My wife had a business trip to Salt Lake City, so I decided to visit her for a few days and go skiing at Snowbird during the day.  Snowbird was the only ski area still open in Utah – no complaints though, Snowbird is one of my favorite places.  Got a lot of good spring skiing in – no lines for the tram.

On my trip back, I encountered several people at the airport and on the plane with surgical masks.  In Japan, I don’t think anything of it when I see people with masks because its so common especially during allergy season and wouldn’t hesitate to wear one myself, but seeing it here in the US does alarm me a bit.

In Japan, all passengers arriving on an international flight have to get examined on the plane before disembarking – as you can imagine passengers may be stuck on the plane at the gate for an hour before allowing to leave.  I don’t know if Asia is over-reacting, or due to their past experience with SARS and Avian flu their actions are appropriate and the US reaction is lacking.