first ski of the year...

On Sunday we went on our annual SKI tour...34 members from Tsukuba to Takatsue ski resort in Fukushima. Bright and early we were at 4 a.m...and 4 1/2 hours later we arrived. It was snowing at the park for the majority of the day - they place looked so beautiful! Last year I was pretty hopeless on the slopes but this year I could make progress...getting over my ski phobia has not been easy but it is coming along.

Funny how much people fear a particular food, sport, place after having just one bad experience. Instead of fearing skiing for the rest of my life from one bad experience (almost broke my leg and could not walk for nearly a month), I figure I should face it head on, banishing the silly fear of skiing. Kind of like dating and rejection...you date some and get rejected...you date more, get rejected and date some more...over time the fear of rejection lessens (though still sucks) and hopefully one grows stronger, learning from each experience.

The best part about skiing is hitting the hot spring afterwards. Thing is, from 10a.m. I had a killer headache (rare for me!) which lasted until we got home. I could not enjoy the hot spring at all...right after I entered, I noticed my head pounding - it felt like it was about to explode any minute. Amazingly the headache melted away as I stepped into our condo...hmm, strange. I suppose nothing rings truer than the old adage, "home sweet home."