Everybody should have a close look at monthly billing statements. Most of us do not. Too bad, because those statements are quite interesting.

Take the phone bill. Ours has a list of 11 fees and taxes, ranging from 3 cents, LNP Recovery Fee, to almost $2 for the Maine Service Provider Tax. Total taxes and fees this month: $5.43, or $65.43 per year. Not much. A couple of tanks of gas maybe.

Bill and Linda French’s phone service provider is not the same as ours. Their monthly taxes and fees totaled a whopping $8.42. We have some charges in common, the 911 funding fee, for example. But the lists don’t jibe. They have a “federal subscriber tax.” We have a “franchise fee.”

To sort through the disparities among phone fees and taxes and to find out what in the world they’re all for, call the Maine Public Utilities. You will be transferred speedily to the Consumer Assistance Division. A very friendly person will tell you about the website that will clear up phone taxes and fees mysteries. Go to: maine.gov/meopa. Click on “telephone service.” Then find “anatomy of a phone bill.”

Dandy. But, if your phone service is tied to your cable service, forget it. The state has no jurisdiction over cable fees. The federal government has jurisdiction over all matters cable.

Well, our phone/Internet/cable services are inextricably bound together. Unraveling the fees and taxes knots was put off till another day. Why? Because the dog told us that Ray Barker was at work, with spades, cloth harnesses and winches on our driveway rock.

“I think it must weigh about two and a half tons,” Ray said. He was looking down upon the big rock he had unearthed from the far side of our driveway, the place where he has nearly broken an axle while plowing snow.

Ray was right to the last pound: On average, rock weighs about three times an equal volume of water. A cubic yard of rock — almost exactly the size of the rock Ray winched from the ground — weighs 5,000 pounds, two and a half tons.

Five thousand pound hazard removed. More chores remain on the get-ready-for-winter list.

How many times of late have you heard: “This is my favorite season … I  just don’t like what comes next.” Chances are, you haven’t heard it from Bob Arsenault, or Dottie Adams or Elaine Manson, or any of the many stalwarts of the Chisholm Ski Club.

The U.S. National Cross Country Ski Championships return to Rumford’s Black Mountain for the 2011 and 2012 seasons. The competition opens on New Year’s Day. The races take place January 2, 4, 6 and 8.

Black Mountain last hosted the prestigious Nordic races in 2003 and 2004, with 450 and 550 competitors, respectively.

Paul Jones said he wouldn’t be surprised if there were even more racers here this winter — contenders for World Cup and Olympic teams from all over the United States, some from Canada.

Jones credits the major improvements to the Black Mountain facilities for the national committee’s choice. And then there’s Chummy Broomhall’s reputation. Chummy, our gift who keeps on giving.

The skiers’ weeklong visit means an increase in businesses and recreation areas up and down the River Valley, for sure, and a chance to show off the considerable charms of the River Valley.

So three cheers for the Chisholm Ski Club! Bring on the cold and the snow! Bring on the races.

Linda Farr Macgregor is a freelance writer; contact her at [email protected]