Lake Tahoe

In the early 2000s we used to come to Lake Tahoe with my two daughters. The last time we came here to stay the night was likely in 2006. Mostly we have gone to Mt. Shasta instead mostly because it was me going and our youngest daughter my wife sort of became a soccer MOM to until she graduated from her private school and started college then everything changed. So, coming here now is sort of nostalgic of me skiing with my older daughter who loved to ski then (now she snow boards with me and we went skiing and snowboarding together with a friend of hers from oregon a few weeks ago now.

I likely told the story but here goes again. Her friend is a snow boarder too and just got her degree in Dublin, Ireland after studying in Norway, Iceland and Dublin, Ireland since she has dual citizenship of U.S. and Norwegian and they give their kids free college educations in Norway and Sweden and in several other countries.

Any way at Mt. Shasta ski park we loaded up three on a chair lift and I was a little uncomfortable because I'm 68 now and big and not as coordinated as I used to be. also, snowboarders unload off a ski lift completely differently from skiers and I knew this too. So, when we reached the top the norwegian girl was in the center and I was to the right and I went too far right with my skis trying to make sure she was okay and caught my right tip of my right ski on the unload here sign I guess which spun me sideways and I dropped 4 feet onto my shoulder and heard my neck crunch. At first I thought i had broken my neck and didn't move and I told the operator I thought I might have broken my neck and he took off my skis so I could get out of the way because I was pretty stunned about the way you feel if someone hit you in the mouth and you went down hard. But, since I'm pretty tought (though as you age this doesn't work as well as when you are young (for example 3 or 4 trips to the chiropractor so far.

But, at the time I just shook it off got up and skied down the intermediate slopes the afternoon.However I did not ski black diamond routes because I knew I was a little off from falling so hard in my right side and hearing the "CRRRUUUUNCCCH"of my neck when my left shoulder hit the ice hard from about 4 feet off the ground or more.

So, anyway my wife asked me if I was going to ski alone like I used to up here. I said, "I'm not sure because I'm now 68. I'm not sure skiing alone without a buddy at this age is a good idea or not. I talked to a friend on the phone and he said he could have joined us to ski Tahoe if it was next week but I said I have to go to a memorial for my wife's stepfather in southern California next week.

So, life goes on doesn't it? With us or without us life goes on.

Note: I just realized 2006 wasn't the last time I was up here. We were also here in 2011 when my daughter's private school had a ski trip and a bunch of us got snowed in for several days under an extra 4 to 5 feet of snow when the city of South Lake Tahoe didn't plow the road we were on near Heavenly ski resort then.