Friday, February 06, 2009

Skiing and "In Other News"

I had a meeting out of town yesterday morning, so I threw a pair of wool pants and my skis in my truck (my skis stay in the back this time of the year) and took the afternoon off, skiing at a nature preserve a little south of here. This is one of my favorite places to ski and I hadn’t yet been there this winter. It was a cold afternoon, with light wind, but at least the sun peeked out for a few minutes. I don’t think anyone had been on the trails with skis since the weekend and I often found myself breaking trail, which was quite a workout as we haven’t had any fresh snow of any significant amount in the past week. The snow was crusty and quickly cut the wax off the bottom of my skis. I also found myself having to break into a herringbone stride earlier when climbing hills, which was more difficult than normal as the skis would break through the icy snow and required more effort to lift out. But it was a good day to ski and I needed the time alone. I saw a number of deer, some ground squirrels as well as a couple gray squirrels and evidence that some over-ambitious beavers have a dam planned for Cedar Creek. This has been a hard winter on the animals. The deer have been gouging on the low branches of cedars and even some pines (not only in the woods, but also my yard). Ice covered much of Cedar Creek and I especially enjoyed the sections of trail that ran along its banks. I spent nearly three hours out and by the time I got back to the truck, I was sweaty. Enjoy the photos.

Cedar Creek









The work of nature's civil engineers.


In Other News…
Politically Incorrect Reporting by Nevada Jack

It’s been five years since Sage hauled my butt out of Utah and to the relatively flatlands of Michigan. I woke up from hibernation, having dreamed of Utah and wanted to see what was going on in that great theocracy that we once called home. Here in Michigan, the news is always boring or, when it’s about the economy, down right depressing. In Utah, there was always something entertaining going on, especially when the state legislature was in session. I wasn’t disappointed. This year, some right-brained legislator is proposing that places which serve alcohol make copies of folk’s driver’s licenses and share them with the police (who will probably then share them with the local Mormon bishops). In a state where many suffer from a form of dyslexia and reverse certain provisions of the constitution, such as presumption of innocence, this idea is rather disturbing. Of course, maybe this legislator has been brought by the Nevada Chamber of Commerce who’s looking to give Utahans another reason to spend their money across the border. Click here for the real story.

21 comments:

  1. That picture of the beaver handiwork is cool. Sweating, however, is not.

    Michigan isn't all bad but this is coming from someone looking for jobs in every state but.

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  2. Love the Beaver work, but the water pic is my favorite. I'm such a sucker for scenery.

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  3. "The work of nature's civil engineers."

    LOL

    Love it. That's perfect. My best friend is a CE: I'm sure she'd have a lot to say about that ;)

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  4. You ski with a camera in your backpack? What happen when you fall then? Or you don't fall at all? Oh how I wish I could ski like you, there are so many backcountry places to xc ski around here, but my instructor said I lack rhythm. So I guess skiing is not for me either :(

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  5. Murf, are you not looking in Michigan, or just know there are no jobs left?

    Kontan, that guy has sharp teeth!

    TC, I probably shouldn't ask if she has large incisors, but I does she?

    Mother Hen, yes, I ski with my camera. It mostly stayed in my fanny pack, but when I was around the river I had it around my neck. And no, I tend not to fall, but did once yesterday. The snow was too hard to make a turn at the bottom of a hill.

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  6. I'm sorta looking. I'm liking Arizona, Georgia or NC better though.

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  7. I'm jealous... I've always wanted to ski. My kids ski and snowboard and love it. I put those boots on and I get panicky... some kind of claustrophobic thing I guess. Putting tight boots on my feet makes my heart race and makes me feel like I'm all bound up and trapped. ???

    Yes, I'm a little nuts.

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  8. We Mechanical Engineers have a saying about Civil Engineers. "The only thing a Civil Engineer has to know is that shit runs downhill."

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  9. Great photos! My limited snow shoeing experience is that it is best to be about 3rd in line when new trails are being cut!

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  10. Love that snowy creek, Sage, as long as it's up there.

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  11. Murf, There's a big difference between AZ, GA & NC

    Lisa, I was cross-country skiing yesterday. I still wear heavy boots, but not nearly as heavy as downhill boots. You can even get shoes for x-country, but with them you need to stick to set tracks

    Ed, I hope TC picks up that line for her friend!

    Diane, one section of the trail that had some tracks left had been ruined by someone with snowshoes--which created holes in the tracks

    Kenju, we're to get into the 40s tomorrow!

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  12. Sage...you can have my portion of the trail to ski down I won't be using it...ever.

    Only in Utah.

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  13. Wow... that's a snowy landscape. What a great way to get out for a while.

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  14. What is the point of copying licenses? I know but it is un-constutional. However many laws were changed after 9/11 in the name of Homeland Security that appear to supersede the constitution--I certainly don't mind showing ID at an airport though technically that's not constitutional but it's been bent much further than that

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  15. Love the photos!

    How did you like today's weather, awesome, eh?

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  16. Walking Guy, x-country skiing is but walking (or running) on snow

    Beau, thanks!

    Pia, yes it's unconstitutional, but it's also Utah! I don't think it the bill will pass.

    Karen, we lost a lot of our snow yesterday. Instead of taking a shower at the gym, I came home in shorts and sat on my swing on the back porch, in the sun, reading. Now granted, it was only 50 degrees, but it felt much warmer and I was shielded from the wind.

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  17. The photos are wonderful, that creek is beautiful in the snow and ice. It must have been a very rewarding experience between, the beauty of the nature, the splendid isolation and the exertion of the skiing.

    Netchcick sent me over to say hi.

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  18. The cedar creek looks wonderful. Looks like you really had a wonderful moment skiing the snow carpeted land.

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  19. I appreciate the snow pics! To be out there with nature like that collecting your thoughts...you know I envy you.

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  20. Whoa you really do have the snow. Maybe next time you come down to see your folks you could sprinkle some on me from the plane window.

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