mtn_gnome

Call Dave Page in Fremont, Seattle. He resoled a pair of my boots and I was very pleased with the result. If it can be fixed, he can probably do it. http://www.davepagecobbler.com/

You guys are making my head hurt.

Funny, the only time I get asked is when I'm naked. Man, I'm sorry to hear that, for you and your...uh...climbing parter. Maybe you should like, ring a bell...or slap the pillow real hard... er something. I hear there's prescription medicine that can help with this.

Post deleted by mtn_gnome

Several years ago I was in China visiting a less well known part of the Great Wall. This particular section snakes along a knife-edge ridge, high above a large lake below. Really quite amazing. One of the other people in our group and I decided we'd take a shortcut by climbing up the face to the top of this ridge, as opposed to walking the footpath. About 1/3 of the way up, the other guy exceeded his comfort level and decided to downclimb and go back to the footpath. While not entirely comfortable with the my own situation, I determined it was better, safer, whatever... to keep going than to downclimb. A little higher up, the realization sunk in that one bad choice on my part at this point would mean certain death. As incredibly irresponsible as it was (on various levels) - I vividly recall the feeling when I finally did top out. It was the most "alive" I had felt in 5 years. Everyone here knows the sensation I'm talking about. It was a wake up call for me that I wanted more of that. I decided then and there that I WANTED to be an andrenaline junkie. But, things happen. I now have a responsibility towards the well being of others, so I content myself with smaller doses of adrenaline - i.e. more calculated and more mitigated risks. So while I wouldn't presume to know why others climb, for me it is an opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the mountains, breath some fresh air, get out of the office, avoid yardwork, and yeah... get a little dose of adrenaline.

I thought it was an erection.

I find that by climbing naked I typically get to avoid the "did you summit" question.

Drugs, group sex, mask-wearing gimp slaves, fetishists, tarot card readers and naked knights/Boeing engineers riding around on goats... Clearly, I've come to the right place.