The Inferno

In one day: run 8 miles, paddle 6, and bike 18 miles up hilly Route 302 in New Hampshire. Once there, shoulder a backpack laden with skis and skiboots and hump it up the steep Tuckerman Ravine Trail. When you get to the base of the ravine, drop your pack, don your ski boots, carry your skis straight up the steepest pitch the East Coast has to offer, then ski a Giant Slalom course some lunarticks have set on the storied Headwall of Tuckerman's. The event is known as the Inferno, it's organized by a group called Friends of Tuckerman, and I'm participating next week.

Why did I decide to do it? It sounded neat at the time. How well-prepared am I? Not well. Am I going to do it anyway? You bet I am.

I'm sure it will be a hair-raising tale, so stay tuned for a blog-entry coming soon. The Inferno is coming up, and when the starter says "Go" I'll be there with the rest of the self-torture set. See you there!

CD Release Party

Mark Aiken will be opening for Carol Jones and her band the Superchargers as they celebrate the release of her debut CD -- the self-produced and critically acclaimed "Out of the Blue" on Saturday, February 28, 2009.

The venue is the historic Old Lantern in Charlotte. Doors open at 6pm. Eat there and you'll save lives; a Cajun supper at $5 per plate will benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Purchase tickets at the Flynn Box Office (86FLYNN or www.flynntix.org) for $12 in advance or $15 the day of the show.

To see a true Vermont treasure perform her original music, be at the Old Lantern on Saturday. It will be a concert to remember... and an opening act who will be honored to be opening for her! Call your friends, buy your tickets now, and get excited for a great night of music and food at the Old Lantern!

Cards are Nice

Yesterday I got two cards in the mail. Actually, they were addressed to "Mr. and Mrs. Mark Aiken." They were Valentine's Day cards from relatives of Alison (I won't name the senders, but they know who they are!).

I think that people thoughtful enough to send greeting cards for holidays, birthdays, or "just for the heck of it" are the bomb. (For old-timers or for those who aren't familiar with the expression "the bomb," it means "the best.") And it's not just the thought that counts. Oh no. Everyone thinks of sending that special card. Everyone tries to get holiday cards out in December. But it is only those special people with the follow-through who actually get it done.

For the first time ever, a blog -- this blog, in fact -- is going to give some recognition to people who send out cards. Hats off. Thank you.

There was a girl in my high school class. Her name was Kathy (she was my lab partner in several science classes). She showed up to school at every holiday with stacks of cards. She handed Valentine's cards, St. Patrick's cards, Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving cards to like half the school. I don't know where she is now (I seem to no longer be on her card-sending list), but I want the record to show that I thought it was very nice that she gave out all those cards.

Great job, card-writers!

Save the World One Bag At a Time

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.
Let's stop the wasteful use of bags at the grocery store. It kills me when I see a shopper with a cart full of groceries filling up 12 plastic bags at the checkout counter. What is plastic made of? Can you say "petroleum"? Therefore, if you use brand new plastic bags every time you go to the grocery store, then America's dependency on foreign oil is your fault -- YOURS!

Canvas shopping bags are cool -- chicks dig them. When I visited Europe this fall, I was amazed to see that stores did not provide bags; shoppers were on their own -- as they should be! The hard part, I'll admit, is remembering to bring your bags into the store. If you're like me and you always forget to bring them in, no worries. The checkout line is slow; put your cart in line and you will have time to go out to the parking lot to get your bag. It's nice because, since you always forget your bag, you no longer need to read the dumb tabloid headlines.

Seriously, Let's stop being wasteful. It is up to us to save the planet one bag at a time.

Oh, and one more thing. Can you do me a favor and put your cart in a cart-catcher or back to the front of the store. Don't leave it in the lot where it's going to scratch my car. I want to save the world, but I also feel bad for that kid who has to run around the lots picking up everyone's carts.

Brand New Subaru for $50

WHAT: a raffle for a 2009 Subaru Impreza
WHO: you!
FROM WHOM: buy your ticket from Mark Aiken
WHEN: this January and February
WHY: to support the PSIA (Professional Ski Instructors' Association) Educational Scholarship Fund (ie starving ski instructors)
HOW MUCH: $50
ANYTHING ELSE I NEED TO KNOW: PSIA is selling no more than 1250 tickets. At last count, 222 had been sold. At worst, the odds of winning a brand new Subaru are 1 in 1250.

Buy your ticket now for your chance to win a new car!

"Out of the Blue" is Out of this World!

Exciting music news: Carol Ann Jones' debut CD Out of the Blue is available. Critics from this blog had high expectations for Jones' release based on her upbeat shows and fun-filled performances around northern Vermont. And we have not been disappointed; Jones' first studio project has exceeded all our expectations. Our musical experts are calling Out of the Blue "the Best CD of '09."

For an Out of the Blue sampler, check out Carol Ann Jones on myspace.com.

Then foot-tap, hand-dance, and hum your way over to CDBaby.com and buy your very own copy of this musical gem!

Winter Sports

Someone asked me recently if I liked ice climbing. An avid rock climber, you might think I'd be into ice climbing, but I'm not. One, I know that half the time spent climbing the ice has to be spent belaying your partner. And that sounds cold, if you ask me. Besides, I already have too many winter sports that I love. Here is a list of my favorite winter activities:

8. Snowboarding
7. Snowshoeing
6. Cross-country skiing
5. Running
4. Alpine skiing
3. Telemark skiing
2. Backcountry skiing
1. Ice Hockey

Winter activities that I don't do much of that I'd like to be more involved in include fishing, snow-mobiling, and ice sculpting (the kind you do with a chain saw).