Handling repulsive projects…

We all have projects that haunt us — tasks we know must be done, that nag at us every time we walk past them, yet somehow remain untouched. They sit there like silent judges, reminding us of our ingrained procrastination. 

In my case, recently, it was a set of home repairs — complicated, multi‑stage, time‑consuming. Every time I saw them, I felt a mix of guilt and irritation. I could hire someone, of course, but I also knew I could do it myself, if only I could get past the psychological barrier. 

The first trick I use is simple: I stop avoiding the task and look it straight in the eye. I remind myself that if I consider myself competent, then this is exactly the kind of thing I should be able to handle. It’s a gentle but firm form of self‑accountability if not self-shaming. 

The second tool that comes to my mind is the salami technique: slice the project into thin, manageable pieces. A task that feels impossible in its entirety becomes surprisingly doable when broken into small, self‑contained steps. And then I remember Lao Tzu’s old wisdom: a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

That line has become my trigger. Once I take that first step — even a tiny one — the project loses its power over me. That’s how I finally began tackling the repairs I had dreaded for so long. In the end, repulsive projects aren’t defeated by willpower alone. 

They yield when we stop avoiding them, but begin to tame them by breaking them into slices, and taking that first small step. Once I did that, the project I had loathed for months finally began to move — not because it became easier, but because I finally stopped letting it intimidate me.

The invisible car license plate

As of 2026, it’s no longer need to install a license plate in the front of our vehicle in Utah. Even though this practice was tolerated before, it’s now official. The state only issues one plate for the back of the car. 

Along with that, cyclists that like to carry their bikes on their car use the rack hitch that attach to the rear tow insert. 

That placement however does a perfect job in hiding the license plate and it prevents its reading by toll cameras on bridges and other paid access areas. So my question is, what’s the police doing about it? Is it even aware of that reality? 

Even since these bike carriers have been out, I’ve always wondered about the impact of this problem, not just in Utah, but in the US or even elsewhere? I did some research and yes, the police everywhere absolutely know this is happening. Now here are the official rules grounded in how US states actually enforce license‑plate visibility laws and how police deal with rear‑mounted bike racks that block plates. 

Utah’s one‑plate rule (2026) doesn’t change the visibility requirement, the law still requires that the plate must be clearly visible, unobstructed and illuminated at night, so a hidden plate is illegal. Outside of Utah, this also a known nationwide problem and police departments have been dealing with it as the rear plate is the only identifier. 

This means that toll cameras. red‑light or speed cameras, ALPR (automated license plate readers) and police patrol cars, all depend on that single rear plate. Now, here’s the real enforcement pattern, based on how departments handle this in Utah and other states, police issue warnings or citations in a large number of States and anywhere with toll roads or ALPR systems. 

This said, there does not seem to be much enforcement in Park City, probably because of the tourism economic impact. Elsewhere, I’m told that if an officer sees a plate that is partially or fully blocked, they can stop the vehicle and issue a fix‑it ticket or a visibility citation. They ask for plate‑relocation brackets and move the plate to the bike rack using a plate relocation kit. 

In Canada, most provinces require the same. Most European countries and Australia require two plates with no obstruction allowed and mandatory relocation if a bike rack blocks the plate. Now you know the score. Drive safely and have fun riding your bike!

Marcel Grivel-Delillaz, 1946-2026

Marcel and I first met at Chamonix, in May of 1971 during a staff orientation meeting prior to leaving for Australia to teach skiing at Mt. Buller the following summer. 

We then met again at the small Victoria resort in mid-July when I finally got there along with JP Chatellard following a protracted 6-week ocean journey. 

Marcel was an avid skier, full of energy and enthusiasm and kept his high-level intensity through the end of the September when the ski season came to an end. Following that fun-sharing experience, we kind of lost touch, I simply knew that he just married Nadia and as a result decided not to rejoin some of us for another season down-under. 

We then briefly reconnected on April 13, 1974 when I ran into Marcel and Nadia at the Robinson ballroom under memorable circumstances. It would almost take another three decades for us to reconnect when I retired and had time to chase my former acquaintances. 

Skiing, mountain biking and shared memories fed our many phone conversations and social media sharing. Finally, on October 14, 2023, Evelyne and I had an enjoyable lunch with Marcel in Annemasse, near Geneva. 

Following that we talked on the phone and exchanged on social media and our last conversation goes back to January 23 of this year, and our exchange on Whatsapp this past September 24. Marcel passed away on October 26 from heart failure, he was about one month away for his 80th birthday. 

He will be missed a lot by his family and all of his mountain loving friends.

Socialism and economics “à la française”

France, my home country, offers a remarkable confluence between comfortable socialism, “elastic” economic, financial concepts and reluctance to confront hard and painful issues. Simply said, all the benefits earned and accrued over time, could be likened to what’s called a no-return mechanism, used in any winch, namely a ratchet and pawl system. 

This ratchet effect didn’t appear overnight. It grew out of the post‑war social contract, reinforced by strong unions and a political culture where the street is considered the legitimate and most potent arena of democratic expression. 

This means that any social benefits earned over the years cannot be removed and if there were any attempt to impose it, no matter the reason, it seems that the populace would come down in the street to protest and oftentimes, break, burn and loot around. 

This might seem like a hostage-taking scheme and it probably is. So if you are thinking of retirement age (62), numbers of hours worked in a week (35) or a host of other hard-earned benefits as well as the most robust social safety net in the world, forget even thinking of changing or reducing any them. It’s in a way similar to our US Constitution, it’s set in stone and practically unchangeable. 

France’s social architecture, admirable in many ways, now collides with a global economy that rewards flexibility, innovation, and rapid adaptation — qualities the French system often suppresses. Yet, the work around us change, each nation ends up being in economic competition against its neighbor and this onerous social net is now paralyzing a French government held hostage by demonstrations that always have the potential of choking the Nation. 

French demonstrations oscillate between peaceful mass mobilization and disruptive unrest. Both forms are part of a long tradition where public protest acts as a counter‑power To change this would require political courage that Macron, and the traditional right before him were woefully unable to muster. Today, by taking a page from the Trump playbook, LePen would probably dare to do so if she can managed to be elected, which I still doubt. The next obvious candidate, the leftist Mélanchon if elected, wouldn’t be able to achieve much either with a divided parliament. 

Successive governments — left, right, and centrist — have struggled to reform the system because any attempt to adjust the ratchet triggers massive resistance. Whether future leaders can overcome this dynamic remains uncertain. France’s ratchet‑and‑pawl system has preserved social gains admirably, but it has also created a political equilibrium where change is nearly impossible. Whether this equilibrium can endure in a rapidly shifting world is the question France must eventually confront.

Is there water sloshing in the phone?

For years now, when my daughter was walking outdoors, using her Apple airpods, what we could mostly hear was a very annoying background noise as if she were in a bathtub with water sloshing around. On numerous occasions, we told her that countless times, but every time she always remained in total denial, not being able to hear it for herself. 

 We were just exhausted from having that recurring conversation! I don’t know if you’ve experienced this from your next of kin or friends, but I after getting too much experience from my own offspring, I investigated to make sure I wasn’t dreaming and then what could cause that irritating noise of "water sloshing" or "underwater bathtub" sound, and overwhelmingly found out that it came from her Apple's noise-canceling ear pieces. 

In researching the issue, I found out that it could happen with many wireless earbuds, but AirPods were the worst offenders because of how their microphones and noise‑processing algorithms work. The AirPods use outward-facing microphones to pick up environmental noise so the internal chip can cancel it out or filter it during calls. 

When the caller is walking outdoors, ambient breezes or wind blowing directly across those small microphone meshes create severe turbulence. Instead of passing the harsh wind noise directly to the ears, the AirPods' digital signal processor (DSP) aggressively cuts and suppresses those frequencies in real time. 

This continuous, heavy-handed filtering creates a swirling, muffled sound that resembles water sloshing around in a tub or underwater pressure changes. Also, when walking briskly, each heel strike sends subtle vibrations up through the body. At the same time, her hair or clothing might have been lightly brushing against the stems or mic grilles of the AirPods. 

The noise-suppression algorithm tried to isolate her voice from these rapid, subtle thuds and friction noises, which further distorted the background audio into that "sloshing" texture. In digging deeper, I discovered a couple of quick fixes she can try on the AirPod’s user end. First, switch Voice Isolation On (iPhone Setting): During the call, she can swipe down to open the iPhone Control Center, tap Mic Mode, and select Voice Isolation. 

This uses machine learning to isolate her vocal cords specifically and cuts out almost all ambient background/wind artifacts. Then turn off Transparency Mode: If the individual is using AirPods Pro and has Transparency Mode or Adaptive Audio active, switching the AirPods to standard Off mode during windy walks reduces the aggressive mic processing transmitted through the phone call. 

Finally, clean the Mic Grilles: Over time, fine dust or lint trapped in the small black microphone meshes on the outer body of the AirPods can cause the algorithms to miscalculate wind, exacerbating the muffled sound. Clean grilles keep the processing running smoothly. Now, shut up, let your callers listen, and hopefully all they’ll get will be crystal clear!

An American raclette cheese?

For years, I’ve been considering myself lucky to find raclette cheese from Mifroma, Emmi (Switzerland), and Livradois (France). Because authentic alpine raclette is strictly regulated by origin, these major exporters dominate American specialty cheese counters and online gourmet retailers. 

The primary imported brands are categorized below by their country of origin. Swiss raclette cheeses are traditionally made in the alpine regions (particularly Valais and the Emmental valley). They are said to carry a dense, velvety consistency with a deeply savory, nutty, and slightly sweet flavor profile that holds up remarkably well when melted. 

As for the French, its raclette cheeses, predominantly hailing from the Savoie and Auvergne regions, tend to be slightly softer, creamier, and carry a more robust, pungent aroma with a fruity or earthy finish. The downside of all of these cheeses is their sporadic availability and their astronomic price (around $25 per pound (45€ per kg) or even more!) 

As an alternative to that “dear” raclette, I discovered last week at Costco, the Whitney, a US-made alternative to these pricey specialty cheeses at $15 a pound. I just couldn’t believe it and was reasonably skeptical. 

The product is made by Jasper Hill Farm in Greensboro Bend, Vermont. Whitney is an award-winning, raw-milk raclette-style Alpine cheese. Its name is no other than Tim Whitney’s, a long-standing employee and pioneer affineur on the Jasper Hill team. 

It’s a semi-firm, alpine-style, raw cow's milk (from the farm's own Ayrshire/grass-fed herd). It’s said to be aged for 3 to 6 months in the farm cellars at Jasper Hill. We tried it the other night and were pleasantly surprised. 

Aside from its stark white appearance when it melts and some visible emulsion on the edges, it tasted good, we digested it very well and it might become an affordable alternative for us to its Alpine counterparts, as long as Costco keeps stocking it!

Welcoming and leveraging “Down days” (Part Three)

Around the corner, as always, there’s still one question left that we must absolutely address and that’s if we lived in a smooth, totally perfect universe in which all days feel perfect, what would happen to us poor humans as we would get everything we can wish for, and some? 

How would it feel to have lives that would be endlessly smooth, easy and happy? Would it finally be the bliss we all seek and call happiness? 

I’m not so sure! We’d get terribly bored very quickly and soon we would grow into folks that are impossible to satisfy. Even if our lives are pretty good, a down day or a few difficulties, some mild suffering or strong frustrations remain a blessing because they’ll make us fully appreciate the comfort and ease of all our other days. 

So let’s remember that when a not-so-good-day gets our attention, we should see it as simply and innocuously as a bright punctuation mark into a smoothly written text. It simply calls our attention to how lucky we are to only have to deal with episodic traumas, dramas and inconveniences. There is a deeper lesson here that I think is particularly worth exploring as we grow older: happiness may depend less on how many good days we accumulate than on how well we learn to recognize them. 

We can spend a great deal of time waiting for something exciting to happen, for a new achievement, a special occasion, or an exceptional experience. Meanwhile, the ordinary days pass by almost unnoticed and often totally ignored. Yet those quiet days often make up the greater part of our lives. 

We don’t need perfection to be totally happy as a little “texture” helps us remember that Formica was unwittingly created to quickly become boring and out of style! 

If we can lodge that reflex response into our mind it will go a very long way and at the very least remind us to be super grateful for all the other days that would even fall into the “boring” category! 

We can’t guarantee ourselves a life without down days. But we can work toward a life in which down days create less influence in our minds, while good days shine a much warmer light into our hearts.