More to do in less time? Enter the ‘magic helper’.

It seems there’s a new conundrum that’s entered the villa. It’s called: 'Our bosses want us to get more work done than we’ve ever gotten done in our lives and in far less time too.’

With the use of AI, from ChatGPT to Grammarly to Photoshop, it seems things are easier to do than ever. Need to write an essay about the conundrum of AI? Just ask ChatGPT and save yourself the time!

With that being known and budgets across the nation getting more strict (or at least, seemingly so), it seems obvious that AI can help us.

This is likely true. Let’s just not let it hurt us more in the process.

—————

My creative brain fears AI, not due to the fact that my skills are no longer assets, but more so that it saddens me that the most human-est of jobs, the ones founded on emotion and care and understanding and belonging - are being taken by those who…. don’t inherently have emotion and care and understanding and belonging.

It’s a lie. It’s fraud. It’s… AI.

Just gives me a freaky feeling.

A company is a company, that’s scary enough, right? So what do we do to make it not so scary? We put humans behind those companies, to provide the HUMANNESS that makes makes the corporate experience feel okay. A hand holder. A “I know you want to take my money but you are a group of people with emotions so it’s OKAY”.

But then, you see a certain brand’s social media page and in one single glance, you know: This was NOT created by a human. You know when you see it. There’s a few emojis, perhaps a pun, a slight feeling of disconnect with the brand voice, a term is used just sliiiiiiightly incorrectly. And if it WAS a human, it was a human trying to pretend to be like AI. Now THAT is a terrifying thought, my goodness. New ‘Scary Movie’ plot unlocked. Definitely worthy of a Black Mirror episode, if it hasn’t already been.

You may ask: “But what if AI gets good enough that there’s no disconnect whatsover and it feels authentic to the brand”. Well, if that is the case, I’m going to go with my gut. WHY CAN’T WE JUST BE ENOUGH ON OUR OWN?

——-

The one thing we have as humans is creativity and the ability to make intersections between unrelated thoughts and I just think that’s the most beautiful thing in the whole wide world.

I just hope we don’t loose that. And that when I read something on social media, I know it’s coming from at least a human entity of some form.

—————

That was Part 2 of me getting sidetracked along the way with the conversation of AI. We’ll see where we end up on the next one.

Sincerely,

not AI.

NEXT ON: AI - ARE WE ABOUT TO GET REALLY BAD AT THINGS THAT WERE ONCE EASY SINCE WE ARE NOW JUST LETTING AI DO IT FOR US?! How quickly will we regress? Where will we be able to put the extra brain-space towards - or was that brain space not requesting VACANCY?! WHERE WILL THIS EXTRA TIME TAKE US OR WILL WE JUST BE SHELLS OF OUR FORMER SELVES WITH NO HOPE FORWARD?!! Yay okay talk soon xo

This was supposed to be about Artificial Intelligence but turned into my issue with being subjected to a 40-hour work week (poor me, I know)

Note to Reader: I will likely be working out my thoughts on this as I write it. Let’s go on the journey together.

It seems there’s a new conundrum that’s entered the villa. It’s called: 'Our bosses want us to get more work done than we’ve ever gotten done in our lives and in far less time too.’

Once upon a time, I worked on salary. ‘Twas the year 2021 and I did not yet know that being a civil engineer was a terribly bad fit for me. Ya live and ya learn. Now, I’m an hourly girly. On top of that, I’m now a 40-hour-a-week girly.

Look, I happen to enjoy hourly work. When I was an engineer, I had to specify my “billable hours” each week. As a sub-par entry-level civil engineer, my billable hours were far less than they should have been. Basically, we weren’t going to charge the client for 3 hours of work when it actually ‘should’ have taken 1 hour. Cue the final days of my time as an engineer.

New scene: I’m a ski bum and I work hourly. It was all fine and dandy when I was able to work 60 hours a week. However, it seems the industry I work within (hint: ski industry) is working to cut costs in the ever changing climate (or whatever they’re saying these days, idk don’t ask me I only work 40 hours a week) and now, ‘overtime work’ is a thing of the past.

It wasn’t the ‘time and a half’ pay that kept me working past 40 hours, though. It was the fact that there was a lot that was being asked of me, and even more that I wanted to do to prove myself as a part of the team.

I work in the marketing department for a ski resort (boooooo, carpet walker, boooooo) so all in all my job is really quite fun. I get to ski, write about skiing, take photos about skiing, and make videos about skiing. For one, how hard could it be? and two, how much time does it really need to take?

For one, I guess anyone could do it. Anyone with a phone can take a photo or video and post it to social media. Anyone who knows the language can write a caption to a post and press send. Not that those tasks are even close to ‘all I do’, but that’s at least all the general public probably envisions. So in that respect, anyone could do it and in very little time too.

Would the result be good for whoever did it? No. Might they get fired for doing a bad job? Likely.

Three years later in this line of work and I am better than ever - Skills increased, industry knowledge increased, and collaborations as a team increased. I worked 40+ hours a week for 2+ years and didn’t think for a second about how long things were ‘supposed’ to take. I just, did the things to the best of my ability and as well and efficiently as I could. And, given that I have a general knack for creative work, feel I did a pretty good job with it.

Cue: THE CUT. The meeting that ended it all. The words still echo in my mind “You must stay within 40 hours - Overtime is not accepted”.

————————

Update: I need to get over the 40 hour situation. That was not supposed to be the point of this writeup.

————————

Okay what was the point? Oh right,

THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AN ESSAY ABOUT AI.

Ha. If this was AI writing this, it probably wouldn’t have gotten distracted from the intended point. But what about the friends we met along the way.

Maybe I’ll start fresh.

This was attempt 1. Onto the next!

A Love Letter to The Incoming Ski Season

Dear Ski Season,

You know I will love you no matter what.

With the unconditional love I have for you, please be kind upon my heart.

I know the weather forecast is purely something you exist within. It’s not your fault if it gets cold and stays cold, if we get ample snowfall, or whether the precipitation comes in the form of rain.

Still, I can’t help but hope you’ll show your resiliency, adapting to whatever the weather hands us. I know you are strong. So I’ll be strong too.

Thanks for listening, Ski Season 2023/24. I’ll ski you very, very soon.

Love,

Erica J.

Make Ski Season, We Season

I have just one request. Or rather, one singular theme of requests.

Let’s remember that skiing is an activity of goodness. Anyone on the mountain is blessed in some way or another. Whether you are working on it, vacationing on it, or retired on it, you could be far worse places. That’s why I think it’s time we take the gloves off and simply enjoy the mountains for all that they bring us.

Ski resort loyalists have a complex. The exact mentality varies, but far too often, it’s along the lines of “We are the best, and they are the worst.” Whether it’s all in good fun or dampens the pure goodness that is skiing, that’s up to you. I feel that we can all exist together and build each other up instead of tearing each other down.

Don’t get me wrong, I know there will always be comparisons to be made, and the ski nerds need something to debate. That’s fine. It is interesting to compare how the different resorts run, how many snow guns are online, how many acres are open, or how much snow they’re forecasted to get. For the price you pay (I’m talkin’ ski passes), that’s your right to do so. Where is my money really going? All I wish to question, however, is this: For one mountain to be great, does another have to be bad?

If you don’t like a ski resort, don’t go. If they wronged you, feel free to speak up. But for those who haven’t seen how things are going and want to make baseless claims, what if you didn’t? What if I said, “I love Sugarloaf - It’s my favorite place to ski,” and didn’t say, “It’s so much better than ____”?

All the resorts are making snow and doing their best to start the ski season strong. Let’s just be happy to have the luxury of knowing what skiing is and the joy that a quality resort can bring.

With love,

EJ

Something Is Better Than Nothing

Something I’ve learned from myself is that when I am inspired to write, I need to just WRITE. Wasting an inspiration opportunity is silly. I just need to listen to myself instead of doing the dumb thing and saying “nah ill do it later”. Like GURL. You are inspired NOW. “Later” is a lie that you just can’t prove yet.

Who knows if 65% of what I’m saying makes sense. If I wait until I know that 100% makes sense, I’ll never do anything. I’ll never write. I’ll never record. I’ll never post. And then how’s a girl supposed to grow? Well, she won’t.

Anyways, I’ll end this thought here. I’m trying to remind myself that putting a single thought into words is enough. I don’t have to always do THE MOST. I just have to do SOMETHING. Because something is always better than nothing.

I’ve got some brain demon telling me I can’t do anything and that I shouldn’t even start things because I’ve proven that I won’t finish them and that it will just be one more failure and yada yada yada.

Enough of that crap,

Anything is better than nothing.

Thanks for tuning in,

EJ

The February Flats

It’s February Break week at Sugarloaf and the mountain is alive and well despite the inconsistent weather patterns of this past month. While the guests are coming to the resort with fresh eyes and hope in their hearts, I think many of those that have been here day in day out are feeling the weight of fluctuating temps, minimal snowfall, and rain.

I’ve been noticing this seasonal burnout feeling all February. We haven’t had an easy go of it this year in terms of weather and it’s not looking like that’ll be an anomaly going forward.

Sometimes when I am feeling low, I think “I can’t feel this way - My life is great. Simply the fact that I have the luxury of working and living at a ski resort - That says enough. Right?” But that’s just not how it works. And that’s okay. 

We’re trying our best, and I think recognizing this feeling is the only way through it. I would never want to create resentment towards my favorite sport, and accepting the winter weather’s emotional wear is just part of that.

It’s okay to feel the February flats. A mighty March is ahead.

Each Mountain In It’s Own Way

The best part about Maine is that there are an array of ski mountains to choose from, each of which with a different flair and a different atmosphere to enjoy. If you want an event-centric weekend with loads to do on the mountain day and night, Sugarloaf is a magical place to be. If you want something more low-key on the weekends, with an early night back at the condo, Saddleback is a fabulous spot.

The ability to be able to ski Brackett Basin and Broccoli Garden on a Tuesday and then ski Casablanca on Wednesday? It can’t be beat. Being able to ski White Nitro on a Friday and Tight Line on a Saturday? Can’t complain.

If you’re staying in Stratton, both mountains are under 30 minutes away, which means you can decide which mountain feels right on any given day.

It’s ‘Winter-In-Maine’ conditions at both. There are windholds at both. There are cold days at both. There is corduroy, there are bumps, there are jumps.

From personal experience, I know how refreshing it is to ski at a different mountain sometimes. You get similar views but from different angles and heights. You get to meet new people and see different things. There’s nothing that makes me appreciate my home mountain more than going to another one every once in a while for a reset.

And please, before making an assumption about a resort, ski there first and THEN tell me what you really think.