Sunday, January 17, 2010

Things that Suck

I suck at skiing.
Ok, this might be premature.  But let me tell you where I'm at.  Last week, I went up the mountain twice with the purpose of skiing.  The first time, I went by myself because I couldn't find anyone to go with.  This was a mistake.  I REALLY wanted to go out my first time and nail it.  Then I was going to write how awesome I am and how I can do anything and how my dad is better than your dad.  But no.
I arrived to the ski lift without knowing a single thing.  And of course, there was a group of cool snowboarder-dudes parked right next to me.  And here I am-I don't even know how to put on my boots!  I must have looked like a moron.  I tried my hardest to stall so that they would leave.  But they were too cool to be in a hurry.  So I went on looking like an idiot.
I then made it to the top of the mountain (well, not the tip top).  It was packed with kids!  It was a Tuesday morning!  They don't go to school on Wednesdays and then they spend days in the mountains skiing.  Come on.  Anyway...this did not help.  I was hoping to go down people-less slopes protecting my image (clearly, I have a flawless one to uphold).  Instead I was going to have to learn while being surrounded by all these little kids who can ski laps around me.  I'm embarrassed to say that I spent 20 minutes watching everyone else, 20 minutes trying to figure out how to get my skis on, and 20 minutes trying to talk myself into giving it a shot.  I'm ashamed to say, I couldn't.  I went home.  The good news was that it was gorgeous up there.
Attempt #2: this time with a lesson.  My friend, Katrina (who is a town mom), was having a private lesson.  It's actually the same price for 1 or 2 people, so she generously invited me to join her for free.  The lesson was pretty good.  But it was all in French.  I don't speak ski-French.  I speak food-French, polite-how-do-you-do-French, and I-don't-speak-French-French.  I think I got the gist of what the guy was saying.  But I couldn't do it.  I would say that I was very bad.  Not quite horrible.
Am I a quitter?  Not yes and not no. (Did I just quit on giving an answer?)  I would be perfectly content to pack up my skis and say that's enough.  Mostly because I have no motivation to learn.  I'd say I have only a slight possibility that I'll ever ski again.  So why learn?  However, I did spend hundreds of euros on a ski pass and the equipment.  That alone will make me try some more.  I also have an Alps trip planned with the family in 2 weeks.  My goal is to keep up with Aiden (my 4 year old) at that point.  Wish me luck.

Finishing TV shows sucks.
Does anyone watch an entire history of a certain TV show?  You start at the first episode and work your way through several mini-marathons and finish the entire collection.  Here's all the shows that I've done that with since I've been here: How I Met Your Mother, Breaking Bad, Weeds, Arrested Development, Mad Men, Psych, Monk, and maybe some others.  That's a lot.  I'm pathetic.  But anyway, I just finished Monk a few days ago, and now I'm lost.  Everytime I finish a show, I get a little sad.  Ok, maybe a lot sad.  It's like I'm closing a book that can never be opened again.  Does anyone else get this feeling?  Or am I just being ridiculous?

Europeans view on shoe-wearing sucks.
The vast majority of homes that I've visited in America required the removal of my shoes upon entering.  Am I right?  Or am I remembering this wrong?  Well, here, the majority of home-owners prefer to keep their shoes on.  People actually look at me like I'm a martian when I take my shoes off.  Cultural difference, I guess.  Is this bad?  Um, yes.  I actually, hate this policy, and here's why...
Dirt and Snow.  During the summer, it wasn't a HUGE deal.  But now that everyone walks in snow, it is a HUGE deal.  I can't tell you how many puddles of water I've stepped into while walking around the house.  And this is in a house where I'm trying to make the kids take their shoes off before entering.  I can't imagine a house where there's not even a little regulation.
I know there are a lot of cultural differences out there.  While I might side with the American view most of the time, I'm accepting of most.  This is one I'm not accepting of.  I think I might move to Japan.  Let's take off our shoes!

5 comments:

  1. That sounds surprising.

    At least in Finland, practically everyone takes their shoes off when stepping in a house. On the other hand, in my experience it's fairly common in the U.S. to keep your shoes on inside a house.

    What country where you visiting at the moment, again?

    "Europe"? ;)

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  2. Hey Noah,
    I just finished the first season of 30 rock. As you know, I do the exact same thing. Done the Psych, How I Met Your Mother, Monk, Californication, etc.....we are losers. I am still keeping up with Psych and HIMYM, but I prefer the marathons to waiting all week. These people are my friends: Ted, Shawn, Liz Lemon, hahaha...dang. I know the end of series blues...it does, indeed, suck.

    Love from Spain,
    Jordan

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  3. I've been eagerly awaiting a new blog from you, however, I was hoping it would be a little more uplifting than this one! I definitely do not consider you a quitter. Before long, I'm sure you'll be writing about what an ace skier you are. As your dad says, "Don't forget about the kayaking!" As far as TV series goes, I have no input there. Have never done it and probably never will. The closest I came was a "Burned" marathon on New Year's Day. But that included commercials, and it wasn't by my choice. And finally, there is nothing worse (well, sure there is, but this ranks up there pretty high) than stepping in a puddle of water in a house. Hence my dismay every time you guys come into the house after being in the spa! Write again soon with some good news!

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  4. When I was in Bosnia you never wore shoes in the house. The shoes were not even brought into the house. They did have nice heavy wool socks to wear in the house, sort of a sock/slipper.

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  5. I suppose you must be in southern Europe.

    In nordic countries like Norway and Sweden, removing shoes is the norm and it is also customary in East European countries.

    Here in the UK, removing shoes is slowly becoming more common.

    I have a whole blog about removing shoes in homes: Shoes Off at the Door, Please You might like to take a look.

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