Growing up, my dad always had a no-pets policy.
"Only humans poop in our house," he would joke.
Thus, I was never a dog or cat person. I never saw the appeal, and maintain some of those feelings, though my wife — who grew up with several dogs and brought a rabbit with her when she moved in — has slowly worn me down.
However, up until Thursday night, I just couldn't see myself dealing with a pet.
Then I met potentially the only other living creature more excited than I that Bousquet was finally able to open.
I was in line for the second chair at Bousquet's first $10 Thursday Night Owl Special, and just in front of me was a young pair of urchins with a golden retriever named Rossi (inspired by Rossignol).
Rossi, who belongs to ski school director Cindy Bartlett, was psyched to be out in the snow, jumping and barking all over the place. I assumed when they got on the lift, the dog would stay at the base with someone, but then Rossi followed them through the loading area, and began galloping after them up the blue chair lift line. She made it all the way to the end of the lift, met back up with the snowboarding couple and the trio departed down the green Drifter trail.
I think I found what my nerdier friends call a Patronus. I think I'm starting to understand dogs.
"We, along with our pass holders and regulars have been chomping-at-the-bit super eager to get on our local mountain," writes Bousquet's Marki Lee Roberts-Blackwell, who spent Thursday with her two and four-year old sons on the beginner slope. "They've been holding out and ecstatic to finally be out gliding and making turns on our family mountain."
I wished Rossi and friends silent luck, and scooted myself over to the other open slope at Bousquet, Beeline, an intermediate that follows the blue lift line.
I was only there from 3-5 p.m. before heading back to the office, but even turning onto North Street downtown and seeing that white blanket in the distance got me going. It hasn't felt like winter without the mountain open. The local winter sports community needs Bousquet, and Bousquet needs us.
"Although we've taken quite a hit, missing out on holiday vacation week and having to divert much of our typical groups and clubs to other mountains, we are hopeful to regain those patrons, clubs and school groups now that we are operating," Roberts-Blackwell wrote. "Community support is vital for our small mountain."
With the weather finally starting to turn, Bousquet is blowing up a storm of snow whenever possible, and growing closer and closer to opening more of the mountain. The hard-pack cords on Beeline were nice and stiff. Drifter was left a bit more untamed and benefit from the heavy midweek dusting Old Man Winter gifted the Berkshires.
Speaking of gifts, Austin Esposito scored himself a pretty sweet one this holiday season.
The New Lebanon, N.Y. native stomped out a first place finish in the open division at a Burton Qualifiers rail jam event at Loon Mountain on Dec. 29. The top podium spot came with a chill $1,000 check and a spot in the Burton Qualifiers tour finals. There, he'll compete for a share of $10,000 in prizes.
"Last winter I went to the same contest and got sixth, which is the last qualifying spot," said Esposito from his spot up in Stratton, Vt. "This year, going in I thought the same thing, get top six.
"It was a big surprise when I won, I was hyped."
This column can be read in its entirety at The Berkshire Eagle website, or reach out to me directly for a complete copy.