selkirk

Butter doesn't have dimples. Are you saying I have dimples?

Isn't that Cindy Sheehan??

Wow, I've been upgraded to ropegun Unluckily no Index We got there around 9:30 and it was still awfully damp, and we weren't familiar enough yet to know if it was going to dry in reasonable time with the cloud cover Monday morning. So we headed to Leavenworth to squeeze a few pitches out of the day. Warmed up on Dog Leg, and made a quick run up Hindquarters. As Sprocket pointed out, it's a bit surreal to be warming up on your high point from a couple of seasons ago Dog Leg and Hindquarters were both a bit more burly than I remembered though Then it was down to Meat Grinder. I managed an onsight, but it was ugly as hell and involved laybacking off an arm bar, and praying my feet didn't slip as it would have resulted in lost teeth, a broken arm, or both Overhaning offwidths with no feet are just not my specialty Great climb, great gear, definitely deserves it's name Then a quick run up Be My Guest over on 8 Mile Buttress. Nice pleasant climb well bolted, some interesting face and some delicated slab which was a nice way to end the day Oh, and Mrs. Selkirk planted the garden on Saturday so we now have tomatoes, peppers, and lots of corn on the way :tup:

Not work Followed by Climbing at Index (first time there ) then possibly a hike with the new dog and/or part of a day at E38. Oh, with plenty of sleeping and beer mixed in for balance!

You've got a little bit of "The Shining" eyes going on.

That's what I always say right before I re-tweak my fingers

No question at all about that!

No one has the right to make the decision for her. But it should be something she considers, and likely something she did consider.

Well, the demands of bearing a child on the mother should be weighed, but shouldn't the increased risk to the fetus also be considered?

Crackmaster Lambada, out at Vantage Weird committing moves, above small shitty pro Scared myself half to death. Once was more than enough. Oh, and Fred on Air, down by Phoenix at Smith. I've been up the damn thing 2 or 3 times, and always slip at the bottom crux. It's a boulder problem, followed by slightly runnout face climbing, on obnoxiously sharp holds. I just never enjoyed any aspect of climbing it, so I stopped Oh, Oh, and whatever the hell the short "5.8" layback problem in the cave, then ends on the birdshit covered pedestal, on the back side of Smith is (betwween Asterisk and Spiderman). Hard, insecure, greasy, slimy, and just generally not very interesting

A good question might be, will a class of 20 use more or fewer routes, and cause more or less disruption than 10 groups of 2? Not that I've ever seen more than 6 or 8 other people at Royal Columns on any given day.

I completely agree. But that goes equally for GWB and company as it does for those we call the terrorists. Our man George described our campaign as a Crusade, and has used the "clash of civilizations" metaphor repeatedly. He's amped up the religious zealots on both sides (to the extent there are really just two sides). I think our pal Selkirk might argue that a good old fashioned fascist could have / would have done the same thing. And he is right. But the religious component is certainly dangerous. Some of these guys at the very top are looking for Armageddon, for gawd's sake! Any group can be mishandled. It's the nature of all good sheeples to be led. I still wouldn't say that religion is bad. Or oganized groups are bad. Charismatic whack jobs with addictive personalities, and god complexes, on the other hand are horrendously bad.

seems to me the people who translated what they say was said is who says jesus said his way was the only way If I knew what that meant I might respond. To read any religious text literally is a recipe for conflicting statements. Not to mention that they should always be taken with a grain of salt. And of course there were errors in translation. Haven't you ever played the game where you all sit in a circle and one person whispers "the black dog bit the policeman in blue" and by the time it gets back to you it's a dirty limerick? And of course books were lost, and of course sections were intentionally left out by those compiling and distributing the text to meet their own purposes. Which is why you should always go back to my first statement. Don't read any religious text literally, and always take them with a grain of salt. Ever hear of the dead sea scrolls??? There weren't any errors in copying the texts. Nice catch See the remaining points. At best our information is incomplete, at worst it's been intentionally manipulated either way reading it literally is a bad idea.

seems to me the people who translated what they say was said is who says jesus said his way was the only way If I knew what that meant I might respond. To read any religious text literally is a recipe for conflicting statements. Not to mention that they should always be taken with a grain of salt. And of course there were errors in translation. Haven't you ever played the game where you all sit in a circle and one person whispers "the black dog bit the policeman in blue" and by the time it gets back to you it's a dirty limerick? And of course books were lost, and of course sections were intentionally left out by those compiling and distributing the text to meet their own purposes. Which is why you should always go back to my first statement. Don't read any religious text literally, and always take them with a grain of salt.

Hell is other people. Religion happens to be one way they justify they're "superiority over others", but it's not like any monkey has ever really needed justification for beating another monkey, if your in a bad mood a justification can always be manufactured. It just makes people feel a little more warm and fuzzy when they can believe that they are "Good" and the person they are beating with a stick is "Evil". Power mongers, zealots, and other assorted sociopaths use any vehicle to influence people at they're disposal, but the existance of the vehicle to repeat they're message or gain power in no way generates the wacko's, it just attracts them. You would probably be more accurate in saying that all wars are caused by large groups of people with conflicting interests, and often precipitated by charismatic individuals with an agenda, which is likely not that one they espouse. In this sense there is no difference between political party's, patriotism, religion, terrorist groups, cults, herds of apes, packs of baboons, and pods of whales.

That's Right folks they do exist again in this country Just got back from a short trip to Yosemite and my wife bought me a full set for my upcoming B-day :) It's amazing that she still encourages my insanity! The long and short is that The Yosemite Mountain shop has struck some deal with the woman who made the HB Brass nuts for HB, and is now actively stocking them. Linky Linky Beers will be accepted at a later date

Damnit, I tried to be all mellow but I wanna chestbeat I got my first freakin 5.11 gear climb, and 5.11b at that! Pretty damn good considering my next hardest climb on gear is only 5.10c

Evil tease! I have to work overtime

I'll second the comments on the Tao Te Ching... Find a quiet pretty place and read few verses. It's good for the soul, but has nothing to do with religion. The religious end of Taoism is more than a little whacky:P If you'd like I could recommend a couple of versions. Hell if your in Seattle and promise to bring them back I'll loan them to you. Also, definitely go read the Tao of Pooh, and the Te of Piglet. Fantastic books. Life really is all about Balance And remember, first and foremost, happiness is an internal thing. It's not necessarily connected to anything but your perception of the world. I remember hearing about a worldwide telephone survey a couple of years ago. So where do you think the people most often described themselves as happy? As memory serves it was Nigeria.....

My parents did that! Well not on a yacht. They took a summer and sailed to alaska. Love the sailing! But the small space drove my mom nuts and my step dad had nightmares about the house (sailboat) sinking. Now they live on dry land again and sail for fun :tup:

So this coming weekend I'm going down to a wedding being held in Yosemite, and we'll be staying at a hotel just outside the park entrance (30 minutes maybe?). We'll have at least 1 full day on Saturday to do as we please, and maybe a 1/2 day on Sunday before we fly back out of Sacramento (Flight out is around 8:00 so I'm thinking we should be leaving the park around 1:00 or so.) So what are peoples recommendations for stuff to do? Single pitch cragging suggestions, good hiking, moderate to easy multipitch? Could certainly bring a small to medium rack, or just quick draws and rope, or even leave it all at home and just bring day hiking stuff. Thanks in advance! Cheers

One thing to remember is that around here there aren't many true splitters, so with a little practice it's easier to place and faster to evaluate a good nut than it is a good cam.

Trip: Vantage - Various Date: 5/29/2007 Trip Report: A couple for Friends and I made a pilgrimage over the mountains for a day of warm rock and sunshine a couple of weeks ago and I thought I would post some pictures. Ended up on the Sunshine wall as always. The good news is, every year I seem to be able to climb new stuff there Started out the day on Crossing the Threshold. It's a pleasant climb and the only other good gear warm up besides Party in Your Pants, which I think requires a portaledge and bivy to actually get in line for. After that Sprocket styled up Air Guitar as his second climb, repeating his hardest climb from last year, and as his 2nd trad lead for the season :tup: After that the girls jaunted up Clip or Skip in good style, and I went over and thrashed a bit on Sinsemilla. Only spooky bit was when my 3rd nut decided to join my second nut, about 20 ft below my feet Managed it clean but not overly smooth. Then of course it was warm, so we all siesta-ed for a while and I napped in the shade Visited for a bit with CBS as he was in the same area After that I ran up Hakuna Matata so that our intrepid photographer (Thanks by the way!) could get to the top of Stems and Seeds to watch me suffer. I haven't heard her cuss that much at a pitch in a long time As I had backed myself into a corner at this point I took a go at Stems and Seeds. With oodles of little gear, I managed to rest and stem my up cleanly It was a great day in the sun, and I even managed my first 5.11 gear lead Gear Notes: Why I do I always take an aid rack up single pitch trad? Crossing likes Hexes, the other two like small nuts. Approach Notes: over the river and threw the woods!

The nut thing happened to me too a couple weeks ago. I usually thing that's a good time to put in 2 pieces in short order. 1 might be good, but I like protecting in such a way that if my top piece pulls I should still be fine.

My 2 cents...... For crag stuff especially... I bought all this freakin, gear, I always seem to drag enough gear to the base to aid any single pitch climb anyway. Even after I trim out the stuff that obviously won't help, If I haven't been on the climb before, I'm sure to be paranoid and take doubles in anything I might need, and sometime tripples if it looks to be small gear only, to insure I have the right size pieces when I need them. So I might as well place the damn things. I have no pride when it comes to gear placement so I sew stuff up as much as I can. That might make me weenie, but I sure like my ankles the way they are. If I'm near my limit I start looking for another piece of gear when my last one is at my feet. If I have a reasonable stance I drop something in, if it's precarious but I can see a better stance I'll make a couple of moves and then place something. If it's precarious but doesn't look to have a rest soon, I fiddle something in fast. My first piece is usually at about 8 or 9 ft, place when my feet are about 4ft off the ground, with a spot from my belayer. Second piece is at about 14 or 15, 3rd at about 20, and then I shoot for 6 to 8 ft spacing till I hit the anchors. When I'm familiar with a climb, (warm up, redpoint, 3rd repeat), or climbing alpine where it's a few grades below my ability, the gear I take and spacing changes. But especially alpine, I always try and place my first piece before I leave the belay, or very quickly thereafter. And yes, 5.8 at Vantage is not 5.8 at Tieton. Hell, 5.5 at Tieton isn't even 5.5 at Tieton.