catbirdseat

Is this F'd up or what? I come to work this morning and I can't get into the parking lot because there is a huge auger machine there. They are putting in a huge new billboard for Ackerley Communications or whatever. The landlord didn't say anything until yesterday and none of us were notified. To add insult to injury, they bored through our water line. The copper pipe wrapped around the bit and pulled the line out of the ground for several feet in both directions. They will have to dig a trench in the parking lot to make the repair. We will be without water indefinitely. Don't you think that a metal detector would have been used by a competent contractor?

We don't see failing high school as dishonorable, because we all can relate stories of high school dropouts who have "made it" in life, who have been successful, built up business and the like. In Japan there are fewer options for those who don't fit in. It's sad really. There was a young Japanese woman in the concert band I in which I play at Shoreline CC. We were working on a very difficult piece of music called Armenian Dances by Reed. She told how when she was in junior high school they prepared that piece. They rehearsed that ONE piece of music for ten hours a day until it was perfect. She said it had been like torture. I was amazed that she was willing to play it again. So here we were college level students and adults spending one hour a week for 6 weeks to prepare this piece. We were doing it for fun and enjoying it. The point being that the Japanese don't seem to strike a balance between work and play as we do.

Though this be madness, yet there is method in it.

It's a no brainer. Get the small one. It will weigh less, and keep you warmer. I am 6'2" and use a standard size bivy.

Dude, did you just fall off the turnip truck?

Do they make blow up goats for trask?

I heard that someone jumped off the Aurora Bridge.

Anna, get yourself out there and climb, dammit! What are you waiting for, the second coming? Get on that damn horse, now!

What is the difference between a snowboarder and a vacuum cleaner? Hint: it has to do with where you mount the dirtbag.

Groan

If I am on a hike, I don't have any goal in mind other than getting some excercise and maybe enjoying the views, so I don't care if I am "over prepared". So what if my pack slows me down a tiny bit? Who gives a shit? I'd rather have the extra water or binoculars or whatever to have an enjoyable day in comfort. Compared to humping overnight gear or a full rack and rope, a few pounds of extra clothes feels like nothing.

Horse walks into a bar. The bartender says, "why the long face?"

It begs the question, "why would someone in his right mind jump off an 8-meter cliff on a bicycle?"

On several occasions I have seen old slings protruding mysteriously from cracks. I always wondered what they were attached to. Probably some were jammed knots.

Maybe I have the name screwed up? The bag is about two years old.

In the news this morning, Greenpeace was reported to have inflated a 40ft whale atop Zugspitze to protest whaling.

I want to see a picture of Dru lugging that rig up Mt. Rainier. That would be priceless.

For Chrissakes it's a picture of a boy watching two kangaroos getting it on. It set the young trask on a course that would lead him to his present day debauchery.

What are you guys smoking, anyway? It ain't just tobacco.

What's so hard about replacing a head gasket? A weekend job. I'll bet you'd find a couple of chaps to help out for pizza and beer.

My Marmot Couloir down bag weighs 1 lb, 10 oz, and is rated to 40 degrees. It is warm enough for three seasons if you wear all your extra clothes (as you should). I've been down to 25 degrees with it and was a tad cold but wouldn't have wanted to carry more weight, even so.

Kiwi, come to Pub Club tomorrow.

Yep, I must be nuts. I went out Saturday and worked on the Canyon Creek trail with a Pulaski on a south facing slope in a sunny area on the hottest day of the year. Went through 4 liters of water and managed to just avoid heat stroke. Found out I'm in much better shape than most of my fellow National Trails day workers. Canyon Forks is a trail that you all might like to check out. Access is via Road 4140 off of the Mountain Loop Hwy. The trail is a remnant of the trail that once connected to the Meadow mountain trail and provided access to the Three Fingers Lookout from the Verlot area. Logging and road building in the 1970's severed and bypassed the trail. Now the FS has decided to revive this trail which hasn't seen significant maintenance in 30 years. http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?z=10&n=5334417&e=588843&s=25&size=m What is interesting about the trail is the huge old growth cedars you can see and fishing at the forks. There are orchids and Canadian dogwood blooming at the moment. There is a ruin of a shelter near the river, where one could camp. It's really nice down there. Don't go if you require views, because there aren't any. There isn't much in the way of signage either, but that is a good thing, because you won't see any people either.

Fantastic. Congratulations.

Can't beat the Sloop.