Man, Friday was a crappy start to the weekend. In what can only be considered a sign of the times, I spent the better part of Friday afternoon shooting a television show called Color Splash that will air on HGTV sometime in the distant future. The guy to the left, David, won some reality show last season called Design Star. He beat out nine other contestants and now he has his own show where he comes into people's homes and decorates a room. We (or more accurately my wife) has picked the master bedroom. We got to talk on camera about what we like or don't like about the room and then we got to hear some initial ideas from David regarding what he wants to do with the room. Painful. My wife is into it, so I lumber along. They kept wanting me to offer input, but what is there to say? My wife likes French Country which means I like French Country. Do it up French Country. Later I had to do a one on one interview with the producer. They kept asking me if I was excited about meeting David to which I said "no". I confessed that I had never seen Design Star, could care less about decorating a bedroom and had no vision other than needing a dresser, bed and closet (I also threw something in there about preferring more of an early 1970's bachelor pad/passion pit kind of look but I'm sure that will hit the edit room floor). I am only in this because my wife is excited about it, which the producer seemed to love so we worked on polishing that theme in a reality television kind of way. They come back in February for two more days of filming and decorating. Anyway, you'll have to let me know how it turns out. I don't think I can stomach watching it. Thank goodness the station only airs in 10 households nationwide.

So it was by compar-ison, total aces this weekend. Drove up to Truckee on Friday night for more skiing with the boy this weekend. Tried again with the girl, but she's having none of it. Like a hot poker to the eye, she informed me that she is not interested at all in skiing. Patience is my middle name. I will get her out there and in time, she will love it. Took both kiddie winks for a hike on Sunday morning (the wife wasn't feeling well). We crunched through the snow finding frozen water and the remnants of a beaver dam. The little ones loved breaking the ice and walking through the deep snow. The air felt great. It's fun to be with them on activities like these as their little brains crank away at the new experiences. Hope you are well.

Johnny GoFast

What is it about exposing your kid to something you love and they take to it? Before the bike, I was first and foremost, a skier. I'd spend just about all my money, time and energy skiing or thinking about skiing. When my boy came along, I got him on ski's the first chance I could. He was almost three. I pushed him around on the snow at first, so I don't know if you can exactly call it skiing. Last year we ultimately progressed to the point that we rode the lift at Tahoe Donner a couple of times. This year, he's at it as if he's been doing it all his life (which is pretty close to the case). We went to the hill this past weekend and we rode the Snowbird lift. He calls it Herbert and I think I like that name better. To our right, as we ride up the lift, looms Eagle Rock. It's the big lift and services the tougher terrain at the resort. It features runs named The Face, The Bowl, Race Course, Hans Down, and Satan's Knee Snapper. Okay, the last one I made up. But anyway, after one trip up Herbert, the boy announced that he was ready for the Eagle Rock lift. Before I could push the panic button, he zoomed down the hill and straight for the big lift. The rest of the day, we never looked back. On Sunday, we skied from 10am until 3:30pm and the conditions were trying at best. Lots of wind and on the chillier side. It's pretty great going up the lift with him as he chatters away about other skiers, the last run, the fact that the chair is big enough for his sister and mother to join us, etc. I can't wait for the girl to get up to speed and I can get them both out there. I got her on ski's for the first time about two weeks ago and she's talking up a storm about doing it again this weekend. I'm jiggy at the thought. I've been all over the west skiing the best there is to offer. I never thought the best place to ski would be on a little hill in Truckee. Of course the company couldn't be better. Hope you are well.

Johnny GoFast

Hey Gang-

Life is good. Got the camera up and going and I feel like a new man in a digital world. Been a while since we've last talked. That's me with my two biggest reasons to smile. I'm pretty certain that the photo was taken at Sea World when we were in San Diego a couple of weekends ago. Good times. To top it all off, we got to come home on the Shamu Southwest Airlines plane. There are things on my list of things to do list that I need to get done before I die. Some of which are never going to happen (slam dunk a basketball--although once when I was 25 I was able to crank down a tennis ball--could never get high enough to get the basketball crammed) but others are still attainable (shoot a round in the 70's, learn to play the guitar, stop world wide hunger, etc.). Anyway, the list only goes so deep, but if it went one spot deeper, riding the Shamu Airplane would definitely be on the list. Whenever I fly Southwest, I always hope that Shamu will pull up to my gate. A couple of times I've seen the plane at other gates and I've even contemplated trying to sneak onto that flight and go where ever it took me, but I never went through with it. So I almost did a back flip when I walked down the jetway and I peeked out one of the windows like I always do hoping beyond all hope. And there she was...the pantheon of all Southwest Boeing 737 jets. Shamu. My holy grail. I announced in utter excitement that we were getting to ride on Shamu. My kids got excited because of my enthusiasm, but then it dissipated as they became confused. I boarded the plane and when the stewardess greeted me I blurted, "this is one fine day. Getting to ride home on Shamu is a dream come true for me." She smiled but it faded pretty quickly and I realized she thought I was some kind of nut. She's not that wrong. Hope you are well and here's to hoping my stiff little fingers loosen up a bit.

Johnny GoFast

"Where have you gone Joe Dimaggio, a nation turns it's lonely eyes to you." Paul Simon

The simple answer to the above question, me playing the part of Joe Dimaggio, is that I don't know. Here it is pert near through the first month of the rest of my life and I've had nothing to write. Topics o'plenty, just cold fingers I guess. Speaking of which, went to the shower this morning and turned the knobs and got nothing. Shocked in horror, I awoke, standing there with nothing flowing down from the shower head. I checked the sink, nothing. I flushed the toilet, nothing. Actually it flushed which gave me a momentary glimpse of salvation, but then the tank didn't fill. I went to the kitchen and nothing. It was at this point that I cleverly deduced that the water was not flowing. We have some exposed pipes outside so I ultimately concluded that the pipes were...cue the dramatic music...frozen. I went out to investigate which was nothing more than standing in really cold weather with a flash light looking at exposed pipes. I contemplated taking a piss on them. I went back into the house fully prepared to pack and shower at the gym when my wife asked me what was up. "I think the pipes are frozen," says I. "Why don't you pour some hot water on them and see if they'll thaw out?" Brilliant I think and I make my way to the kitchen. I grabbed the tea kettle and go to the sink to fill it up. I flip up the faucet handle and...nothing. Doh! Foiled but not undeterred, I remember that I have some water out in the garage. I get some (thankfully it wasn't frozen) and I pour it into the kettle. After boilation, I removed the kettle and out to the pipes I traipsed. A little pouring and presto, the GoFast house was back in business. Kind of felt like being on a farm or something.



Anyway, sorry for the delay in getting going in 2007. Lot's of things to talk about, but not right now. If I wrote about it all, it would be a filibuster of blog land legends. Best just to be back in the saddle again and riding tall. Got stuff to talk about in no particular order:

1) Skiing with the boy and getting the girl on ski's for the first time.

2) Visiting friends in far out places.

3) Riding on Shamu. Far different story than that which might be told twenty some odd years ago.

4) Answering mail from some of my readers.

To name a few. Hope you are well and hope I can get things going.


Johnny GoFast