Friday, March 28, 2008

Chet's Blog

The March 21-22, 2008 weekend was a pleasant mix of members, guests and provisionals. Friday night Dave Litsky and his guests, Paul and Barbara Schwendener, cooked up a large meal including a cake. Noam Shoshan played Simon and Garfunkel on his 5 string back packer guitar both nights.

Saturday was sunny, about 18 degrees at the bottom and 10 at the top, but quite windy. I was happy to ski for the first time in two years because of lower back problems. Afterwards Ginny and I snowshoed and then sat on the benches at the base lodge and soaked up the sun. Three generations of the Duffy clan skied together and Mark Duffy ended the day coming down the back door trail.

MRG must be doing well because both lifts were crowded and, in the afternoon, General Starks Pub was crowded and deafening with a rock group. The double chair had a problem so most skiers went to the single or opted for a beer instead.

Easter Sunday services were held at the top of the single but the Easter Parade at the base was diappointing. No girls in bikinis like previous years. They just don't make 'em like the used to. Tex's barbecued chicken was a hit. The line was back to the door. One man swigged a beer while waiting in line and I think he finished it by the time he got his chicken.

Jim cooked a couple of turkeys for Saturday dinner along with an excellent pasta soup plus two pies, chocolate and key lime. There were 16 adults, 2 teenagers and 11 children at the lodge. Linda and Dave Park joined us for dinner which made for a total of 31 people. Unfortunately the last people in line had no chairs to sit on. So Bob Kehr, the trip leader, and a few others had to sit on the couch to have dinner. We later found that the extra chairs that are normally stacked over the trap door were stowed in the attic.

Saturday and Sunday night Paul Schwendener and his brother, Ben, made crackling fires in our underutilized fireplace. Nothing like a good fire to draw people to that area. Monday morning Paul, up early, quietly cleaned out the ashes. He, his wife Barbara, and their two children, Lily and Leon, fit in so well that it seemed like they had been long time members.

The 11 children, depending on your level of tolerance, could be noisy at times despite the efforts of their parents. But this is a family club and it is one of our strengths.

Chet Risio

1 comment:

Jonathan G. Jensen said...

Hi, I was wondering if your the Chet Risio who was a commercial artist in the 50's? Specifically I am looking at a Jungle Stories magazine Winter 53-54 in front of me with Chet Risio Illustrations in it, are you that man? Thanks for your response. Best Jonathan Jensen jcentaur@yahoo.com