Squaw Valley in the winter

Early February 2008

In the drenching rain I pulled up the parking lot of Big 5 in search for a ski outfit. After trying on pants and jackets, I left the store empty handed - and it was still raining heavily. Rain here in the lowlands translate to snow up in the mountains and to the mountains we will head the next day.

A's father was celebrating his 54rth birthday that night as well, I met up with them at her father's house. The running joke was, " Now you can shop at Ross every Tuesday and get your senior discount.". The birthday feast was such a generous serving of Filipino party food. I've resigned myself to being unable to make it to the trip the next day as I could not find any ski clothes to use. I got home, I texted them about it, but they called and persuaded and I relented. In my closet, I was able to produce a fleece pair of pants, panty hose and a water proof work out pants. Layers of a sleeveless v neck top, thermal top, turtl neeck sweater, fleece sweater, a hoodie and a water proof sweater - I know, I've never been to a winter resort before, I found out later that all those layer was not neccessary.

With barely 3 hours of sleep we headed out to Squaw Valley. On our way there, I-80 had to be closed down for about an hour - to clear the roads , or so we heard. We tuned inbto a particular radio frequency to listen to the traffic updates. The pre recorded message states of the Interestate's indefinite closure due to a winter stome - oooh :D. We had breakfast at McDonalds along with other stranded ski-bums,ski-bum wannabes and first timers like myself. The interstate was reopened much to our delight, after battling some minor traffic jams, we found ourselve traveling on the snow packed highway. I haven't seen snow this close for almost a decade or so. I could see the ethereal winter landscape pass by from the rear driver window. I saw at least two vehicle skid out of control. One was a truck was was helplessly sliding sideways and another was another pick up that could not stop in time at the roundabout and hit a pile of snow. We only slid once, when our vehicle hit a pothole.

Squaw Valley was what I expected it to be - a winter resort between snowy slopes. I could see lifts and gondolas stretch across the slopes. I saw an out of service gondola/lift at one of its highest peaks - a forbidden place where only thrill seekers dare to go.

We ordered ski boots and other ski things (see I'm horrible, I don't even know what to call them). Threading in those heavy boots while carrying the skis was very physically demanding to say the least. Snow fall came in small flurries but I had to lift the neckline of my turtleneck to cover my mouth and nose. My legs were aching from the strang angle the boots are making my legs go and the skis were getting heavier and heavier the more I carry them.

I was so close to signing up for my first ski class when I felt a cramp all over my left leg. Defeated and exhausted, I sat on a picnic table outside the lodge and watched the others do their first baby steps with the skis. The strange thing was, it was snowing, I know the temperatures must be in the 20s at most but I was sweating and I felt hot. I also did not want to catch some sort of hypothermia so I went inside in the warmth of the lodge and I took off all my top layers and was left with my sleeveless v neck top and sat by the window to watch the snowboarders, the skiers and the people climbing up the lift.

I met a nice woman who in probably a strange...cosmic way, we discovered that we have the same name - down to our middle names. They live in the Central Valley and was in the resort with her husband and her children. I chatted up and before we know it, my company had returned. We ran into each other again on our way back to the parking lot. It was such a relief to have turned those boots and skis in. I know Skiing is a fun sport, I will give it another try in my next opportunity...hmm, wonder when that would be?