As you know, Sara and I like to climb. We have made this a priority of our life, and do our best to get out and do some long weekends and lots of climbing. This year we are heading to Red Rocks Nevada. I can hardly wait -- we leave the day after Christmas and will get six days of climbing before returning on the 2nd of the new year.
As I dream about the climbing in Nevada, I have started to dreaming about my own climbing walls. We have in our yard a woodshed. The thing about having a woodshed is that we don't have a place to burn the wood. In fact, it should be sold for a couple hundred dollars. The shed is sheltered, sturdy, and that would give me motivation for clearing out all the crap in there...besides selling the wood.
Ah, the dream continues...
Friday, December 14, 2007
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Thankful
This is the first holiday without my dad. I think I'm suppose to be sad, or depressed, or maybe in deep thought.
I'm not.
In fact, Sara and I are doing this holiday by ourselves, with a few visits with friends. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday -- food, family, and relaxing. That is my kind of holiday. I like the idea of enjoying and celebrating something that is all inclusive.
So some things I am thankful for ...
...Climbing
...Good Health
...Balance
...Friends
...Family
I am very thankful for Sara and Hana. They both bring me the most happiness.
I'm not.
In fact, Sara and I are doing this holiday by ourselves, with a few visits with friends. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday -- food, family, and relaxing. That is my kind of holiday. I like the idea of enjoying and celebrating something that is all inclusive.
So some things I am thankful for ...
...Climbing
...Good Health
...Balance
...Friends
...Family
I am very thankful for Sara and Hana. They both bring me the most happiness.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
K. David Prince March 19, 1943 - September 15, 2007
For those of you who were not aware, my father was recently diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Last night at around 7:30 PM he took a couple of last deep breaths and then stopped.
The last two weeks of his life were very high. I commented to my dad "You haven't sounded this good in a very long time." During the second week my dad had expressed some fear of coming off this high, and by mid week it was clear he was coming back down. Friday night dad had a rough night.
When I arrived my dad wouldn't talk to me. He would say a few phrases to the nurse, he talked to his brother and sister, but he wouldn't talk to me. He did smile at my joke -- "Hey dad, how does Chinese sound for dinner?"
Around seven o'clock, Kathy asked if dads head hurt. He responded yes, and Kathy gave him a bit more mediation. He complained of no other pain through out the day. Kathy and I soon after went out for a walk with her boys. We dropped the boys off to watch a movie with some very kind neighbors, and after a bit more walking headed home. As we turned the corner I told Kathy I was going to sleep on the couch with dad, because I felt that it was going to be a very short time until the end. My Uncle Keith came out and told us that he had passed.
I had told my dad earlier in this process that I didn't know if I could watch him die. I find it interesting that he waited until my sister and I left the house.
This kind of feeling is hard to explain. There are waves of grief, and some uncontrolled crying. But there is also relief. He had very little pain in the grand scheme.
He was a good person. I miss him already.
The last two weeks of his life were very high. I commented to my dad "You haven't sounded this good in a very long time." During the second week my dad had expressed some fear of coming off this high, and by mid week it was clear he was coming back down. Friday night dad had a rough night.
When I arrived my dad wouldn't talk to me. He would say a few phrases to the nurse, he talked to his brother and sister, but he wouldn't talk to me. He did smile at my joke -- "Hey dad, how does Chinese sound for dinner?"
Around seven o'clock, Kathy asked if dads head hurt. He responded yes, and Kathy gave him a bit more mediation. He complained of no other pain through out the day. Kathy and I soon after went out for a walk with her boys. We dropped the boys off to watch a movie with some very kind neighbors, and after a bit more walking headed home. As we turned the corner I told Kathy I was going to sleep on the couch with dad, because I felt that it was going to be a very short time until the end. My Uncle Keith came out and told us that he had passed.
I had told my dad earlier in this process that I didn't know if I could watch him die. I find it interesting that he waited until my sister and I left the house.
This kind of feeling is hard to explain. There are waves of grief, and some uncontrolled crying. But there is also relief. He had very little pain in the grand scheme.
He was a good person. I miss him already.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
She's so Pretty
It has been years since Sara and I attended a wedding. A couple weekends ago Sara's cousin was married, and had one of the most fantastic parties I have ever attended. The property was her cousin's uncle's place on Vashon Island. It was like a small Italian village -- or how I imagine one to be since I have never been to Italy.
I took the above picture with my cell phone, and I just think Sara looks so amazing. It was on the way to this wedding so that is why she looks so good, and I could lose a couple pounds.
Monday, September 03, 2007
I'm getting Fat
I am usually busy with climbing. It is the primary activity that I use to stay in shape, but lately I've had more going on than usual.
Back in April my Dad had an incident where he collapsed at a gas station. He ended up driving himself to the ER. As they ER was about to discharge him, he collapsed again. They did a cat-scan and it turned out that he had a dark spot on his brain.
In mid-July he started to seizure and since his cancer has taken its toll on him. He's now in hospice care at his brothers home and has lots of visitors.
In the meantime, Sara has decided to go out on her own, and I have started a side business doing tech support for the small businesses in Kitsap. My sister is staying with my dad, and been doing most of the care. And we have her two year old golden retriever, which is so mellow everyone thinks he's wonderful...yet he keeps getting into trouble with us.
So as you might have guessed, I am not getting much exercise. The last time I was out climbing, was mid-July and I've gained 10 pounds. It is very sad. I'm starting to look like a dumpling. Sara and I have plans to get back into the climbing gym, and to start walking the dogs but even that is difficult as the weeks have been so busy.
Oh well. I'm sure I can work off the 10 pounds eventually.
Back in April my Dad had an incident where he collapsed at a gas station. He ended up driving himself to the ER. As they ER was about to discharge him, he collapsed again. They did a cat-scan and it turned out that he had a dark spot on his brain.
In mid-July he started to seizure and since his cancer has taken its toll on him. He's now in hospice care at his brothers home and has lots of visitors.
In the meantime, Sara has decided to go out on her own, and I have started a side business doing tech support for the small businesses in Kitsap. My sister is staying with my dad, and been doing most of the care. And we have her two year old golden retriever, which is so mellow everyone thinks he's wonderful...yet he keeps getting into trouble with us.
So as you might have guessed, I am not getting much exercise. The last time I was out climbing, was mid-July and I've gained 10 pounds. It is very sad. I'm starting to look like a dumpling. Sara and I have plans to get back into the climbing gym, and to start walking the dogs but even that is difficult as the weeks have been so busy.
Oh well. I'm sure I can work off the 10 pounds eventually.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Slippery Slopes
Recently, Sara and I were visiting with my Dad, Sister, Uncle and Aunt, and a friend of my dad's. This longtime friend showed up and provided great conversation. It was a blast, but he liked to bring up the touchy subjects. My poor sister was inundated with liberal/progressives to battle her down.
My sister has never been a great debater. To defend her position (not that I'm sure what that position is) she argued the Slippery Slope. So here was how I saw it --
Of course, that got my sister in a position where everyone was trying to provide their opinion and convince her to change her own. My self included. I felt slightly bad -- that's brotherly love.
What really bother me about the "Slippery Slope" argument is it has no position of substance. Not to mention that it can be used to support either side of the argument; it is a straw man. I mean someone might say that legislating "Abstinence Sex" is a slippery slope, because it leads to a government sponsored religion. Or that providing health care to poor children is a slipper slope, because it will lead to a national health care system.
This Slippery Slope argument is used so that instead of saying "Oh, I am mistaken in my position. If what you say is correct then I'd agree," they can then say "Oh, Well that is a slippery slope...If you follow it far enough there are a million What ifs"
Why are people afraid to have their opinion changed? Is it really that bad for you to say "I'm not familiar with that topic, where can I find more about it?" Or are you so afraid of what could be a remote possibility?
I like to read my news on the Internet over watching the television. The reason is that if a statement is made, I can Google it to get context. If I cannot find anything of reference I can then disregard the writer as a poor example of a reporter and move on knowing that such a writer is not worth my time. With television you get a personality who pushes an opinion, and is on daily and is only held accountable by the ratings. So I have very little impact on the ratings -- I have to turn off my television, stop buying from the advertisers, write letters complaining, etc. I think people who do the foot work on the Internet can find the transcripts, the video, and the context. You don't have to depend on a system to be truthful to you, you just have to be honest with yourself.
My sister has never been a great debater. To defend her position (not that I'm sure what that position is) she argued the Slippery Slope. So here was how I saw it --
- Dad's friend mentions sex education for kindergartner's
- Sister makes an acknowledgment of disgust towards the topic having heard it on CNN
- Other commentary rises
- A lull in the conversation
- Me -- points out the miss-information and corrects the topic by providing context.
- Sister says -- Yeah, well that is a slipper slope
Of course, that got my sister in a position where everyone was trying to provide their opinion and convince her to change her own. My self included. I felt slightly bad -- that's brotherly love.
What really bother me about the "Slippery Slope" argument is it has no position of substance. Not to mention that it can be used to support either side of the argument; it is a straw man. I mean someone might say that legislating "Abstinence Sex" is a slippery slope, because it leads to a government sponsored religion. Or that providing health care to poor children is a slipper slope, because it will lead to a national health care system.
This Slippery Slope argument is used so that instead of saying "Oh, I am mistaken in my position. If what you say is correct then I'd agree," they can then say "Oh, Well that is a slippery slope...If you follow it far enough there are a million What ifs"
Why are people afraid to have their opinion changed? Is it really that bad for you to say "I'm not familiar with that topic, where can I find more about it?" Or are you so afraid of what could be a remote possibility?
I like to read my news on the Internet over watching the television. The reason is that if a statement is made, I can Google it to get context. If I cannot find anything of reference I can then disregard the writer as a poor example of a reporter and move on knowing that such a writer is not worth my time. With television you get a personality who pushes an opinion, and is on daily and is only held accountable by the ratings. So I have very little impact on the ratings -- I have to turn off my television, stop buying from the advertisers, write letters complaining, etc. I think people who do the foot work on the Internet can find the transcripts, the video, and the context. You don't have to depend on a system to be truthful to you, you just have to be honest with yourself.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Why do we celebrate the 4th of July?
My eight year old nephew asked me that question yesterday while we were all visiting. Made me wish that I had thought about it a bit more. I kept my answer to the bits I could remember from high school, but for what I told him I believe I told him the truth.We had a very nice visit at my Dad's place in Bellingham. Unfortunately, the 4th being in the middle of the week made it difficult to stay the night. Sara and I both had meetings and work the following morning. But the family all got together, we had hot dogs, and Kathy made burgers, and Lars cooked up oysters -- I have the pearl to prove it. Seriously, my dad handed me an oyster and as I ate it I got a pearl.
We had a nice week so far... We started it with a weekend at Smith Rock for some fantastic climbing, and amazing weather for some camping. Now, we are recovering from the fourth.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
My angry driver
This morning on my way to work I had a driver turn his car into mine and honk at me. Why this driver did this is hard to explain, but I think it had more to do with being cranky or angry than with me.
So I came to an intersection where the cross street has one lane that extends into two lanes after going through the light. From my perspective this gives people wanting to make a right turn an open lane to turn into. Remember the rules of the road say you must continue through an intersection without changing lanes.
So as all the cars are going through the light and into the left lane, I make a complete stop at the red light. I then proceed to make a right turn into the open right lane. Ahead of me in the right lane is a big semi truck which I purposefully pulled in behind so as to not crowd the left lane, plus he was moving slow so I figured most of the drivers would want to go around the big truck.
Then all the sudden I hear a honk. I look in my left drivers side mirror and a car is turning into me. I continued to move forward figuring if I stop I'm going to be hit, but the guy then pulls up next to me, gives me the finger, and then proceeds to drive past the slow semi truck that is in front of me.
Someone needed a hug this morning apparently.
So I came to an intersection where the cross street has one lane that extends into two lanes after going through the light. From my perspective this gives people wanting to make a right turn an open lane to turn into. Remember the rules of the road say you must continue through an intersection without changing lanes.
So as all the cars are going through the light and into the left lane, I make a complete stop at the red light. I then proceed to make a right turn into the open right lane. Ahead of me in the right lane is a big semi truck which I purposefully pulled in behind so as to not crowd the left lane, plus he was moving slow so I figured most of the drivers would want to go around the big truck.
Then all the sudden I hear a honk. I look in my left drivers side mirror and a car is turning into me. I continued to move forward figuring if I stop I'm going to be hit, but the guy then pulls up next to me, gives me the finger, and then proceeds to drive past the slow semi truck that is in front of me.
Someone needed a hug this morning apparently.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
No more Television
So I canceled our satellite television. I figured at $65/mo I could save a lot, and we don't really watch much anyway. Besides, the shows we do like will be out on DVD in a year, and the ones we want to keep up on are likely available online.
Surprisingly, I am missing it more than I thought I would. I mean, there isn't anything on but I often would put it on for background. Or I would find two shows and I would pause one while I watched the other until a commercial would pop up. But some how saving almost $800 for the year seems like a good idea. That means I can buy $800 worth of television from apple or bittorrent.
Now I'm in the process of finding a tuner card for my machine so we can download the television we like to the computer and play it out to the tube. I suppose I could just hook up a monitor but I thought I'd like it better if I could watch my actual t.v. Besides, I have the tube available for our DVD's and NetFlix.
I think I'll miss PBS the most. I might have to put up an antenna for local channels. We'll see.
Surprisingly, I am missing it more than I thought I would. I mean, there isn't anything on but I often would put it on for background. Or I would find two shows and I would pause one while I watched the other until a commercial would pop up. But some how saving almost $800 for the year seems like a good idea. That means I can buy $800 worth of television from apple or bittorrent.
Now I'm in the process of finding a tuner card for my machine so we can download the television we like to the computer and play it out to the tube. I suppose I could just hook up a monitor but I thought I'd like it better if I could watch my actual t.v. Besides, I have the tube available for our DVD's and NetFlix.
I think I'll miss PBS the most. I might have to put up an antenna for local channels. We'll see.
Friday, June 01, 2007
Weekend of Firsts
Last weekend, Memorial Weekend, Sara and I were joined by about 10 other people in Leavenworth for several days of our favorite activity -- rock climbing. Our first day was mostly orienting ourselves, and we did some top roping at a spot that is popular but no one was around Friday. Sara and I spent our second day out on the hard stuff with our friends Shawn and Ken. Shawn was our rope gun and we had a couple of ropes running between the four of us. We did some fantastic climbs and as usual after about three I was totally whooped. I have a goal climb though which is to lead this 5.8 crack at the Alphabet wall. I'm certain I can lead it, but doing it while placing my own gear is something I'm a bit nervous about. I have lots of excuses though -- I'm old, I'm relatively new to climbing, I break easy...
Day three was a day of firsts. Sara lead her first 5.5 crack on trad gear, and we left the gear in so Ashley, and Kari could do their first outdoor leads. I also lead the 5.5 and had fun on a 5.9 and 5.4 cracks. I should have gone back and lead the 5.9 (it was just about three hard moves) but as I said, I have lots of excuses. Day four was the easiest day. We spent time leading a 5.6 with gear again. Sara did it and I checked placements, then Kari mock lead it with Sara checking the placements. I climbed and cleaned my own placements and was very happy with how I placed my gear.
Leading on your own gear placements is kind of scary. If it fails...it is your own fault. We watched our friend, Shawn, on a very hard climb, and he did something super smart -- he placed two pieces of gear right near each other. It was a good thing too because just after he moved beyond the gear he kicked out the lower piece. We all breathed after he placed a new piece of gear. When he got down, he didn't even no he'd kicked out his gear. It was just good he had that backup.
So lots of good experiences and we cannot wait to get up to Squamish, B.C.
Oh -- I saved off the beard. Yep...it is true. But I'm definitely going to grow it out this fall.
Day three was a day of firsts. Sara lead her first 5.5 crack on trad gear, and we left the gear in so Ashley, and Kari could do their first outdoor leads. I also lead the 5.5 and had fun on a 5.9 and 5.4 cracks. I should have gone back and lead the 5.9 (it was just about three hard moves) but as I said, I have lots of excuses. Day four was the easiest day. We spent time leading a 5.6 with gear again. Sara did it and I checked placements, then Kari mock lead it with Sara checking the placements. I climbed and cleaned my own placements and was very happy with how I placed my gear.
Leading on your own gear placements is kind of scary. If it fails...it is your own fault. We watched our friend, Shawn, on a very hard climb, and he did something super smart -- he placed two pieces of gear right near each other. It was a good thing too because just after he moved beyond the gear he kicked out the lower piece. We all breathed after he placed a new piece of gear. When he got down, he didn't even no he'd kicked out his gear. It was just good he had that backup.
So lots of good experiences and we cannot wait to get up to Squamish, B.C.
Oh -- I saved off the beard. Yep...it is true. But I'm definitely going to grow it out this fall.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Christian Terrorist?
Why is it that if a person of the Muslim faith straps a bomb to their chest they are called a "terrorist," and a Christian with the intentions to bomb anyone who would protest Falwell's funeral is just called a "bomber?"
Can we say "hypocrisy?"
Can we say "hypocrisy?"
Monday, April 30, 2007
An Epic Adventure
Sara and I had a weekend climbing which was a grand time. We started on Saturday at Index doing some trail clean up. The WCC arranged a crag clean up to foster a relationship so that sani-cans can be put in place. Otherwise you have hikers and climbers digging cat-holes all over the place, at best. Currently, the later is what is taking place if the individuals don't know about the park just in town.
Day two took us to Leavenworth for some visiting with friends and climbing. Sara and I are early to rise and start climbing. Thus began the adventure. We started by reading a couple guide books. Picked a climb to do an prepared for the climb.
Now guide books are to provide the climber with appropriate information to help make the climb safe but can still have errors. In our case, we started a climb that did not tell us we had to climb to the top. We made our first mistake in assuming we could rappel to where we started. Normally going to the top would not be a problem, but we were looking for a quick single pitch route so didn't bring enough gear to climb all three pitches. Not to mention the route was not clearly marked. Both books that we had reviewed had some errors.
So we began our climb. I started by setting a piece of gear to secure me before the first bolt. I climbed up and at the bolt saw two more bolts. One was a traverse to my right the other was a good 15 feet up from there. Now, normally, I'd traverse and clip in, but I presumed it was part of the climb next to us and was rated much harder than I wanted to climb. I decided to continue up and took the run out to the clip above me. It was no problem. Beyond that, I continued to climb, but there were no more bolts, and the anchors I could see (again presuming they were for the climb next to us) were far off to my right. I placed another piece of gear and then ran out my line until I got to a point where I could build my own anchor.
Now, problem two became very clear even though we knew it would be a problem. The wind and the noise of the river made it impossible to communicate. I sat at the anchor I had built and kept pulling up the rope. Finally, I saw Sara pop-up over the edge and she cleared the gear I had placed. Sara, wisely, eased out to make sure I'd take up the slack. However, she had to make a guess that I was safely anchored before making a move. When she reached me she promptly scolded me for running out the rope.
Now we had to make a decision -- Do we go up? Or down climb? We choose to down climb, because again to our right we could see the rock had been bolted and we didn't really bring enough gear to go up. I began to lower Sara to the anchors that I had skipped before. I cleaned up my anchor and down climbed and traversed to her. This was particularly scary because I had no place to put any gear to protect myself as I moved down, and it would have been a long fall that would have left a nice rock rash.
Once at the anchor Sara informs me that we don't have the rope length to rappel back to our safe place on the ground. I suggested I could rappel and see, and then just hitch my way back up if it was a problem, but we could also see more bolts going up.
There were two crews below us, so we went up. I cruised up the slab hardly using my hands. Again Sara came up and we had a choice again. We just happened to have one of our friends walkie-talkies, and we made a call out to our friends. They had four ropes between them, so if they sent up a climber we could all rappel and not lose any gear.
We got a message through to our friends and they made a plan to climb up to the anchors. Many people discourage the walkie-talkie idea, but I have to say that if you use it only to pass along commands, and only to clarify safety needs it is a great backup system. Used properly and they can be a life saver, used wrong and they can be dangerous. In our case, I was very happy to have one with us.
I had Sara lower me to the first anchors. As I went down I clipped in some gear to protect her from any falls. At the anchors we lowered Sara and Kari (who came up just to have a climb) and Mark (a new climbing friend) and I tied the ropes together, cleaned the gear and rappelled.
It was quite the adventure, but I'm very proud of how we handled it. We could have climbed our way into something very dangerous but we kept our cool and practiced our safety the whole time. We also figured that in a worse case scenario we could have rappelled the length of our rope, built and anchor and then down climbed the last bit with the gear from an intermediate anchor.
Now we have to get a second rope. And some bail webbing, which would have made our down climbing safer. Such is life though, and we live and learn. I'm very thankful for all our climbing friends who have taught us all our safety skills and didn't think we were too insane when we asked question after question.
Be safe, Climb On, have fun.
Day two took us to Leavenworth for some visiting with friends and climbing. Sara and I are early to rise and start climbing. Thus began the adventure. We started by reading a couple guide books. Picked a climb to do an prepared for the climb.
Now guide books are to provide the climber with appropriate information to help make the climb safe but can still have errors. In our case, we started a climb that did not tell us we had to climb to the top. We made our first mistake in assuming we could rappel to where we started. Normally going to the top would not be a problem, but we were looking for a quick single pitch route so didn't bring enough gear to climb all three pitches. Not to mention the route was not clearly marked. Both books that we had reviewed had some errors.
So we began our climb. I started by setting a piece of gear to secure me before the first bolt. I climbed up and at the bolt saw two more bolts. One was a traverse to my right the other was a good 15 feet up from there. Now, normally, I'd traverse and clip in, but I presumed it was part of the climb next to us and was rated much harder than I wanted to climb. I decided to continue up and took the run out to the clip above me. It was no problem. Beyond that, I continued to climb, but there were no more bolts, and the anchors I could see (again presuming they were for the climb next to us) were far off to my right. I placed another piece of gear and then ran out my line until I got to a point where I could build my own anchor.
Now, problem two became very clear even though we knew it would be a problem. The wind and the noise of the river made it impossible to communicate. I sat at the anchor I had built and kept pulling up the rope. Finally, I saw Sara pop-up over the edge and she cleared the gear I had placed. Sara, wisely, eased out to make sure I'd take up the slack. However, she had to make a guess that I was safely anchored before making a move. When she reached me she promptly scolded me for running out the rope.
Now we had to make a decision -- Do we go up? Or down climb? We choose to down climb, because again to our right we could see the rock had been bolted and we didn't really bring enough gear to go up. I began to lower Sara to the anchors that I had skipped before. I cleaned up my anchor and down climbed and traversed to her. This was particularly scary because I had no place to put any gear to protect myself as I moved down, and it would have been a long fall that would have left a nice rock rash.
Once at the anchor Sara informs me that we don't have the rope length to rappel back to our safe place on the ground. I suggested I could rappel and see, and then just hitch my way back up if it was a problem, but we could also see more bolts going up.
There were two crews below us, so we went up. I cruised up the slab hardly using my hands. Again Sara came up and we had a choice again. We just happened to have one of our friends walkie-talkies, and we made a call out to our friends. They had four ropes between them, so if they sent up a climber we could all rappel and not lose any gear.
We got a message through to our friends and they made a plan to climb up to the anchors. Many people discourage the walkie-talkie idea, but I have to say that if you use it only to pass along commands, and only to clarify safety needs it is a great backup system. Used properly and they can be a life saver, used wrong and they can be dangerous. In our case, I was very happy to have one with us.
I had Sara lower me to the first anchors. As I went down I clipped in some gear to protect her from any falls. At the anchors we lowered Sara and Kari (who came up just to have a climb) and Mark (a new climbing friend) and I tied the ropes together, cleaned the gear and rappelled.
It was quite the adventure, but I'm very proud of how we handled it. We could have climbed our way into something very dangerous but we kept our cool and practiced our safety the whole time. We also figured that in a worse case scenario we could have rappelled the length of our rope, built and anchor and then down climbed the last bit with the gear from an intermediate anchor.
Now we have to get a second rope. And some bail webbing, which would have made our down climbing safer. Such is life though, and we live and learn. I'm very thankful for all our climbing friends who have taught us all our safety skills and didn't think we were too insane when we asked question after question.
Be safe, Climb On, have fun.
Monday, March 26, 2007
New Gear!
I'm so excited! Sara let me purchase some new gear. I found a product that gets great reviews and the cost was so good I just couldn't pass it up. I got eight new Durango cams which are a copy of the Trango© Flexcam®. And because I bought them on sale, and they were having a special they gave me an extra cam for free! So I got nine new cams for climbing.Having the new cams will fill out the remainder of our rack and we should be able to safely climb and build anchors and all the important stuff. Now I just have to find a way to stay focused until the weekend.
We are taking the first week of April to climb with a group of great kids from the climbing team. These kids can out climb us any time. It is still going to be fun though. We are doing a few days at Smith, and a few days at Vantage, and I'm hoping (fingers are crossed) that we'll get a day out at Leavenworth.
Yeah...climbing outdoors and new gear.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Get in Line!
I am an "old man" driver. I put my cruise control on and sit in the right lane. When there is another driver who is even slower than me, I check my left, change lanes, speed up to pass quickly, and then move back to the right lane and sit on my cruise control. So what is up with these @$$ holes who pass on the left going one mile faster than the guy on the right? Really? Are they worried they are going to get a speeding ticket? Then get in line! One mile an hour more won't get you there significantly faster. Put your damn cruise control on and relax already.
These people retard the flow of the freeway. If some guy wants to go 100 in the 60 zone, get out of the way. Quit controlling traffic, you're causing a hazard for everyone else. You are! If an incident occurs more people will get caught up in it because both lanes of traffic (or more) will be involved.
Sure you'll be speeding -- that is the point anyway right? Since just about 99.9% of all drivers are going at the limit you must not care about going a bit faster? Otherwise you'd be in the right lane with your cruise control on...
End Rant.
These people retard the flow of the freeway. If some guy wants to go 100 in the 60 zone, get out of the way. Quit controlling traffic, you're causing a hazard for everyone else. You are! If an incident occurs more people will get caught up in it because both lanes of traffic (or more) will be involved.
Sure you'll be speeding -- that is the point anyway right? Since just about 99.9% of all drivers are going at the limit you must not care about going a bit faster? Otherwise you'd be in the right lane with your cruise control on...
End Rant.
Friday, March 09, 2007
My Chocolate Addiction
I have been attempting to quit chocolate. I know that seems crazy, but I find it exceptionally difficult to do -- I have a chocolate bar stuck to my whiteboard with a label that says "Just say no ..."
My office buys bags of chocolates from Costco that I have requested many times that we don't get. I'm actually surprised that they (those controlling the funds) don't use that as an excuse to save money. Seriously, every time they do an order they spend $40+ on bags of chocolates. And don't get me going on all the soda that they buy too.
The other day I was in a meeting and there was a big jar filled with mini chocolates (42 calories) and I reached in and had the little mini chocolate in my mouth before I realized -- I am on a chocolate diet! I found it difficult to not eat another. So I did.
Now, I wouldn't compare this to being an alcoholic as that has an aspect of diminished returns. The more you drink the less your brain works correctly, you endanger your health, and potentially the health of others. Chocolate -- well if you eat it in large quantities you may have some serious health issues as well, but driving wouldn't be a problem. Anyway, I definitely know what it is like to not have the self control when you are surrounded by your vice.
The good news? I've lost three pounds in the last couple months.
My office buys bags of chocolates from Costco that I have requested many times that we don't get. I'm actually surprised that they (those controlling the funds) don't use that as an excuse to save money. Seriously, every time they do an order they spend $40+ on bags of chocolates. And don't get me going on all the soda that they buy too.
The other day I was in a meeting and there was a big jar filled with mini chocolates (42 calories) and I reached in and had the little mini chocolate in my mouth before I realized -- I am on a chocolate diet! I found it difficult to not eat another. So I did.
Now, I wouldn't compare this to being an alcoholic as that has an aspect of diminished returns. The more you drink the less your brain works correctly, you endanger your health, and potentially the health of others. Chocolate -- well if you eat it in large quantities you may have some serious health issues as well, but driving wouldn't be a problem. Anyway, I definitely know what it is like to not have the self control when you are surrounded by your vice.
The good news? I've lost three pounds in the last couple months.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
The buzz in my brain
Do you ever have those days, weeks, or months when you sit at your desk and you try to get something accomplished, but you seem to only check your e-mail? I've been stuck in that rut for a few weeks now. I get more done than reading my e-mail, but I don't get the work finished in a way that it feels "done." I don't know if that is because the task isn't clear, or that so many tasks are popping up and changing the priority, or maybe it is just busy work.
My brain has been wandering in and out of thoughts all this time too. Partly work related, but often not on what I'm should be focused on. Even when I get home I'm looking for distraction. I will read part of a comic book, or a few pages of a book (or multiple books.) Yet, I never seem to keep a focus that would let me complete even the distraction. I have managed to help clean the kitchen with Sara, fold laundry, and make the bed -- busy work.
I was really glad to climb yesterday, big surprise for you I'm sure. I was really focused and my brain was idle for a bit. It makes me wish that we all valued free time more. I'm sure we'd all agree that we need more time for holiday and travel, but I'd bet we'd all put in more office hours to save for the future. Okay, before I get distracted again....done.
My brain has been wandering in and out of thoughts all this time too. Partly work related, but often not on what I'm should be focused on. Even when I get home I'm looking for distraction. I will read part of a comic book, or a few pages of a book (or multiple books.) Yet, I never seem to keep a focus that would let me complete even the distraction. I have managed to help clean the kitchen with Sara, fold laundry, and make the bed -- busy work.
I was really glad to climb yesterday, big surprise for you I'm sure. I was really focused and my brain was idle for a bit. It makes me wish that we all valued free time more. I'm sure we'd all agree that we need more time for holiday and travel, but I'd bet we'd all put in more office hours to save for the future. Okay, before I get distracted again....done.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
What is wrong with Honda?
If you could get a SUV with all wheel drive that got 42.2 mpg or you could get the same SUV with 23 mpg, which would you choose? I'm guessing you would probably choose the SUV that gets 42.2 mpg. So, what if you were not allowed to have the SUV with the higher performance engine?
I'm am completely dumb founded as to why Honda has both of these vehicles but won't sell the higher performing vehicle in the United States. In the UK the CR-V comes with a CTDi diesel that gets nearly twice the performance as the American model without the diesel engine (Oh and the UK non-diesel that gets 34 mpg.)
How does it make you feel that Honda tells you that there isn't a market in the USA for a high mileage SUV?
Please write to Honda and your state Representatives and let them know you want the CTDi available in the American Honda vehicles.
American Honda Motor Co., Inc.
Honda Automobile Customer Service
1919 Torrance Boulevard
Mail Stop: 500 - 2N - 7D
Torrance, CA 90501-2746
I'm am completely dumb founded as to why Honda has both of these vehicles but won't sell the higher performing vehicle in the United States. In the UK the CR-V comes with a CTDi diesel that gets nearly twice the performance as the American model without the diesel engine (Oh and the UK non-diesel that gets 34 mpg.)
How does it make you feel that Honda tells you that there isn't a market in the USA for a high mileage SUV?
Please write to Honda and your state Representatives and let them know you want the CTDi available in the American Honda vehicles.
American Honda Motor Co., Inc.
Honda Automobile Customer Service
1919 Torrance Boulevard
Mail Stop: 500 - 2N - 7D
Torrance, CA 90501-2746
Pull Down 2007
Our local gym has a bouldering competition every year. It is a series of three comps and you add the top five scores from each comp. It is fun to work the problems, but what was really impressive was that Sara was second in her group. I did okay, but the boys are very hard to compete against. Most of them are much stronger climbers than myself. And I don't work the short hard problems as much as the roped climbing. Sara's group was very strong too, giving the guys a good run for it.
I was really proud that I managed to work out one particular problem. I have gotten much stronger and so for me to stick to the problem until I figured out the moves was kind of a big deal. I'm working on being more patient on my climb and not just lunging for something I know I cannot stick.
Sara had to leave the final comp early for a fancy dinner, but even with climbing just to get her points she still managed to whoop me. I was just excited to win a door prize. We both won small prizes in the raffle -- I got a huge t-shirt, and Sara got a mug that she can put her coffee in on the go. I never win door prizes so even a t-shirt was pretty cool.
Now for a rest day.
I was really proud that I managed to work out one particular problem. I have gotten much stronger and so for me to stick to the problem until I figured out the moves was kind of a big deal. I'm working on being more patient on my climb and not just lunging for something I know I cannot stick.
Sara had to leave the final comp early for a fancy dinner, but even with climbing just to get her points she still managed to whoop me. I was just excited to win a door prize. We both won small prizes in the raffle -- I got a huge t-shirt, and Sara got a mug that she can put her coffee in on the go. I never win door prizes so even a t-shirt was pretty cool.
Now for a rest day.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Cold Bones
Since our last climbing trip, I have been very impatient to get outdoors again. At the end of February we'll be heading down to Smith Rock for a weekend outing with a few friends. The problem is the weather has been very cold. Some mornings have been in the low teens, and the day doesn't warm up until after noon. Hopefully by the last weekend of the month it will have warmed up enough to climb all day. I think after Joshua Tree, I'll be able to handle the cold nights. This time I have my ultra warm jacket, and I'll make sure Sara has our third sleeping bag to double up in case she gets cold at night.
I think this year, we are going to be weekend warriors. It won't be every weekend, but I think any weekend that isn't wet, we are going to be someplace that warm and has stone to climb on.
This spring and summer I'm going to spend as much time cleaning up my yard too. It has been a number of years since we have taken care of our yard. We've done a few improvements -- new windows, doors, but now I'd like to make a garden and work on some of my projects.
So not much has been going on. Sara and I have basically been lazy. We did have a nice visit with my Dad last weekend. Hana got to swim and play on the beach and took several days to recover. Her tail didn't have a full wag until Tuesday.
Okay, that is enough of my random ramblings.
I think this year, we are going to be weekend warriors. It won't be every weekend, but I think any weekend that isn't wet, we are going to be someplace that warm and has stone to climb on.
This spring and summer I'm going to spend as much time cleaning up my yard too. It has been a number of years since we have taken care of our yard. We've done a few improvements -- new windows, doors, but now I'd like to make a garden and work on some of my projects.
So not much has been going on. Sara and I have basically been lazy. We did have a nice visit with my Dad last weekend. Hana got to swim and play on the beach and took several days to recover. Her tail didn't have a full wag until Tuesday.
Okay, that is enough of my random ramblings.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Five Things Meme
So my friend Cam hit up Sara for the meme. This then led Sara to ping me. So here you go:
Five Things you may not know about me.
1. I believe in Ghosts. Or Guardians, Angels, whatever you want to call them/it. Seems kind of strange, but it started when I was ten years old after my uncle died from cancer. Sometime after I had a dream, and my uncle told me something. I don't remember what he told me, but I do remember waking up thinking, "What did he says? I need to write it down." I fell back to sleep and couldn't remember the details in the morning. So that was my first "encounter." A few years later I was over at a friends house, and we'd been playing all day. In the afternoon we stopped to make lunch and relax on the couch. While sitting on the couch we heard a huge crash in my friends bedroom. When we walked back to the bedroom we couldn't find anything at all that could have crashed to make that sound (not even in the closet.) As we walked back to the couch we saw someone run out the door. The part that freaked us out was my friends younger brother was outside on the side walk playing with some action figures but he swore that no one had come out the front door. The next time anything like this happened was a few years ago. My martial arts instructor past away from a heart attack. I woke up after a dream where Sa Bum Nim Zoppi had a conversation with me. This time I had disturbed Sara and she made me get up and write down what I could remember of the dream.
2. I am highly susceptible to visual information. Television, or Movies often come back to haunt my dreams. When I was 19 years old I had a medical condition and the doctors gave me Demerol. Demerol is very similar to Morphine and helped me with the pain I was in. Up until that point I never remembered my dreams. I knew I had them, but I didn't remember them, hence not writing down my first dream of my uncle. After the Demerol I started to remember dreams, particularly scary dreams. I once woke Sara up after watching X-Files screaming "Scully, Scully, Help Me!" And not too long ago I put a nice bruise on Sara's leg as I kicked her in my sleep after watching Battle Star Galactica.
3. I was a senior in high school before I ever read a book cover-to-cover (on my own without the help of others.) The book was "Nigger" by Dick Gregory. Up until then I was never be able to finish a book in the time allotted. In fact, I had tried to read All Quiet on the Western Front three different times in the eight, ninth, and tenth grades. I have not yet gone back and re-read it. I am still a very slow reader, but I do enjoy reading very much.
4. I hate swimming pools. As a youth I was a very good swimmer. When I was 14 I was nationally ranked in the top ten in my age group. Now, I don't like to swim in a pool. If I'm going to swim, it is going to be in warm tropical water with a snorkel and fins.
5. I have never tried or used illegal drugs. Never. Not once.
Now I am suppose to ping five more people, but I don't know if I have five friends...David, Chad, Scott, Alex, Kari
Five Things you may not know about me.
1. I believe in Ghosts. Or Guardians, Angels, whatever you want to call them/it. Seems kind of strange, but it started when I was ten years old after my uncle died from cancer. Sometime after I had a dream, and my uncle told me something. I don't remember what he told me, but I do remember waking up thinking, "What did he says? I need to write it down." I fell back to sleep and couldn't remember the details in the morning. So that was my first "encounter." A few years later I was over at a friends house, and we'd been playing all day. In the afternoon we stopped to make lunch and relax on the couch. While sitting on the couch we heard a huge crash in my friends bedroom. When we walked back to the bedroom we couldn't find anything at all that could have crashed to make that sound (not even in the closet.) As we walked back to the couch we saw someone run out the door. The part that freaked us out was my friends younger brother was outside on the side walk playing with some action figures but he swore that no one had come out the front door. The next time anything like this happened was a few years ago. My martial arts instructor past away from a heart attack. I woke up after a dream where Sa Bum Nim Zoppi had a conversation with me. This time I had disturbed Sara and she made me get up and write down what I could remember of the dream.
2. I am highly susceptible to visual information. Television, or Movies often come back to haunt my dreams. When I was 19 years old I had a medical condition and the doctors gave me Demerol. Demerol is very similar to Morphine and helped me with the pain I was in. Up until that point I never remembered my dreams. I knew I had them, but I didn't remember them, hence not writing down my first dream of my uncle. After the Demerol I started to remember dreams, particularly scary dreams. I once woke Sara up after watching X-Files screaming "Scully, Scully, Help Me!" And not too long ago I put a nice bruise on Sara's leg as I kicked her in my sleep after watching Battle Star Galactica.
3. I was a senior in high school before I ever read a book cover-to-cover (on my own without the help of others.) The book was "Nigger" by Dick Gregory. Up until then I was never be able to finish a book in the time allotted. In fact, I had tried to read All Quiet on the Western Front three different times in the eight, ninth, and tenth grades. I have not yet gone back and re-read it. I am still a very slow reader, but I do enjoy reading very much.
4. I hate swimming pools. As a youth I was a very good swimmer. When I was 14 I was nationally ranked in the top ten in my age group. Now, I don't like to swim in a pool. If I'm going to swim, it is going to be in warm tropical water with a snorkel and fins.
5. I have never tried or used illegal drugs. Never. Not once.
Now I am suppose to ping five more people, but I don't know if I have five friends...David, Chad, Scott, Alex, Kari
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
