Banff Film Festival reportage

Yesterday evening we went with a few friends to a series of screenings from the Banff Film Festival. It seems that the general theme was extreme sports, and the environment. It was very enjoyable, on the whole, and I like that the feats of derring-do (extreme skiing, extreme rock-climbing), were moderated by some sense and restraint. Rock climbers who climbed vertical and negative angle rock faces, and then leapt from spire to spire, still had their moments when they said, "uh-uh. That climb is not for me." A group of whitewater kayakers who were the first to kayak the length of the Pandi River in Papua New Guinea portaged over some rapids that even they considered ridiculous. A group of alpine climbers who wanted to be the first to climb a shear rock tower in Patagonia in Winter turned back because of poor weather. They didn't say, "I want to climb this, and I WILL climb it, dammit! I am an extreme climber, so I don't care about the weather." No, they realized that they may risk their lives for their sport, which may be foolish enough, but even they had a line they would not cross, and that sometimes turning back is the better part of valor. There was also a film on avalanche safety awareness, which was a nice addition, too.

Some films also focused on environmental awareness and conservation issues, which was nice. I like that a side effect of adventure-seeking is that the adventure-seekers often fall so in love with the landscapes and people they find that they eventually give part or all of themselves to helping to save them from various modern scourges. I read a good book this year on this exact same theme, and it's very topical. I highly recommend you check it out. Funnily enough, it even starts with an exercise in the restraint I admired above. The protagonist had called short an expedition to climb K2.

After the film festival, it was 9 p.m. and we were hungry. None of us had eaten dinner because we hadn't realized it would go on for so long. Every one of our favorite local restaurants was closed. Closed at 9 p.m. on a Sunday! That is part of small-town life. Mountain View, in the Silicon Valley, used to be like that when I first moved there in 2000, and I was shocked! San Francisco and Berkeley both have restaurants that open at least until midnight, if not all night. To be unable to get a bite to eat at 9 p.m. was shocking! But things have changed in the Sili Valley since them. Downtown Mountain View now has a bit of a hipster vibe, with wine bars and groovy fusion ethnic restaurants. I can't say I'm a fan of the hipster scene, but I do appreciate their food service! Last night, we ended up going to Chili's. See, you are supposed to hate chain restaurants, but how can you complain when they are willing to serve you their good ol' reliably mediocre food at late hours? What's not to love?