Still on the Road Again

Skiing!

Thursday 04-03-2008 7:53am CT

Well I hate to fess up to you, but I am still traveling a good bit, and playing hooky from many of the things I ought to be doing. But hey, I’ll be sixty eight next month, so cut me a little slack. I have really enjoyed myself this past month, and hope to continue doing so. I did have some concerns about some joint pain in the knees, and was reluctant to get out on the ski slopes. But I really do love to ski, and decided to give it a try several times this spring. I was off to a slow start out in Park city Utah, but I probably did not warm up properly. So I gave it a try again last week in North Carolina. I was cautious, took my time, worked around some little problems and could not have enjoyed myself more.

You have to be a little careful when dealing with man-made snow, particularly as the weather warms up. I took a bad fall some years ago in late afternoon on slushy snow around moguls, and paid the price of having to have surgery on my knee. I sure do not want to go through that again, and that’s why I’m cautious on the slopes. But I really look forward to skiing with my grandkids, so it was important to make the effort and keep myself tuned up for it.

I will share this story with you. Last year, I was skiing in Colorado on a delightful spring day where I only had to wear a sweater. It was late afternoon, and I was alone on the route I was taking. I skied up to the top of a ridge, and looked out over the breathtaking mountain view. Then I glanced to the side, and saw where someone put a sign in the snow. It read simply: “go home and face your responsibilities.” So that’s what I will do, and will write from Louisiana next week.