December 31, 2006

End of another year. Today was a great day. I doubt that I will still be awake to welcome in 2007.

We have had some more snow. It is just ridiculous. I am feeling short driving down the road. The snow depth is getting really deep. Down in Girdwood, it is beginning to look like tunnels instead of roads. It is awesome. I love that the snow keeps piling up and just doesn’t melt. I would take some pictures, but my camera broke and I had to send it back to the factory for warranty repair.

Yesterday was only about a foot of new snow. It wasn’t even enough to get us to rush to get to the ski resort. We got there when we got there and had fun. It was a good day of skiing.

The weekend really got kicked off on Thursday evening. I got a phone call from a British guy from Miami who happens to have the same name as a former butler from Buckingham Palace who lives in Miami. Coincidentally, this guy is also a butler. Upon confirming who I was, he connected me to the guy who gave me the big tip last year while ski instructing. He was back in town and had gone through the ski school and was disappointed. He wanted me to teach his family some more. I expressed concern about teaching without being affiliated with the resort and he suggested that he could make it happen without problems. I soon got a call from the concierge desk and she explained just how much this family spent each year with the resort - like $150K - and how not filtering ski instruction through the ski school was basically a non-issue. I agreed to provide instruction on Sunday.

So today I woke up still unclear as to the need for my services. I tried calling the concierge desk, but got no answer. I was getting ready to go to the resort when my British friend called again. He asked if I would be available in the afternoon. So Kris and I headed to the resort. We were in no hurry since we only had about 5 inches of snow overnight. I can’t tell you how many vacations were made perfect by 5 inches of snow, but apparently I am now spoiled. It didn’t really matter since apparently no one was really rushing to get to the resort today except for the people who were entered in the races taking place on the lower mountain. The top of the mountain was virtually untracked. We made several runs, including one run down North Face before my scheduled lesson time.

I ran into the family in the lobby of the hotel and they invited me up to the room. Room is a nice way of saying penthouse suite. The place was bigger than our condo with spectacular views out 3 different directions. The family had lunch. I felt oddly comfortable. So lunch ended and the five ski participants prepared for skiing. I was sent to the lobby with the butler. The butler put a card in the cash machine, took out a stack of money, folded it and handed to me. I discretely put it in my pocket. He then put the card back in and got a second stack of money, folded it and handed to me. I put it in the other pocket. I figured the limit was two maybe two fifty per transaction. It seemed more than adequate since it was just an afternoon and I already had a pretty decent day skiing.

The lesson was a fun one, although I struggled to get the breakthroughs I was hoping for. The lift lines were pretty bad so I took the group further up the mountain, perhaps a touch further than they were ready. Realistically it was the best opportunity for learning given the situation. I took them out of their comfort zone and that had a somewhat negative impact, but it also gave them all a sense of confidence on the easier terrain. I was pleased with my ability to conduct a reasonable lesson and give good demos without much practice.

Everyone was exhausted and we finished a little early. I ran into Kris in the lobby of the hotel and we headed for the car. She asked how much I got paid and I said I didn’t know but I guessed it was four or five hundred. I changed boots and removed my contacts. I started the truck and before driving away, I pulled a stack of twenties out of my pocket and began counting. I had to count twice to confirm it was $500. Kris laughed at my fortune. Then I pulled the other stack out of the other pocket. She asked, “What’s that?” I said, “I guess it is the other half.” Another cool grand for having fun with interesting people.

It was great spending some time in the company of the super rich. I felt so sure and comfortable that I wasn’t missing anything in life. I felt sorry for the clutter that money was causing them, making it difficult to recognize the real sources of joy in their lives. I was happy for their fortune, but more happy for my own, the fortune of having everything I want, the fortune of wanting very little.

We came home and had a lovely bottle of champagne, some shrimp cocktail, a salad, and some garlic bread. It was a perfect end to a perfect day. It felt like 4 different days. I am exhausted, but I am very happy. 2006 was a fine year. 2007 looks promising. Of course maybe my outlook will be different after the effects of the champagne have worn off. Hopefully that won’t include a headache.