Sharyn By the time we got down the mountain and dropped off our equipment I was really hunger. But Howard decided it wasn’t a good idea for me to eat right away. It was already after one in the afternoon and Tony, Howard and I walked slowly through the shops until I was too exhausted to … Read more
The fourth day we headed up the mountain and Brooke decided to stay behind. I skied with Tony, a grey car (imports from Europe that don’t go through regular channels) importer and Dr. Howard who is an optometrist. Skiing in front of us was a group from Southern California including Michael Milken, the junk bond king, who … Read more
Jacqueline explained she worked in Paris and part of her job was to finance the same exact equipment I was selling in the Bay Area in California. She went on to tell me she and her husband had lived in Palo Alto in 1977, just an hour away from where I lived in Walnut Creek. … Read more
We arrived in Val d’Isère late that afternoon and all of us were spread out around the lovely old world village. It’s the town where the renown Olympic Medalst skiier Jean–Claude Killy was raised. We were extremely fortunate to be assigned to the Hotel Samovar which was right across the road from the timing shack … Read more
I don’t think I’ve ever felt such a sense of destiny as much as I did while I was in France. It felt nostalgic even though I had never been there. I felt at home even though I didn’t speak any French. We landed in France, boarded the bus on our way to Val d’Isère and … Read more
I was 27 when I first discovered snow skiing. I always said it was a good thing I didn’t discover it when I was 18. I’d probably still be a ski bum! I loved being in the mountains, breathing the crisp wintertime air and being the first person to leave tracks in the fresh powdery snow. I took … Read more
We arrived promptly at 6:30 and Carole, the host was very gracious. She wasn’t finished dressing so she excused herself as soon as we were settled with a glass of wine. The wine was set up in the kitchen so Fred suggested I stand near the end of the counter where people would have to … Read more
So it was finally the day of the party, the Friday after Thanksgiving. I got up early and made coffee and by the time Fred came in for breakfast I told him as calmly as I could, “I can’t go to the party. I too afraid.” I actually cried. I resisted every logical point he … Read more
I was running out of excuses and it was now early November! I thought about it for a couple of weeks before I thought I came up with the perfect excuse! “I have nothing to say to people who belong to a country club!” He was so clever. He never argued, he never raised his … Read more
I was very shy as a young woman. I didn’t enjoy being around people socially and would do whatever I could to avoid attending parties. I was fine going out dancing with girlfriends but I always had to have them in my line of sight to stay comfortable. I had been with Fred for 8 … Read more