The great melt has begun! The temperature is now consistently above freezing in the village, and great slabs of snow have been falling off our roof over the last few days; we've also had the novel experience of walking on dry roads once more. Spring skiing is certainly different to what we've been used to; while the snow is still decent at the top of the mountain, the lower runs are somewhat soupy by the end of each day, bringing back fond memories of skiing in the Alps. This weekend, in a bid to avoid tiresome weekend lift queues, we all took up some food and a few beers and built a jump in the middle of nowhere and spent the day going up and down, with some spectacular results; Jonny tried a backflip for the first time, and escaped with just a bloody lip - Ross cracked out a pair of mini skis and attempted various tricks, with limited success. All in all, it is nice to see the sun again, and we are getting increasingly competitive about our goggle tans...
Mumps update is as follows - having taken Kara's name in vain in the previous blog, the mumps have continued to spread, with Kara first on the list. Katie was next to fall, and while they haven't quite experienced the swelling levels of Jonny, they've both had to have time off work and also off the mountain, much to their displeasure. The rest of our house had a group trip to the doctors last week for a mumps booster jab in an attempt to avoid joining the growing list - unfortunately, the nurse informed us that it was likely we were already incubating, and if so the jab would make it worse! I wake up each morning and the first thing I do is stroke my chin to check for swelling - as of yet the rest of us are all clear, long may it last.
Our house has also had the first serious injury of the season (about time too!!) in the last few days - whilst flying down a tree run in typically reckless fashion, Emily had rather too close an encounter with a sizeable evergreen, and broke her wrist in two places. Having been seen by a frustratingly unsympathetic ski patrol bloke, Em skiied down and self diagnosed a sprained wrist, and resolved to see what it was like in the morning. As she continued to wince with pain every other minute, she eventually went to have it looked at, and the doctor gave her the bad news (for a sizeable fee, of course), and she is in a cast for the next few weeks. Every cloud has a silver lining, however, and in this case that silver lining is the assortment of lewd messages adorning the cast - classy. Our immediate reaction when she got home with her fresh cast was to provide some liquid relief, and she's still loving life despite not being able to ski - she's still able to work luckily, and remains firmly on board for our Vegas trip next week.
We've had a fresh raft of house guests over the past couple of weeks who, as ever, keep things interesting at 8566 Buckhorn Place. Katie's Asian friend from home, Chonger, deserves an honourable mention and goes down as one of our favourite visitors so far - he was here for three weeks and quickly adapted to the Whistler way of living, skiing hard in the day and doing his best to defy his Oriental roots when the drinking began in the evenings. Emily's friend Trev also provided some unquestionably memorable moments - alas, he too has now flown the nest.... We've also just welcomed Kara's friend Vicki, who stayed with us over New Year, back into the Buckhorn fold. A second trans-Atlantic holiday in three months may seem extravagant to some, but we have all been glad to see her, and when there are strapping young men like Leo on this side of the Atlantic, who can blame her.
I'm currently enjoying my first day off in a while, having worked the last ten in a row, and Coote is stuck into his usual weekend double shift routine. We have still been finding time to party, with a big few days for St. Patrick's Day and Chonger's last night in Whistler last week. During this time, we spent quite some time developing our artistic talents, thanks to Chonger and Emily's inability to remain conscious after a night out - as some of you may have seen, Chonger got particularly well covered - having used permanent marker, he did a good job to scrub it all off by the time he boarded his flight the next day. Emily was less successful on that front, eventually giving up and leaving for work with 'THUG LIFE' still firmly adorning her knuckles. Tonight, we are venturing out to see 'A Skillz' on Emily's recommendation - previous recommendations have received a mixed reception, so who knows what's in store tonight...
Kara's Mum is currently in town, so Kara's been enjoying living in luxury post-mumps. She did, however, choose a somewhat unusual way to welcome her mother to Whistler - a few catch-up drinks at Brandy's turned into a few more... which turned into getting cut off (refused service). Having been dropped back to her mum's hotel room by Jonny, she proceeded to wander into the night - never a good idea in a ski resort. Jonny, having almost arrived home, got a call from Kara's Mum asking where she was and, being a true gent, went off to search for her. Having stopped by a few of our usual haunts, Jonny arrived at the hotel at a loose end, but thankfully found Kara soon after.... passed out, on the sofa in reception. Welcome to Whistler, Mummy!
We also had a house 'Swap Day' in honour of Laura's birthday the other week - boarders skiied and skiiers boarded - just to spell it out. All in all, the day was a success, and most of us enjoyed the swap more than expected. While Leo backed out as he couldn't bear to be separated from his skis for more than five minutes, Coote and I struggled our way down all day, with some helpful tips from Jam meaning we gradually worked out how to turn, as well as stop. Unsurprisingly, we all spent a lot more time in the snow than usual, but it was good to see how the other side live; we then rewarded ourselves with another hefty EuroApres session - see Facebook photos of Laura in fine form. I even boarded again the next day, although I've decided that's enough for the time being - my body is only just recovering! The week ahead is shaping up to be another good one, with the last few powder days of the season forecast for the middle of the week - we also have Vegas to look forward to (leaving a week on Tuesday), and the arrival of Leo's friend Felix next weekend. Over and out, Josh, Leo and Sam.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Ayooooooo!
Leo and Coote have flown the nest! I've been alone in our bedroom for the last few days, as the other two have headed down to Vancouver for a few days, along with our housemates Emily and Katie, and Katie's friend Chris. They were hoping to hit the shops, watch an ice hockey game, and sample Vancouver's nightlife, before heading back for work tonight. Thanks to Katie's job at the Hilton in Whistler, they've been hooked up with cheap rooms at the Hilton down there, so are seeing the sights in style! I've had work for the last few days, and am saving all available cash for the planned Vegas trip, meaning I was unable to join them unfortunately. Latest news is that Leo and Emily were waiting at the bus stop, and it was looking like Coote was about to miss the bus home, so it remains to be seen whether they all return in one piece - fingers crossed.
The last few weeks have also seen mumps infiltrate our circle of friends in Whistler; our housemate Andy was the first to fall, and had to endure nine days off work and snowboarding, much to his disgust. His symptoms were somewhat less extreme than the next to be affected, our friend Jonny, whose swollen jowls led to overweight bullfrog/Fat Bastard from 'Austin Powers' comparisons. As his ever unsympathetic friends, our immediate reaction upon seeing his unfortunate state was to burst into helpless laughter.... which lasted for the best part of five minutes. His symptoms have now subsided and his face is returning to normality; the mental image of his over-sized head stays with me however, and never fails to bring a smile to my face. We're hoping that the worst is over and none of the rest of us will get mumpy; Kara has expressed concerns over the past few days, but we've so far put it down as a cry for attention....
Our working lives are still going well; Coote and Leo are enjoying working together at the Keg, and have an immediate point of call when they need shifts swapping. Leo has his sights set on a laid back working attitude for the rest of our time here; he's handed in his notice at the hotel where he has been working as a cleaner, and is going down to two shifts a week at the Keg for April, with the aim of showing his friend Felix a good time when he arrives for a two week holiday. I had my first (unwelcome) spot of action in my bouncing job the other day, arriving at my 8pm start time to find Jono, the bar manager, locked in an argument with a couple of irate customers, who had been wrongly accused of walking out without paying. Things eventually got a little out of hand, and Jono motioned me over to eject the troublemakers. I grasped the more worked up of the pair, which didn't go down well; he stood up, shouted 'YOU CAN FUCK OFF TOO', and shoved me, pretty hard, in the neck. Doing my best to live up to my bouncer title, I returned the shove, at which point he pulled back his fist and I braced myself, resigned to the fact that he was going to punch me in the face. Fortunately, one of his friends stepped in and grabbed him just before he landed the punch (a wise man, who knows how a hardened bouncer like myself would have reacted...!), and Jono and I managed to bundle them out - certainly a good way to get the blood racing at the start of a usually uneventful Monday night shift! In other employment news, I was crowned 'Employee of the Month' for February at the Spaghetti Factory - rest assured I am going places in the spaghetti industry.
We have also been swept away by Whistler's latest night-time phenomenon, 'EuroApres'. As the name suggests, this is an apres-ski event, held in one of the village clubs, and supposedly with a European twist. As far as we are aware, the only European aspect is that Jagermeister is in plentiful supply, but we haven't let this put us off. So each Wednesday, our gang troops down straight from the slopes, and proceeds to have a beer or two - it is certainly a surreal feeling being in a fully functional nightclub at 4pm; it also inevitably means that most are tucked up in bed by midnight. I came a cropper the other week when, having finished work at 6, I joined the others and 'caught up' rather too effectively. Fortunately, Jam was on hand to take advantage of my inebriation, video camera in hand... being a nocturnal kind of girl, she had fully edited and compiled the footage by the time I woke up the next day and was ready and waiting to drive home the pain of my hangover. Many of you will already have seen the video, and for those of you that haven't, I am glad.
The skiing has been good as ever, with plenty of fresh snow this week, and another metre or so expected by Wednesday. It is gradually getting a little warmer so some of the lower runs can be slushy by the end of warmer days, but there is enough snow that the mountain has extended its winter season until the end of May, which doesn't usually happen! News has just broken of some extreme bad luck for a fellow Whistler resident; the girl in question spent a rather chilly night stuck on a gondola up the mountain last week. She somehow managed to get onto a gondola which was only supposed to be running on its lower half, and was still on the upper half when the gondola was turned off for the night. Having set her scarf on fire (ha!) to try and catch attention, and without her mobile phone, she settled down for the night in what the report described as "a skirt and thin jacket" - definitely an unenviable place to find oneself. Having said that, every cloud has a silver lining, and in this case that lining is compensation to the tune of $25,000, as well as a lifetime ski pass. We've been discussing how much we'd have to be paid to spend a night on a gondola in a skirt, and the general consensus has been around the $5000 mark - Whistler Blackcomb really could have saved themselves some money...
Love to all, Josh, Leo and Sam.
The last few weeks have also seen mumps infiltrate our circle of friends in Whistler; our housemate Andy was the first to fall, and had to endure nine days off work and snowboarding, much to his disgust. His symptoms were somewhat less extreme than the next to be affected, our friend Jonny, whose swollen jowls led to overweight bullfrog/Fat Bastard from 'Austin Powers' comparisons. As his ever unsympathetic friends, our immediate reaction upon seeing his unfortunate state was to burst into helpless laughter.... which lasted for the best part of five minutes. His symptoms have now subsided and his face is returning to normality; the mental image of his over-sized head stays with me however, and never fails to bring a smile to my face. We're hoping that the worst is over and none of the rest of us will get mumpy; Kara has expressed concerns over the past few days, but we've so far put it down as a cry for attention....
Our working lives are still going well; Coote and Leo are enjoying working together at the Keg, and have an immediate point of call when they need shifts swapping. Leo has his sights set on a laid back working attitude for the rest of our time here; he's handed in his notice at the hotel where he has been working as a cleaner, and is going down to two shifts a week at the Keg for April, with the aim of showing his friend Felix a good time when he arrives for a two week holiday. I had my first (unwelcome) spot of action in my bouncing job the other day, arriving at my 8pm start time to find Jono, the bar manager, locked in an argument with a couple of irate customers, who had been wrongly accused of walking out without paying. Things eventually got a little out of hand, and Jono motioned me over to eject the troublemakers. I grasped the more worked up of the pair, which didn't go down well; he stood up, shouted 'YOU CAN FUCK OFF TOO', and shoved me, pretty hard, in the neck. Doing my best to live up to my bouncer title, I returned the shove, at which point he pulled back his fist and I braced myself, resigned to the fact that he was going to punch me in the face. Fortunately, one of his friends stepped in and grabbed him just before he landed the punch (a wise man, who knows how a hardened bouncer like myself would have reacted...!), and Jono and I managed to bundle them out - certainly a good way to get the blood racing at the start of a usually uneventful Monday night shift! In other employment news, I was crowned 'Employee of the Month' for February at the Spaghetti Factory - rest assured I am going places in the spaghetti industry.
We have also been swept away by Whistler's latest night-time phenomenon, 'EuroApres'. As the name suggests, this is an apres-ski event, held in one of the village clubs, and supposedly with a European twist. As far as we are aware, the only European aspect is that Jagermeister is in plentiful supply, but we haven't let this put us off. So each Wednesday, our gang troops down straight from the slopes, and proceeds to have a beer or two - it is certainly a surreal feeling being in a fully functional nightclub at 4pm; it also inevitably means that most are tucked up in bed by midnight. I came a cropper the other week when, having finished work at 6, I joined the others and 'caught up' rather too effectively. Fortunately, Jam was on hand to take advantage of my inebriation, video camera in hand... being a nocturnal kind of girl, she had fully edited and compiled the footage by the time I woke up the next day and was ready and waiting to drive home the pain of my hangover. Many of you will already have seen the video, and for those of you that haven't, I am glad.
The skiing has been good as ever, with plenty of fresh snow this week, and another metre or so expected by Wednesday. It is gradually getting a little warmer so some of the lower runs can be slushy by the end of warmer days, but there is enough snow that the mountain has extended its winter season until the end of May, which doesn't usually happen! News has just broken of some extreme bad luck for a fellow Whistler resident; the girl in question spent a rather chilly night stuck on a gondola up the mountain last week. She somehow managed to get onto a gondola which was only supposed to be running on its lower half, and was still on the upper half when the gondola was turned off for the night. Having set her scarf on fire (ha!) to try and catch attention, and without her mobile phone, she settled down for the night in what the report described as "a skirt and thin jacket" - definitely an unenviable place to find oneself. Having said that, every cloud has a silver lining, and in this case that lining is compensation to the tune of $25,000, as well as a lifetime ski pass. We've been discussing how much we'd have to be paid to spend a night on a gondola in a skirt, and the general consensus has been around the $5000 mark - Whistler Blackcomb really could have saved themselves some money...
Love to all, Josh, Leo and Sam.
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