Demerits earned

   Charlotte & Amy gave me a couple of these "Demerit Badges" for my birthday. They were based on ill-fated excursions: "Involuntary 360" with a flailing snowboarder (yep, that's me!), and "Lost Paddle", reminiscent of the time I drove all the way to Shawnee Mission Lake this summer... and had left my paddle at home. (Joni loaned me a mini emergency telescoping paddle. NOT quite the same!)

   I found them so charming that I picked up a few others that I rightfully earned: Ski seasons since 2011. I took my first lesson at Snow Creek on January 16, 2011; rode in Breck in March 2011 with Mo & Terry; rode at Heavenly & Northstar in December 2011 (me, Brett, Rafael); Breck & Vail in January 2012 (me, Brett, Rafael, Chris); and am headed to Breck/Vail/maybe Keystone in January 2013 (me, Mo, Terry, Trish, Brett, Rafael, Chris, and Mike. We've picked up a few more!)... and Steamboat in March ((me, Mo, Terry, and probably some others). 

   I had a few "Chairlift Issues" along the way. Most notably on that super-fast, old-school, 2-person lift at Breck, the E Chair from Frosty's Freeway. (The "E" stands for "evil"!) I nearly had my arm ripped off... TWICE!

   "End of the Season" is actually more "Beginning of the Season", as Lake Tahoe had NO REAL SNOW last year when we went in December. About 40% of the slopes were open, with fake snow. Better than nothing, and a good time, but not epic.

   "Eyes Overboard" is a friendly reminder NOT to mistakenly wear your new prescription sunglasses on your head when you go snorkeling in the ocean. On the first day. In Maui.

   "Waterphone" was for the time my iPhone slipped out of the pocket of my cargo pants and into Shawnee Mission Lake as I disembarked from my kayak. Score one for the Otterbox Defender—the phone survived!
   Now all I need is a Jen-sized sash so I can start arranging these babies!