Oh my golly gosh it has been weeks since I last posted. So sorry but I have been having such a boring time being retired that I just haven't been able to find the time to keep you all updated.
So, what have I been up to?
Skiing of course. it's such a hard life getting up at 7am, checking the snow report to make sure the mountain is open, having breakfast, packing lunch then driving over to the other side of town (3mins) to park the car near the hitching spot to get a ride up the mountain.
There's a blog post coming on all the characters I've met, so we'll just say now there are all sorts. And all kind souls for stopping and giving me a lift.
Up the mountain it's into the ski boots, and if time a flat white is enjoyed in the cafe before hitting the six seater for a lift up to the top of the home basin. Usually it's a run or two on the home basin until the quad chair opens in the saddle basin then straight over there to enjoy the dryer chalkier snow as it's at a higher altitude.
Usually I'll meet up with people I know and ski with them, or sometimes hitch up with another single on the chair and take them touring around the mountain. Having skied Treble Cone a good few seasons now I know the mountain pretty well, including all the secret snow stashes. I have no problems sharing my love of this mountain with others.
We've had quite a few "powder days" this year, which is basically any day when there has been a decent dump (10cm plus) overnight and then every skier and boarder within half a day's drive of here descends on TC and the queue lines get horrendous. Of course there are no friends on a powder day, it's every man or woman for themselves finding fresh lines before it's all tracked out.
I have been doing some weekly lessons in a Masters group, which is comprised of local skiers. This is great because I am meeting more locals who I can ski with. I started in a Sunday group but moved to a Saturday group after the woman I was skiing with had an accident mid week and blew out her knee. The group I'm in with now are awesome, I met up with them this afternoon and amongst other runs we did a rat pack run down the lift line in the home basin just to show those youngsters that us oldies still have what it takes.
Actually, my skiing has improved out of sight. Between the couple of group lessons I've had and one private lesson with Heidi, and time on the mountain skiing with good skiers, I'm now skiing in complete control maybe 90% of the time. I'm relaxing when I'm skiing, I'm enjoying skiing bumps, but I'm still pretty messy and inconsistent, especially off piste. But before, all off piste skiing was really challenging for me, now a lot of it seems pretty easy. Bumps no longer completely throw me off balance, I actually relish making my way through them. It ain't pretty, but it's a long way from where I started...
So, after a day skiing my legs off up the mountain, it's a thumbed ride back down again, pick up the car and drive back to the hostel, where I shower then cook lunch for the following day, and have eggs on toast for dinner. Sometimes, if I've come down early I'll do a little gardening, but otherwise it's just relaxing and chatting to others back at the hostel.
Monday and Tuesday I clean rooms at the hostel, do a little gardening, and chill from my ski days. At first I was only skiing 3-4 days a week, but lately I'm skiing all 5 days. The snow has just been so good, and my legs are keeping up with the workout they are getting. The cleaning isn't difficult: changing sheets, cleaning bathrooms and toilets, vacuuming, and my workmate Anastasia is a huge amount of fun. We laugh, have pillow fights and give each other shit about the tidiness of each other's hospital corners!!
I haven't been doing much apres ski partying. Gone are those days. I've cooked sticky date pudding once, and gained another bunch of admirers, I've been frequenting the Thursday night farmers markets, and on Wednesdays it's Stitch and Bitch night where I meet up for a night of knitting at The Edgewater Hotel. Aside from a Red Star Burger and fish and chips at Boa Boa, I've not eaten out at all. I have, of course, reacquainted myself with the chilli hot chocolate at Patagonia Chocolates, as well as their ice cream. I've also been treating myself to the ice-cream and gelato at Black Peak. Yep, two separate home made ice-cream places in one town. How awesome is that???
So that's my life.
Boring old retired life.....
