed a table one away from the coveted window table that provides a breath taking view of Jefferson on a clear day. As it was, all we could see was the immediate area and lots of snow. During our lunch break it snowed really hard. The menu at Ram’s Head features some of the entrees served at the renowned Cascade Dining Room.

Most of us ordered their clam chowder. I had a beer, too. And I’m pretty sure that it was a Porter. After our hour long break we headed out for a bit more skiing. Mindy, Bella & I got a little tired of the sloppy lower mountain conditions and called it a day around 3pm. By then David said his legs were just starting to feel good. I think he headed in with us just the same. While waiting on the others, including Jacob, who was busy on the terrain parks with Lane most of the day, we asked the office if anyone had turned in a snowboard. Nope!
While waiting for the others, it began to snow like only it can do in Oregon – total white out and enormous sized flakes the size of quarters. Holy smoke! In truth, it was beautiful to look at, but a little too wet to enjoy, especially with tired legs. Jacob and Lane came in around 340pm and we promptly made a beeline for the minivan and ultimately our condo back in Govy Camp. All of us were eager to get back and to the hot tub.

The forward looking forecast, by the way, was calling for nothing but snow and colder temps Tuesday night, Wednesday, and Thursday – and roughly another 20” of snow. Everybody was excited about the prospect of skiing Meadows again on Wednesday.

Spent about an hour in the hot tub and then Mindy & I took a much needed nap. We all planned to have dinner at Mt Hood Brewing Co. I think it was near 7pm when we rolled that way – all nine of us. Hadn’t been there since we did lunch there on our drive home from Bend three years ago, and they recently completed a remodel which I was anxious to see.

Cozy place and nicely appointed. The remodel looks great. Best of all, they maintained the charm of old while dramatically sprucing up it up with new stone, bar counters, tables, paint, etc. I had a cask-conditioned Ice Axe. It wasn’t really that good. My second was an Ice Ave but off the regular tower. That one was fine. We shared some appetizers – some plates we don’t ordinarily see back home – Alpine meats with onion jam and then a gruyere, fontina fondue. They were good but not very filling. Later, Mindy and I shared fish & chips.

Can’t recall our servers name but she was a cute young blonde with red Sally Jessy Raphael-like glasses. With Mindy’s brother, Craig. He also knows Deanna Sweeney well, too. Sent her a pic of Mindy and I. We haven’t seen Deanna for a while. Must’ve been about 9pm when we got out of there and headed for the condo. Our server came chasing us out the door. Apparently didn’t put David’s meal on our tab like we requested. Mindy graciously took care of that one too. Back at the condo Mindy was pretty quickly off to bed. Bella and I stayed up reading until 10pm.

Monday @ Meadows - Facing One's Demons

I was up again near 545am. Given that it was 845am in back home in Columbus, that would be considered sleeping-in ridiculously late. Glenn was already up and in the hallway bathroom preparing to leave for work. Downstairs, no sign of Tom Sheperd. Appeared as though he left sometime after we all headed to bed. He seemed to have quite a buzz going. I hope he used good judgment. Glenn I both partook in the half pot of coffee that remained from Sunday before starting another. He left the condo for work just after 6am. Wished him well. He planned to be back up Wednesday evening and then ski with us again on Thursday.

Felt good to have the condo all to myself. I enjoyed more coffee, a meditation and lengthy stretch. Life is good. Outside, more clear skies and half a moon with lots of starts. Awesome! I was eager to complete my run and then perhaps even a walk to take some photos. I headed out for a run around 640am. Judging by the continued melting snow, it was just above freezing. I ran the same route as the day before, stopping briefly again at the head of the trail to catch my breath. I figure the run to be about three miles. Either way, with the gradual uphill, it's a tough run.

This was the perfect morning if there ever was one. At the time, there wasn't anywhere else in the entire world that I would've preferred to be. After completing my run I promptly grabbed my camera and phone then headed back out on foot to take in the beautiful Mt Hood sunrise. I took several shots of the sun striking the eastern edge of Hood while the majority of its mass remained shaded. Incredible! For the first time ever, I walked across the bridge connecting Govy Camp to Ski Bowl East. And what a beautiful, ornate bridge it is. There are bronze sculptures molded into the railing. I walked around for 20-30 minutes. Not too long, really.

Back at the condo, I took Mindy a cup of coffee then began the ski ready. The plan was to ski Meadows, which is about a 10 mile drive around to the SE side of the mountain, or the slice getting all the early morning sunlight I just recently photo'd. Everybody was up, eaten, and ready to ski by 845am. We needed to stop by the office to get our lift tickets and it didn't open until 9am. We were there right at the opening. Forgot to mention that Darwin & Brad got a $30 parking ticket in Timberline's lot for not having a snow park parking pass displayed on their dash.

While purchasing our discounted lift tickets for Meadows, Darwin and Brad came in at the same time. Cool! They complained to Shannon about the parking ticket. Unfortunately, they did a self check-in like we did so they didn't know about the parking pass until it was too late. We got our lift tickets and left. Figured Darwin was right behind us.

Arrived at Meadows near 930am. Lot was only about 1/2 full. I wondered what was going through Mindy's mind as we walked across the lot and past the on-site Mt Hood hospital, the very site where her torn MCL was triaged two year prior. Didn't say anything. Once in the day lodge, we stopped to pee before heading to the lifts. The line to head up Mt Hood Express was small, and with the addition of the RFI technology, the line moved fast. Meadows has more of a Utah feel thus is far different than Timberline. Once atop MT Hood Express I suggested we ski Chunky Swirly, the very run where Mindy tore her MCL. On this occasion the conditions were far different - better - the snow completely groomed. In those conditions it skied easy.

Near the bottom of the run we picked up Vista Express and then them ultimately Cascade Express, the run that rivals the Mile at Timberline, though not nearly as spectacular. Atop the ski park there were lots of exposed boulders, certainly more than I'd ever seen before. All of my early season Oregon skiing has been at Timberline, so I wasn't expecting that. And while the base was more than a 100" they're still much lower than a typical year, especially this late in the season when it really piles up. In addition, they hadn't had any new snow for at least 5 days. As such, several areas were covered in windblown volcanic rock dust making some of the snow look dirty.

We skied two or three runs top to bottom before one of my new Line Whip ski poles snapped inexplicably near the handle. What the crap? Shoot! David quickly offered one of his. Said he rarely uses them. Instead, I remembered putting Tom Sheperd's poles in the van that morning before realizing they were his that he left behind from Sunday. How convenient. I went to the van to exchange poles. It didn't take long since we were already at the bottom of the Vista lift near the parking lot. Problem temporarily solved.

David and I skied a few runs together before hooking up again with Mindy and the kids. Got a text from Darwin that read as though he might be aggravated with me. As I read it, it sounded as though it took them a full hour or so longer than us to get to Meadows. Later learned that they took the wrong Rt 35 exit. They were heading south towards Bend. Oops!

The family and David skied over to Hood River Meadows where there was next to no one. It's low on the mountain so the snow was noticeably wetter, mushier, but still navigable. Mindy had to pee so we were in somewhat of a rush to get over there so she could relieve herself. As such, I skied it fast. Mindy, however, apparently had to slow down - stop even - to help or wait on one of the kids. She gave me an earful for skiing ahead. Sometimes I can't win for losing. Finally at the HRM base, Mindy was able to relieve herself and the kids got snacks at the little store. After a brief break we were back at it, my goal to get back over to the main mountain since the snow was so slow and wet down there. By 2-230pm most of the mountain was mushy, sticky and slow. Rather than risk injury we headed into the day lodge for some beer and appetizers.

We hung out there until the entire gang congregated. A little later when Bella and I walked down to the ski/gift shop she shared that Mindy and Jacob got into a heated verbal exchange on the mountain. Said it brought her mom to tears. Oh boy! I didn't say a word when we got back, but planned to ask Mindy about it later, back at the condo. I had some ideas for moving forward.

We hung out in the day lodge until everyone was in. Jordan and Lane went back out despite the grabby snow. We headed back to the condo near 4pm. Made plans to do dinner with Darwin and company at their condo. After the hot tub, David, Mindy and I walked over to the Govy General Store to pick-up spaghetti sauce and a few other accoutrements. We headed over to the McVey/Harmer condo near 7pm.

Bluebirds Descend on Hood

 

I was up near 545am, and I am pretty I was the first up. My first priority was starting some coffee. Before that, however, I needed to figure out the lighting. Oops! Wrong switch. Instead of the kitchen sink light, I turned on the garbage disposal almost certainly waking, startling Tom S. who was asleep on the sleeper sofa in the adjoining livingroom. Finally figured out enough of the switches that I could see to get coffee started.

I enjoyed coffee and half a banana before setting out on my first Govy Camp run of ’14. Left the condo near 650am. Opted to run east first, which is an incline, though not as much as Park City. But even the trudge out of the condo complex to the road is uphill and completely winded me to the point that I had to stop at the entrance before heading onward. Ran to the Summit ski area/rest area then back down the incline all the way to the other end of Govy Camp at the Mt. Hood Brewing Company and Rt. 26.

Back uphill towards Collins Lake. I had to stop again at the Grand Lodge pool to take a few breaths. It was about 30 degrees, by the way with crystal clear skies. Hood was out in all her glory. Beautiful! Back at the condo, David and Tom were up and chatting all the while David was busy preparing breakfast – bacon and eggs.

I took Mindy a cup of coffee. She was up now too. Not too much later I headed up for a shower before getting into my ski attire. The others soon followed, including the kids. Everybody enjoyed coffee, bacon and eggs, though Jacob left most of his behind for not having any hot sauce. It’s a 6 mile drive up Timberline Rd to the ski lodge. I wanted to be on the road by 830am and was successful. Everyone was a cooperated. We wisely bought a parking pass from the Collins Lake office before heading up. We opted to buy our ski passes at the lodge rather than get the Collins Lake discount since we planned to buy the spring season pass for $99, which is good until the end of May.

Glenn and David warned that we’d have to wait in a bit of a line, but I didn’t mind. We got decent parking, but still already a half full lot. Only one other family in front of us at the spring pass line, which was somewhat of an ordeal, requiring a photo of each of us as well as the completion of a form. Had to wait a few minutes for our photo passes to be processed, too. We were still on the mountain by 905am.

No sign of Darwin and company. I think they were still trying to get the kids up and fed. From the lodge, we skied down and across to Jeff Flood. It was a chilly bluebird morning, the top ½” or so of the corduroy was crunchy from overnight freezing. It wouldn’t take long to soften up, however. Fun run down. Everybody did just fine.

From the bottom, we headed up Flood, then the Magic Mile, then up Palmer. This would be the 3rd time out in a row where we got to ski palmer via the lift. Sweet! Long, cold ride up. It’s hard to describe the feeling standing atop Palmer. Makes a day at otherwise tame Timberline well worth it. Perhaps best described as feeling as though you are on top of the world!

Palmer was spectacular. And a bit of a surprise, the snow was powdery. Guess it was so cold that it wasn’t going through the freeze and thaw like the lower mountain. First run down Bella KO’d Glenn while attempting to dust him near the bottom of Palmer. Got a chuckle out of everyone in the clan. Moments later, Jacob took a jump off a natural snow ramp and did a face and shoulder plant. Got it on my GoPro. Skied down to his aid. Aside from an aching shoulder, he was OK. Said he’d board it off. Great run all the way to the bottom of Flood.

Repeated the same run a few times in a row. And believe me, the three lift rides to the top eats up time, not to mention the long ski down. Bottom to top it’s a 3-4 mile ski. Jacob soon found Lane, and almost like magic, his shoulder was feeling better and his whining stopped. I joked that his voice went an octave deeper suddenly, too. He and Lane boarded off together while Bella and Mindy headed in for a quick break. Said they were cold and hungry.

I skied with David & Glenn for a while until we decided it was time to take a break. By then it had to be nearing 1pm. Mindy & Bella had been out again only briefly but still decided to break with us so we could all get on the same schedule. Word had it that Darwin, Brad, and Jordan were inside now too. Up to that point we hadn’t seen them except for a brief moment on the mountain.

It was so nice and sunny that we opted to beer and snack from the south facing patio at the Wy’east day lodge. I had a multiporter and shared nachos with the others. Soon joined by the entire gang, all totaled there were 11 of us (me, Mindy, Glenn, David, Jacob, Bella, Brad, Darwin, Jordan, Lane, &Tom). Quite the diverse contingent to be sure.

It was after our break that things soured. Jacob couldn’t locate his snow board anywhere. Walked the perimeter of the day lodge numerous times At first I was convinced that he simply misplaced it and could remember where he put it. Soon, however, it became apparent that it was gone. Looked in every nook and cranny. I was frustrated and pissed. After 20 minutes of searching, I knew the smartest thing I could do was go ski by myself. I skied Palmer to Flood a couple times eventually hooking up again with David & Darwin. David heard what happened and let me vent a little, I needed that. Thanks David.

After another 90 minutes of skiing my legs were fairly well spent. I headed back to the day lodge where I happened upon Jacob sitting all by his lonesome. Said Mindy & Bella headed out to ski. Said he looked everywhere, including at the main lodge for his board. Still no luck. Mindy, I guess, had already been to the office and gave them our number in case someone turned it in. Said they rarely have theft issues, and most times the skis/board show up the next day after being taken by accident.

Once Mindy showed up, she shared in some of the blame citing that she never thought to show or even tell Jacob where ski check was. Good point. Blaming him wasn’t going to do any good. More than anything, I simply needed to see him sweating it just as his mother and I were. Hell, I am the one that forked out $500 for the damn thing.

As the ski wound down, we loaded our gear into the vehicles while waiting on you know how, Glenn. He always skis to the very last minute. Watched for Jacob’s snow board too. Never did see it again. Back to the condo at 415pm. What a ski day! Great skiing, indeed. After a brief respite we headed for the hot tub, only this time to the giant hot tub, the one that holds like 30 people. Sits down and across the stream from the pool and regular hot tub. Before heading over, I poured two beers into a plastic tumbler – Bridgeport Hop Czar. – yum-yum!

As for dinner, we decided to do pizza at Ratskellers, just a hop, skip and jump from our condos. Darwin and crew said they were going to dine in but would likely join us there later for a beer. As for the Wright condo, most of us showered up before heading off to Ratskeller. Before we headed that way, Glenn reached out to his boss hoping to convince her to let him take Monday off work so that he could get in another family ski day. Said Sunday might’ve been his best ski day ever. No such luck. She apparently declined his request via text/email.

Must’ve been around 730pm when we walked over to Ratskeller’s. Well, most of us walked. Glenn, feeling no pain, skipped most of the way there. His juvenile gate caught the eye of Govy Camps finest, who just happened to sitting in his squad car directly across from Ratskeller. He kept a tight watch on Glenn until he saw the rest of us, including the children following close behind. Jacob and Bella weren’t too amused. Instead, they seemed embarrassed. The rest of us, however, were laughing hysterically.

Inside Ratskeller, Glenn’s antics continued. He bounced on the cushy both seats and then rolled around on the empty stage much to Jacob’s chagrin. He had the actions of a small child down pat – scary even. No doubt all the Jack Daniels he consumed throughout the evening aided his euphoric act.

We ordered a couple pitchers of beer and soda and then later four large pizzas. And by the time the pizza got there, Darwin and Brad were there now too. The pizza was even better than I remembered it being. Even still, there was far more pizza than appetite. We carried two full pizzas back to the condo for leftovers. Tom & Darwin, David & Glenn remained behind. Glenn & David came along within the next 15 minutes or just before Mindy and I settled into bed. Tom & Darwin were still out, though. Earlier that evening, Tom suggested that he would be heading back to Portland. Glenn had to work Monday too, but planned to spend the night and head to work from the condo early Monday morning. Never did hear Tom come in. Mindy & I slept well.