Monday, Monday

back=760

Now. Should I worry more about being able to get that far back, working at the same time...or know exactly where I stopped because I remembered (out of 760 entries, mind) that I had read that entry before and that was where I stopped?

You decide.

Had the death march from heck kind of day on Saturday with caitlin, catsonmars and unclejimbo...I say this because we had the best time of all getting down to the park, aiming for 11:00 and failing miserably (so that means finding lunch) and Jim played roulette with downtown Oceanside...on foot...and failed miserably. No, he won't eat Mexican food...and just to find a nice ham and cheese sandwich was asking a whole lot. *rolls eyes*

It was not nice biting into the sandwich from Famima...and having it bite back. And then losing his Mountain Dew in the great shuffle...and meh.

We get to the park. We about die getting to the tram, it's that hot and WTF when did it get over 85 degrees?

However, the views did not dissapoint. Both Jim and Caitlin had cameras and the pictures are going to rock so hard they probably will go up on walls. Seriously.

Introducing Tommy to rainbow lorikeets was worth the trip. I think either Caitlin or he got the photo we can use for the adoption portfolio - looks like we're going to need a run-off to pick the winner.

However. It was HOT out of the shade - and everything is uphill. Everywhere. Don't ask. Yes, it was.

Losing 17 pounds really has made a difference, though I still had to call Jim back too many times. It shows that I did backpacking expeditions in my youth...I starting running tail towards the end, unconsciously. That was scary.

*smacks head* Check on Roar n Snore, doofus. Don't forget...and we have passes left over. We can do this again!

Now. I love sushi as much as the next nerd, but I have to complain just enough to keep this in the front of the memories. Dudes. Dinner was anticipated in much delight at 7:00. Getting your food at 10:00 PM? It was delicious. But.

We got home after midnight, and Jim got right back up at 6:30 to go to work - followed closely my yours truly. (8:00 AM call. Yaaaay.)

Jim gets an atta-boy. He also drove us home. (BTW, Tommy's Yaris is Just Too Cool. No, really. Definitely worth the wait.)

Annnd, I met a whole bunch of folks with journals I have to try to friend. It was really nice...even though it turned the weekend on its head for the remainder.

I'm also looking for an appropriate place to break in the shirt fabulous_papaya made for me - hmmm.

Monday, Monday

back=760

Now. Should I worry more about being able to get that far back, working at the same time...or know exactly where I stopped because I remembered (out of 760 entries, mind) that I had read that entry before and that was where I stopped?

You decide.

Had the death march from heck kind of day on Saturday with caitlin, catsonmars and unclejimbo...I say this because we had the best time of all getting down to the park, aiming for 11:00 and failing miserably (so that means finding lunch) and Jim played roulette with downtown Oceanside...on foot...and failed miserably. No, he won't eat Mexican food...and just to find a nice ham and cheese sandwich was asking a whole lot. *rolls eyes*

It was not nice biting into the sandwich from Famima...and having it bite back. And then losing his Mountain Dew in the great shuffle...and meh.

We get to the park. We about die getting to the tram, it's that hot and WTF when did it get over 85 degrees?

However, the views did not dissapoint. Both Jim and Caitlin had cameras and the pictures are going to rock so hard they probably will go up on walls. Seriously.

Introducing Tommy to rainbow lorikeets was worth the trip. I think either Caitlin or he got the photo we can use for the adoption portfolio - looks like we're going to need a run-off to pick the winner.

However. It was HOT out of the shade - and everything is uphill. Everywhere. Don't ask. Yes, it was.

Losing 17 pounds really has made a difference, though I still had to call Jim back too many times. It shows that I did backpacking expeditions in my youth...I starting running tail towards the end, unconsciously. That was scary.

*smacks head* Check on Roar n Snore, doofus. Don't forget...and we have passes left over. We can do this again!

Now. I love sushi as much as the next nerd, but I have to complain just enough to keep this in the front of the memories. Dudes. Dinner was anticipated in much delight at 7:00. Getting your food at 10:00 PM? It was delicious. But.

We got home after midnight, and Jim got right back up at 6:30 to go to work - followed closely my yours truly. (8:00 AM call. Yaaaay.)

Jim gets an atta-boy. He also drove us home. (BTW, Tommy's Yaris is Just Too Cool. No, really. Definitely worth the wait.)

Annnd, I met a whole bunch of folks with journals I have to try to friend. It was really nice...even though it turned the weekend on its head for the remainder.

I'm also looking for an appropriate place to break in the shirt fabulous_papaya made for me - hmmm.

Monday, Monday

back=760

Now. Should I worry more about being able to get that far back, working at the same time...or know exactly where I stopped because I remembered (out of 760 entries, mind) that I had read that entry before and that was where I stopped?

You decide.

Had the death march from heck kind of day on Saturday with caitlin, catsonmars and unclejimbo...I say this because we had the best time of all getting down to the park, aiming for 11:00 and failing miserably (so that means finding lunch) and Jim played roulette with downtown Oceanside...on foot...and failed miserably. No, he won't eat Mexican food...and just to find a nice ham and cheese sandwich was asking a whole lot. *rolls eyes*

It was not nice biting into the sandwich from Famima...and having it bite back. And then losing his Mountain Dew in the great shuffle...and meh.

We get to the park. We about die getting to the tram, it's that hot and WTF when did it get over 85 degrees?

However, the views did not dissapoint. Both Jim and Caitlin had cameras and the pictures are going to rock so hard they probably will go up on walls. Seriously.

Introducing Tommy to rainbow lorikeets was worth the trip. I think either Caitlin or he got the photo we can use for the adoption portfolio - looks like we're going to need a run-off to pick the winner.

However. It was HOT out of the shade - and everything is uphill. Everywhere. Don't ask. Yes, it was.

Losing 17 pounds really has made a difference, though I still had to call Jim back too many times. It shows that I did backpacking expeditions in my youth...I starting running tail towards the end, unconsciously. That was scary.

*smacks head* Check on Roar n Snore, doofus. Don't forget...and we have passes left over. We can do this again!

Now. I love sushi as much as the next nerd, but I have to complain just enough to keep this in the front of the memories. Dudes. Dinner was anticipated in much delight at 7:00. Getting your food at 10:00 PM? It was delicious. But.

We got home after midnight, and Jim got right back up at 6:30 to go to work - followed closely my yours truly. (8:00 AM call. Yaaaay.)

Jim gets an atta-boy. He also drove us home. (BTW, Tommy's Yaris is Just Too Cool. No, really. Definitely worth the wait.)

Annnd, I met a whole bunch of folks with journals I have to try to friend. It was really nice...even though it turned the weekend on its head for the remainder.

I'm also looking for an appropriate place to break in the shirt fabulous_papaya made for me - hmmm.

From linusmines - accept no substitutes:

I never imagined it would come to this. Back in early March, less than a week into the trip, I was sitting around a campfire with 10 men on top of Tray Mountain in Georgia. Eight more people were crammed into the shelter, either sleeping or cooking dinner from the warmth of their sleeping bags. It was so cold that there were no other options; it was fire, goose down, or freeze. We woke up to a foot of snow and frozen boots the next morning. Three people quit at the next road crossing. In fact, nearly all of the people on Tray Mountain that night would drop out; however, for the moment, we were suffering but hopeful.

As I nudged into the ring of people surrounding the fire, a man who went by the trail name Stix spoke up. Stix was a 40-year-old former cocaine addict from Texas who had failed two previous attempts to thru-hike. “They say that men get skinny out here,” he said. “Well, I ain’t got much to lose.” He looked at me from across the fire and laughed. “But women just get thick. Why, Déjà vu, honey, you got nothing to worry about. You’re already thick.”

The men looked at me. I stared into the fire, embarrassed and hurt, but unsure of what to say. Finally, Easy Rider, a 24-year-old Yale-bound graduate student, broke the silence.

“Stix, that was out of line,” he said loudly across the fire from his spot next to me. Turning to me, he added, “Déjà, I think you’re sexy. If you were the last woman on earth I would sleep with you. Actually, if you even make it to Pennsylvania, I’m gonna poke you.”

Disgust took my breath away. I turned from my spot in the circle and walked to my tent. Just before I was out of earshot, I heard another man say, “Naw, they don’t get thick so much as they get mean. The guys get skinny and the girls get mean.”

Inside my tent, I tried to sleep, but I could only think about how I was going to deal with this humiliation all the way to Maine. At that point, I didn’t know that neither Stix nor Easy Rider would make it. I didn’t know that I would out-hike every man there. I only knew that I wanted to go home.

*sighs*

I had books to give western_slope because I used to do the backpacks, back in the days when Cliff could still do them. I did the BMTC class the Sierra Club used to do, back in the day - I say that now, because it doesn't exist anymore. Liability did them in.

I've done snow camps, know how to use an ice axe and a whole bunch of stuff nobody uses outside of mountaineering. I have snow jackets rated to -90 in my closet.

Y'know, I'd never considered doing anything like a coastal trail, stem to stern, alone. That was one of the cardinal rules - you never did anything alone. Finding a good hiking partner was often the difference between a good trip and a disaster. Buddy system and all that.

Part of me is going "why should this be an issue if you're female?" - and the other part is going "If I wanted to be alone that bad, there are a LOT of other places, much less well-marked to predators than a hiking trail."

Predators. Yeah.

Read, and weigh for yourself. Frankly, the whole reason this is an issue at all is pathetic.

From linusmines - accept no substitutes:

I never imagined it would come to this. Back in early March, less than a week into the trip, I was sitting around a campfire with 10 men on top of Tray Mountain in Georgia. Eight more people were crammed into the shelter, either sleeping or cooking dinner from the warmth of their sleeping bags. It was so cold that there were no other options; it was fire, goose down, or freeze. We woke up to a foot of snow and frozen boots the next morning. Three people quit at the next road crossing. In fact, nearly all of the people on Tray Mountain that night would drop out; however, for the moment, we were suffering but hopeful.

As I nudged into the ring of people surrounding the fire, a man who went by the trail name Stix spoke up. Stix was a 40-year-old former cocaine addict from Texas who had failed two previous attempts to thru-hike. “They say that men get skinny out here,” he said. “Well, I ain’t got much to lose.” He looked at me from across the fire and laughed. “But women just get thick. Why, Déjà vu, honey, you got nothing to worry about. You’re already thick.”

The men looked at me. I stared into the fire, embarrassed and hurt, but unsure of what to say. Finally, Easy Rider, a 24-year-old Yale-bound graduate student, broke the silence.

“Stix, that was out of line,” he said loudly across the fire from his spot next to me. Turning to me, he added, “Déjà, I think you’re sexy. If you were the last woman on earth I would sleep with you. Actually, if you even make it to Pennsylvania, I’m gonna poke you.”

Disgust took my breath away. I turned from my spot in the circle and walked to my tent. Just before I was out of earshot, I heard another man say, “Naw, they don’t get thick so much as they get mean. The guys get skinny and the girls get mean.”

Inside my tent, I tried to sleep, but I could only think about how I was going to deal with this humiliation all the way to Maine. At that point, I didn’t know that neither Stix nor Easy Rider would make it. I didn’t know that I would out-hike every man there. I only knew that I wanted to go home.

*sighs*

I had books to give western_slope because I used to do the backpacks, back in the days when Cliff could still do them. I did the BMTC class the Sierra Club used to do, back in the day - I say that now, because it doesn't exist anymore. Liability did them in.

I've done snow camps, know how to use an ice axe and a whole bunch of stuff nobody uses outside of mountaineering. I have snow jackets rated to -90 in my closet.

Y'know, I'd never considered doing anything like a coastal trail, stem to stern, alone. That was one of the cardinal rules - you never did anything alone. Finding a good hiking partner was often the difference between a good trip and a disaster. Buddy system and all that.

Part of me is going "why should this be an issue if you're female?" - and the other part is going "If I wanted to be alone that bad, there are a LOT of other places, much less well-marked to predators than a hiking trail."

Predators. Yeah.

Read, and weigh for yourself. Frankly, the whole reason this is an issue at all is pathetic.

From linusmines - accept no substitutes:

I never imagined it would come to this. Back in early March, less than a week into the trip, I was sitting around a campfire with 10 men on top of Tray Mountain in Georgia. Eight more people were crammed into the shelter, either sleeping or cooking dinner from the warmth of their sleeping bags. It was so cold that there were no other options; it was fire, goose down, or freeze. We woke up to a foot of snow and frozen boots the next morning. Three people quit at the next road crossing. In fact, nearly all of the people on Tray Mountain that night would drop out; however, for the moment, we were suffering but hopeful.

As I nudged into the ring of people surrounding the fire, a man who went by the trail name Stix spoke up. Stix was a 40-year-old former cocaine addict from Texas who had failed two previous attempts to thru-hike. “They say that men get skinny out here,” he said. “Well, I ain’t got much to lose.” He looked at me from across the fire and laughed. “But women just get thick. Why, Déjà vu, honey, you got nothing to worry about. You’re already thick.”

The men looked at me. I stared into the fire, embarrassed and hurt, but unsure of what to say. Finally, Easy Rider, a 24-year-old Yale-bound graduate student, broke the silence.

“Stix, that was out of line,” he said loudly across the fire from his spot next to me. Turning to me, he added, “Déjà, I think you’re sexy. If you were the last woman on earth I would sleep with you. Actually, if you even make it to Pennsylvania, I’m gonna poke you.”

Disgust took my breath away. I turned from my spot in the circle and walked to my tent. Just before I was out of earshot, I heard another man say, “Naw, they don’t get thick so much as they get mean. The guys get skinny and the girls get mean.”

Inside my tent, I tried to sleep, but I could only think about how I was going to deal with this humiliation all the way to Maine. At that point, I didn’t know that neither Stix nor Easy Rider would make it. I didn’t know that I would out-hike every man there. I only knew that I wanted to go home.

*sighs*

I had books to give western_slope because I used to do the backpacks, back in the days when Cliff could still do them. I did the BMTC class the Sierra Club used to do, back in the day - I say that now, because it doesn't exist anymore. Liability did them in.

I've done snow camps, know how to use an ice axe and a whole bunch of stuff nobody uses outside of mountaineering. I have snow jackets rated to -90 in my closet.

Y'know, I'd never considered doing anything like a coastal trail, stem to stern, alone. That was one of the cardinal rules - you never did anything alone. Finding a good hiking partner was often the difference between a good trip and a disaster. Buddy system and all that.

Part of me is going "why should this be an issue if you're female?" - and the other part is going "If I wanted to be alone that bad, there are a LOT of other places, much less well-marked to predators than a hiking trail."

Predators. Yeah.

Read, and weigh for yourself. Frankly, the whole reason this is an issue at all is pathetic.