Mar 2005 Update

Hi all

Well, life is certainly interesting this month !!

Just got back from a long weekend at one of the many Lake Tahoe snowfields (http://www.kirkwood.com/). We stayed on the mountain in a studio apartment and the ski runs were right across the road - it was fantastic !

Had a great first day (Friday), Anita got some invaluable instruction from Manu in the morning and then had a 2 hour ski lesson, while Manu hit the slopes on a board.

The second days fun was cut short after an hour into the day, when Manu caught the front edge of his board while avoiding a skiier.
He fell heavily onto his right shoulder and had to visit the Medic. An x-ray and exam determined he had a strained AC ligament - quite painful injury which seems to be getting better each day. While the sling was a chick/wife magnet it prevented further boarding for Manu (which he was devastated by). The day was not a total loss however, as a DJ and lots of lively people provided some visual entertainment for the afternoon.

The events of the weekend were not yet over ! On our Sunday drive from Lake Tahoe to San Francisco (4 hours) we stopped for a bite of lunch at a very healthy establishment.... Wendys . Just after backing out of our parking space we looked up in time to see another car backing rapidly towards us. Our honking of the horn did not prevent a collision and unfortunately our rental car sustained a strained AC bumper.... nobody was hurt, although the poor driver of the other car was badly shaken.

Thank goodness we'd taken out full insurance, heaven knows how costly it could have been otherwise.

American lessons learnt:

• Always have a camera in the car in case of an accident
• Medical costs are so freakin expensive - always have at least 80% coverage
• Never listen to dumbass rental car employees who tell your wife that she won't be insured for driving unless she drives half an hour in the wrong direction to be added to the insurance policy - always ask to talk to the supervisor

We finally got home safe and sound, we've blown our travel budget for the next few months, but we've had a great time and we're looking forward to our next adventure. Anita is keen keen keen to carry on skiing and this makes Manu a happy husband.

Until next time avid readers.....

Love and big Manu hugs

Manu and Anita