Sundance Headquarters

I arrived in Park City yesterday.  My day got off to a rocky start at the Delta kiosk at MSP.  I put in my credit card and the itenerary that came up was for Janet Young and not heading to SLC.  Oops.  Fortunately I had printed out my confirmation email and the attendent was able to find my info.  Then, since I had pulled out my notebook with all of my confirmations for the entire trip and set it on the upper counter, I walked away without it.  I was in the security line when I realized.  I dashed back (at least as fast as I could dragging my duffle on wheels) and reclaimed my notebook.  After that, it was smooth sailing.  The transportation from SLC to Park City was fun.  Everyone on the shuttle (the 5 of us) was heading to Sundance and all were volunteering.  The weather was quite brisk -- single digits -- but the sky was clear blue and the mountains were stunning.

After I checked in at the Marriott I got my volunteer badge and coupons.  I get 4 free meals and 4 guest passes for screenings.  Since I am travelling solo, I will see if I can make a few friends with my hot commodities!  I also recieved an Ask Me button since I completed the online "test".  I have decided not to affix it to my badge, however, since I really don't know anything :-)  I did take the free city bus to downtown where I walked up and down the main street and popped in to a couple of shops, most notably one called simply Mary Jane.  I also checked out an olive oil shop and sampled the most amazing black truffle olive oil.  The evening ended with a double feature for volunteers.  The films were shown at the Park City Library (how fitting!)  We saw a documentary, Valentine Road (about an 8th grader who shot a gay classmate) and Emanuel and The Turth about Fishes (about a 17 year old girl and her relationship with a new neighbor - a single mom.)

I had my first training session this morning.  As with many volunteer efforts, the office was somewhat chaotic.  The internet connection didn't work and the supplies crowded out almost all of the available floor space.  Apparently, most will be gone tomorrow when the festival officially starts.  I am now going to move out of the Marriott and head to my more permanent quarters at Chateau Apres -- a "ski hostel"  More on that later.