Just how cold is it in Park City, Utah? As I punch these cigar-ash infused letter keys, the NOAA website tells me it's 7 degrees F. with light snow. By tomorrow (Sunday, Jan. 20) there'll be a 70% chance of heavier precip with several inches accumulation expected and a high of 31. (These are actually the specs for Salt Lake City, which is the closest reporting station on the National Weather Service net; conditions up in the Wasatch will be even colder/snowier.)

Given this, while I'm somewhat disappointed that I'm not at Sundance again for the second PegNews-employed year in a row, I can at least take solace in the fact that I'm spending Saturday morning snug in my home office wearing a bathrobe and slippers, feet firmly planted on an electric heating pad and gazing out the window onto my Old Lake Highlands neighborhood where the sun is shining and the dog walkers are ambling by ensconced in parkas and ski caps to protect against the brisk upper-20's chill.

The fact that my editor and corporate sponsors have seen fit to leave me hanging out (to dry?) in Big D while "more prominent" film folk hang out at the Eccles (and then the slopes) can be somewhat ameliorated by my ability (developed through long years of practice) to mentally project myself into the fleece-lined quick-release boots of those worthies actually on the premises.

Assisting me in this pitiful yet time-honored astrally-projecting quest are the various webcams available for remotely peering in on the scene, such as this one with a view of the town and this one offering glimpses of goings-on at the nearby ski resort.

Better yet from a pinin'-for-the-pines film guy's perspective is the Jaman blog, where correspondents from that upstart online indie film festival outfit will be posting regular dispatches from the let's-duck-into-this-lame-ass-screening-just-to-get-out-of-the-frigid-cold front.

Have fun, fellow film critics. (*SNIFF*)