Teton Valley Social

I am certain that through my sporadic updates you may have a bit of a skewed opinion as to what may occur on your average Friday night here in Idaho's Teton Valley. Between my cattle drive report and my constant fascination with the commute through Teton Pass, I would hate to think that anyone reading this may ascertain that we are just here living amongst livestock and driving remote and treacherous roads - which we are doing - but not all of the time.

Sometimes, we have time to frequent a local watering hole - or perhaps even soak up some culture... believe it or not.

On Friday, November 10, 2006, my girlfriend and I went on a little trek through the valley for the evening. We started at the SKI SWAP, which was held in the brand spankin' new Driggs Community Center.

Neither one of us really ski - Emily more than me that is for sure - so the five dollar admittance fee caused us to turn away. Maybe someday I will attend the ski swap, actually pay to get in, and find myself some winter sporting equipment that I never pictured myself using. Everyone here tells me that someday I will snowboard. I do believe that I will find myself on cross country skis looong before I snowboard, but it's hard to say what I may actually be talked into doing. These crazy winter sports lovers are pretty persuasive.

After lingering at the entrance to the swap, we departed to our next destination: Balance Studios, Victor Idaho. Balance Studios is run by a very friendly young lady named Carrie. Carrie just opened her studio space. She held an open house with free food and wine, so naturally we had to check it out!

She does this thing called "cardiolates", okay? So, picture Pilates type moves performed while jumping on a trampoline. You got that picture in your head? If so, please remove me from the image. I told Carrie, "not a sports bra on the planet that would help me while doing THAT." Additionally, I am not graceful. So top heavy + non-graceful = no cardiolates for Jenn. I'll stick to Pilates mat work, thank you very much.

Emily and I were gettin' thirsty, so we stopped by the Knotty Pine in Victor for a beverage.
Can you believe the Knotty Pine has a myspace account?! I just love it when I get an interesting return like that on a Google search. At ye olde Knotty, we indulged in some margaritas.

We were able to chat with a few people that Emily is familiar with (I swear, this girl knows EVERYONE) while we imbibed. I then felt the rush of "this is my third drink, we had better go", so we hit the bricks. All the while, we were thinking that it was much later than it actually was... we were back to my house by 9:15PM. So basically, I was able to squeeze a few drinks in and a relatively active agenda - and still get home by my bedtime. Go ahead. Mock. However, in my current effort to age gracefully, I place a great deal of value on sleep and going to bed on time. I know I sound like I'm six years old - or maybe even seventy. But I can take the mocking, while my skin and general disposition thank me for trying to be responsible for my own well being.

Now, this past weekend, I let it slide just a bit. We were to meet up with Emily and Scott (Emily's "significant other", as I cannot bring myself to call him her "boyfriend". When introducing them, I usually say, "this is Emily, and this is Scott - they are together". I think past the age of thirty, the terms "boyfriend" and "girlfriend" kind of lose all effect) at the Knotty to see some kind of ski film. Once we arrived, I realized that we were paying a cover charge to see a band - not dropping a fee for the benefit of Teton Gravity.

Now get this - and please look at the Knotty's myspace account so you too can realize the significance... I have never seen a band at the Knotty Pine. Locally, it is a legendary venue for some very talented bands. This night was no exception. After said ski movie ended (okay, if you have seen one of them haven't you seen them all? Obviously, I am no skier.), the unbelievably talented B-Side Players took the stage. Kids, I was blown away. Every heard "reggae salsa"? Yeah, me neither. The crowd adored every beat. It kept me there until almost midnight (unheard of!). I am definitely exposing myself to the event schedule there at the ol' Knotty. You never know who may show up.



So there you go: my past two weekends hanging in the Valley. I do have a tendency to seclude myself on the weekends. Maybe my recent exposure to local culture will get me out more and give me more to say...

...and more for you to read!