So farewell then, 2004. Not a bad year, all things considered, for those close to the Paternal Optimist. And a particularly good one for The Lovebirds and Boy Wonder, who rounded it off in style with a few days at the PO's here in Geneva and skiing in St Gervais, just over the mountain from the playground of the genevois jet-set, Megève.
As you can imagine, the PO had to draw on all his legendary powers of persuasion in order to tease the members of his party out of bed early enough each morning to make the most of the wonderful conditions up in the mountains : although two weeks earlier there had been virtually no snow, a good dump fell just before and just after Christmas (indeed, the Lovebirds and the BW were treated to the sight of a white Geneva when they arrived on the 28th), and the weather was perfect - no wind, glorious blue skies, dry cold air offset by a deliciously warming sun.
While the Surfer Dude took his snowboard and explored the further reaches of the domain and sought out the least-surfed routes between the trees, Missy and the Boy Wonder took lessons on Wednesday and Thursday. Then on Friday, the PO took them on a long run all the way down the mountain, which proved enough for Missy - failing to make the error so common amongst sportsmen and women at the highest level, she opted to quit at the top. Thus it was that, while the Surfer Dude, the PO and the BW returned to St Gervais for one last day on the powder, Missy preferred to remain curled up on the sofa, catching up on old episodes of Sex and the City.
As for the Boy Wonder, he picked up where he left off last year, and showing some of the stamina that took him to the Hogwarts' under-12 cross-country title a few weeks earlier, gamely followed his father wherever he led him. Evidence of his improving style can be seen here : The BW heads downhill.mov
Of course, when the BW saw this video, his immediate reaction was to say "It looks really slow. I'm sure I was going faster than that." Perhaps he will be reassured by the following photo, which proves definitively that he was going too fast for the PO's reflexes :
One or two other photos (including a particularly amusing one of the BW determined to prove that it is possible to breakdance on snow) have been added to the Boy Wonder 2004 Yearbook - and I'm sure that, like me, you are all looking forward to the 2005 Yearbook, which will be coming to a blog near you soon...
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