Dec 24

Written by: host
12/24/2006 12:00 AM

So, went skiing again in NH. Came back with all members of the party battered and one broken.

The good news: I don't have a broken arm from the ice skiing. Sorry, did you think I meant snow skiing? Not this year.

The bad news: Everyone in my party was not so lucky.

This time we took Miriam. Miriam had never skied. Miriam's first instructor (group) was apparently disinterred for the purposes of being a ski instructor. He was, no joke, 82. That was not a typo due to my new computer. Let me prove it. Her instructor was 82. See? He apparently began skiing back when you chiseled your own out of granite. He and Miriam did not get along. Shouting "right! No I said RIGHT!" at Miriam is not a way to get on her good side. Miriam very nearly quit.

Fortunately, we got a new ski instructor (private) the next day. Herb was a wonder. He listened to Miriam's issues with her previous lesson and carefully did not repeat any of them. By the time he was finished she was confident enough to try the bunny slope on her own. Another instructor took her through the remainder of that day and the next and eventually up onto the mountain. It took her... a while to come down. But she made it intact. She even admitted to enjoying skiing. Since after her first class she was crying and shaking, that was a hell of an accomplishment.

Jenny and Lindy, the second to the last day we were there, decided they wanted to check out snowboarding. We were informed that snowboarding was harder to learn than skiing but that once you got past the few problems at the beginning, which usually alas took three days, the ability curve was faster. And all the cool kids snowboard.

I made various jokes about how they were going to have to have their hair dreadlocked and say "Dude" all the time. But I thought it was a good idea.

They did not take to it well. Perhaps that was due to it being "iceboarding" instead of "snowboarding" but repeatedly falling on ice took the wind out of Lindy to the point that she spent the last two days in NH reading and complaining of a battered wrist. Could have been worse, I suppose. Was worse for her sister. (This is referred to as foreshadowing.)

Jenny, however, unfortunately persevered. We got her private instruction so that she could get past the learning curve faster.

Alas, she got just good enough to fall on a patch of ice, hard, so that her right arm was between the ice and her helmet. She'd previously fallen rather hard and gotten over it. This time, she was in severe pain. Ski patrol was called in. They thought it was a very bad bone bruise but suggested taking her to the hospital to have it checked out.

That was the morning of the last day. Miriam had determined that the "firm" conditions were such that she wasn't going back up on the mountain. Lindy was nose deep in a book.

We packed up, turned in our gear and headed to the hospital. After the usual huge wait in the emergency room we received the news. Two breaks, both bones of the forearm (I want to say radius and ulna but I've never been that good at A&P). Both hairline but definite, just above the wrist. Jenny went home with souvenirs, xrays and her right arm in a cast.

No black diamonds this time.

However, for the various BFs who have been importuning me to visit Salt Lake City ...

Be there in February. Haven't finalized reservations but from the 15th-18th. (Flying in on the 14th, probably.) There had BETTER be snow. I'm sick to death of ice.
:-)



John

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