So maybe we need to look at the annual ski weekend a little more honestly.
We are 11 people who have been renting a cottage in Northern Michigan for years measuring in decades. We bundle ourselves up and pack our cars with a range of gear from antique to cutting edge, and we head north. We cross country ski, some of us used to do a little downhill, there is hiking and now even some snowshoeing but mostly we just hang out together to catch up and relax. But are we not old enough now, with no one to whom we must justify our actions, that we can just call it what it is? Here then is a run down of what really goes on now at the annual culture club Gastropalooza.
The evening of our arrival is celebrated with a dinner by Alberta. Roast whole beef tenderloin with sautéed mushrooms, asparagus with butter, spinach salad, rosemary bread and two kinds of ice cream and hot fudge sauce. There is also some wine… The first night is relatively early to bed. Breakfast is the specialty of John and Penny. The first morning is real oatmeal and fresh fruit, various baked goods, juice and great quantities of coffee. Then, after much discussion about temperatures and mittens, actual skiing actually takes place.
While the skiers (approximately 64 percent of the group at this point) are gone, and the walkers are wandering, lunch is prepared. It’s Donna’s homemade chilli and grilled cheese sandwiches with tomatoes on Tuscan bread. Lunch and the ensuing conversation tends to finish around 3pm which leaves just enough time for reading and dozing on the sofas, a drive into Glenn Arbor for some shopping and … getting dinner started! Dinner number two. Ken and Kathy prepare a rolled pork roast, marinated for two days, served with a sauce with just a hint of curry. There’s roasted squash and root vegetables, sautéed green apples with cinnamon and sugar, and homemade lemon cheesecake. Oh, and just a little wine. After dinner and washing up, there’s time for a movie. This year, Lilies of the Field with Sidney Poitier from 1963. Why don’t they make movies like that anymore? Humor, a story that has something to contribute… and not a single fight.
Morning number two, eggs with mushrooms and veggies, sausages and toast with jam. Juice and coffee of course. Everyone is fortified and it’s time for skiing and snowshoeing again. Off they go… about 45% of the group this time.
Time to prepare lunch. John’s homemade ribolitta, Tuscan bread and antipasti of meatballs, salami, prosciutto rotola, smoked mozzarella and olives stuffed with Gorgonzola. Dessert is Donna’s pretzels with melted Rolo candies and pecans. There is a quick bit of shopping, a little napping, reading and listening to music. A few folks wander up the hill for a quick look at the sunset and then it’s time for a dressing for dinner glass of single malt which takes us to the dinner hour!
A little champagne to cleanse the pallet and we are treated to Jane’s bow-tie pasta with artichoke hearts, olives, mushrooms in a simple marinara, a salad with beets, oranges, avocado and feta, French bread baked with cheese and … you guessed it, wine! Oh… and everyone’s favorite key lime pie afterward. No movie this night, bellies too full, three conversations going at once and everyone enjoying the fire and music on the stereo.
Breakfast number three? English muffins and leftovers buffet! We eat, we pack, we put the house back the way we found it (more or less) and we stand in the hall with our coats on talking about various versions of what happens next… some stop and shop on the way home, some stop for lunch and some just go home to recover from their vacation.

So really, let’s look at the statistics, the score is; skiing/walking, 4 times… eating, 7.5 times! Ski weekend or … just a good time away from the daily grind with friends and good food. Some folks in the group are starting to talk of moving the ski weekend to the Caribbean for next year… : )