Ski Passes

We purchased our season passes for the Vail collection of resorts, and if you were planning on skiing more than one week out west this year, I would suggest you do so too. The passes are only on sale til this weekend. Season pass sales are running about 10% behind last years rate, and hotel bookings are running 20% behind, so clearly the slumping economy is hitting discretionary spending hard, especially luxuries like ski holidays.

At the time the deals were annouced last spring, I thought that this would lead to crowding at their collection of resorts, but it would seem that the whole industry is going to a have a rough time. The 'drive to' resorts in Vermont think they will be a little better off than the destination ones, but I'm not so sure about that.

I'll be dealing with flights later this month, and hope that some of you will start finalizing those, so we can begin the house hunt.

------------------------

Lena's ashes came home the other day, and have been lovingly stored in her old treat jar, along with a clay cast of her pawprint, a clinking tag filled collar, and a favorite scarf / drool rag. It's been a sad week, with the apartment eerily quiet when returning home, but things are getting back to normal now. We appreciate all the thoughtful notes people have sent us, and are particularly thankful for the remarkable medical care she recieved from both centers. The bulk of her chattels have now been donated to animal shelters in NYC and Vermont, where we know they will be put to good use.