⛷️ Ski Ya Later 4/13/25

Hi Everyone!

I had no clue about this until this week (this is something I say quite frequently, though), but people go crazy over Trader Joe’s Mini Tote Bags. Apparently, at the local Trader Joe’s I shop at, there was a line going down the block when the store first opened. When I was grocery shopping, there were a few left, so I picked up a pastel purple one. Looking online now though, these bags are reselling between 20 and 1000 dollars. With all the crazy stuff happening with the stock market, now might be the time to take my money out and invest it all in mini totes. Who cares about an average 8-10% yield year-over-year when I can get a 667% increase over a week? 

Just to get this out of the way, this is not financial advice, just the musings of a silly 26-year-old. Do not spend your life savings on Trader Joe’s Mini Tote Bags.

Now, let's find out What’s Up With Will…

I’m going to be honest with you all: I’m a sucker for anything free. What can I say? I’m only human. So, when Ben and Jerry’s Free Cone Day arrived, you knew I would be there. Unlike Dairy Queen, where the nearest location is 30 minutes away, the closest Ben and Jerry’s is just a measly 7-minute drive. There may be no such thing as a free lunch, but at least there is free dessert.

Later that day, Rylee and I went to a Giants game with Brandt and his girlfriend, who funnily enough, we were meeting for the first time. We managed to get a good deal on tickets, but when Rylee texted a photo of our view of the game to her parents, the only response back from her dad was, “cheap seats?”

The Giants were playing the Reds, but calling it a game might be a bit of a stretch. This was probably the least exciting baseball game I have ever been to. Very little action happened, and the final score was Reds 1, Giants 0. That's okay though, because I am not here for the game. I am here for the vibes. And Micheladas.

For some reason, whenever I say that I love Micheladas, everyone seems to turn their heads in disgust. For those of you who don’t know, Micheladas are a drink quite similar to a Bloody Mary except, instead of vodka, you use beer. The drink consists of lime juice, a variety of seasonings and sauces, and normally either tomato juice or Clamato. It is very popular in Mexico, but is slowly gaining traction in the States. While, I will say that I had some apprehension when I first had it, trust me, they grow on you. And once they do, they really hit the spot.

While I was in a symphonic band from 6th grade to my senior year of college, I never have been that big on going to the symphony. That being said, I got a free ticket to an SF Symphony open rehearsal where Marin Alsop conducted Antrópolis by Gabriela Ortiz, Piano Concerto No. 1, Latin by Gabriela Montero, Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland, Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman by Joan Tower, and Symphony No. 1, Opus 9 by Samuel Barber. 

It might sound weird, but Symphony performances are almost meditative to me. I often drift inward and let my mind wander as I listen to the music. That being said, I couldn’t help but notice that I was the only person under 50 at the performance. 

Between the first and second pieces, the conductor stepped out and said that the production team told her to come out and stall for a bit until they could find the piano. How do you lose a piano???

This past week was SF restaurant week, so after the performance, I stopped at an Italian pizza place called Montesacro. Yes, I know that for the past couple of restaurant weeks, I have only had pizza, but at least I am consistent.  I had a nice three-course meal with a squash crudo, a mozzarella, potatoes, basil, and almond pizza, and chocolate torte. This was so much food and I definitely bit off more than I could chew here.

Rylee and I were originally planning on going skiing in the Lake Tahoe area back in February, but some awful storms forced us to reschedule for this weekend. So Saturday Morning, we hopped in the car and drove about three and a half hours to Kings Beach, CA.

We arrived and had dinner at a home-y Italian place called Lanza’s Restaurant (where they served us an absurd amount of pasta).

To wrap up the day, we sat on the beach and watched the sun set. While Lake Tahoe isn’t like Grand Canyon level of natural beauty, it is pretty dang gorgeous.

I have only ever went to ski once before, and that was on a mountain weekend with my fraternity. Now, an important thing to note is that on this trip, I was the only beginner skier. Everyone else had been multiple times before and knew what they were doing. I, on the other hand, had no clue. At the end of the day, I was convinced to join them up the mountain for one of the more difficult trails. What followed was me wiping out on practically every turn as I awkwardly made my way down the mountain while a massive snow plow crept down right behind me.

I was worried that I would run into the same issues on this ski trip, so I decided to take some lessons, and what a world of a difference that makes. I was taught by a instructor named Hans who hand been skiing for 40+ years, so I was in good hands.

While I struggled at first, by the end of the day, I was flying down the slopes. Rylee and I even got some good runs down the mountain together. We had a great time!

It might not be the best slopes in Tahoe, but I would highly recommend Mt. Rose as a beginner-friendly mountain.

You thought you would get a newsletter without me talking about wine? Think again.

In all seriousness, I stumbled onto this Youtube Channel which does incredible deep-dives into different wine regions across the world. I find them very informative as well as entertaining. This is the first one that I came across and makes me aspire to go to France to wine taste.