A Little "Piece" of Whistler
HElloooooo,
Another day has wrapped and I'm back at my usual spot in Blenz. There was all this commotion on the bus on my way over here, and I realized that today the torch was coming through town. I was a little sad at having missed the action, but "Oh well," I thought, "Can't see it all." Then suddenly as I write this, I look up because there's a bunch of people wanting to take a picture with some girl. Then I clue in that she is carrying the torch....well the torch is out, but carrying the stick nonetheless. The girl seems to be meeting her parents for a drink after her exciting 300-meter climb to light the torch. She's being flooded by people who want to take their picture with her and the torch, hahaha ...random. I guess I'm right where I need to be. Now she's arguing with her parents about having to have dinner with them...the crowd has dispersed.....sounds like she wants to split and head for the party...hahahha...I'm busting a gut in the corner.....nice Persian folk it looks like....since the company I work for here is called BTS (behind the scenes) it's only apropriate that I see the raw footage unfolding of torch girl and her family....lol...
They seem to be playing nice now, so I'll focus on my screen again.
So as I was heading to work this morning on the gondola. (Never thought I would mutter those words in the same sentence.) It started snowing thick white flakes. Since I was the first one on the lift today, the seats were still covered in snow and a little frozen. I worried that I might get stuck and what would happen once I reached the top? "Shit!" I thought. "If I get stuck I will just have to ride the lift up and down and up and down until I start to thaw." I laughed it off and told myself not to think crazy, but just to be sure I try to move. Panic starts to rise as I try to wiggle back and forth on the seat and realize the inevitable has occurred: I'm frozen to the damn chairlift. Meanwhile, the snowflakes are getting bigger. I can't see by the time I reach the top it's snowing so hard. Panic is shooting through my veins as I see the gap closing in on my final destination. I almost lose the 6 litres of milk I'm trying to balance in my arms along with my purse, feeling like marshmallow woman in my ski jacket unable to move as I attempt to detach myself. No luck. The finish line arrives and I think,"This is it." I torpedo myself off the chairlift practically into the snowbank. A ripping sound ensues as I fly from the chair. I wanted to make sure I had enough momentum to get me off the damn chair. The milk almost goes flying and I almost do the splits in an attempt to keep my balance. I look up at the lift operator (a tall lanky guy that can't be more then 21), and flash a feeble smile...and then glance back to see if pieces of pants and thong are stuck to the chair. Nope, it seems I am intact. I trudge off down the slope to my station. Phew! At least I made it to my shift on time.
I had a somewhat steady flow of NBCers today: the tech guys are hilarious and have taken a liking to their catering girl. They invited me to their trailers to check out the inner workings of NBC. There is a good stretch of mountain between them and the catering tent (me). There are stairs that have been built to bridge this gap right into the mountain side. 125 steps: "stairway to heaven," we lovingly call it. I always have to listen to their moans when they arrive at my station about this descent and their complaints about the climb that is ahead of them upon finishing their food. "Suck it up!" I always tell them. I would kill to do those stairs a few times a day. Why, oh why do I end up working where I'm surrounded by food? Forget being afraid of sticking to the chairlift; if I'm not careful, I won't fit into one. lol
So during a quick little break I accompany two of them up the stairs. What a beautiful climb. I loved it, but we left poor Rob in the dust. He had to stop halfway to catch his breath. He drives all the camera equipment for NBC...cardio is not his forte.
The trailers were so impressive. There's like this whole world up there that I was not aware of. I took pictures...I can't even describe how awesome it was. Picture this: a million TV screens against one wall with keyboards and a million different coloured cables all leading to different places. Looked like a music recording studio. (Well I guess that's kinda what it is, plus the images of course.) It felt like I had stepped into the hull of some huge submarine...swallowed up by technology...I kept expecting Mavrick and goose man to walk in....(Top Gun)
They said because they will shoot mostly live, they won't have to do much editing but it also raises the performance level...they get like 6 feeds from their own cameras and then they have to also use the 30 other networks that are up here and make a compilation to show to the public as it's happening...Awesome.... I will visit them in LA...I got the personal invite....they are after all in Burbank, a mere 30 minutes from me....
I'm going to wrap this up....I could write ten more pages but I have to get some other work done!!!
I miss you all so very much!!!
Love Verena
Another day has wrapped and I'm back at my usual spot in Blenz. There was all this commotion on the bus on my way over here, and I realized that today the torch was coming through town. I was a little sad at having missed the action, but "Oh well," I thought, "Can't see it all." Then suddenly as I write this, I look up because there's a bunch of people wanting to take a picture with some girl. Then I clue in that she is carrying the torch....well the torch is out, but carrying the stick nonetheless. The girl seems to be meeting her parents for a drink after her exciting 300-meter climb to light the torch. She's being flooded by people who want to take their picture with her and the torch, hahaha ...random. I guess I'm right where I need to be. Now she's arguing with her parents about having to have dinner with them...the crowd has dispersed.....sounds like she wants to split and head for the party...hahahha...I'm busting a gut in the corner.....nice Persian folk it looks like....since the company I work for here is called BTS (behind the scenes) it's only apropriate that I see the raw footage unfolding of torch girl and her family....lol...
They seem to be playing nice now, so I'll focus on my screen again.
So as I was heading to work this morning on the gondola. (Never thought I would mutter those words in the same sentence.) It started snowing thick white flakes. Since I was the first one on the lift today, the seats were still covered in snow and a little frozen. I worried that I might get stuck and what would happen once I reached the top? "Shit!" I thought. "If I get stuck I will just have to ride the lift up and down and up and down until I start to thaw." I laughed it off and told myself not to think crazy, but just to be sure I try to move. Panic starts to rise as I try to wiggle back and forth on the seat and realize the inevitable has occurred: I'm frozen to the damn chairlift. Meanwhile, the snowflakes are getting bigger. I can't see by the time I reach the top it's snowing so hard. Panic is shooting through my veins as I see the gap closing in on my final destination. I almost lose the 6 litres of milk I'm trying to balance in my arms along with my purse, feeling like marshmallow woman in my ski jacket unable to move as I attempt to detach myself. No luck. The finish line arrives and I think,"This is it." I torpedo myself off the chairlift practically into the snowbank. A ripping sound ensues as I fly from the chair. I wanted to make sure I had enough momentum to get me off the damn chair. The milk almost goes flying and I almost do the splits in an attempt to keep my balance. I look up at the lift operator (a tall lanky guy that can't be more then 21), and flash a feeble smile...and then glance back to see if pieces of pants and thong are stuck to the chair. Nope, it seems I am intact. I trudge off down the slope to my station. Phew! At least I made it to my shift on time.
I had a somewhat steady flow of NBCers today: the tech guys are hilarious and have taken a liking to their catering girl. They invited me to their trailers to check out the inner workings of NBC. There is a good stretch of mountain between them and the catering tent (me). There are stairs that have been built to bridge this gap right into the mountain side. 125 steps: "stairway to heaven," we lovingly call it. I always have to listen to their moans when they arrive at my station about this descent and their complaints about the climb that is ahead of them upon finishing their food. "Suck it up!" I always tell them. I would kill to do those stairs a few times a day. Why, oh why do I end up working where I'm surrounded by food? Forget being afraid of sticking to the chairlift; if I'm not careful, I won't fit into one. lol
So during a quick little break I accompany two of them up the stairs. What a beautiful climb. I loved it, but we left poor Rob in the dust. He had to stop halfway to catch his breath. He drives all the camera equipment for NBC...cardio is not his forte.
The trailers were so impressive. There's like this whole world up there that I was not aware of. I took pictures...I can't even describe how awesome it was. Picture this: a million TV screens against one wall with keyboards and a million different coloured cables all leading to different places. Looked like a music recording studio. (Well I guess that's kinda what it is, plus the images of course.) It felt like I had stepped into the hull of some huge submarine...swallowed up by technology...I kept expecting Mavrick and goose man to walk in....(Top Gun)
They said because they will shoot mostly live, they won't have to do much editing but it also raises the performance level...they get like 6 feeds from their own cameras and then they have to also use the 30 other networks that are up here and make a compilation to show to the public as it's happening...Awesome.... I will visit them in LA...I got the personal invite....they are after all in Burbank, a mere 30 minutes from me....
I'm going to wrap this up....I could write ten more pages but I have to get some other work done!!!
I miss you all so very much!!!
Love Verena
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