Tahoe

I went to Lake Tahoe this past weekend. It was an incredible weekend. I flew into the Sacramento on Friday afternoon. I was picked up at the airport by my friend VL. There was a lot of traffic. We went to Costco to buy some food. Then, we went to Carmichael, CA to meet some friends to drive over to Tahoe together. The friend T brought the high school son of his manager, M. We met up with a woman, C, that VL met at a singles conference. We drove over to pick up another woman, J. Overall, there were eight people. Two other people, PC and GS, met us at Tahoe.
It was a good drive up to the cabin. The roads were cleared. The snow was pushed to the side of the road. The driveway in front of the cabin was slightly downhill and frozen. T's car got stuck and it took a half-hour to get the car out on Sunday.
We all arrived on at the cabin safely. The cabin was great. It was a quaint 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom place. It was a smallish living room and kitchen, but enough space for all of us. It was well-decorated. VL rented it, sight unseen. I thought that we were going to be staying at a Motel 6. This living arrangement was definitely superior.
Initially, I was annoyed by the "major production" of this trip. I called VL three weeks ago to plan a small trip. It morphed into a trip involving a lot of people. But, I had a great time. I'm glad that it became a larger group. I was a bit irritated with VL initially, but how can anyone really be angry with VL? He is the most humble, gracious, and generous person on earth. The more people who are involved in any trip, the more "complications" and "interests" arise. My only regret about the trip was that I didn't get a chance to ski with VL too often. The purpose was to go to Tahoe to spend time hanging out and skiing with VL, but that time was cut short. VL was so gracious that he "sacrificed" skiing, in order to go snow shoeing with the women, who were not skilled at skiing. Next time, we will go skiing in a smaller group.
I learned about myself. I'm naturally introverted. I like things to go smoothly and to go "as expected". I don't like complications. I'm selfish and self-absorbed. I'm lazy. I have less energy than most people. I like to "do things" and then, "move on". It explains why I am single. I view anything that diverts me from "the task" or "the expected" as an irritation. I have to learn to "go with the flow." I have trouble adapting to the unknown and to change. I'm rigid and self-directed and self-absorbed. I have to make an effort to look outward and to go with the flow, like EC. What would EC do in this social situation?
I learned a lot from VL once again. He always reaches out to others and considers others' interests. He is very generous. He is a good example for me. I am somewhat opposite in outlook.
The slopes of Tahoe are incredible. It was blue skies throughout the weekend. There was good snow with few ice patches. The runs were long. We went to two places: Sierra and Kirkwood. I had a better day at Sierra. I had some good runs. One run was a bit scary. I lost control and went down the mountain at break neck speed. Thank God I survived. I have to learn to slow down and go side to side. Prior to skiing, my zipper got stuck as I was zipping up my coat. I tugged on it and the coat "exploded"; feathers flew out all over the place. C was gracious enough to sew it back together. I will donate it to charity.
I felt great on the slopes. The tranquility in riding up on the chairlift and then, gliding down the mountain, was phenomenal. I loved it !!
After two days of skiing, we drove back to Sacramento. I was a bit annoyed (my selfishness revealed itself and poked out its ugly head). I wanted to see the Steeler game at a local bar, but since we had so many people, we decided to drive back to Sacramento to watch the game at TGIF. We missed the first half. It was OK. The Steelers won, so it was all GOOD. Exciting game. Polamalu made a great interception that solidified the victory.
The "weekend" ended in the perfect way. PC, VL, and I went to a chinese restaurant in SF. It was situated at the end of a peninsula. It was perfect. We had dimsum. We looked out into the Bay. We had a great conversation. After a quick picture with the bay in the background, VL took me to the airport.
It was a nice break for me. Meeting new people and spending time with old friends is a rare combination. It was a great weekend overall. I hope that, God willing, I can have many more wonderful weekends.