ChenDog O-BA-MA

This was our best summer ever. Except for Kitty's terrible bike accident. It was great having everyone in from both coasts visit us. And a French girl to boot.

We flew out to LA and stayed with Debi and Harold in Orange County. The first half of the week I slept at a hotel because I'm allergic to all of Debi and Harold's pets ,except Lenny who is one cool animal, but I shoulda slept in the tent the entire stay. Other than the pighogger facestuffing breakfast I didn't need to stay in the hotel. Note to self: next time buy some groceries and stay in the tent.

Our second day, Harold and I biked a 20 mile bike path and met the girls in Huntington Beach. No traffic for 20 miles. How sweet it is! Huntington Beach is a wonderful beach. Big and clean with lots of parking. In a car culture like LA's, parking is key and Huntington has a handle on it. We had a great day at the beach. Harold and Moise biked back home while Debi patiently waited for the girls and I to get our fill of the beach. It was a long wait!

I found out the hard way that saltwater washes off sunscreen. I even burned the inside of my belly button. Ouch!

The girls and I went to Newport Beach the next day. While it's no Huntington it was still a nice day at the beach.

We spent a nice afternoon at UCLA with Danny, his girlfriend Danielle and his dog. It was really nice to spend time with Danny in his old stomping grounds. Danielle is a cute girl. What a beautiful campus.

Harold loves to mountain bike. I am always curious to experience another man's bliss so we hit the trails one morning. I'm in really good shape, but Harold has steel springs for legs so I paid a price to be on the trail with him. While I was recovering from a particularly steep bit, a guy it turn's out is a friend of Harold's, came flying down the trail toward us. He narrowly avoided mowing Harold down and had to do a really cool skidding, sliding stop. That was a sight to behold. A lesser cyclist would have taken us all out. After chatting for a while Harold and I saddled up and Harold proceeded to tear my lungs out again. It was fun though.

We went to Laguna twice. Oh, Laguna. The jewel of Southern California. The first time, all of us ,including Nikki, drove down. We swam and walked all afternoon and then bought picnic food which we ate in a park on the bluffs overlooking the ocean. We then enjoyed a glorious sunset. What a beautiful day.

Leaving the girls with Nikki we drove up to Montecito to visit Aunt Sylvia and Uncle Marty. They graciously welcomed us into their charming home and served us homemade cookies and juices. We toured their garden which is a sight to behold. Marty is a Horticulturist by profession so their garden is fantastic. The garden covers their entire property and everywhere you look there is more more more. Words and even my camera can't do the garden justice. We were thrilled we got to visit such nice people in such an extraordinary setting.

On the way to the highway we found an estate that was so elaborately gardened it had to be Oprah's. It was like an arboretum.

On the way home we stopped in Ventura for dinner. What a cool, fun looking town.

While we were in Santa Barbara, Nikki took the girls to Hollywood. As luck would have it they stumbled upon a Teen's Choice Awards party. The girls got to meet and take pictures with a bunch of kid stars! They were thrilled.

A few days later we gave Harold and Debi a break and drove down to Laguna with the girls to spend the night. We discovered every beach, every nook and cranny beach in Laguna has a lifeguard! That means you can swim in places you have no business swimming and when you get in trouble there is a lifeguard to save your dumb ass. Thankfully, the thought that it might be my dumb dead ass the guard plucked from the surf kept me at the main beach. We had a wonderful day at the beach.

As luck would have it we were there for the monthly art gallery opening night. Moise and I had a great time browsing the galleries and taking advantage of the free refreshments ;) Later, we grabbed the girls and went to dinner. Laguna restaurants don't care about their upscale menus because they know that you have to eat, so pay up Bitches! I was so happy to be there I didn't even care. I was in Heaven.

On our last night in LA, Debi and Harold took us to this crazy Italian restaurant in Fullerton, which is also a cool, fun looking town. The restaurant is like a neighborhood Italian restaurant if said neighborhood restaurant was on steroids and operated by Salvador Dali. A trip is the best way I can describe it. But good.

If Millenium Park is the 8th wonder of the world, the highway system in Southern California is the 9th. That highway system is an engineering marvel. You can get anywhere and everywhere and you even have choices of your route! A great experience navigating the LA area.

So; bike rides, beaches, pets and most of all family. We had a ball in Southern California. Spending our vacation with family made it all the more fun.

My first belt exam as a Brown Belt I thought went pretty well. I had done everything I was told would make a difference.. I went to every class, I volunteered at tournaments and even practiced every morning and noon. When I got a Keri (half promotion) I was devastated. It took me a long time to get back on track emotionally. I stopped testing and took time off. In the meantime I ran a marathon and began teaching Tai Chi so my time was accounted for but I had unfinished business and I knew it. It gnawed at me. Sensei lived in my head. It was a pressure that wouldn't go away. I kept training but the results were always the same: Keri. I had to accept it but man, it was hard. I've always been a good athlete so getting dinged every exam was tough to take.

I got the final Keri taken off last December. I started training for my Black belt exam immediately. The senseis' always talked about taking the students to aerobic failure during the exam to see how they would perform under stress. I knew that was one aspect of the exam that had always hindered my performance. My solution was to do a workout that was more intense than the exam. Once a week I put myself through a grueling aerobic/anaerobic workout incorporating elements of the belt exam. The other days were all devoted to karate drills. Then 3 classes a week. Total immersion into karate. I pretty much got sick of karate but I had to press on and finish what I started.

After 6 months I felt pretty good about my karate but my instructors, especially my Saturday instructor Mr Noia kept ripping my form. I was really glad for his relentless critique of my karate. It kept me motivated.

The exam finally came and I was shocked when I got to the warm up room and it was filled. The winter exam had been really small. There were even some Black Belts there which really freaked me because I would have to spar them. When they finally grouped us I was disappointed to be in the second to last group but pleased they let us wait outside the gym. I paced and watched the other people taking their exams. I was shocked by lackadaisical performance of some of the candidates. The instructors have always told us to go all out during the exam. After a while I didn't believe them because I have always gone all out and yet my results were always disappointing. But this was the Black Belt exam! Deserving of our finest effort. There was no way I was going to hold anything back. A guy in the group ahead of me was really going all out. His technique was a little raw but he was giving it everything. I thought " You and me Bro"

When it was my turn I went all out. I was somewhat disconcerted that the sequences were not the same ones I had practiced for 6 months. They were simpler, but not what I had practiced on an almost daily basis. It was still karate and I got after it. At one point I thought to myself " I don't know how much more of this I can take" but I reminded myself that I had trained hard for six months, of course I could take it. I made a few mistakes and each time an examiner was looking right at me. I was seriously upset about that.

Kata seemed to go fine and I was aware during more of the kata than at previous exams. Mr Noia had prepared us so well that when I heard a command for Kiba Dachi I kiaied and snapped into the stance. I didn't realize at first that this was the Japanese Terminology portion of the exam. I responded automatically to each Japanese term. Again I was appalled that some didn't even know the basic Japanese terms. It's the Black Belt Exam fer cryin out loud!

Sparring was next and I was psyched. I had been jumping rope for 6 months so I knew my feet were quick. I was pumped, primed and raring to go. At one point a woman told me I was fierce. Damn right. I wanted to pass first time. I chased one guy half way across the gym. Then a Black Belt kicked me right in the stomach. Humbling.

We were done. I thought I had done pretty well but my mistakes under the gaze of the examiners haunted me. Then other things that were said and done not the least of which was " You know they don't promote us(middle aged guys) the first time " began to torment me. By the time they announced the results in class I was so convinced I had not passed that when he announced "1st degree Black Belt" I thought he said 1st Kyu meaning I had failed. I stepped back into line and then couldn't figure out why everyone was clapping so much. I leaned over to the guy next to me and asked " Hey, what did Sensei just say?" He looked at me like I was daft and said "He said 1st Degree Black Belt. Good job man!" I had done it. After 8 1/2 years I was a Black Belt. How sweet it is!

I want to sit in Beaners and have a cup of tea. Watch the world go by.

I don't want to take the train everyday and walk to this shithole
and wait for the executives to enact our doom

But Beaners is closed


I want to sit on the couch and watch movies with my family.

I don't want to do chores
and get ensnared in home repair projects

But my house is falling apart

I want a Black Belt.

I don't want listen to Sensei bitching about how lazy and awful everyone is
I don't want to buy his shitty fundraiser candy

But he has my Black Belt

Ran about a mile the other day and my hip wasn't killing me. Maybe by summer I'll be able to run some decent distance. I really hope I can run my 8 mile forest preserve loop by summer. I really miss it :(

I went for a private lesson on Sunday. I had prepared myself mentally for the tear down by recalling an article about a world champ whose nightly workouts were filled with corrections by his teacher. I told myself if it was good enough for a world champion, I had to deal with it as well. As I expected, Mr Noia picked my karate apart. What I didn't expect was he told me not to feel bad. I appreciated that compassion. I told Mr Noia that I was there for a check up so I was fine with the criticism. What made the criticism more acceptable was that not only could I see the difference his corrections made in my form, I could feel them. I actually felt good about things after a while.

I had told Mr Noia I was curious about my aerobic conditioning and true to his promise he put me through some combinations. I was surprised by how gassed I got but was glad he put me through it. I got my aerobic workout in!

As we chatted after the session I observed some other private lessons taking place. Of the four instructors in the dojo, all were national champions, all had international experience and 2 (including Mr Noia) were international medalists. I wondered if any of the kids taking the lessons had a clue how fortunate they were. I mean how often can you get a private lesson from an international competitor let alone pay only $50 for it?! I marveled at my good fortune.

Before Tai Chi class last night I got the impression that 2 of my students were contemplating switching back to Tues intermediate class. I thought I felt resentment from them. I was puzzled a bit by this as they had just submitted class evaluations and I got good marks. I felt really self conscious during the class. I have found that I try so hard to break the form down, and simplify it so much, it really complicates rather than simplifies. Later I realized that this is another example of the Chen style not being suited for many people. It's just way to complex and athletic. Also, learning Tai Chi is more of doing, rather than talking activity. I mean, I can explain something until I'm blue in the face (which I often feel I am in that class) but after a point it's up to the student to DO THE FORM. That is how they learn and it seems these women feel it is my fault the form is complex. There are 2 men in the class and one got nearly apopoleptic when I told him how far along the beginner class is. He and the other man in the class are growing increasingly frustrated by the women holding the class back. For the men's sake I have to push the class on. This is a dilemma. I feel sorry for the women. I know one of them practices the form so it is really frustrating for her. I also feel sorry for the men. They want to finish the form.

Went to Sensie's class to get my belt exam form signed. I was told he was going to be a "son of a bitch" but he was surprisingly jovial. Of course he threatened all of us with failure and reminded us that half of all testers failed last time. Guess you can be in a good mood when the test results will do your dirty work. He did look right at me when he told us it was better to not take the exam if we really weren't ready. I just want to get my Keri removed and start the push to the Black Belt. He spoke of someone wanting just to get the BB because they just want to ...wear it... and I almost giggled because at this point that's kind of how I feel. After 8 years this is really messing with my head. He seemed bemused and ambivalent when he signed my form. To be honest, I was nervous and didn't have a good class.

After class I chatted with a BB going for his 2nd degree exam. He talked of having fun at the exam. I never thought of fun at an exam, but he is right. Either way, you're going to the exam, might as well have fun. Gotta loosen up. Have some fun.

It just blows my mind how these people can be so blinded by their own vanity and arrogance. I thought OJ was stupid, but Blagojevich takes the cake. How can you have those schemes when you know the Feds are after you? This also shows how stupid voters are. But still, this is beyond imagination. What must Washington be like?

Best Thanksgiving in a long time. Moisette got a lot of help from her Kitty, Marcia and Ingrid so she was in great shape early on Wed night. Thanksgiving started with great weather. No tension as we prepared for 25 people. The day flowed without tension which was a real plus. The guests arrived and I was carving the turkey before I knew it. I cut myself for the first time but not too badly. That is usually what happens when you reach your finger in front of the blade you are sawing with.

Everyone ate and enjoyed the food. I gorged and actually was relaxed enough to savor and enjoy the meal. We got lots of cleanup help so I was able to talk with the nephews for quite a while. I probably talked way too much about the causes of the crash but I figured Charlie being a finance major would probably be interested. I apologized to Tyler and Zack but I figured it was good for them to hear about it. Now if they hear something on the news they might have a "aahh, that is what Uncle Brock was talking about" moment.

Cleanup the Friday took a long time but we dawdled and enjoyed moving slowly. The weather was great again.

Sat we drove down to Hyde Park to see how close we could get to Obama's house. I had considered various schemes to get past security. The one I liked best was letting our dog loose and claiming he had gotten away from us. A friend thought the cops would just shoot our little Gram. I laughed until I remembered these are the same cops that shot a mountain lion that made the mistake of wandering into the city limits. I also considered trying an alley but thought I might get shot. So we settled on just walking up to the barricade. They had every entry onto the block locked down. I saw a sign stating that anyone entering had to consent to a search. I readily offered myself up for search but was denied. I guess that is only for those who live on the block and their guests. Drat!

I had secretly hoped that the family might be out and about since it was Saturday after all. No such luck. We wandered through the neighborhood. My God, the size of the houses is unimaginable. I had no idea the area was so wealthy. Those houses are magnificent. And there are so many of them! We finished our meanderings in a really cool cook ware shop. I bought a very nice giant mug, perfect for my tea.

We drove home and shared a very nice meal and movie with Cindy and Phil. One of our best days ever. A great weekend as well.

I never quite believed the stories about dogs alerting their owners of danger but something happened this morning that made me rethink that. I was in the front room doing my yoga routine and Gram came in from the kitchen. We have a morning ritual and at that point I usually carry him back upstairs and put him on the bed with our other dog and my wife who is still sleeping. He's a little Yorky so he can't get back up on the bed without waking my wife up and having her lift him up. This morning however, when I got up off the mat and stepped over to him to carry him upstairs, he made sure I was following him and sprinted into the kitchen. He ran over to where the coffee was spilling onto the floor from the coffee maker. When he heard me cursing he skedaddled upstairs. Had he not come and gotten me the mess would have been way worse than it was. I'm still a bit awed by his intelligence. never having had a pet before I'm amazed at the joy and love they bring into our lives. I can see why people get so attached to their dogs. In fact this morning a guy died trying to get his dog out of his burning house. The dog made it but the old man didn't. Sad but beautiful.

I feel like a man who staggers in from the desert and can finally slake his thirst. I'm ecstatic that Obama will be able to put up to 3 new justices on the Supreme court. I've held my breath for so long. Now there will be an antidote to Alito and the freshly tasered looking "Oh, I don't have an agenda" Roberts. Maybe Scalia will become so frustrated he will quit to play his piano and write pithy journal pieces from obscurity.

I feel like I am drinking deeply when I read that Obama quite likely has a strategy to stack the appellate courts, especially the influential and conservative Washington/Virginia? district court. Never thought I'd be so happy someone, much less the Prez, is a lawyer but this is delicious.

Every day is a good day to be an American. I feel it when I look at my family. I see it in the faces of the people who prepare my food and bus the tables when I'm finished eating. marching in droves to the polls. I hear it in the voice of a Pakistani cab driver making sure I know that in his neighborhood, Jews and Muslims and everyone else get along. But today is different.

The values and ideals that I bought into hook-line and sinker in my youth, that I have since been made to feel I should somehow be ashamed of, were validated by a majority of 7 million people last night.

I never thought I would get interested in the issues of a political race and actually argue about them. I never thought I would get off my butt and get involved. I never thought I would cry over an election. And I certainly never thought I would see a black man elected President. But it all happened.

Today is a GREAT day to be an American.

Last night I worked the phone bank for Barrack Obama and Congressional candidate Dan Seals. The way it works is a form pops up and lists a persons name, age, phone number and address. According to the script I was supposed to ask if they were planning to vote for Dan Seals. Then I check a box on the computer form. I then ask if they are going to vote for Obama and again click the appropriate button.

At some point I called someone who is an older Korean person. A woman cautiously answered. I announced who I was and asked for the name on my screen. Very cautiously , she told me that it was she whom I was asking for. I jump into my spiel but before I can finish she draws a long breath and in a very conflicted voice tells me she cannot tell me who she is voting for. I hesitate, but I have to click the button to complete the form, so I ask if she is going to vote for Obama. There is a silence and then she whispers, in a voice that is begging my forgiveness but demands I understand, she "does not want me to discus this with her....it is... a...sacred....secret". She was so cute I just wanted to hug her. I wished her a good night and clicked "would not disclose". Oh, if only more people felt so invested in their democratic rights.

Later I got an old Russian guy. In pretty good English he told me he didn't speak English. I tried to think of something to say and then shouted OBAMA! into the phone. "AGREE" he gleefully shouted back. I clicked "supporter" What fun. I'll never forget those two voices in the night. So much said in so few words.

Hey hey, I ran 2 half mile laps yesterday. Just running those laps I realized how much I miss running. I also realize how much my body misses it. I have been doing CrossFit style workouts and noticed my shirts were fitting snugly. I thought "Wow, this CrossFit really builds muscle fast." When I couldn't get into a pair of pants I realized it was fat that was making my shirts tight. Wonderful. By the time I can really run again I'm gonna need a wheel barrow to carry my belly.

I read a guy who said he will run through injuries that take less than a month to heal. That's great and all but how in the world do you know that? On the other hand there was no way I was going give up 5 miles into the race so I guess I have to accept the consequences. But damn I miss running. One thing I found I don't miss is my obsession with my foot pain. Noticeable by it's absence I realize I should just accept it, let it go and be more with my running. When I can run again. Whenever that might be.

I thought living in Chicago would exempt me from hurricane effects but I was wrong. Saturday, radar images showed a storm front stretching from Hurricane Ike to Chicago like an arrow. For the second year in a row water was pouring into my basement. I felt like the little Dutch boy trying to plug the dike. As I bailed out my basement I lamented having to miss the Chicago Half Marathon the next day.

As the situation became more manageable, I became more determined not to miss the race I had trained for. I really wanted that finisher's medal. Fate was with me and the rain let up. After 12 hours of bailing the water stopped coming into my house.

I set the alarm but neglected to turn it on so I awoke 5 minutes before my sister and brother in law arrived, so instead of my usual ritual of toasted bagel with honey (yum) and some tea, I just grabbed the bagel and some water. To my relief we got down to the city and parked near the race site in no time. That probably had a lot to do with us being 1 1/2 hours early. Note to self: Arriving early eliminates the parking issue. It was raining lightly so I had hope the forecast of heavy rain had somehow changed. Just before the start it began to rain steadily but hey, at least we were running.

For the first time I decided not spend the first half of the race tripping over people who placed themselves incorrectly in the chute. While I didn't follow my brother in laws advice to get in the front line, everyone would know just by looking at me I didn't belong up there like Night of the Living Dead, I did get pretty far up in the chute. I decided to let the group pull me with them and the first 2 miles I was flying. The rain was coming down pretty hard but I felt good. I noticed I was right with the 1:50 pacer. I was happy with that and thought I had lots of room to drift back to my hoped for SUB 2:00 finish. By mile 4 the wheels began to fall off that plan.

Karate class stupidity and 12 hours of bailing and mopping had left me with cement legs and a throbbing hip. Step-ouch step-ouch is a bad condition to be in with 8 miles left in a race but that is where I found myself. By the 5th mile I was in serious trouble. I tried to concentrate on my form but the pain with every step onto my left foot brought shooting pain. When I tried to rotate my stride my adducter began to throb. The situation was dire. My body really wanted to quit but I had prepared so diligently for the race, I couldn't quit. I told myself everyone has a bad race at some time or another and this was mine. I told myself to deal with it. I literally sobbed when I reached the half way point. 6 1/2 miles left?! Oh my God.

I told myself to enjoy the scenery along Lake Michigan but the sky was gray with rain, the lake was gray and the sand, pounded smooth by the rain, was gray. No relief there. It was a steady flow of people passing me. I felt like I had been dropped in liquid and was sinking past everyone else. I did begin to notice that one benefit of starting up so far in the chute is that you get passed by the lean and the lithe. My spirits were buoyed by this discovery but I found that the more attention I paid to the passing beauty the slower I ran. I tried to become one with and embrace the pain. To breath through it. Nothing worked. I had to have a Basement Bailers Anonymous meeting of one. How do you finish the race? One step at a time.

The wind and rain lashed us the last few miles. It was a sloshy, cold agony. The pain in my hip was constant whether or not I was on that leg. It crowded everything out of my mind except my desire to finish the race. I was grateful for the spectators and volunteers along the course. They really add so much to a runners spirits. The last mile I was determined to make a kick and I did manage to slow the stream of people passing me. I was so relieved to cross the finish line. I was dazed as I collected my goodies. I was so cold. I met up with my sister and brother in law and hustled to the car. I was never more grateful for a car heater in my life.

To my relief I found my family safe and dry when I got home. While I had cursed my luck during the race, when I surveyed the media reports of the true despair and suffering of so many due to the hurricane I realized I was quite fortunate. My family and home were safe. And I got to run a race

Did my first CrossFit workout last nite. I did burpees (man are those hard!), squats into front kicks, and push ups when I couldn't do any more burpees. Then I did some karate leg raises (mawashi), side kick fakes, then some jumping hip twists and shuffling followed by bouncing on the trampoline. All with no break. Then I set out on a half mile run. One nice thing about running on tired legs; it's like the last few miles of a long run, without the miles. I hadn't thought about that but I look forward to using it. I think it might help my running.

I must have signed up for this race when I was still running regularly. Before I quit running altogether in disgust at the lousy weather we had in our endless midwest winter. So long ago I forgot when it was. By the time I was reminded of the date I had only 2 weeks to prepare. I went from running about 3 miles a week to running 18 one week out. My taper was one 3 mile run. So I wasn't surprised to find myself running with the jiggly, the dimply, the aged, and the foolish at the back of the pack. But I was surprised that these people were ahead of me. I reminded myself that a DNF was an option. At least I showed up and tried. And got my cool technical shirt :)

The race was on an old railroad track that was converted into a path. Parts paved and parts crushed limestone, mostly under the shade of a lovely tree tunnel. Out into the countryside. All beautiful. Much of the surrounding area has been despoiled by mansions. Not McMansions, these are gigantic houses and on decent pieces of land. None were very attractive but when you build a house as big as an airplane hangar I guess there isn't much you can do to make it appealing. What do these people do for a living?!

The first few miles were ok but kinda painful. I never got a good rhythm going and was really anticipating the halfway turnaround. A benefit (if there is one) of being in the back of the pack is getting to see the the fit, the sleek and the beautiful as they charge by on their way to the finish. Very nice, but other than those brief moments of watching the front runners fly by I really didn't get to enjoy the scenery because after the first few miles my body just wanted to lay down and lounge. So I had to concentrate on the task at hand.

After the half way point I realized I had some gas left in the tank. I decided the runnerley thing to do was press the attack, so I bore down and tried to make up some ground. I concentrated on my form, using elements of Chi Running and travelogger's log rolling technique. I was able to pick up my pace and started to pass some people. One older dude I passed exclaimed how strong I looked and urges me on. I used his praise further on because even though my wind was fine, my body REALLY wanted to just lay down. After the 8th mile I pictured where I would be in my beloved forest preserve at that point and just told myself I have run that far many times and I could keep pressing. By the 9th mile I knew I could keep my pace because I knew exactly where I was in the race. In spite of that knowledge, the mile markers didn't come any faster. It was harder and harder to maintain my concentration. I just told myself I had made it this far so I should quit whimpering and finish strong.

The last mile was uphill which really cut into the joy but I tried to be studly and keep my momentum. We could see the finish from about 1/4 mile out and I just threw technique to the wind and spazzed into the finish. 2:10!! I was shocked. And happy :) I had run pretty damn well in spite of only getting 2 long runs in since November. The finish area was a beautiful grassy shaded hill. I enjoyed the ample goodies (which included pizza!)and gingerly walked back to my car. For a local running club to be able to put on such a nice race is impressive. It was a good morning.

The weather has been so cold and rainy here I haven't really started training. But I have a half in 2 weeks so I gotta get going. My bunions force me to replace my shoes before they have 200 miles on them. This is expensive. The shoes I have now I bought 1 week before the marathon in Oct. They are hurting my feet but I thought I would McGyver something. I figured if < lj user="mdf356"> could make his own running sandals and Phil Knight made soles in his wife's waffle maker, I could give some insole modification a try. I already have sore feet. So I took an old insole and cut some pieces and superglued them to the bottom of my insoles. It has worked surprisingly well.

I mistakenly ran 4.5 on Sat and my feet felt pretty good. 3.5 last night felt pretty good. My left foot is kinda hurting today but hopefully not worse than usual. My runs are starting to feel good so I can't wait to get back to my Sat morning runs in the forest preserve.

The other day I was having a tough time emotionally. My little Yorkie must have sensed it because he trotted over to me and pointedly insisted I pick him up. I held him close and let the moment pass.

Later I was still under a cloud and my daughter came up and started talking to me. I initially rebuffed her but then I caught myself. These little moments are the things that life is made of and are so fleeting. I immediately focused on her and joined her in conversation. I apologized for snapping at her. Awhile later, she came upstairs to me and asked "Hey Dad, when you apologized for being snappy, when were you talking about?" I told her that I meant just moments ago and she assured me that I had nothing to apologize for.

Like I said, the little moments that life is made of. Thank God.

Got back yesterday from Utah. The skiing was fabulous as always. First night the boys wisely booked us into La Quinta in Salt Lake. I say wisely because, halfway there my plane turned around and took us back to O'Hare. Luckily they had another plane for us but a 3 hour trip took 6. I got into SLC @ 1:30 AM. Luckily the boys were there for me. We skied the Canyons the next day. We just bombed the ridge all day. That is a great high speed cruising mountain.

We then went to a condo in Eden again. It is so aptly named. When we first saw it 6 years ago I was so taken with the beauty of it all. It was like being in a postcard. Definitely one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. Working farms, horses and cattle grazing, right up to the mountains. It's been despoiled somewhat since then. Developers have only gotten hold of a couple big parcels so the inevitable condos have sprung up but homes are dotting the landscape now. So long to the farms and the bucolic way of life. Lift lines on the mountain for the first time. Eight minutes at Snow Basin :) Hee Hee. We've been spoiled. There's no way a place so beautiful and affordable could stay a secret for long, and it hasn't. It's been discovered.

Powder Mountain is still the glorious vastness it always was except now it has a high speed quad. Yee Hah!! We rode that and dipped over to the tree skiing Poma lift all day. 3 days after the last snow and there was still fresh powder over there. It was chopped up and a little crusty so Jeff and I had to work hard to ski it, but we did. Hard work though. We took the skis off and climbed to the top of Lightning Ridge again. Every year it gets a little harder to climb the equivalent of a sky scraper in the snow, but it is such a worthwhile effort. You feel like you achieved something impressive, which most people can't (they can't) and the view is incredible. You feel like you're on top of the world. Then of course you have the entire mountain to yourself to ski down.

I feel like I discovered Snow Basin all over again. What a magnificent mountain. Jeff and I broke off from the hammerheads and skied the Olympic Downhill run. You have to take a short gondola to the very top of the run. When I got out of the gondola and saw how steep it was my first thought/feeling was "Mommy!!" Really. It is so freaking steep, I don't care who you are, you stop and gather yourself before you start. When you drop in you feel you have offered yourself to Fate. You know if you tumble it will all be over. To think that the Olympians go down that run without turning is mind boggling. They truley have no fear. In any case, other than the the very top, that downhill is a fantastic run. Steep, fast and groomed! Carved into the mountain, it's like being in an Xbox game. Coming at you! Great fun. I love Snow Basin.

Out last day was at Powder again. A storm was rolling in all morning and by mid afternoon was beginning to snow. It turned into a howler. The wind was so strong it was almost impossible to ski down. We skied over to this ridge we could see from the lift. I wondered why Jeff veered over to the side and then I was blasting over these large bumps. Each was bigger than the last and I couldn't brake because I was going so damn fast. I actually launched off one and came down on another. Then it was wipe city. I crashed hard. Nothing hurt too bad so I was lucky.

The wind kept blowing harder and harder. Only steep runs could tear us from the winds grasp and allow us down the run. The snow was tearing at and freezing our faces so the boys wanted to quit before last chair. I had had a rough run, so I begged for one last run to finish the trip on a good note. We skied down under the lift. The whiteout was so bad I didn't see a drop off and I was air born! Luckily there was fresh snow so my landing was safe. We finished the day on as good a note as possible but that last run cost us 3 hours in the parking lot.

There were 5 wrecks on the road down, one car turned over and landed on it's roof! We had to wait while they cleared the wrecks and then wait for the county to send over a plow, which also got stuck in the snow. Some people were telling us we may have to sleep in the parking lot. I was gearing up to walk down the mountain when we finally got the OK to get drive down. We've never been happier to leave the mountain. The mountains really make it clear how small and insignificant we are. I love to feel the power of Mother Nature up there in the mountains. Another great trip.

Nikki called and gave us her report on the LA Marathon. She ran a 4:32 and was really happy. She said she had a great time and wasn't feeling too bad. We agreed we should get Michelle and all run the San Francisco Marathon. That would be lots of fun. Can't wait to read Julie's report. She worked so hard. I know she did great.