FINALLY!!!!!!!

As I've mentioned here, here, and here, I love snow sports, especially snowboarding and skiing. I don't as much love the snow per se, especially when commuting to work or driving in a blizzard, but I'll take a day in the mountains anytime! I've been on the mountain since I was three years old starting with skis and no poles and adding snowboarding 13 years later. Always a 'good' athlete(I can play most any sport relatively well), I think snowboarding is the exception and consider myself able to hang with most riders on all terrains.

Vail, Colorado

People often ask me what I miss most about California. After almost three years, my answer is always the same: "Besides my parents and close friends, I miss the mountains." I used to drive to Mammoth most weekends, a lot of the time by myself, for a day and a half of riding all over that fantastic mountain. 395 miles door-to-door with a few books on tape and the radio to entertain me...and some of my favorite people too...was not abnormal.

Deer Valley, Utah

So, by the hair of my chinny chin chin, I'm making one of my 2012 goals come true this weekend. The boy and I are headed off to Beaver Creek for a few last days of skiing. I couldn't be more thrilled!

Mt. Baldy - Sun Valley

And the icing on the cake is two-fold...one, it's the end of Lent so I'll be having a margarita and a marshmallow apres ski (most likely not together, but you never know) AND, I'll be meeting the four-week old Tulley, daughter of one of my oldest and dearest friends. Oh...and the cherry on top is that a group of our friends will also be in town for the holiday so Saturday night should be a real hoot. Can't wait!

Mammoth Mountain

Newport Film Festival

This weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Newport Film Festival. One of my friends is doing PR for the event and got me VIP access to some amazing films....and one not so amazing film!  

Newport is a fun place to visit in Southern California...it's quite surreal and totally in-line with all the reality tv shows you see on TV. Amazing homes with unprecedented views of the water, high-fashion shopping, elaborate apparel worn for the most mundane tasks, and the home of the Newport Beach film festival! Shows were previewed at Fashion Island and at The Lido theater on Balboa Island. All sorts of celebrities were in attendance for the showings and the fabulous post parties.  

We drove up on Saturday and Sunday to check out the "scene" and see a few shows. It was quite entertaining! Two shows that I must recommend are "That's It, That's All" and "Rudo y Cursi". 

If you are a snow fan - skier or snowboarder, you'll appreciate "That's It, That's All" - the movie is a breathtaking documentary about snowboarding done with a fantastic soundtrack and the most amazing cinematography. I found myself grasping my seat and moving my feet as if I was riding the Alaskan glaciers and New Zealand terrain with these masters. Check out the trailers to see for yourself.  

For those who enjoy the Cuarón brother's (Carlos & Alfonso) films (i.e. "Y Tu Mama También", "Children of Men"), you'll love this new film with Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna, "Rudo y Cursi".  This is Carlos's directorial debut and he couldn't have had a better pair of actors. The film is about two brother's plights to get out of the 'campo' and obtain fútbol stardom as professional soccer players in Mexico City. Gael and Diego are phenomenal together, as always, and the Argentine narrator and talent scout adds a soothing continuity to the movie. Even if you speak Spanish fluently, you still may need to defer to some of the subtitles as the Mexican slang is, as usual, quite prevalent! 

Now I better get on booking a flight for heli-skiing...where to go?! 

PS - the movie NOT to see.... "Made for Each Other". I wanted to poke both my eyes out!

My Favorite Things...ok, just a few

Since my blog so far has just been old e-mails from a few recent trips, I thought I'd add a list of some of my favorite things that I've visited in my travels over the last ten years or so...

Spain: This one deserves it's own chapter since I lived there for a year, but I'll just point out a few highlights....visit Toledo and see the only place where all 3 major religions have co-habitated peacefully...Tapas in San Sebastian...travel south to Ronda....skiing or riding at Baqueira Beret...stay in a Parador like this one in Granada...and don't forget the cradle of the wine region Haro.

Mammoth Lakes, California: Yes, I will drive 6 1/2 hours alone to go up there...I always feel so peaceful whether riding the mountain (snowboard or bike), sleeping outside in the summer, or

 just spending time with friends. The mountain stays open longer than most mountains in the West (11,000 ft peak) and spring skiing is the norm usually. The Summer is almost better than the winter as there are outdoor concerts, biking, hiking, ("wiking" for the less athletic), camping, picnics, etc. Yosemite is only an hour away as well!

Home: this is the view from my parent's house...it's hard not to appreciate the natural beauty. Windansea Beach....Fidel's...North Park / South Park...running the convention center steps....bike rides through the Elfin Forest....visiting Ready Room 6 on the Midway...cover bands at Surf N Saddle...Rock N Roll Marathon...my first exposure to Junior League....high school memories in LJ. Although I'm originally from Minnesota and will always appreciate my midwest roots, my formative years were here...wherever I am, this will still be"home". 

Snow sports: At age 3, my parents left me off with ski school at Deer Valley in Park City and, well, I loved it. I spent MANY cold days skiing in Minnesota and have been fortunate to take that sport around the world. The last 12 years have transitioned me into a snowboarder, but I still get a good ski in once in a while. Some of my favorite trips have been to Sun Valley, Idaho, Deer Valley/Alta/Snowbird in Utah, Telluride/Aspen/Beaver Creek/Snowmass/Vail, all in Colorado, The Pyrenees in Spain, Innsbruck, Austria (a MUST for the thrillseeker: Moonlight Toboganning!), and Mammoth Lakes, California. My list of places to "ride before I die" include the Chilean Andes, heli-skiing in Whistler, Chamonix/Mont-Blanc in France, and Gstaad in Switzerland.

....more favorite things and places to come....