By EDDIE PELLS

Whether she is walking a fashion runway, amping herself up at the top of a mountain or digging into one of those physics lessons she takes “for fun,” Olympic champion Eileen Gu can probably boil down her main goals to these: Do her best. And bring as many people along for the ride as possible.

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The world’s best overall freestyle skier has made reaching those goals look remarkably easy over her first four years in the spotlight. So easy, in fact, that it can sometimes also be easy to overlook how hard it really is.

“You know, we’re all risking our lives out here,” she said with a laugh, while contemplating a more in-depth answer about a question that everything eventually seems to come back to with her: How much weight does she put into all the opinions about her choice to compete for her mother’s home country, China, despite being born and raised in California?

The 22-year-old multitasker will, in fact, put her life on the line somewhere between 10 and 15 times at the Milan Cortina Games, trying to duplicate her feat from four years ago when she won medals in all three of freeskiing’s inherently dangerous disciplines, halfpipe, slopestyle and big air.

She will do it inside a cauldron of Olympic pressure, magnified by the geopolitical forces that typically come with the Games and, when the Winter Games roll around, often focus on her.

Lots of folks have takes on Gu. Some of it, she says, descends into “vitriol.” It ranges from “people who thought I wasn’t Chinese enough” when she dyed her hair blonde to those who find fault in her choosing China over the United States, especially with the two major powers increasingly in conflict.

“I can focus my attention on the places where I personally have the most interest and impact, and work as hard as possible to make as much good in the world as I can,” Gu said in an interview with The Associated Press. “And to wish the people who disagree with me to use that energy and make the world better in their own way instead of directing it at me. That’s all I can hope.”

As for her bigger goals — they remain on track.

FILE – Gold medal winner China’s Eileen Gu celebrates during the venue award ceremony for the women’s halfpipe finals at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Feb. 18, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)

She told of recently visiting a rural part of northern China and checking out a small ski hill they built for kids, where they offer free ski rentals and lift tickets. It was a strong indicator, she said, of the way snow and action sports are growing in China. Late in 2024, the Chinese government released a study that said 313 million people had engaged in snow sports since the Beijing Games in 2022. That’s about 30 million less than the entire population of the U.S.

“Everybody from a 3-year-old and a family, to a professional athlete to a fashionista can enjoy this sport,” she said. “That’s super special to me, and it has far surpassed any expectation I ever had for it.”

Giving herself a ‘break’ to focus on skiing

Gu did something unusual for herself this school year. The young woman who graduated high school a year early and was aiming for something similar in college gave herself a break at Stanford so she could focus on skiing.

She also heeded the advice of friends (maybe professors and college counselors, too) and decided to major in international relations and simply take quantum physics classes “for fun.”

“It’s wonderful to see how the world works on a granular level,” she said.

Along with her classes at Stanford, she joined the chess club, a book club, a sorority and formed a basketball league.

FILE – China’s Eileen Gu competes during the women’s slopestyle qualification at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Feb. 14, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)

A highlight from a recent trip to Saas-Fee in Switzerland, where Olympic daredevils go to train, was rounding up a physio trainer from the Chinese team, a Brazilian athlete and some members of the U.S. team for a pickup hoops game at a local school.

“The idea of sports being able to bring people together really is something I subscribe to wholeheartedly,” she said. “I’ve implemented it pretty naturally throughout my life, in different ways. I just believe in it.”

From hoops to fashion and back to skiing, Gu chooses ‘all of the above’

The same woman playing hoops in Saas-Fee was the one you’ve seen on dozens of magazine covers, or modeling in Paris, Shanghai, Barcelona and on runways in Milan, the global fashion center that is also co-host of the upcoming Olympics.

Some athletes feel suffocated by the obligations that fame brings. Gu says she embraces it. She posts handwritten journals on her social media feeds on topics like mental health, communication through sport and overcoming obstacles.

“My hope is that people can read these things and feel actually affected vs. ‘Oh, here’s a picture of Eileen smiling,’” she said. “I really try to do something with my platform. That makes (fame) feel fulfilling and meaningful, as opposed to this deadweight burden, which I’ve never felt.”

All this paints a picture of an athlete with a bright future and possibilities well beyond the mountain.

FILE – Eileen Gu attends the Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2023-2024 ready-to-wear collection presented, March 6, 2023 in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena, File)

“It’s exciting to see her take — you hate to say her ‘brand,’ — but it’s her brand and go where she’s going with it,” said Shaun White, maybe the only action-sports star whose glow radiates far enough beyond the halfpipe to relate to the journey Gu is on. “She has a competitive side. She has modeling. She goes to Stanford. She’s one of those once-in-a-generation athletes who has the whole package.”

Taking care of her ‘day job,’ skiing

The fame, of course, all goes back to Gu’s first love — skiing, taking chances and pushing the boundaries of human performance.

A few weeks ago, she won a slopestyle contest in Laax, Switzerland, the record 20th World Cup freeski victory of her still-young career. She has not been beaten on a halfpipe since February 2024.

She is fully healthy for the first time in at least a year. A concussion in training last January induced seizures in the direct aftermath. It was one of the rare times, she said, that skiing truly left her scared.

“That was really personal and emotional in a way a lot of people did not expect,” she said. “A big reason for that is because I define so much of who I am by my brain.”

But she insists she is fine putting her life on the line to do what she loves. If she does her best, odds are the judges will award her three more Olympic medals in the next few weeks.

It’s not the only way Gu will be judged once the games begin. She’s at peace with that, too.

“I take it with a grain of salt,” Gu said. “Because there’s no way I can be perfect for every person that has a critique of me.”

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

By PAUL WISEMAN, AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Labor Department, citing the partial federal government shutdown, said Monday that it will not release the January jobs report on Friday as scheduled.

In a statement, the department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said: “Once funding is restored, BLS will resume normal operations and notify the public of any changes to the news release schedule.’’ It is also postponing the December report on job openings, which was supposed to come out Tuesday.

The jobs report and other key economic statistics were previously delayed by a record 43-day government shutdown last fall.

Economists had expected the January jobs report to show that employers added 80,000 jobs last month, up from 50,000 in December.

The delay in data comes at a bad time. The economy is in a puzzling place.

Growth is strong: Gross domestic product — the nation’s output of goods and services — advanced from July through September at the fastest pace in two years.

But the job market is sluggish: Employers have added just 28,000 jobs a month since March. In the 2021-2023 hiring boom that followed COVID-19 lockdowns, by contrast, they were creating 400,000 jobs a month.

Economists are trying to figure out if hiring will accelerate to catch up to strong growth or if growth will slow to match weak hiring, or if advances in artificial intelligence and automation mean that the economy can roar ahead without creating many jobs.

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By JESSICA HILL

DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — Scotty’s Castle, a 1920s vacation home for a millionaire couple and the domain of a famous con man, was a top attraction in Death Valley National Park before it closed from a flash flood. After 10 years of repairs, the landmark is offering limited tours.

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The castle nestled into a desert hillside tells the perfect Wild West story of a cunning cowboy, a search for gold, a shootout with bandits and friendship. It is a great tale — even if some of it was made up.

“The story of how it came to be in this extremely unlikely place is what makes it so special,” said Abby Wines, acting deputy superintendent of Death Valley National Park.

The National Park Service opened up the grounds for limited flood-recovery tours in the coming months, and its full reopening is eyed for a few years from now.

Around 1.4 million people visit the park located in California and Nevada every year. It is well known as the hottest place in North America and as the driest and lowest place in the continent at 282 feet below sea level.

Gold, bandits and unlikely friends

In its heyday, the castle was “the stage for a massive practical joke on all of America,” Wines said.

Chandeliers and sunlight illuminate a room at Scotty’s Castle, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Walter Scott, a con man nicknamed “Death Valley Scotty” and a former rider for the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show, took up gold prospecting, convincing people to invest in a fictional gold mine in Death Valley, where he thought none of his investors would dare to visit.

He struck the mother lode when he met Albert Johnson, who made his money in mines and health insurance. He invested in the mine but traveled to Death Valley to see where his money was going. Scott tried to scare the man off by staging a gunfight with bandits.

Johnson realized it was a scam, but he didn’t mind. He found the dry desert air good for his health, and he enjoyed the adventure, Wines said. He brought his wife, Bessie Johnson, and they became friends with Scott.

Over nine years, they built a vacation home they called Death Valley Ranch. But Scott lived on the grounds until he died, and everyone referred to it as Scotty’s Castle. He is buried on top of a hill overlooking the property.

Clouds drift over Scotty’s Castle, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Inspired by the sandstone buildings and red tile roofs of Stanford University, where Bessie Johnson went to school, the castle is decorated with stucco walls, painted tiles and elaborate woodwork. A music room with a player pipe organ, arched ceilings and a stained-glass window served as a space for entertaining guests. Outside, a weather vane of Scott is perched on the roof, and a clock tower overlooks the valley. An incomplete pool shows the point in history when Johnson’s business failed and he couldn’t afford to restart construction.

Visitors stopped by the castle to see Scott and his famed gold mine when Death Valley became a national monument in 1933. Continuing his charade, he would tell visitors he built “his” castle on top of the mine. Servants went into tunnels beneath the castle and banged on pots and pans, creating the illusion of a working mine, Wines said. The Johnsons found the story entertaining.

A picture of Albert Johnson is on display in a window at Scotty’s Castle, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Long road to restoration

When it was open, Scotty’s Castle drew 100,000 visitors every year. Guides dressed in period costumes gave tours of the castle, still with its original furnishings.

Interest in the castle remains high; the $35 flood recovery tours scheduled through March are already sold out. The proceeds will go toward completing the restoration, which will cost around $90 million.

Sunlight streams into a building at Scotty’s Castle, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Repairs, which involved a lot of utility work, have taken longer than expected because of multiple setbacks, including a fire in 2021 and historic rainfall in recent years.

“I think what most people connect to when they come out here is the story of the friendship between the rich couple, Albert and Bessie Johnson, and Death Valley Scotty, the man who started the relationship by convincing them to give him money for a gold mine that never existed,” Wines said.

By JESSICA DAMIANO

Shoveling in single-digit temperatures after the colossal winter storm this weekend, I dumped mounds of snow onto my garden beds, knowing it would protect my trees, shrubs and dormant perennials.

When the ground repeatedly freezes and thaws, as it does over winter in cold climates, that can squeeze roots, seeds, bulbs, tubers and rhizomes right out of the earth. Once exposed, they can be killed off by cold, drying winds.

But snow cover provides a heavy blanket of winter mulch that insulates the soil, prevents heat from escaping and keeps soil temperatures from seesawing. And as it melts, snow will not only water your garden but fertilize it with plant-boosting nitrogen absorbed from the air on its way to earth.

It’s a perfect display of nature taking care of itself.

Branches might not fare as well

On the downside, the same heavy blanket that keeps plants warmly tucked in can spell disaster for evergreen trees like arborvitae and Leyland cypress. When wet snow accumulates on trees, its weight can bend, buckle or snap branches. And if you don’t remove it, it can permanently disfigure them.

We can help by gently knocking snow off branches with a long-handled broom. Under normal circumstances, I do this after the storm ends. But during extended snowfalls, I go out during the storm, as well, to keep on top of the accumulation. Trees are expensive, so I’d rather brave the elements than have to replace them.

When water or accumulated snow freezes into ice, however, it’s best to leave the branches be. Attempts to crack or knock ice off plants risk further damaging bark and other delicate plant parts. All we can do is allow it to melt naturally and hope for the best.

Use garden-friendly salt

After removing snow from walkways and driveways, it’s good practice to apply rock salt to prevent ice from forming. But choosing a product can be confusing.

Magnesium chloride is the best choice, as it dissolves quickly to coat and melt ice, works in temperatures as cold as 10 degrees below zero Fahrenheit and is less likely to burn pets’ paws. It’s also the safest for your plants, which become exposed to the product via wind, soil runoff, melting snow and splashing slush, as well as deliberate snow dumping.

One drawback, however, is that magnesium chloride is also the most expensive of the commonly available ice-melt products. If your coverage area is so large that using it exclusively becomes too expensive, consider using it in areas adjacent to plants and where pets will be exposed. Then, opt for my second choice, calcium chloride, in less-trafficked areas and those away from lawns and gardens.

You’ll often see calcium chloride marketed as pet- and plant-safe, but it still can damage plants and irritate pets’ (and your own) paws. Wear gloves when handling it. If you must use it near plants, apply sparingly. And rinse pets’ paws after exposure.

As a gardener, you might recognize the chemical name of another type of rock salt, potassium chloride. Although it’s also a component of balanced fertilizers (the K in N-P-K ratios), the amounts needed to melt ice can actually harm or kill plants, so avoid using it as a deicer.

Sodium chloride is the cheapest of the bunch, but the worst choice for plants, pets and the environment. It can corrode cars, crack concrete, and poison wildlife, plants and trees.

When applying any ice-melt product, always use the least amount necessary, as they all have some potential to damage masonry. Applying a waterproofing sealant to driveways and walkways during warmer weather will help protect against ice-related cracks for several years.

Jessica Damiano writes weekly gardening columns for the AP and publishes the award-winning Weekly Dirt Newsletter. You can sign up here for weekly gardening tips and advice.

For more AP gardening stories, go to https://apnews.com/hub/gardening.