As I've mentioned, Mike is in NZ with his band. We have an old friend that has lived on the south island there for many years, an old ski bum friend of Ted's, and he and Ted would meet up all over the place for skiing and at one point lived together in Mont Tremblant the winter that I met Ted. Clive, (the friend) eventually married a kiwi girl, had three kids, and set up shop near Christchurch. He now runs a lavender distillery and farm in an old homestead, sent a picture that I thought I'd share. He takes off a few weeks every summer (our winter) to come skiing, but usually in the USA, so we haven't seen Clive for a long time, but keep in touch every so often, particularly when one of our kids ventures off to his part of the world.
Clive's middle kid is currently working as a busboy in Banff, Alberta lol. That's just a hop and skip away from Nick, globally speaking. It's just a really small world out there.
First pic is of the lavender business, second one is Clive skiing, the winter of 2008.
-- Edited by KaeEll on Tuesday 5th of January 2010 10:10:23 AM
Shelly, the only time that Mike had ever met Clive, he was an infant, and that's the last time I actually saw him myself! Ted and Clive were great mates back before either of them married and "settled down" but they have kept in touch over the years.
A long time ago, Clive came to Toronto and stayed with us for a couple of weeks. He was between life callings, if you will. His family, from the UK, imported wines from Europe, owned a chain of successful pubs. Clive was the black sheep and took up ski bumming as a part of his rebellious stage. He and Ted first met at Club Vagabond in the Swiss Alps, later met one another at Coronet Peak in NZ where they both taught skiing, met up again in France's Mt. Blanc, then again in Quebec at Mt. Tremblant, at the ski school. Ted had taken a winter semester off Wharton, went to teach skiing there (that's when I met him) and he and Clive shared a cabin in the staff housing.
Clive later married, had 3 kids. and has had a series of enterprises in NZ over the years, most of them, as he says, were to fund his passion for skiing. That's an understatement.
It's unlikely that Mike and Clive will hook up this time too. They missed one another in NZ a couple of years ago only by a few hours. Mike's also travelling with his band, Jay Spectre, as they criss-cross the south island on gigs. He's not only their designated driver, but the "den mother" as those guys are, ahem, a bit of a handful.
It's so far away, it would be a shame for them not to make an effort, but time will tell.
