Am I really in Duluth?

[TallGrass]

it was quiet on that hillside today

Was there sufficient snow? If so, get some runs in and how'd it go?

[wabene]

it was quiet on that hillside today

Was there sufficient snow? If so, get some runs in and how'd it go?

skied my Guide/Annum/Panorblahblah for the first time in probably perfect conditions for that venerable old ski, about a foot of pow. This is the first time I have surfed a hillside, I get it now

[connyro]

Just because you called 'not condescending' doesn't make it so.

"Just because you called 'condescending' doesn't make it so."

Connyro, did you want to pay £1 for 5min, or £8 for a course of ten?

Also, what's ironic about your response? It's just you being smug about your recycled gear. That's not irony.

The irony was not in my response, and
smug /sməɡ/ adjective
having or showing an excessive pride in oneself or one's achievements.

0 for 3, connyro. Thank you for your patronage. Do you prefer to pay via Venmo or PayPal?

A stranger makes friendly small talk with you on the chairlift. You make them feel bad because of it. Nice work. Like I originally said, that sounds dreadful.

[connyro]

it was quiet on that hillside today

Was there sufficient snow? If so, get some runs in and how'd it go?

skied my Guide/Annum/Panorblahblah for the first time in probably perfect conditions for that venerable old ski, about a foot of pow. This is the first time I have surfed a hillside, I get it now

That is a great feeling. Those Guides are great in spring corn too! Light and soft on the downhill and grippy on the uphill. Let's hope corn season works out in our favor.

[TallGrass]

A stranger makes friendly small talk with you on the chairlift. You make them feel bad because of it. Nice work. Like I originally said, that sounds dreadful.

Nope. I did nothing to make them feel bad. It's a simple "if X is great then why do you Y" framework, same as if someone wearing Atomic boots raved about Salomon boots raises the questions, "why aren't you wearing Salomons then."

Here's the irony, you're working to create some "feel bad" when neither of us did. We can only ponder why.

[connyro]

A stranger makes friendly small talk with you on the chairlift. You make them feel bad because of it. Nice work. Like I originally said, that sounds dreadful.

Nope. I did nothing to make them feel bad. It's a simple "if X is great then why do you Y" framework, same as if someone wearing Atomic boots raved about Salomon boots raises the questions, "why aren't you wearing Salomons then."

Here's the irony, you're working harder to create some "feel bad" than either of us did. We can only ponder why.

Ok. My bad. I must have misinterpreted when you said:

...
There was an awkward pause before she looked away, then looked off to the side and up towards the top of the lift, gently swinging her late-model skis, in silence the whole way.

I mean, your description of her reaction makes it seem like you made the situation unnecessarily uncomfortable for her. Am I missing something because that sounds like a bad time to me.

[TallGrass]

Ok. My bad. I must have misinterpreted

That's consistent.

your description of her reaction makes it seem like you made the situation unnecessarily uncomfortable for her. Am I missing something

Yes, you are, that there is more than one way 'she' could have chosen to respond, such as laughing at the irony, saying her skis were a gift that Christmas, that she espouses environmentalism but does not practice it, getting hostile, being silent due to being uncomfortable, being silent in contemplation, or a dozen other things. I'll assume that she, as an adult, has that capacity. Envisioning such possibilities is open-mindedness (vs. alternative).

Further, you overlook that there are two humans in a conversation by focusing on what one said and not the other, namely, did she pause to think how her statements would make 'me' feel? Just for starters. And yet 'you' choose to focus on just one side, and just one possibility, and then make judgments calls which don't even stand on their own.

Even if there is discomfort, discomfort* is a component of learning, building new muscle, growth. Life without discomfort isn't.

And you keep dodging why this is so important for you to comment on. I shared an ironic anecdote. So I'll ask you, connyro, what are you trying to accomplish here by projecting so, what nerve of yours did it touch, AND what is the value it provides to the forum? If none, please take it to PM for the sake of other "chairmates" in the thread, or at least start a different one.

Thank you.

* Some may say pushing comfort zone, poTAYto, poTAHto, but I don't mind some discomfort hence using 3pin Nordics and leather boots to learn.

[connyro]

... So I'll ask you, connyro, what are you trying to accomplish here by projecting so, what nerve of yours did it touch, AND what is the value it provides to the forum? If none, please take it to PM for the sake of other "chairmates" in the thread, or at least start a different one.

Thank you.

We had a powder day here yesterday at my local hill. I thoroughly enjoy the chit-chat and temporary camaraderie with fellow early morning powder enthusiasts when riding the chairlift up: talking about the snow, talking about skis, climate, etc. I contrast that with your post about making your chairmate uncomfortable about her gear, which has nothing to do with the topic of the thread (poor season in the great lakes). I find that irritating which prompted me to comment.

[TallGrass]

your post about making your chairmate uncomfortable about her gear ... I find that irritating which prompted me to comment.

My what mental alchemy to transform her making assumptions talking about 'my' ski gear (backhanded compliment or not) into me making 'her' uncomfortable.

Comfort is about sitting in front of the fireplace at the Base Lodge, not riding up in winter's wind to go sliding down long hills at questionable speeds and leg angles atop skinny flexible 'boards' only partially bound to even flimsier footwear!

I think Freud described your "is this protection or confinement" problem, if I translate the German correctly, as the Electrified Picket Fence Syndrome, and I for one will not help you get over it!

If you can't control your own emotions, you're forced to control other people's behaviour.

That's why the touchiest, most oversensitive and easily upset must not set the standard for the rest of us.
-- John Cleese

"There are people sitting there who are deliberately waiting for the thrill of being offended."


"The woke people, I think, miss something quite badly.

The meaning of a word depends on its context.

If I use sarcasm, then what I'm meaning is the opposite of the words I'm actually saying.

If you don't get irony, then if you take it seriously, you completely misunderstand the intention of the writer or speaker."


"I suddenly realized that laughter really helps us. It takes us to a part of our mind where we're probably healthier than we are at any other time, and it's this thing about laughing at yourself. I'm not so sure that the wokes would ever laugh at themselves, no matter how hilarious they are."

https://reason.com/2022/12/18/john-cleese-on-how-wokeness-smothers-creativity/

[DG99]

Jeez Tallgrass, your big chance and you blew it. She sounded cute!