So my new year's resolution was very simple: more hugs. It started off well...

Hug 1: Lizzie Hickin
Hug 2: Kayla Dowd
Hug 3: Sarah Hartigan

Hug 4: Kshanti Livingston

I got called in to Okemo to shoot pictures of Ross Powers officially opening the halfpipe. It was miserably cold and super windy, so we didn't get many great shots. The one above is the one that the ad agency Digital Flannel used in a billboard that was put up a few days later.

By the time i was done shooting, the wind was so fierce that they were shutting down lifts and there were twigs and branches scattered all over the runs. Whee.

Heather stopped by the Signshop this morning.

Hug 5: Heather Hawkins

Took the dogs out after work. Seera's started her winter shed.

Out to the top of the world field.

Videotaped the Okemo Women's Alpine Adventure groups today. While i was waiting for another group to show up, i shot some pics of the race team as they passed by. This one is of Maggie Cowles, although i didn't realize that it was her until i was looking at the pictures later. Maggie's the daughter of Curt, one of the ski supervisors at Okemo.

I sent the pictures that i took to the head of the racing department and he never acknowledged it. Hmmph.

Hug 6: Charlotte Grant

The winter Okemo company party was tonight. I went and had some bad pizza, then drove over to Solitude to take pictures of the snowcat dining excursion. I took some pics at Solitude, then drove down to Jackson Gore and took a few more, then spent about 20 minutes snapping shots of one of the groomers as it groomed around the base area. It was cold.

Took the dogs for a hike along the Clarendon Gorge.

Since it was MLK holiday weekend, i went out to Jackson Gore and helped out as an on-hill supervisor in the morning. I went over to the base side in case they needed me for afternoon group lessons, but they didn't. While i was waiting at the Upper Meeting Area i took some pictures of Andre, one of the snowboard instructors, in the halfpipe.

Supervised at Jackson Gore again, then shuttled a lost child back over to the base side.

Did NOT go in to supervise today. Absolutely beautiful day, 40 degrees, sunny, calm, and fresh snow. I took the dogs out for a walk.

Lizzie and her dad Randy stopped by the Signshop today.

Hug 7: Lizzie Hickin

Interesting day. I got off work at about noon, went home, and took the dogs out for a walk along the tracks. As we got to the crossing, two neighborhood dogs, Maggie and Spice, came running down the road. I let go of Seera's leash and she and Maggie started fighting, then Spice went at Teco and they got into it right at my feet. When their owner came down the road in his truck and yelled at them, Maggie and Spice ran off. Seera came out of the scuffle fine but i looked down at Teco and he had blood pouring off of his nose. Ugh. I packed snow on it for a while, then took them back to the house.

I called the vet and took Teco in. He'd stopped bleeding by the time i got there and the vet said that he wasn't going to mess with it, just gave me some antibiotics. While i was waiting i ran into Liam's wife Danielle, who i'd never met. She was there with their dog Willie. Liam works in the Okemo Marketing Department.

After that was all over, i took the dogs out to a nearby field so that they could get their walk in. If you look closely, you can just see some residual blood on Teco's nose.

So then i drove over to the intersection of Route 131 and I-91 and picked up Aaron and his friend Paul and we drove up to Dartmouth to see the movie "Man With A Movie Camera", a 1928 silent film from the Soviet Union with The Alloy Orchestra providing the live score. Pretty trippy movie, and very ahead of its time. After the show i talked with Terry Donohue a bit, then introduced Aaron and Paul to Roger Miller and we chatted for a while.

I had to put some labels on all of the coffee urns in the cafeterias at Okemo, which included the Sugar House and the Summit Lodge, so i booted up and snowboarded around the mountain doing the work. Nice.

Happy dog.

POURED rain today. I was supposed to video the WAA groups, but we decided to postpone until the next day.

Videotaped WAA today.

Hug 8: Libby Phillips

Diggy dogs.