What's with the cat-mania ?

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

. It reminds me of the time, mid-'70's, when one afternoon sitting around the fireplace in the main lodge after a day of teaching, one of the guests who had been my student that morning said to another around the fire while pointing at me ; "Oh to have the life of a young ski instructor. Play on skis all day, party all night, only to do it all over again the next day..."

If only he knew... we struggle to keep awake to see the 7pm news because we'd been running 30K that day on skinny skis, shouting at our students "Bend your kness, Jack, or you'll fall dow..... See what I mean. Ya gotta bend em if you want some balan..... Sheila! It will work much better if you shift your weight onto your left leg BEFORE you try to pick up your right foot... Bill, try not to plant your pole between your legs when you want to turn.. Jack, your knees, Jack, your knees... (Is this lesson EVER going to end?) Sheila, trees are NOT to be used as brakes... Yes, I know they are convenient and usually around, but not always.... Jack... Your knees, Jack! (God, I wish I had time for a cigarette...) Sheila... Sheila... SHEILA... OK.. WE'LL MEET YOU AT THE BOTTOM OF THE HILL!!!"




Stitchawl

or the pint sized rockets that do the tuck, line their skis up parallel, point down hill and SHOOT! down the hill! I can't get that close to the ground to build up that much momentum on the bunny slope!!! quite often I got stuck with the 11-15 year old crowd, because for whatever reason I am more tolerant of adolescents. HOWEVER! whining and crying 14 year olds laid out on the snow that refuse to try to get up on their own, and outweigh me (and I am NOT tiny!) really chap my hide! being a human shield for terrified adult skiers (both male and female) that cannot or will not stop, turn, slow down, etc. even after you have spent DAYS on the flats going over and over and over the whole routine! and my personal favorite heart stopping moment... I had a semi private lesson with 2 10 year olds who were best friends. it was a night lesson, started at 7, ended at 9. we were in week 5 or 6 out of 9 weeks, the boys had been progressing nicely, and other than random snowball fights, wrestling matches on the snow, and so on, they really were not too bad to work with. when I had started them, I had an assistant to ride the lift with us, but as they were doing really well, I usually let them ride together and I would take the chair behind them unless I wanted to go over some fine tuning with them. well.... one night, the quieter of the two boys started squirming in his chair right before the end of the lift. all of a sudden he just dropped from the chair, RIGHT BEFORE the dismount ramp. the lift operator stopped the lift and ran out of the hut around to the pile of snow he had landed in. his buddy was squirming around and I was scared to death that he was ready to drop as well. I was so torn between dropping myself to tend to him and keeping my head! I did stay on the lift. when I got to the top and skied around to check on him he was absolutely fine and had no explanation whatsoever as to why he did that. talk about heart in throat!

I just not too recently (3 years ago) did the full time thing on the mountain. that was weird! I had grown kids of my own, but my co-workers and in some cases bosses were the same age and younger than my children but I kept up!

[Stitchawl]

How does it make you feel when you are standing on the lip of something called "Vertical Limit" or "The Wall of Death," trying to plan a route to the bottom that you can ski without being an embarrassment to your Red Jacket, and a group of 5-6 year olds (as you say, pint sized rockets) come flying by, dropping over the edge, (some of them facing backwards so they can continue talking with their friends) paying no attention what so ever to the fact that they are about to ski down something resembling a vertical plate glass window with bumps on it, and manage to do so without interrupting their conversations....

My son was one of those... Born on skis, skiing the lift line by the age of four. Racing by age 8. "Come on, Dad! I'll race you to the bottom!" "Sorry kid, my goggles itch!"


Stitchawl



Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

How does it make you feel when you are standing on the lip of something called "Vertical Limit" or "The Wall of Death," trying to plan a route to the bottom that you can ski without being an embarrassment to your Red Jacket, and a group of 5-6 year olds (as you say, pint sized rockets) come flying by, dropping over the edge, (some of them facing backwards so they can continue talking with their friends) paying no attention what so ever to the fact that they are about to ski down something resembling a vertical plate glass window with bumps on it, and manage to do so without interrupting their conversations....

My son was one of those... Born on skis, skiing the lift line by the age of four. Racing by age 8. "Come on, Dad! I'll race you to the bottom!" "Sorry kid, my goggles itch!"


Stitchawl



Stitchawl

I obviously don't seriously need to answer that but! like sh8t! why the hell can't I have no fear, be lighter than air, have rubber band joints and do what they are doing!!!

DAMNIT!!!!

[astra]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

If only he knew... we struggle to keep awake to see the 7pm news because we'd been running 30K that day on skinny skis, shouting at our students "Bend your kness, Jack, or you'll fall dow..... See what I mean. Ya gotta bend em if you want some balan..... Sheila! It will work much better if you shift your weight onto your left leg BEFORE you try to pick up your right foot... Bill, try not to plant your pole between your legs when you want to turn.. Jack, your knees, Jack, your knees... (Is this lesson EVER going to end?) Sheila, trees are NOT to be used as brakes... Yes, I know they are convenient and usually around, but not always.... Jack... Your knees, Jack! (God, I wish I had time for a cigarette...) Sheila... Sheila... SHEILA... OK.. WE'LL MEET YOU AT THE BOTTOM OF THE HILL!!!"




Stitchawl

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

I obviously don't seriously need to answer that but! like sh8t! why the hell can't I have no fear, be lighter than air, have rubber band joints and do what they are doing!!!

DAMNIT!!!!

Guys,
You make smile Big big smile on my face

[Mortis]

KK and Stitchawl, you really know how to make a guy a million miles from the closest ski hill feel like booking a flight. I "Skied" in Dubai, not really the greatest hill I have ever been on, skiing off the top of the house in Frobisher Bay when I was a kid, was more fun.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Mortis

KK and Stitchawl, you really know how to make a guy a million miles from the closest ski hill feel like booking a flight. I "Skied" in Dubai, not really the greatest hill I have ever been on, skiing off the top of the house in Frobisher Bay when I was a kid, was more fun.

if it's any consolation, I am a short drive away yet sidelined with an injury. THAT'S frustration!

[wodin]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

I just saw a dog and cat fight. In my lap.

Christian was laying in my lap, and Norton decided he wanted to lay beside him. Evidently, Norton stepped on Christian, because Christian jumped up and swatted him and Norton chased him out of the room. The wife and I called Norton back and calmed him down.

It happens on my lap all of the time, usually between Peanut and Kitty Girl, but sometimes any one of the other three cats.

The funny thing is that Peanut (so named because she is about the size and color of a peanut) is smaller than all four of the cats!

[Mortis]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

if it's any consolation, I am a short drive away yet sidelined with an injury. THAT'S frustration!

I feel for you, it's always worse when you are close to something you want, but for reasons outside your control, you can't have it. Reminds me of all that gold in the vault, if I could only reach a little farther...

Originally Posted by wodin

It happens on my lap all of the time, usually between Peanut and Kitty Girl, but sometimes any one of the other three cats.

The funny thing is that Peanut (so named because she is about the size and color of a peanut) is smaller than all four of the cats!

The smallest cats are always the most aggressive in my experience, we have a "Dwarf" Siamese and shes the toughest little cat I have ever seen cats that out weigh her by 3 or 4 kilos stay clear of her

[Sweetpea]

[astra]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

It is how I see cats and dogs.

[wannabee]

I made a change to my avatar just for you guys

[kennyc]

[Mortis]

Now that you have given into the cat force, Katey Perry will sing for you.
OK I just made that last bit up, but I can think of worse things, as long as we can mute it, shes fun to watch

[harakiri]

The smallest cats are always the most aggressive in my experience, we have a "Dwarf" Siamese and shes the toughest little cat I have ever seen cats that out weigh her by 3 or 4 kilos stay clear of her

Like this?

[Mortis]

Godzilla's getting his butt kicked