Set your priorities and save room for the important things in life

Sandpoint's own Grayson Schaffer has a very compelling two-page article in this month's Outside magazine.

Another Sandpoint resident, Shane Maixner, 27, was killed in an avalanche on Jan. 14 while snowboarding out of bounds at the Canyons ski resort, near Park City, Utah. Maixner's death sent shock waves through Sandpoint. He was a fixture at Sandpoint West Athletic Club because of his affiliation with Advance Physical Therapy. He was a great physical therapist — a person who enjoyed enriching other's lives.

That's why I was surprised to learn he died in what seemed like a result of a reckless act.

Schaffer, who met Maixner in 2002, attended Maixner's memorial service and started asking questions to Maixner's best friend, Erin Brannigan, also of Sandpoint, saw as Maixner was chased and enveloped by a 60-foot wall of snow. Brannigan just missed being swept away in the same avalanche.

Schaffer's story recounted how the four survivors of the accident were instantly tabbed as foolhardy, even before the search party found Maixner's body two days later.

The skull-and-crossbones sign at the backcountry gate and the party's lack of safety equipment made them easy targets, Schaffer wrote.

The survivors refused to comment about the tragedy.

"Reporters couldn't get the story," Brannigan told Schaffer. "So they made one up."

Reports painted Maixner as a novice, who was risking his life and the lives of the 250 people searching for him.

Schaffer explains Maixner was actually an avalanche-certified backcountry guide with the local Selkirk Powder Co. Each one of the group had homing beacons, shovels and probes but decided to leave the equipment home because they were going to only board on resort runs.

That's where Maixner made a fatal mistake. It's easy for veteran group powderhounds to let their guard down when they are boarding in the shadows of a resort, even if they are out of bounds.

Movies are partially to blame, as are some resorts that look the other way when skiers and boarders slip beneath the ropes.

About 30 people die each year in U.S. avalanches and the bulk of those deaths are a result of experienced people taking chances, Schaffer wrote.

"In the end, the decision to go out of bounds will remain largely in skiers' hands" Schaffer summarized. "The locals want it that way. So would Shane."

The Sandpoint Magazine interview signed by Viggo Mortensen that was up for auction on eBay got 16 bids, starting at $4.88 and ending up with the winning bid of $330 by close of the auction Friday.

The bids came from Tennessee, Missouri, Oregon, Arizona and Canada but the hottest bidders were screen name "eomerco" of Bellevue, Wash. and "campbell1385" of New Zealand, who between them dueled the price up to $325 … before a Sandpoint bidder swooped in with the winning $330 bid. The buyer, who asked to stay anonymous, said he was bidding chiefly to make a contribution to the Panida.

Speaking of anonymous donations … NIC's Edie McCormick received a huge donation for the school from a local who likes what the school is doing here. The person wants to remain. The amount? Ask Edie.

The elections spring eternal … Would someone ask Tony Lamanna to remove his election sign from in front of the Westmond store? Brian Orr also has a sign up just north of Ponderay. There ought to be a law about leaving signs up four months after the last vote is cast.

Speaking of laws … I was asked by a group of highly influential people about what kind of laws I would push if I were elected (heaven help us!) to an influential office.

Here are a few laws I would like to see enacted:

? No cell phone use by drivers of motorized vehicles. Penalty: A mandatory class that would teach offenders that they aren't all that important.

? Teachers would be paid an amount equal to the highest paid parent of a student in his or her class.

? All businesses and banks would close for the national holiday of March Madness. Or at least for the days Gonzaga and Montana play in the tourney.

? Instead of the small-minded grocery credit pittance Idaho families receive, how about exempting food from state sales tax like the rest of the free world?

? Sandpoint would transform into Santapoint, Idaho-ho-ho, once a year from Thanksgiving to Christmas and Mayor Ray Miller would bounce every kid in the region on his lap.

? A realistic number of homes would be set aside for families who can't afford $200,000 houses. A special waiver would be given to single moms so they could work, raise children and actually afford to buy a home.

? Dan Young would be Citizen of the Year. Oops, too late.

? The Bulldogs would dominate every high school sport. Oops, too late again. The same goes for the Spartans, Wampus Cats and Badgers.

? The Wampus Cat would become Idaho's official mascot.

What are some laws you would like to see? E-mail them to me and I will print them next week.

E-mail of the week:

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar … and the beer.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full.

They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

"The golf balls are the important things — your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your passions — things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

"The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house and car. The sand is everything else — the small stuff.

If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children (grandchildren!). Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18 holes. There will always be time to clean the house, and fix the disposal.

"Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of beers."

David Keyes is publisher of the Bee. His column runs Tuesdays.