Item of Business #1
The reason I've put off writing for so long is because I didn't want to talk about Oxford. A few weeks ago the neighbor's cat got him during the night. It didn't get into the kennel but he was sticking his head out to look for me in the morning like he always does and the cat got a hold of it. I like to think that he didn't suffer much, and I know that he had a great life, but it was still really sad. Ox was pretty much my only friend in New Jersey and doing things without him just isn't the same.
Item of Business #2
The funny thing about life is if you have the money to do what you want you don't have the time, and if you have the time then you don't have the money. It's not too bad if you have a job you love, but that's not exactly the case right now. Still I'm trying to make the best of the job I have. I'm using our slow times to train for climbing and I've managed to drop 10lbs since I started working there. I'm also looking at taking a second training job at LA Fitness. If I've got to work all the time I might as well make as much money as possible.
Item of Business # 3
After only a month at New York Sports Clubs I was already in desperate need of a vacation, so I took six days off and ran away to West Virginia to climb at New River with my friends Jen and Kevin. Definitely ranks as one of the best trips I've ever been on. The weather was great, the company was awesome and the climbing was superb. On my way down I stopped in Farmville to see Dr. Koesler and Dr. Morrison and to get my hair cut by Mack. He was so shocked that I drove 8 hours for a hair cut that he did it for free! I stayed with Jo and I got kind of a late start in the morning because the Tour de France was on, but I managed to get on the road by 11.
We got to Rogers around 5 on Saturday and almost as soon as we got our tents set up we were treated to a fantastic thunder storm. The next morning we were up early and climbed at Kaymoor for the day because we knew it would be dry. It turned out to be a great day for climbing and I even got up on a 5.11 and flailed around a bit. I got farther than I expected but I think its going to be at least another year before something like that will be possible.
Monday we did a bit more hiking than climbing. We got a warm up climb in when a big group showed up and set up on a few of the climbs we were looking to do, so we decided to head to the other end of Bubba City. It looked a lot shorter in the guide book than it actually was. We ended up hiking for two hours through the jungle, the valley of death and the evil den of teh satan spiders. We ended up getting so tired that we bailed on the climbing and decided to just go back and make hamburgers, but not before we took a well needed break at an overlook. I think this picture just about says it all.
Tuesday we headed to Summersville lake to take a swim/bath and finish on some climbing. Once again a big group of kids showed up but this time we decided to work around them rather than try and go somewhere else. The last day was definitely my best day as far as climbing was concerned. I had a bit of a foot problem that I think was caused by hiking in shoes that were just too small, but I managed to get it taped just right and so it didn't hold me back too much.
All in all it was an amazing trip, and it was definately depressing to have to leave. It was nice to climb with people a little closer to my skill level. The last two times I was at the New I was climbing with people who were much better than me and I always felt like I was holding them back. Hopefully we'll be able to get together for another trip sometime soon...I really need something to look forward to in order to survive work.
Item of Business #4
I'm 22. I spent my birthday driving about 11 hours back to New Jersey, but it wasn't a total waste. I was giving a ride to Dominik, a friend from Germany that I met at Rogers, so at least I didn't have to drive all by myself. I took him through DC on the way home because he was planning on heading there after New York and I wanted to help him get the lay of the land. It added a bit of time to our drive, especially since we hit it at the height of rush hour but Dominik bought me Chipotle so it was totally worth it. A 2 pound burrito definitely ranks right up there on the list of best birthday meals. To top it off my parents took me to the Bamboo house the next day, which is just about the best Japanese place you will ever eat at. I also got a box of cow tails, Orbit gum and some money to buy a climbing helmet. The cake wasn't bad either.
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