Ski Bum Poet

Thought I would take the time to advance some awareness on an unfortunate situation in York, PA. (Lincoln Highway in Hallam) This stems from a letter to the editor my sister wrote to the York Blog.. an online publication of the York Daily Record/Sunday News. My sister is fighting the inhumane captivity of black bears so I am hoping to raise awareness of the situation. It’s really a shame that this type of captivity is allowed to continue. The stance taken by some (it’s apparent already from one of the comments on the blog post) is that the bears were orphaned and therefore the ice cream store owner is actually doing a good thing. Bah to that! What a joke. How about a humane cage with water and maybe a little grass and some trees. These bears should be removed from the ice cream shop and put in a real zoo..or a refuge. Here’s a snipet from the letter to the editor:

“Their living quarters consist of chain-link walls, a cement floor, and a rickety shelter that seems far too small. Their daily lives consist of lying in the sweltering summer heat of Southern PA, being on display for the public 24/7, having $0.25 handfuls of food pellets thrown at them occasionally, (despite other objects) and yes, a little, pink, rubber ball to play with to entertain the kids…”

Does this concrete floor and cage (pics below) resemble the American Black Bear Habitat? What a shame..

Read the Full Letter | digg story

Many reading this blog probably know where Cecret Lake is in Little Cottonwood Canyon. At least you’d know if you spent any time in Alta during the summer months. Well I found another Cecret Lake…and it’s inspired a renaissance in the passion of fishing I had growing up in central New York (Finger Lakes Region). When I was young I could leave my house on my BMX bike and within a few miles in every direction, have at large and small mouth bass, walleye, bullheads/catfish, and all sorts of pan fish. During the spring and fall rainbow trout runs, we’d retire the spinning reels and rods and grab the fly rods. Those rainbows were pretty easy to pull off their beds…and when you add up a strong current and 3-4 lb trout…DANG that was a fun fight.

At any rate, at my Cecret Lake in the Uintas I recently caught an amazing cut throat using a wolly worm tied to a size 8 hook on the only pole I own right now. It’s a 6 foot Ugly Stik by Shakespeare. I could barely get a 10′ cast with the fly, but that’s all I needed for this pristine inlet about 15 feet wide. I could see these big brown blobs just hanging out at the end of the current from the inlet. Didn’t take more than 5 minutes to hook one. It was the BIGGEST cut throat native…yes, it was native…that I had ever seen…22 inches. Let alone catch!! I took this female home. My pregnant wife wanted fresh mountain run off native trout, so I gave it to her. I won’t be taking many from my Cecret Lake, but I am sure hooking them at will in the evening hours. Want to know where my Cecret Lake is in the Uintas? So do 50 thousand other anglers in Utah. Sorry kids

Many of you have probably seen this already. It’s been circulating around the email world. I thought it was pretty dang interesting, although it has nothing to do with skiing, ski bumming or mountain culture. So have a read and I hope you enjoy!

The year is 1907. One hundred years ago. What a difference a century makes! Here are some of the U.S. Statistics for the Year 1907:

• The average life expectancy in the U.S. was 47 years old.
• Only 14 percent of the homes in the U.S. had a bathtub.
• Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
• A three-minute call from Denver to New York City cost eleven dollars.
• There were only 8,000 cars in the U.S., and only 144 miles of paved roads.
• The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
• Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee were each more heavily populated than California.
• With a mere 1.4 million people, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.
• The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!
• The average wage in the U.S. was 22 Cents per hour.
• The average U.S. Worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
• A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist made $2,500 per year, a veterinarian $1,500 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
• More than 95 percent of all births in the U.S. took place at HOME.
• Ninety percent of all U.S. Doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as “substandard.”
• Sugar cost four cents a pound.
• Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
• Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
• Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
• Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
• Five leading causes of death in the U.S. were: 1. Pneumonia and influenza 2.Tuberculosis 3. Diarrhea 4. Heart disease 5. Stroke.
• The American flag had 45 stars, Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Alaska hadn’t been admitted to the Union yet.
• The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was only 30!!!!
• Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn’t been invented yet.
• There was no Mother’s Day or Father’s Day.
• Two out of every 10 U.S. adults couldn’t read or write.
• Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.
• Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, “Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health.”
• There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A.

Just try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years. Food for thought.