Sunday Stuff

My week of randomness:

• My sister arrived on Tuesday for a week visit. Of sorts. Her husband had a conference at Squaw Valley for the week. Then they were going over to Chico to visit the Sierra Nevada Brewery. But the roads had chain requirements so they're here a day early.
• It SNOWED this weekend. Dusted. a little. More is better. Ski season is waiting.
• Got news this week about "big changes" ahead for my job. Good news is I didn't totally flip out and cry myself crazy. This is always a good thing. God Bless St John's Wort.
• Meant to donate platelets on Saturday, but had scheduled myself for whole blood not platelets (user error) so I rescheduled.
  
• We went out to lunch on Saturday with Sheila and Hilly ... last minute invited Danny to join us and he and his wife Stephani actually showed. Very exciting fun times. Steph connected me to the next point...
  
• Reconnected with an old climbing friend, Rick. Would make me quite happy to be able to post 'went climbing with Rick this weekend' type posts. Most happy indeed. We'll see.
• Climbed in the gym with Danny on Sunday, my finger joints are not happy with me. Aging. Such is life.
• Got the tree today - sister's husband and my nephew Hans (age 23) got it in the stand and put all the lights on - then my Alison actually helped Hans decorate it - and I helped. This is the first year in forever that it wasn't just me, which was rather nice.
• Was emailing a friend about a scrpiture that I didn't know the reference I'd said: He knew me before [I even was] but then another friend informed me of the scripture, and I was surprised how close I was: Jeremiah 1:5 "...I knew you, before you were born ... " Huh - I was pretty darned close.
  

Yeah, so that about wraps up my week in review.

My Weekend In Bullets

Posts are always more fun with pictures, sbut I don't have any. Yet. They're on Joseph's camera. I borrowed this one from Stoney:


Here's the highlights of the weekend:

It started on Friday:

• Left work at noon
• Picked up Joseph - met Sheila in Carson City, leaving my car at a friend of Joseph's
• Drove to Pleasant Valley Campground just North of Bishop, CA
• Set up camp and helped Sheila make a MOST amazing meal
• Shrimp sauted in garlic, with fresh tomato and avocado, all served over linguine )
• Sat around the campfire until bedtime then crashed
  

Continued Saturday

• Rise and shine at 7am ... Huevos Rancheros for breakfast (potatoes, eggs, salsa, cheese)
• Off to Owens River Gorge to climb routes like this
• Climbed a total of six awesome routes with Joseph as our belay slave
  
• Pitstop wall
  
• I led Low Octane 9***
  
• I led it after her
• Warning Signs wall
• Sheila led Warning Laser Beam 8***
  
• I led it after her
  
• Sheila led Watch For Rocks 8***
  
• I led it after her
• I led Boating Prohibited 10a***
  
• Sheila after me
  
• AWESOME lunch of pita sandwiches
  
• We TR'd Batting Cage 10c*
• #5 for each
  
• I led Wonka 10a**
• Sheila TR'd Oompa Loompa 8**
• Mile and a half walk up the road back to the parking lot and the car
  
• TAILGATE party of beers and chips
• Keough Hot Springs S. of Bishop for a nice soak and shower
• Dinner at "Las Palmas" in Bishop
  
• Got gas and pulled away from the pump with the hose still in the car
• Back to camp for more campfire and BED
  

Wrapped up on Sunday:

• Rise and shine early at 7:00
• AWESOME breakfast burritos heated over the fire
• Broke camp and headed for Mammoth Lakes on a scouting mission
• Found a great climbing area pretty much IN Mammoth Lakes, we can go there with our husbands and climb half a day and hang with them the rest of the weekend.
• Drove through the June Lake Loop and found another great area to camp and paddle canoes with our husbands
• Back to Carson City for my car and back home (after dropping Joseph off)

TOTALLY AWESOME weekend!! Life is Good.

Dummy Check

• Climbing pack
• harness
• prussic
  
• belay device/ATC
• belay/rap gloves
• bail biners
  
• PAS
• helmet
• shoes
• chalk
• quick-draws
• Nalgenes
• ROPE
  
• Camping
• Tent
• sleeping bag
• sleeping pad
• Camp kitchen
• Cooler (Sheila has food)
  
• Water
• Firewood
• hatchet
• newspaper
• Chairs (2)
That should cover it, aside from the normal clothing stuff. Yeah, so if you think of something I missed, it's too late cause I'm OUTTA HERE...

Positive Post Tuesday

Friendship

On Sunday Pastor Pete spoke of "Friendship brings value to Life" (sermon video) and I've been thinking about it a lot. In my post the other day I mentioned how after Church I'd gone and met my friend Joseph and we palled around together for the afternoon.

Joseph is a friend I met at a job we both had 5 years ago and as each year passes our friendship is strengthened. I value Joseph.

On Top Of The World

Remember me saying I want my picture taken here at the top of Half Dome in Yosemite? And I said something about maybe not at the top of Half Dome specifically, but no doubt something.

Well I got my wish. Romy and I climbed "West Crack" on DAFF Dome and she took this picture of me at the top:
Here's one of us at the top of DAFF Dome with Fairview Dome directly behind us. Fairview is where DAFF gets its name to begin with: Directly Across From Fairview.

You'll have to excuse the helmet head.

Weekend Brief ...

Yay! What a great weekend this has been. Yesterday I got to go rock climbing outside on real rock with my good friend Hans and Sheila!

Sheila and I have only been out three times this entire year. We took a weekend road trip to Owens River Gorge back in May (with Danny, Dave and David), then took a day trip to Indian Springs and then another weekend trip to Clark Canyon at the end of June.

The Clark Canyon trip was with our friend Joseph (who doesn't climb anymore because his knee hates life) but he goes for the fun of our company. My Alison and her friend Geoff joined us on that trip and we had a great time. But we haven't been out since then if you can believe that. (if you know me and my climbing, you'd know what a tragedy this is for me).

I've been so busy this summer going here there and everywhere other than climbing and have been looking forward to another trip to the Gorge with Sheila (and Joseph this time, Danny and Dave can't make it). Then climbing with Romy got me very excited about climbing again and I couldn't stand waiting for that next trip. So when on Thursday at the gym Hans suggested we go climb I leapt at the chance, and Sheila came too. YAY!

Climbing yesterday was with Hans, a friend that I haven't climbed with in over a year. It was really nice to catch up with him. After climbing, Hans had Mark and I over for dinner.

And then there has been today ... (in bullets?)

• Romy sent a link to pictures from our Tuolumne trip.
  
• Attended the 11am service of church and really enjoyed the sermon. After the service I went back to the "newcomers welcome" and met the associate pastor who runs a "Women of Excellence" bible study group out in my neighborhood. I am quite excited to start building my own community in faith.
  
• Then I went and met my friend Joseph. When he opened his door I announced "I need food, want to go with me?" So off we went for some delicious authentic mexican tacos at Beto's
• Off to Sierra Trading Post to buy something light yet warm for climbing in ...
  
• Off to REI to get a flashing red light for the back of my bike so I can ride to work without getting run off the road (at least they'll see me before they hit me right?)
  
• And now home to do some final organizing for NEXT WEEKEND where Joseph, Sheila and I will be heading back to the Gorge. YAY.
  

Climbing With Romy

Ah..... I can't even begin to tell all about my trip. It was truly amazing. My thanks to AlpineDave for having great pictures of West Crack on DAFF Dome in Toulomne Meadows - Yosemite National Park.

Romy took a bunch of pictures but I'll have to wait for her to get back to Boston to get them from her. Then I'll post them.

There's one of me standing next to her at this belay just below the slot that spat me out like sour milk ... no pictures of that one since Romy was far above on belay.

We have pictures of us at the top of the route too, and she took some of me on the free rappel down ... completely awesome. Can't wait to post the pictures!

Yosemite

I want my picture taken here, at the top of Half Dome, Yosemite National Park:



These boys have grown a lot in the past 2 years since this picture was taken - but they've been to and climbed a route called Snake Dike on Half Dome two years before I have! I don't know that I'll actually climb Half Dome - but I know I'll climb something in Yosemite!

I'm heading out today with my girlfriend Romy for a 3 night trip to Yosemite for some rock climbing. Romy's coming in from Boston for a friends wedding the following weekend, and she's invited me to join her climbing. (and she just called me while I've been composing this post!) I am so excited I can't stand it! Think of me, and send warm thoughts cause it's gonna be cold!