Realtor-Manipulator

It's a trick almost as old as the world; in order to fish for clients, real estate agents contact property owners telling them that they have someone genuinely interested in purchasing their asset.

In this example, I have been contacted twice by this Realtor (two similar contacts within a year) that, willy-nilly, sends a hand-written postcard to a group of building owners in town, inquiring about their willingness of selling the specific property.

Since I don't really like this kind of practice, I wanted to call on that person and this is why, on these two occasions, I've engaged the lady in question with text-messages in which I tried to call her bluff.

If anything, the exchange displayed here tells a lot about the intellect and the methods used by some Park City real estate agents. Yes, I still think she's a liar even though I didn't write that word in my text message...

Ten years of continuous blogging

It's been ten years today, that I've been blogging on a continuous, daily basis, in English and in French. I generally begin writing in English before translating into French. This keeps my mother's tongue current inside my mind.

It all started when I ruptured my left Achilles's tendon and had some time on my hands to begin something I had never really done before. I've always loved to write and keep enjoying it after that first decade.

As of now, my English blog has received over one million visits while the French one has got above 550,000. Over the years the blog has evolved, but remains a place where I try to answer questions that concern me a lot or address subjects that I'm not too familiar with, or are of interest to me.

What will I do with all this material? Perhaps write a few books... We'll see!

Trust in God?

For a few months, now, I had noticed a growing numboer of the Utah "In God We Trust" license plate. I thought this version was only available to some die-hard religious folks willing to fork up a few extra bucks.

I was wrong; this religious plate has now joined “Ski Utah!” and “Delicate Arch” as a standard license plate option for Utahns since January 2017.

The reason for this extra free choice was explained by our God-fearing Governor Gary Herbert who said: "...it's a reflection of God's omnipotence and his love for us as his children, so I think this is a good reminder for us that in God we do trust... I think that will help us guide this state and help us guide this nation..."

Then he concluded his incredible statement by adding: "For example, (President) John Adams said our Constitution was made for only a religious and moral people... In a time when we see the challenge of God and worship of God and religious rights being threatened, I know that's a concern."

I had forgotten we lived in a Theocracy.

Standing up for better skiing

This weekend skiing wasn't much skiing, so as a way to compensate, I thought of some useful exercises that might spice up sliding on an otherwise ordinary and pretty boring hill.

I remembered to ski erect or “standing tall” if you will; doing the opposite of hyper-flexing or crouching, and this, I believe, is one of the best ski tips available if one really wants to get better.

As the center of mass goes up, it forces a skier to ski on the ball of their foot, with very little fore-and-aft margin and forces a centered position.

It also forces, the ankles mostly, to do their highly subtle but efficient balancing work.

Try it and you'll see what you get. You always can “crouch” on your skis later on...

A different start to ski season #65

Friday, November 24 was my first day on skis, less than six month after I last skied Snowbird late May in some slushy snow.

The snow was even a bit worse that Friday, and to exacerbate things, it was significantly scarcer.

Still, our local resort had made lots of snow which was melting fast under a 55 degree weather. I rode the lift with a huge variety of people (very few locals, but mostly visitors) all unique in their styles and conversations...

What usually is a rather boring run became challenging as the snow was so bad and tricky, plus that huge, vicious moguls had formed in the steeper parts of the run.

Thankfully, when I showed up to ski, at around 1:45 pm, disgusted skiers had already returned home, if they had showed up at all.

A bad ski day for sure, but being a ski day, a wonderful time for me, as always!

Why would anyone invest in the ski biz?

The recent flurry of ski resort acquisitions by Vail Resorts and the new KSL/Aspen private equity group often makes me think, “How can seemingly smart people make such terrible business decisions”? It simply puzzles me.

Let's face it. Human-caused warming trend isn't going to stop tomorrow. Today, we've reaping what 5 billion humans already demolished years ago (ca. 1988). Wait tomorrow to witness how today's 7.4 billion will worsen the situation and don't even waste your time picturing what our world will look like after 10 billion have been trampling the planet.

We simply forget that there's a significant time lag between what we witness at a given moment and the time it took place. Even the best intentions and the Paris Accord won't reverse, let alone make a big dent into that gloomy scenario.

This mere thought reminds me the story of that Dutch boy who saved his country by putting his finger in a leaking dike...

These Accords can only slow down and delay the damage, as the end-result is certainly guaranteed to get far beyond what we're experiencing today.

Even though I continue to benefit from the ski industry, I'm so relieved I'm no longer part of it and count on its benevolence to make a living!

When speed helps ski technique

Skiing on my own, that is, well after my ski instructing career, has taught me a lot about the essential role of speed and momentum in skiing.

While technique is extremely important and must be learned at some point or another, in order to reach proficiency in the sport, there are many times when speed can accelerate the process or bridge a certain lack of technique.

Of course, speed entails a certain degree of confidence or fearlessness, hence the main paradox of skiing: Daring to embrace the risk created by speed in order to ski better and more efficiently. Nothing exemplifies that quandary better than skiing crud, for instance.

Yet, while speed is the elephant in the room, as few talk overtly about it when it comes to technique, its role and appropriate use remain what fuels most of the fun found in skiing!

Mugabe, then Putin, Trump...

The worst tyrants never last forever, and this week, even a tough one like Mugabe was ousted before his natural “expiration date”.

I hope this is a preview of things to come, and that following the likes of Napoleon, Hitler, Stalin and a bunch of other less famous, rotten leaders, the next departures will include Putin, Trump and Kim Jung Un, and not necessarily in that order.

So why they last, be patient, just observe these bullies and learn something about their devious behavior.

In the meantime, do something, get involved and work hard so that their replacement is likely to be a huge improvement upon them...

A refreshing dream

I've never skied in the nude and was quite surprised a few nights ago when I dreamed I was schussing without any clothes on, as fast as I could, as if I was trying to evade something or someone.

Was it the embarrassment I felt or the ski patrol that was on my tail? I really couldn't tell, but it sure gave me wings. True, I was skiing as fast as I could and while I didn't remember feeling the bite of the wind or freezing my rear-end in the process, I felt incredibly stressed out.

As I reached the bottom of the run and with nowhere else to ski to, I had no other alternative but wake up. As I did, still in a delirious state, I thought that skiing naked Park City from top to bottom might be an interesting feather to add to my cap this season, especially on a day when attendance was at its peak.

I need to look into that...

The Trump Toolbox

I'm not offering a crash course on how to become Trump, should anyone be inspired by the character, or if someone aspires to becoming a modern-day's Frankenstein or wants to build a contemporary monster.

I'm just simply inventorying some of the implements he's using as part of his daily routine. If America's 45th President happened to inspire anyone and if there were a toolbox of sort to becoming just like him, I've tried to inventory the tools that likely would be found inside it: 

• Complex of superiority 
• Ego-centrism Natural 
• Bullying 
• Racism 
• Misogyny 
• Plain meanness 
• Allergy to apologies under any form or fashion 
• Permanent attack mode 
• Ten-fold aggressive response to any attack 
• Dividing in order to control 
• Doubling-up on a sparse vocabulary 
• Waking up the worst in his followers 
• Total absence of compassion 

First, I'll check if any of these tools are left in my own toolbox and will use my very best effort to discard them as soon as possible. If, in the meantime, I've forgotten something on the list, please don't hesitate to share it on this blog; I'll add it gladly...

Tax reform in a vacuum

For the past few weeks about half of the United States' politicians have been concocting a tax reform without asking for their citizens' input and without working with the other half of Congress.

The result is a joke or a monster depending on one's sense of humor.

Like in many countries, our tax code is unnecessarily complex and is the end result of countless compromises and back-room deals between special interests groups and politicians.

It's not fair and has never been good for the taxpayers as it has been created on their back and without any of their own input.

Instead, the process should take time, garner a full critique of what works and what does not withing the current system versus what's needed in terms of revenue, and strive to deliver a plan that all American PEOPLE can live with, but certainly not the United States' corporate world.

Park City needs access to Big Cottonwood Canyon

As I've said before, early season comes with its endless anguish about snow cover, not just on opening day, but throughout the ski season.

Last week, Park City decided to postpone its opening by six days, because it couldn't make enough snow, given the prevailing balmy temperatures. You see, Park City sits fairly low at 6,900 feet (2 103 meters) while Deer Valley's base is just at 7,200 feet (2 195 meters).

Compared to the other nearby Utah resorts, this is quite low and certainly even lower than most Colorado's ski areas situated under about the same latitude. Beside being higher up, Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons receive also more snow than the so-called Wasatch Back (Park City & Deer Valley) because they face and block most of the eastbound precipitations and also benefit positively from lake effect conditions.

Yet, Park City is where the action is, where the good restaurant are, where the après-ski happens and a massive lodging capacity is ready to make its guests welcome. We just could say the opposite about Alta, Brighton, Snowbird and Solitude.

Add to the equation the fact that our climate is fast becoming much warmer than anyone ever predicted, we have a “perfect storm” of sorts in which Park City needs to access at least its Big Cottonwood Canyon neighbor to the south in order to enjoy better and greater amounts of snow from season's beginning to end.

The good news is that it would work perfectly as Park City Mountain and Brighton are, technically speaking, bordering each other and it would just require two ski-lifts to join them. In addition Brighton is already interconnected with its neighbor Solitude to the West and the whole canyon, by also serving Park City skiers would finally gain its development potential that's currently impossible to reach with its lack of visitor “pillows”.

The bad news, or the challenge if we look at it positively, is that Park City Mountain should make an agreement with at least Brighton and ideally, Solitude too, to interconnect, or better yet purchase the two entities. This would be a terrific insurance policy against climate change!

Follow your Members of Congress on Facebook!

I'm not a fan of my two Utah Senators and my Representative, but when all is said and done, they're supposed to “represent me” in Washington. I wish they really did their job of representation, but they don't.

What they vote for makes seldom sense, but I guess what these politicians believe and common sense are diametrically opposed, through the irrepressible undercurrent of hypocrisy. Why in the world would a well-grounded individual accept to increase the Federal Deficit by $1.5 billion in exchange for a give-away to big corporations, pretending they will create job and pay for the cut over time?

If this not total hypocrisy it is incompetence or pure insanity. This said, I now get the Facebook Feeds from Mike Lee and Orrin Hatch and Rob Bishop and I focus not on what they say, but how their constituents react to them.

What's remarkable is how rare are their constituents who like what's being done to them, which goes a long way to saying that they're clearly on the sides of big money and large corporations, not their own constituents'.

Find your Senators or Representative on Facebook and follow them to check what they say and more importantly to see what their bona-fide constituents say (beware of “trolls” – check the presence of a “constituent badge” next to the name).

In the case of my Senators and Representative it shows a real disconnect between what they do and what their constituent feel about it. Clearly, these folks aren't on our side and we need to tell them about it. Now, that I've given you the tools, use them!

Can we afford to downgrade safety?

The tragic death of French skier David Poisson reminds us that downhill racing is very dangerous and requires a solid set of safety rules to minimize the risks to the athletes. Season after season, competitions have gained in safety, following lessons learned from all the tragic accidents that have occurred over the recent alpine ski history.

On race day and the during any training sessions preceding a downhill event, the hosting venue spends a lot of time, attention and money making sure that the conditions are safe for all racers and are meeting the standards set forth by the International Ski Federation (FIS).

Now what happens when ski racers train outside of officially sanctioned races? Many of them suffer accidents, as training is precisely the only time when an athlete is mentally free enough to “let go” and give it their all. It's therefore fair to assume that risk-taking will be significant, speeds will be higher and protection should be at least the same as during competition.

It would seem to me that diminished safety measures are woefully unacceptable. Is this always the case? Probably not most of the time as slope conditions are not as perfect as they are on race day, and seemingly not in this last instance.

According to some reports, skiers were traveling well over 60 mph in that particular curve and after losing one ski, Poisson went through two 25-meter nets before crashing into a tree. Should there have been the larger, 40-meter nets anchored with cables in that particular spot? Who decided on the safety infrastructure; the Team coaches (French, Italian or Swiss) or Nakista, the resort hosting the training?

Were Nakista's deliverables including the type of safety equipment, budgetary constraints that influenced the coaches and the final types of nets that were picked for this area? At this point, it seems that there are no clear rules emanating from FIS that would govern safety measures used during general training outside of downhill training runs and race days.

In the absence of fast rules, it is of course too easy to assign blame on anyone (team directors, coaches, resort) and this is why FIS needs to come up with some clear regulations regarding training in general.

Only then, will David Poisson's terrible accident will not have been in vain.

Trails for aging riders

I feel pretty remiss about my mountain-bike riding this year. I tried to find excuses for a spotty participation, but the main reason for my low mileage is simply pure laziness.

Sure, as one gets closer to seven decades, there's always a tinge of apprehension, a drop in VO2Max and an eroding muscle tone, plus also the fear of falling hard and getting hurt plays a huge role in slowing us down.

Even during my rare outings (still in the twenty range), I've discovered two new trails that are perfect for older folks like me. They're just behind my house and their names are “Pork-U-Climb” and “Down Dog”.

They are wide-single tracks, mostly covered with dirt with very few rocks, nice banked turns and their average grade is a sweet seven percent. On top of that, both are one-way, so there's no fear of colliding with another mountain-biker and the views are just spectacular.

Today, I took my wife after a two-year hiatus and she fell back in love with it. If you live in Park City, ride these two trails before the snow makes them impassable with regular tires, and if you like them as much as we did, make sure to mail your donation to the Mountain Trail Foundation!

Stress in the ski business

Snow is what makes or breaks a ski season; more so than a country's economic situation or any other possible reason.

No wonder then, that ski resort operators become obsessed with any form of snow when November rolls around.

In the past, it was always a tad colder, so if we didn't have the real, natural stuff, you could fairly easily make it, if you didn't mind the cost of pumping water, turning it into solid and spraying it all over the mountain.

These days are different, because even November isn't as cold as it used to be, and mountain operators can no longer “play chicken”, waiting for a very long, cold spell to blow snow.

Every seemingly cold night is now worth a shot. Park City is slated for a November 17 opening and if there's a continuous white ribbon, it's likely to be thin, narrow and overrun with people!

Paradise & Panama Papers are costing us...

Unless you fell into a deep coma on May 5, 2016 and just woke up today, you have heard about both the Panama and Paradise Papers scandals, uncovered by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and showing us how tax evasion and so-called tax avoidance are standard business practice all around the world.

Our complex, yet poorly regulated tax system allow multinational companies and wealthy folks to hire their fortunes in offshore paradises, in an effort to skip paying taxes in their own countries. The obvious losers are taxpayers like you and me.

As they stash about $700 billion every year into tax heavens, the ultra-rich and the large corporations are dodging the tax-man in the countries where they do business and earn their money. The United State Government alone lost $111 billion in 2016 because of these schemes.

These maneuvers deprive governments of the resources needed to provide vital public services and infrastructure like transportation, health-care and education among others, which means either cutbacks, runaway deficit or increased taxation.

The current government says that corporate taxes are too high; well, they counted for one-third of our Federal expenditures in 1952 and a measly 10% in 2015. So don't tell me that there's a need to cut corporate taxes when what is required is some vigorous legislation banishing the use of tax-haven for multinationals and super wealthy individuals.

By just doing this, we get more than $1 trillion in extra tax revenue over 10 years. Before re-doing the entire plumbing, take care of the leaks! Another good reason to call your Representative and your Senators today...

A biased ski boot salesman

Last Friday, as I was shopping at REI, I overheard a conversation between a shop employee and a customer that was being fitted a pair of ski boots. The salesman was complaining that European ski boot companies were unable to offer stiff boots that were wide enough to fit wider feet.

He said “European feet tend to run narrower than Americans' and that's why we can't get the products we need on this side of the pond”. How does that sound to someone like me that used to be marketing and selling ski boots for a significant portion of my career?

It meant quite simply that the sales guy, around 45 years of age, had a few biases and had little idea about what he was talking about. Let's try to see where the reality lies; stiff racing boots are used by better skiers that have someone (a tech) working on them, or get fitted by a professional boot fitter and in all instances, the boot technician is quite likely to modify the shell and/or the liner.

Proficient skiers generally want as close a contact as they can get between their foot and the shell, and will always begin with a narrow shell and make room for the foot by either grinding or heat-forming it. This is why racing boots essentially come in the narrowest size.

Now, with Caucasians representing 85% of the US skiing population (2015 industry study), chances are that feet very similar to them will be found among Austrian, German, French and Italian skiers and this debunks this salesman's grossly preconceived notions...

Why don't you have a dog?

We don't have a dog, never have and probably never will; so, it's become a habit for people we know to ask us every time they see us: “Why don't you guys have a dog?”

While we are used to hearing the question, we don't necessarily enjoy it, as we often perceive it as meaning: “What's wrong with you folks for not having a dog?” This sneaky question infers that if we don't even have a dog, we must be bad people because only mean creatures don't love dogs; well, you catch my drift...

In fact, the more I think about it, the more I feel this particular question is the same as asking couples “Why don't you have kids?” to which the inevitable answer should be “None of your business!” right?

So when someone will ask us why we don't have any dog, will answer it by a question (always a wise strategy) that will confront the enquirers by asking them if they would dare asking a childless couple why they don't have any progeny. This exchange might sound a bit harsh, but I promise to test it and let you know how it flies.

An alternative answer could also take the form of a statement like “We'd love to have dogs, but with so many irresponsible dog owners that let their pooch roam around without a leash or don't pick up after them, we would hate to be perceived as joining their ranks; we know what we're talking about, wandering dogs have already banged our cars twice and we pick poop everyday around our house...”

Firearms and me

The only time I've ever handled firearms was when I was in the military and during boot-camp, just 50 years ago this month.

We learned how to fire rifles and machine guns for perhaps a dozen of training sessions. I did okay with these target shooting exercises, didn't harm any of my comrades, but wasn't hooked on the experience.

It was in late Fall, the weather was foggy, damp and cold and my mind was completely filled with all the others things I could have done instead of that stupid training, like early season skiing for instance.

It's in fact quite probable that my lack of interest at this time, is the main reason why I don't have a closet full of guns at my house..

Montana's electric company

As most Americans know, following Hurricane Maria's devastation, Whitefish Energy is this small, two-man electrical contractor, based in Whitefish, Montana, that was awarded a $300 million, no-bid contract to rebuild the electric grid in Puerto Rico, completely destroyed the hurricane.

The sweetheart deal that involved $400/hr rates, seemed to have been facilitated by another Whitefish resident and Secretary of Interior, Ryan Zinke. When everyone came to their senses, the contract was finally canceled at the end of October.

Now, it seems to me that there might be ways to mitigate this sad conclusion and help both parties by encouraging Puerto Rican who can't do anything anyway at the moment, on their devastated island, to come to Whitefish, get trained on everything electric, lower the hourly billing rate to say, $100, and help beef-up the ranks of that tiny company so, when the next hurricane strikes, it will have the sufficient size and manpower to handle any reconstruction effort, no matter how large.

Since Whitefish is home to a ski resort, there should be enough pillows to accommodate several thousand Puerto Ricans during their training and bring some badly needed diversity and high-energy to the region.

If all works out as I would hope, the place could be renamed “Pez Blanco” in short order and this would be a true win-win idea for two communities that nothing ever destined to come together!

Terrorism and gun rights

If someone ever asked me what's the lawful, yet incredibly lethal terrorist organization operating on American soil, I wouldn't have to search long; I would immediately cite the NRA (National Riffle Association).

Why do I consider it a terrorist group? Because it creates an unsafe environment for all of us, by resisting any common-sense approach to gun control.

Like accepting legislation that would force the market-place to conduct background checks wherever a firearm is sold; at retail, on-line, at gun shows or between individuals.

Like only authorizing those firearms that can be used for hunting or self-protection, at the exclusion of assault weapons, huge magazines and uncontrolled number of ammunition.

Yet, what make them an even more dangerous entity is the fact that it constantly pressurizes our Members of Congress who, for the most part, don't dare crossing the NRA, that operates under the pretense of abiding by the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution.

Each year, inside this very country, the NRA is causing the death of about 35,000 Americans, while foreign terrorists like al-Nusrah, ISIS, al-Qaida, HAMAS or Hizballah, to cite a few of the 61 foreign malevolent organizations listed by the Department of State, amount to less than one hundred casualties, here at home.

What is our Congress waiting to go after this larger and ominous menace ?

Why Trump will fail

In spite of his character and his record low approval ratings, Trump seems to still be getting the support of his faithful base of voters.

The problem, however, is that the man lacks one essential ingredient to successful leadership: His total hubris and ingrained inability to listen.

People who don't listen observe things as they wish they should be, get some attention for a while, but eventually all will crash and burn. It's merely a matter of time.

This negative trait of Trump will eventually lead to his demise as a statesman as it has before as real estate developer. Stay tuned...

Another massacre...

The more things change, the more things stay the same.

The Texas Church Sunday massacre wasn't different, as it was seemingly acted upon by a probably demented and heavily armed young, white man.

Is it even needed to remember that this massacre was the collaborative and steady work of the NRA, a majority of member of Congress and Trump?

Just remember that on average, about 35,000 Americans die each year from firearms. Until the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution isn't going to be seen in the same context as slavery, racism, sexual harassment and the use of fossil fuels, nothing is likely to change.

No tax cut for big business!

With the stock market and unemployment at record levels, access to healthcare the worst in the entire civilized world, corrupt political financing, infrastructure crumbling all around, a climate change the government chooses to ignore and a national debt inching towards $21 trillion, I wonder why there's a need to cut down corporate taxes, or any other tax for that matter.

Instead, there should be a tax hike to fix what ails us. Like a tax on fossil fuels for instance or a much stricter enforcement of tax collections.

Republicans and any politician supporting this mindless tax break and saying it will stimulate the economy is either corrupt or stupid. It didn't work under Reagan, Bush-Son and won't under Trump either.

If you agree with it, save this message and read it to your Republican representative and senator(s) when you call them this Monday morning.

Emmi, a Swiss luxury

Last night we had a friend at home for cheese fondue. I usually prepare that meal using half-comté, half gruyere and realized at the last minute that we had none of the latter.

I drove to the closest grocery store and got a small portion large enough (I thought) to complete the mix. The store offered a bunch of 0.53 lb (240 gr) shrink-wrapped pieces for $9.09 each!

Even though it was much more expensive than at Costco, I picked what I needed, went home and we all enjoyed a delectable cheese fondue!

Would you have rented this guy a truck?

The last terrorist attack in New York City begs lot of questions.

Beside the official's quandary as to prevent future similar incidents and the legitimate concern about not demonizing the entire American Muslim community, there is room for some discussion about using basic, common sense versus getting blinded by a rigid adherence to political correctness.

Another way to address the situation is to turn the problem on its head and wonder “Would I have rented the truck to that man?” It's undeniable that Sayfullo Saipov didn't have the good, clean look of the ordinary American.

If I had been behind the rental desk, assuming I had a fair dose of common sense and knowing what I knew about the Nice and other European street massacres, I would have thought in seeing and hearing Saipov “This guy must be middle-easterner and probably a devout Muslim to boot.”

After looking at his driver's license and deposit payment, I might have casually asked him: “What are you going to use this truck for?” He probably would have replied “I'm gonna help move one of my friends”.

Again, I might have struggled between my common sense and the easy path into racial profiling. The bottom line is that depending on Saipov's demeanor, his tone of voice and body language I would have rented the truck but also called the local police, explained my suspicions and ask them to keep a close look on that person.

Had you been behind the counter, what would you have done?

When I became a soldier

Half a century ago today, I rode the train to the middle of France where I had to attend boot-camp with the French Air Force.

This was the first day of 16 months of imprisonment into an institution that I would never get to enjoy.

As you can see on my mug-shot, I wasn't happy at all and wasn't looking forward to that long period of conscription.

One of the darkest moments of my life.

Clément Braize, 1936-2017

Today began with some sad news. My cousin Clément had just passed away.

He'd had turned 81 last March. I remember him well because I used to stay with him and my aunt for a couple of months each year while I was in middle school and my parents needed someone to look after me.

During that time, he and his mom were very kind to me. Clément was always gregarious and loved to sing; his favorite tune was the french adaptation of Venus (Frankie Avalon) by Les Companions de la Chanson.

My sincere condolences to his wife Yvonne and daughter Annette.
Clément will always have a special place in my heart.

Mad optical illusion

A few days ago, Park City Mountain began to make snow; it was cold and they probably wanted to test their snow-making equipment.

 As I picked-my binoculars to see how much they had cover, I discovered two strange elements: There was a lift tower (A) and a top chairlift station (B) that I had never seen before.

I looked up the resort website to no avail, besides, there was no way they could have built all this while we were away early October or without even telling the world.

I drove up the mountain to get an alternate view and discovered that the mystery chairlift was pure illusion.

For those of you familiar with Park City, the “Mystery Lift” was in fact the Lady Morgan chairs, about one mile away in Deer Valley, that appeared perfectly aligned to the Park City mountain side.

Morale of the story, whatever we believe we see or understand always depends on the point of view we take!

Trump's Halloween special appearance

Since we live in a low-traffic neighborhood, we enlisted the help of some big-name, to increase Halloween visits.

The Donald came on time, and for a while, no kid showed up, so we were a bit embarrassed as we feared that we had brought a celebrity over for naught!

Eventually, groups showed up, beating last year attendance by 23 percent!

The only problem is that the Donald didn't make kids laugh; he scared most of them (children aren't stupid), which was another demonstration of the law of unintended consequences.

Just after 9 pm, we've sent POTUS back to the White House after stuffing his coat pockets with the remaining candies. Now, we need to figure out a much better plan for next year!

Deer Valley's quandary

There's a snowboarding elephant roaming on Deer Valley ski runs and it never loomed larger than these days.

The deadline to purchase season passes at Deer Valley at maximum discount was yesterday. To entice procrastinators, the resort posted on Facebook a reminder of the seven reasons why folks should make Deer Valley their home resort again this season; here's how they were listed on its blog: 

1. Complimentary Mountain Host Tours 
2. Ski Valet 
3. Complimentary Ski Storage 
4. Limited Lift Ticket Sales 
5. DV Text 
6. Friendly Faces 
7. Gourmet Food 

 Readers followed up by posting what could be seen as the above elephant: “No snowboarding allowed”, which by far, in their minds trumped the seven reasons listed.

The recent acquisition of the resort by KSL/Crown is shaking the assurance that Deer Valley would never let boarders roam free on its runs and this doesn't sit well with the older, discriminating clientele that is staunchly opposed to welcoming snowboarding as part of the snow community!