Have you seen this woman? Last seen skiing ten feet of powder. She was writing the Wild Mountain Buyer’s Guide then suddenly she was abducted by “snow aliens”. Please return her safely no questions asked.

In spite of the ups and downs, we move forward. Some of us have disappeared into the snow. Kristy left for Driggs, Idaho to get some winter on. She might even return to Santa Fe. I am excited to see some changes to our website. This is a great picture of the Sangre de Cristo mountains with some snow by Ben. It will be on our website soon.

All of Santa Fe went to a memorial service this Saturday for a young woman that was so full of life and love. The tragic event that took her life, a shark attack, had a jaw dropping effect and an aura of disbelief. It seemed all so surreal. She was precious to so many and the community showed it. I will personally miss her smiling face both at the store and on the river. When I awoke on Sunday, color seemed so vivid and life seemed so sweet. Everything that seems so important to us is trivial in the face of death.

The world has gotten so crazy that getting outside and away from the everyday greedy hustle becomes more and more of a necessity. Here is my latest prescription for sanity. Go into the woods and throw all your electronic devices in the nearest lake. Be sure you bring a compass and some food because you might get lost. Return only after everything in your head shuts up.

 Everyday I wonder how we got so lucky. The people that have come and gone at Wild Mountain are exemplary. Not just good people or good employees but folks that have an edge about them. They are magical. Whether they are here in Santa Fe or traveling about the world, there is something very special about them. I count my blessings to have known them all.

 A cold wind whipped through New Mexico on Sunday just in time for my bike ride. What a bummer. All week long of course, the weather was perfect whilst I slave away at the grindstone. I have to rave about the virtues of Gore Windstopper Fabric. Nothing else quite does the job except for Montbell’s Light Shell jacket lined with that techy sounding mirofleece. Even though my eyes were tearing and burning, the rest of me was comfortable in a Windstopper suit. Now if they could just make a tie to go with it, Hmmm.

“I’m not a ski bum. I prefer to think of myself as a ski conniseur,” my boyfriend informed my parents upon their introduction, charming them immediately and managing to impress them with his chosen avocation.

 Bum or conniseur, either way, he took off this morning for Bozeman, where it’s snowed, I don’t know, 500 feet or something in the last hour. Don’t worry, I’m not hearbroken (or single). I chose to stay here because I guess when it comes down to it, I’m not a ski bum, or a ski conniseur. I’m just a girl who likes to ski, slightly more dedicated than your average weekend warrior.

Okay, that’s not really true. However, being in the throes of my first snowless winter has shed light on to the possibility of the existence of things more important than skiing. I always thought that, faced with this situation, my first instinct would be to flee. And, although that was my first instinct, I’m still here and it’s February (keep in mind that I started fantasizing about skiing in July). Does this attest to my lack of dedication to skiing or does it attest to my abundance of dedication to this gear shop? Or is it because I foolishly signed a lease and I can’t afford to walk out on it? Is it because my lifestyle is simply a cover for my other career as a secret agent? What is the point of my rambling on about my winter and all of this rhetorical questioning that would throw my high school English teacher into convulsions? If there is a point, it’s this: I took this winter hard just like everyone here who considers themselves a “mountain person,” but what the hell. It’s not so bad. The sun is shining, the state’s not burning quite yet, and life’s alright. I’m just taking a long-winded, less eloquent approach to echoing what Jon said yesterday. “Quit your whining,” or something like that.

Neil Young is warbling “oh, lonesome me,” in the background. Jon, Janet & the dogs will be in soon. I should put the cross-country skis up on the website. I should get to work.

kristy

Here we are in Santa Fe having a “non-winter” due to the dry mild effects of La Nina. All the ski bums are moving on to find the white stuff. The folks here are hanging on waiting for a miracle. If it was a little bit warmer, we would all be out playing in the rivers already. Rio sings anyway. Whether it snows or not, we gotta celebrate who we are. Santa Fe lost a member of our outdoor community yesterday. Although a tragic loss, she was doing what she loved. Our lesson is to keep celebrating and stop whining. 

We are a little ol’ mountain shop located in the high desert of Santa Fe, New Mexico. This is our story.

 Who is the singing dog? Stay tuned & find out.