Stick or twist?

Technically it's my birthday. It doesn't feel like it. Settling in to life in Mallorca and the new job. Missing friends and family though. First birthday for a long time that I've not celebrated with the Tunbridge Wells gang. Got a lot on my mind too so it sadly doesn't really feel like it's that important to celebrate.

My parents always made a big deal of my bday when I was a kid. I'd be woken up by the whole family singing in my room. Then I'd go downstairs and Mum would've arranged all my presents on the dining table and put up lots of Danish flags everywhere. She always made the best cakes for me too and of course Dad spoiled me with far too many gifts. Birthdays were awesome. They still are, just in a very different way.

This year my birthday should be fun because the girls I'm working with have decided that I'm turning 30....again! No twist, I'll stick please Mr. Card Dealer. Though technically that's not right. I'm regressing. We'll see what happens with that tonight when we go out....

Birthdays, another year older and another year wiser? Doubtful.
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Room 402, Øresundsbroen, whisky and "I don't actually live at the castle"

A brief British interlude has come to a very swift end. Literally feels like I stepped foot on UK soil and then the next thing I know I'm off again, on a flight to sunnier climes. Got back on the 24th of April and then left again on the 14th of May, it flew by! So, what did I get up to since I left my Alpine hidey-hole and bounced around Britain for almost three weeks? Well all sorts really! Catching up with old friends, new friends, some packing and moving, along with some drinking and eating. It's going to be a long blog entry, be warned...

I had the best welcome home thanks to my dear friend Hicksy. Seriously, everyone needs a Hicksy in their life, someone who'll pick you up from Clacketts at 8:30 in the morning, take you for the best bacon butty ever, bring you home for a cup of tea and a refreshing shower (definitely needed after a 15 hour journey on a bus and boat) and then straight to the pub for a good old catch up, with a surprise visit from Mel B...and maybe a Jaegerbomb or two! From there on things only got better. Being in Brighton with great friends celebrating a birthday, a random drunken night at a pub followed by a night at the dogs and dancing till 5 in the morning. Sushi at Kitsu with T. Cake and chats with Mrs H. Meeting H & C's new Natty boy. I loved that deep-down good feeling I had several times during this 'between seasons break' of looking around and being surrounded by friends, good friends, old friends, it's been marvellous. Sadly I didn't get to see everyone I wanted to see, time was not on my side and for those that I missed I am really sorry, top of my list when I'm back in September.

What did I do next? Some moving out and moving in and moving crap all around. One thing is for sure, I have too much stuff. How on Earth does one person accumulate so much random tat? I could make some comment now about our consumerist society and so on, but I really am not in the mood for that right now. Suffice it to say that when I'm back in September there will be some severe culling of possessions. If this seasonal to-ing and fro-ing is going to be my way for a wee while, then I need to lighten my load.

Moving on...haha, see what I did there? Oh it's funny. Not as funny as my cheese related jokes but I save those for my chalet guests (I know, lucky them I hear you groaning). Next I did a bit of travelling about, saw some lovely people, drank some lovely drinks, ate some lovely food and stayed in some lovely places. First was London, platform 9 and three quarters was where I waited for the Little Idiot, I was amused by the constant flow of Harry Potter fans having their photos taken there. Had an excellent and super fun time with him, he's still a complete Little Idiot mind you! I guess that's one of the reasons I like him and though our paths may not ever cross again we had fun and that's awesome. You have to enjoy these moments, these little interludes in life that are fun, new and exciting because when you least expect it, something hits you out of the blue and casts a shadow over the proceedings. After that I spent time with the Girls, my lovely girls who I've shared so much with over the MANY, many years we've been friends, so lovely to see them. Then an adventure in the Shire of Derby that involved a cornucopia of food, whisky and ale tastings, a dithering dog and two of the 'best people in the world'.

During my brief stay in Britain I've somehow managed to strengthen my Scandinavian roots and I've a wee Scot to thank for that oddly. The Bridge, if you've not seen it (season finale is on BBC4 this Saturday) is an awesome bit of televisual viewing. May I recommend that you get yourself on iPlayer right away and start watching it ASAP. Along with this Scandi-ness I've also finally got round to reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, OMG it's a good yarn! Yes I realise most of the world has read the Millenium trilogy already and I'm a bit late in joining the party but better late than never.

My residence whilst in the UK was pretty spectacular and those I was living with are up there on my list of 'best people in the world'. "I don't actually live in the castle" I said in a text one night, rather unnecessarily, perhaps it had all gone to my head a bit?! My darling friends C & D let me stay with them at their lovely home by Hever Castle. If you've not been I suggest you go, to the castle that is, don't just call round to my friends and say I suggested it! Walks round the lake in all sorts of weather to restore one's spirit, nights watching BGT on Sky+, bottles of Tuborg, sugared almonds and my new best friend Whinnie. There's a room in their house that is now referred to as 'Trine's room'. That makes me immensely happy.

On the subject of happiness, you've got to grab it when it comes along. Squeeze every bit of fun out of life. I was with TLI at a cafe, best limeade ever incidentally (at Le Pain Quotidien), feeling rather content and then saying just that to him when I got some bad news. My dad has bowel cancer. Fun's over, not really feeling content any more. Shock. Cancer, wow, that's something that happens to others though, isn't it? Well it happens a lot, to many people, one in three of us will get cancer apparently. So I'm here with my Dad now for a while before I go to start my summer season job. It's early days, he's not really said anything to anyone. He's in good spirits, is getting good medical help, is taking good care of himself and he's optimistic. Seems to have been caught very early on, so fingers crossed and in the meantime we'll carry on having some fun cos laughter has got to be up there on the 'best medicine in the world' list!

Thanks to all the above mentioned for a wonderful 'between-seasons-break', you are all amazing. I have to say a special thanks to T for being a great friend, I knew we'd get there one day.

A brief British interlude in photos:

My best friend Whinnie!

homecoming?

That's it then. Season is over. Winter 2011-12, Morzine, done and dusted. Epic. That's pretty much all I can say about it to encompass just how awesome it was for me. Yes there were down moments, times when I was homesick, when things weren't going quite right, work issues, relationships that proved problematic and days where riding didn't even come into the picture frame. On the flipside, or sunny side, there's been friendships forged, skills learnt, fun times, happy times, drunken times, powder days, slush days, sunny days, laughs, above all so many laughs. I cannot stress enough what an amazing experience doing a season can be. I'm going back for more, without a doubt.

Looking back at the events that led me to do a season I find it hard to believe that a relatively short time ago, in the grand scheme of things, I was licking my war wounds and trying desperately to mend a broken heart and spirit. Looking back at that person it's hard to equate her with who I am today, but of course what doesn't kill us makes us stronger and makes us the person we are. To throw another cliche into the mix, time heals, and time well spent in the mountains has certainly helped to heal. Things happen for a reason and though you might not see it at the time, you will get it one day.

So much to look forward to and so many happy memories from the season. Can't wait to catch up over the next few weeks with friends old and new before I head off on the next adventure... the summer season!

tonsils, laundry rooms and ghost towns

I got tonsillitis last week. Is it any wonder though when I went out partying till the wee hours on many consecutive nights...silly me. Still haven't learned that I can only push it so far before something gives. It was Basscamp the week before so had to take advantage of all the shenanigans going on. Made a friend who happened to be involved so got a rather fun insight and had an awesomely fun yet tiring week. Now I'm paying the price with daily visits to the Doc for some hardcore antibiotic injections. Still...it was worth it!

What is it about seasonaires and laundry rooms? Turns out that laundry rooms are very popular places to sleep in, or "sleep with" in. I know someone who unfortunately got pulled up by a manager for just such an incident. Yeah, laundry rooms (aka the abattoir), funny old places.

We have one week to go. One week of intense cleaning, eight chalets returned to their owners in pristine condition. That involves such wonderful tasks as toothpicking limescale off of taps, bleaching toilet brushes, flipping mattresses and cleaning on, in, around, behind EVERYTHING! It's the highlight of the season....Not really no.

One highlight was when we performed a goodbye dance for the last guests on Sunday. Yes, we actually danced them off. They must've thought we were totally mental! Anyway, guests are gone and we're cleaning and the town has gone very quiet indeed. Walking around tonight it was eerie, nobody about. I only just realised the other day that the Pleney bubble wasn't running anymore, I'd been looking at the mountain and couldn't place why it looked different to me. Unfortunately due to my tonsillitis I missed out on the best of the last minute end of season snow that we've had, but unbelievably it still is snowing high up, so Wednesday is the day for a bit of riding up in Avoriaz. Then that will most likely be it until next winter season. Excited already for that, and everything in between.

Wasn't too sure about being back in the UK for a bit but now I'm really looking forward to it. Seeing family, friends, little trips here and there to spend time with loved ones and the possibility of seeing the little idiot. One week to go, till the end of Morzine 2011-12 winter season, and what a season it's been!

between two lungs and cosmic love

Yesterday was day off. I rode alone and I loved it. I listened to music whilst riding for the first time this season and I wonder now why I didn't do it before. My playlist consisted of Florence and the Machine, Ladyhawke, Friendly Fires, Kate Nash and Aloe Blacc. There were a couple of moments when the music just made the day amazing. At the top of the mouille au chat chair, standing there on the ridge between the ranfoilly bowl and the chamossiere, the mountains shrouded in low clouds with Florence singing between two lungs, it was an awesome moment. Valleys full of trees are in actual fact just like lungs, the lungs of the world. Yes, my name is Trine and I'm a hippy tree hugger! Then at the very end of my ride, last run, piste b on the home stretch, I was flying along and it was magical and happiness inducing with Florence singing cosmic love. Yes, I have finally embraced the truth - speed is your friend and that song is just so lovely, I felt the need to just raise my arms up to the sky as I was flying along the piste. I was very happy indeed!!!

Then bedlam and mayhem occurred. It's Basscamp this week and a few of us partied hard yesterday. You know it's going to be a good night when it starts with 45% dark rum and coke.... Suffice it to say that whilst I was cleaning today I had spinny rooms. In fact I'm pretty sure I'm still a bit drunk. So going out for a ride to blow out the cobwebs from my fuzzy, booze addled brain!

The easily led girl

What a couple of weeks eh? Going out the night before changeover, no sleep on Sunday night, partying till the morning light, meeting people, saying hello and goodbye and then hello again. A whirlwind is probably an accurate description of the last couple of weeks. Long may it continue in this vein. Though a little break would be good to recoup some energy and health.

I seem to have found some sort of form, to make the last few weeks in resort a little more exciting. I guess it helps that I am a fully paid up member of the ELC - the easily led club. If it seems like it will be fun then why not do it. Maybe this has something to do with me watching Yes Man a few weeks ago,or maybe it's just that I finally decided to get with the programme and get on with all aspects of my season, not just working hard to be an excellent chalet host. Whatever the reason, I've had the best time over the last few weeks, starting with the Little Idiot, much more mountain time, Ginger Bear, Tremplin, Cafe Chaud, and then friends coming to visit, friends of friends and The Only Way is Essex of course, particularly the part with the "spare room" (no, it has nothing to do with that TV programme, it's a private joke, but if you ask me about it, I might well tell you one day over a beer or two).

We have an end date and it's just over 3 weeks from now. I can't quite believe just how insanely quickly this season has gone. I can believe how people get caught up in season life, it's just not quite enough to do just one, it really isn't.

I'm feeling a bit mixed about going back to the UK. There's so many people I'm desperate to see, really, really excited to catch up with friends, it's just the job situation, the moving, the tedious life stuff that gets in the way of the fun stuff. To do the fun stuff one needs money and time, one of those I have in abundance and am willing to share with all and sundry, the other .... well, let's not worry about it now. The last thing I want to do is have a cloud hanging over me for the last few weeks here, so I'm going to put stuff like that to the back of my mind and hope that all will come good in the end. For now I have only one thing to do, squeeze every last bit of fun out of this situation, this place, these people, this configuration that will never be again and for that reason must be treasured.

Spider webs, bees and post-fun blues

Earlier today: It's almost 3pm and I've not left the chalet yet, other than to go do the weekly shop. Waiting for a cake to finish baking. This sucks. This week is a bit peculiar with new guests arriving virtually every day and staying for different durations. Bit confuzzling and means extra work. I'm sat in the kitchen looking out the window and I can see grass, bees, crocuses and thin spider webs glinting in the hot sunshine. Spring is definitely here!

Later today: I'm feeling a bit pensive. Been thinking about things. That's never a good start is it? I had a super fun week last week (bar a few minor glitches) and this week has been pretty great too. Tuesday riding was superb, with the girls on Mont Chery followed by a fun night in Cavern celebrating a bday. Then day off was even better. Riding with ten friends on a bit of a mission over to Chatel. Super sunny and warm, great spring slush, great riding, followed by a BBQ at Basra with even more friends. Now, here's the thing, on day off I thought, on a couple of occasions, how good it would be if the little idiot was there too. Funny how you can meet someone and one short week later they're gone, but that after only that one short week you can miss them, in a way, even though you didn't really get to spend that much time together in the first place. I guess it's the feeling that, your meeting, however brief wasn't maximised, like you didn't get the most out of it and there could've been more, much more to it. Then the next thought is will you ever? My roomie thinks no, that it's one of those things that's only ever going to happen once, the right time and place etc. and that one should be content with what one got. I don't know what I think. I guess that's why I'm pensive.

Much later today: I feel like I'm having post-fun blues. I feel like it's in the air though. People are talking about what's next, end of season parties, summer jobs, career jobs, moving, packing, leaving ... I know this goes hand in hand with seasonaire life but it's bumming me out at the moment.

Now: But enough of that, I'm still here, there's still 6 weeks to go, it's St. Patrick's day tomorrow and there's always the memories. So even if we never meet again, lots of fun was had and that's happiness right there! xx  

Cougars are in fact a native species of the Alps

There's only a few weeks left of the season but I'm not worried. I'm not worried because I know I'll be back here next winter. A few months after I finish my summer season in Mallorca. Yes, that's right, I'm off to Mallorca for the summer and I'm totally stoked. Winter in the Alps and summer in the Ballearics. The summer after that though, will be spent in the Alps.  

I had a flux of old and new this week just gone. Met someone new on Sunday and had an old friend visit on Wed/Thur. Great, as usual, to see a friendly face. Someone you know well and who's company is very welcomed indeed. Also great to meet someone new, fun and exciting. Shame a week goes by so quickly though!

Onesie Wednesday happened at long last. We rocked it in retro onesies for the day. I think it's fair to say we looked awesome. Well, if you like the 80s then we looked awesome, otherwise we probably just looked like a bunch of idiots!  

Day off tomorrow. How quick it comes round. Riding my new and improved set up tomorrow morning then some drinking at Inferno over in Nyon followed by Tremplin. Ah day off, how I love you! Would be nice if the little idiot was here to share it with....