Picto Diary - 11 to 16 December 2022 - Biblical Powder at Solitude
Above: Park City Canyons. 11 December 2022.
15 12 124
Bishop, Espresso, Santi, FeeBee
Above: Deer Valley Resort. 12 December 2022.
16 07 131
Above: Deer Valley Resort. 13 December 2022.
17 11 142
Fairview ski run. St. Regis Hotel. 4:00 PM.
Unique ski year in this way: Early season snow coverage makes the resort look like February conditions. But the February numbers of skiers are not here. So, I experience seeming February condition skiing with "no one" on the slopes. Eerie.
There are some ominous signs about the season, curiously, when ski conditions seem optimal. Forward bookings to Park City are reported as much as 25% off expectation. Inflation eating into family budgets for vacations? Highest airline fares in some years? Owners of assets have fewer assets in markets declines? Park City Moutain's bad year, last year has turned people off of Park City as a ski destination? Likely a combination of all of the above.
Above: Solitude Ski Resort. Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah. 14 December 2022.
18 09 151
Biblical Utah powder (file image, but highly representative of today's conditions). Light snow on top of 12 inches new throughout the AM. Stayed upright (more or less) for nine runs (11K vertical) while doing an excellent job of totally wearing myself out. Wobbly at break, I rehydrated on two 20 oz bottles of Vitamin Water while my companions skied three more runs. Late lunch at Southfork Grill, a bit down the road. At lunch 15 or so other diners joined us four (Dagget, The Actuary, PGA, and The Bishop) singing happy 63rd birthday to The Actuary.
Above: Southfork Grill. Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah. 14 December 2022.\
The Actuary, Daggett, PGA and The Bishop. Celebrating The Actuary's 63rd birthday. Late lunch, après ski. Dagget organized fifteen or so diners to sing a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday to the Actuary.
Above: Trio. Salt Lake City, UT. 15 December 2022.
Her: Flatbread
Him: Grain salad with avocado supplement.
Above: Carden Memorial School. 15 December 2022.
Christmas program. Grrr, X, and Roy. Once again, a well-organized program at this fabulous school.
Addendum:
Fantastic pics. I wish I were there. Unfortunately, I am still in New York. I need surgery on my left wrist. Not sure I’m going to ski this year. Merry Christmas and a happy new year in case I don’t see you for New Year’s
Comic Mom,
New York City, NY
Time for new boots!
Golf,
Park City, UT
Loved the ski runs!!!!!
Wisconsin,
Racine, Wisconsin
👍👍👍
John Dutton,
Seattle, WA
Bishop,
I must say that I enjoy your reporting on living life writ LARGE. You have an interesting style of living; the level and variety of activity is impressive. I say this even though we appear to exist in very different worlds. Even so, every now and then there is something that speaks of a communality (if that is a word).
Such is the case with your allusions to Bob Wells. When I saw the name in your latest posting, I wondered if you were speaking of the same Bob Wells I knew in Argentina. Well, he was Robert Wells to us.
It turns out he was and is. He was in Cordoba, with Citi of course, for most of my mission, at least for the part when I was in the city. I struck up an acquaintance with him, and his vivacious wife Helen, in the days when I loitered around the mission home. Richard Scott, later to be an apostle, was the Mission President. Todd Christofferson was my companion! Wells himself, as you know, went on to be counted among the General Authorities. I was surrounded by heavy hitters! But for the grace of God, . . . . I "coulda been a contenda."
I did public relations for the Mission. On more than one occasion, Wells, ever the avid aviationist, offered to fly Scott around Northern Argentina. Sometimes, I went with them. On one of those trips, way to the north to Salta where a new chapel was being built, he wanted to sharpen up his flying skills by flying only by the instruments, so he blinded himself so he could only see the instrument panel and flew for two hours. It was shaky, up and down and sideways. He had trouble keeping the plane stable. I could see the indicator hardly ever getting to level. I was in the rear set and got as air sick as I have ever been. My inner ears just could take the fluctuations. Him saying "Fasten your seatbelt!" didn't help. I had to spend more than an hour, later, with an airport attendant, cleaning up my vomit. Not a pretty sight or circumstance.
I am now recalling some of Wells' history. Helen was his second wife--his first having died in a single plane accident in Paraguay in the early '60s, if I remember correctly (planes again). Wells often gave pep talks to us missionary minions at conferences. I still recall one of his stories, one featuring one of his pioneer forefathers (not H.G. Wells, for sure, but one of the others, could it have been Daniel?). Anyway, it was a story set in early Utah, then Deseret, probably in the times of the Indian Wars (late 1850s). Wells wanted to make, I think, the distinction between the value and place of prayer and the value and place of action. He had his ancestor saying to a bunch of Saints some of whom wanted a pause in the action so they could offer prayers even as they were trying to repel an attack from the Indians (our Lamanite brethren),--"It's too late for prayers. Shoot, dammit!!!"
As a side note, "Viva Argentina!!" My own little World Cup cheer, though in truth I would like to see Morocco win it all. As a side note of interest, I was in Argentina in 1966 when Argentina was knocked out in the semi-finals and England won the Cup. I have seen what it is like for a whole country get stunned, mourn for days.
Anyway, thanks for awakening some old memories.
Pax, Jr.
Montreal, Quebec
Pax, Jr.,
I had heard of Bob Wells over the years tied to his being the father of famous daughter Charlene and to his Citibank connection including friendship with respected LDS Citibanker Bill Farnsworth. I had never met him until the other day. I didn't include in my note the death of his first wife, but at our lunch Bob gave a detailed account of that tragic airplane accident. Thanks for reciting your own experience with Bob Wells! Dee filled an Argentine mission, guessing four or five years after you did. He may have encountered Bob Wells. Wells left Citibank in June 1971, just three months before I joined Citibank.
Bishop
Pax, Jr.
I had lunched a time or two with Bob Wells after I was posted by Citibank to Salt Lake in 1981. He invited me to dine at the cafeteria in the Church office building. I knew of Wells while on my mission in Buenos Aires. He may have been mentioned by Dad because of Dad’s connection with Bill Farnsworth. Also, David Vance worked at the downtown BA Citibank branch, and we talked about mutually known Citibankers. I don’t remember much about our Salt Lake conversations. He was excited to hear that the bank was operating in Utah and wanted to know the details. Richard G. Scott, John’s mission president, was responsible for mentoring not only Bob Wells, but a number of missionaries who later became general authorities—Todd Christofferson, Craig Zwick and Larry Corbridge. I didn’t realize how close John came to becoming an apostle.
As for Argentine soccer, my mission president invited some of us working at the mission home to a match between River Plate and Boca Juniors at the Boca stadium. I became a River Plate fan and brought one of their jerseys back from the mission. I wished the Church excited the masses as much as fútbol. Later, I was always interested in following Diego Maradona’s career. I’ll root for Argentina.
Buh,
Cottonwood Heights, UT
Buh,
This fills in some detail. I had to laugh at you comment about me nearly "becoming an apostle"! I was never close but. obviously, others were.
Here is an interesting, and perhaps apocryphal, story. At some time during my stay in Argentina, either Hugh B. Brown or Spenser Kimball came for a visit. During one of his (whoever's) talk he said pointedly that there were people "sitting among who will be counted" in the future amongst the highest authorities of the Church. So, we all had a chance!! Turns out that there were, Scott and Christofferson. Christofferson, I think I remember, was doing the translations for whoever spoke, so maybe he had the inside track. Just speculating but it's fun.
On matter's religious. Ahhh, yes. Maradona and his "hand of God." Thanks for responding.
All the best and have a pleasant set of holidays.
Pax Jr.
Montreal, Quebec
Bishop,
Thanks for the note on Bob Wells, we were good friends at Citibank as well as after his mission. When Charlene was Miss America. I arranged a luncheon at the bank in a private room with the policy committee and a few others. Charlene was a rock star and as I recall played a piece on the piano. It was a great event to remember Bob and show case Charlene. So glad to learn Bob is doing well at 95!
The Monk
Salina, UT