POST # 66
Writer's block. That's what is going through my head this morning. There is plenty to write about but for some reason or another I just can't seem to get my brain around the idea today. So I think I'll keep this short and to the point.
My days here in Victoria are coming to and end this weekend, and I will be shipping out on Sunday. In some ways it feels like I just got here, as this housesit has gone by quite rapidly, in my mind at least.
Essie, Gaffer, James and Sally the cats have been wonderful company and very easy to care for. It's been purr heaven as opposed to pure heaven since I arrived here on March 14th and like always when I leave a housesit, I will miss the critters that I have been spending time with.
The area of Victoria that I have been living in is Oak Bay, and the street I am on is extremely quiet so it has felt somewhat country like as a result. The most prevalent sound outside is of birds chirping. Even as I write these words, it's the only sound I hear, aside from a purring cat sitting next to me.
Even though I have had the use of a vehicle while here, it has for the most part sat in the driveway, and I have chosen my preferred form of transport, the bicycle to get around on. Somehow, life for me seems pretty good, as long as there is a bicycle to ride and I have made a point of getting out for a spin every day that I have been here. It makes me happy, and the weather has even co-operated. Only once, did a big grey cloud catch up to me before I got home and manage to dump at least some of its precipitation upon my head.
Another thing that has been on my mind since even before I arrived here was that I have been troubled with some aches and pains that started a while back and it would be nice to put it down to the fact that I am just getting older, however I decided to make a trip to the doctor and have a bunch of tests done, the results of which all came back negative. In fact, according to the test results, I am actually quite healthy. Hmmmm!! Maybe it's all in my head? In any event I will continue to cruise through the days ahead and see what the future brings.
And finally, just to note that I may or may not be near a computer to complete my next blog which is scheduled for April 7th, but only time will tell. Perhaps by then, I will be able to muster up a few more words than I have done today.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
THOUGHTFUL: showing consideration for others; occupied with or given to thought; contemplative; meditative. WANDERER: moving from place to place without a fixed plan; or having no permanent residence; nomadic.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Thursday, March 21, 2013
CYCLING IN SPRINGTIME
POST # 65
Even though most people accept that the Spring Equinox arrives on or about the 21st of the month (except my Australian friends who for some reason think that the seasons change on the first), it actually arrived at 4:02am yesterday March 20th here on the west coast of North America. "Spring has sprung" as the old saying goes, and with that, the temperature will continue to warm as the earth proceeds on its never ending journey around the sun.
I couldn't think of a better excuse to go for a bike ride, and so after getting a few other things out of the way yesterday morning, which included a follow up visit to the doctor to have a look at the recent x-rays of my leg, I returned home, had a quick snack, let the cats that wanted in, in, and the ones that wanted out, out, and headed to the garage to get the bike and start out on my journey.
Now I would be hard pressed to think of anything that makes me as happy as I am when I am riding a bicycle. Yes, there are a few things, but hey, this is a family blog, right? A well functioning bike, a sunny day, an open road and who could ask for more? Well, maybe a tail wind but I'll get to that in a moment.
Riding these days is especially rewarding, mainly because I can. After breaking my leg last year, and hearing from the surgeon, that I might have to have my right foot amputated, I am particularly grateful to still have the opportunity to enjoy an activity which gives me so much pleasure. The bike has been my friend for many decades now, and I have been fortunate to travel some extended distances on two wheels, and even though there have been times, when the weather isn't co-operating and the riding is difficult, on balance, this activity is very rewarding to me on many levels. Not only is it a wonderful way to get a LONG look at the passing scenery, it's a great form of exercise as well. I get an overwhelming sense of freedom when I am riding.
So it was with this feeling yesterday, that I headed out on my journey. My plan was to travel west into the teeth of an incredibly strong wind, so that I would have the advantage of a tail wind on my return journey home. There was an actual wind warning in effect for here in Victoria yesterday, and there may have been wind gusts up to 100kph. Lots of fun. In spite of the occasional rain shower, I was more than happy to give my body a good work out on the bike.
Now what do you need, really, to ride a bike? Yes, you need the actual machine itself and you need a healthy enough body to operate the machine, and of course your body has to have some fuel in it to provide the energy to the muscles in order to spin the sprockets and transfer energy to the wheels so that you can produce a force to carry you along. Yes, you need all of that, but you need another essential component and if it isn't present, your bike ride and for that matter, everything else comes to a grinding halt. Everything Paul? Yes, everything. The planes don't fly, the cars don't drive, and the cats don't eat. Come on Paul, what on earth could be so important that it would cause all those things to happen?
I was pondering this question yesterday, as I stood along the coastline and felt the force of the wind in my face during a break in my ride. Prior to my break, I had had to breathe quite heavily to suck in enough oxygen to provide the energy to move forward against the wind and this got me to thinking about this component of life that we all take for granted, that being, oxygen. Without it, everything comes to a halt. Now of course, we take oxygen for granted just like we take gravity for granted. They've always been there and always will be. But according to the facts that are now coming out in ever greater quantity, this thing called oxygen is beginning to look like it will be going the same direction as the dinosaurs. In other words, extinct. Say what? That couldn't be possible. However, according to a scientific paper written by Malcolm Light, a specialist in earth sciences written in February 2012, this is the likely future we face. He says, extinction of all life on earth by mid century and to be more specific, 2031 in the northern hemisphere and 2047 in the southern hemisphere. See below:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Global Extinction within one Human Lifetime as a Result of a Spreading Atmospheric Arctic Methane Heat wave and Surface Firestorm
Abstract
Although the sudden high rate Arctic methane increase at Svalbard in late 2010 data set applies to only a short time interval, similar sudden methane concentration peaks also occur at Barrow point and the effects of a major methane build-up has been observed using all the major scientific observation systems. Giant fountains/torches/plumes of methane entering the atmosphere up to 1 km across have been seen on the East Siberian Shelf. This methane eruption data is so consistent and aerially extensive that when combined with methane gas warming potentials, Permian extinction event temperatures and methane lifetime data it paints a frightening picture of the beginning of the now uncontrollable global warming induced destabilization of the subsea Arctic methane hydrates on the shelf and slope which started in late 2010. This process of methane release will accelerate exponentially, release huge quantities of methane into the atmosphere and lead to the demise of all life on earth before the middle of this century.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To be specific, the methane, along with other feedback loops that are now well underway will cause the temperature to increase to such an extent, that the oceans will become dead zones, and because half of our oxygen is produced by phytoplankton in the ocean, that's a problem. The other half of the oxygen is produced by plants on land and with the increase in the temperature, the plants will wither away and that will probably take care of the rest of the oxygen. So, no more bike riding.
Now of course, this seems to be a major predicament, or a sticky wicket if you wanted to use a cricket term. But the evidence is there for anyone with the inclination to search it out. Some truths are harder to swallow than others.
On the plus side of things, it does help me to focus on what is, and what isn't important going forward. In other words, it helps to simplify even more, my already simplistic lifestyle.
So this is what I was thinking about yesterday, while taking a well earned break on my bike ride along the coast. Feeling rested, I continued my journey back home with a magnificent tailwind to push me along. The trip back was an almost effortless affair.
I arrived home to be greeted by James, Essie, Gaffer and Sally, the four other occupants of my current housesit here in Victoria. The cats that were in, when I left, were doing what cats do best, that is, having an afternoon nap when I arrived home. It seemed like a good thing to do, and having enjoyed some exercise, I decided that I too had earned the right to have a little cat nap of my own for a while, and maybe dream about my next bike ride.
Happy Trails and bike rides,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Even though most people accept that the Spring Equinox arrives on or about the 21st of the month (except my Australian friends who for some reason think that the seasons change on the first), it actually arrived at 4:02am yesterday March 20th here on the west coast of North America. "Spring has sprung" as the old saying goes, and with that, the temperature will continue to warm as the earth proceeds on its never ending journey around the sun.
I couldn't think of a better excuse to go for a bike ride, and so after getting a few other things out of the way yesterday morning, which included a follow up visit to the doctor to have a look at the recent x-rays of my leg, I returned home, had a quick snack, let the cats that wanted in, in, and the ones that wanted out, out, and headed to the garage to get the bike and start out on my journey.
Now I would be hard pressed to think of anything that makes me as happy as I am when I am riding a bicycle. Yes, there are a few things, but hey, this is a family blog, right? A well functioning bike, a sunny day, an open road and who could ask for more? Well, maybe a tail wind but I'll get to that in a moment.
Riding these days is especially rewarding, mainly because I can. After breaking my leg last year, and hearing from the surgeon, that I might have to have my right foot amputated, I am particularly grateful to still have the opportunity to enjoy an activity which gives me so much pleasure. The bike has been my friend for many decades now, and I have been fortunate to travel some extended distances on two wheels, and even though there have been times, when the weather isn't co-operating and the riding is difficult, on balance, this activity is very rewarding to me on many levels. Not only is it a wonderful way to get a LONG look at the passing scenery, it's a great form of exercise as well. I get an overwhelming sense of freedom when I am riding.
So it was with this feeling yesterday, that I headed out on my journey. My plan was to travel west into the teeth of an incredibly strong wind, so that I would have the advantage of a tail wind on my return journey home. There was an actual wind warning in effect for here in Victoria yesterday, and there may have been wind gusts up to 100kph. Lots of fun. In spite of the occasional rain shower, I was more than happy to give my body a good work out on the bike.
Now what do you need, really, to ride a bike? Yes, you need the actual machine itself and you need a healthy enough body to operate the machine, and of course your body has to have some fuel in it to provide the energy to the muscles in order to spin the sprockets and transfer energy to the wheels so that you can produce a force to carry you along. Yes, you need all of that, but you need another essential component and if it isn't present, your bike ride and for that matter, everything else comes to a grinding halt. Everything Paul? Yes, everything. The planes don't fly, the cars don't drive, and the cats don't eat. Come on Paul, what on earth could be so important that it would cause all those things to happen?
I was pondering this question yesterday, as I stood along the coastline and felt the force of the wind in my face during a break in my ride. Prior to my break, I had had to breathe quite heavily to suck in enough oxygen to provide the energy to move forward against the wind and this got me to thinking about this component of life that we all take for granted, that being, oxygen. Without it, everything comes to a halt. Now of course, we take oxygen for granted just like we take gravity for granted. They've always been there and always will be. But according to the facts that are now coming out in ever greater quantity, this thing called oxygen is beginning to look like it will be going the same direction as the dinosaurs. In other words, extinct. Say what? That couldn't be possible. However, according to a scientific paper written by Malcolm Light, a specialist in earth sciences written in February 2012, this is the likely future we face. He says, extinction of all life on earth by mid century and to be more specific, 2031 in the northern hemisphere and 2047 in the southern hemisphere. See below:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Global Extinction within one Human Lifetime as a Result of a Spreading Atmospheric Arctic Methane Heat wave and Surface Firestorm
Abstract
Although the sudden high rate Arctic methane increase at Svalbard in late 2010 data set applies to only a short time interval, similar sudden methane concentration peaks also occur at Barrow point and the effects of a major methane build-up has been observed using all the major scientific observation systems. Giant fountains/torches/plumes of methane entering the atmosphere up to 1 km across have been seen on the East Siberian Shelf. This methane eruption data is so consistent and aerially extensive that when combined with methane gas warming potentials, Permian extinction event temperatures and methane lifetime data it paints a frightening picture of the beginning of the now uncontrollable global warming induced destabilization of the subsea Arctic methane hydrates on the shelf and slope which started in late 2010. This process of methane release will accelerate exponentially, release huge quantities of methane into the atmosphere and lead to the demise of all life on earth before the middle of this century.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To be specific, the methane, along with other feedback loops that are now well underway will cause the temperature to increase to such an extent, that the oceans will become dead zones, and because half of our oxygen is produced by phytoplankton in the ocean, that's a problem. The other half of the oxygen is produced by plants on land and with the increase in the temperature, the plants will wither away and that will probably take care of the rest of the oxygen. So, no more bike riding.
Now of course, this seems to be a major predicament, or a sticky wicket if you wanted to use a cricket term. But the evidence is there for anyone with the inclination to search it out. Some truths are harder to swallow than others.
On the plus side of things, it does help me to focus on what is, and what isn't important going forward. In other words, it helps to simplify even more, my already simplistic lifestyle.
So this is what I was thinking about yesterday, while taking a well earned break on my bike ride along the coast. Feeling rested, I continued my journey back home with a magnificent tailwind to push me along. The trip back was an almost effortless affair.
I arrived home to be greeted by James, Essie, Gaffer and Sally, the four other occupants of my current housesit here in Victoria. The cats that were in, when I left, were doing what cats do best, that is, having an afternoon nap when I arrived home. It seemed like a good thing to do, and having enjoyed some exercise, I decided that I too had earned the right to have a little cat nap of my own for a while, and maybe dream about my next bike ride.
Happy Trails and bike rides,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Thursday, March 14, 2013
WHAT ARE THE ODDS?
POST # 64
Four pairs of cats eyes gaze at this stranger in their home. James, Essie, Gaffer and Sally complete the team of furballs here on a quiet street in Victoria, where only a few hours ago, I arrived after a quick overnight in Vancouver, which was preceded by an extended bus ride from Grand Forks.
These cats are new to me, and maybe it will take a few days for us to settle in with each other, but we'll see how that goes. At this early stage they all seem to be quite friendly but it could be that it's just getting close to dinner time because as soon as I get anywhere near the room where their dishes are located, they come a running. "Don't worry you cats, I haven't forgotten about you yet, but I need to get a few other things done first, if you don't mind." Like type up this blog for instance.
I heard today that it is international pi day, as in the number pi, 3.14159 etc. and so forth. I also heard that we have now calculated pi to ten trillion digits after the decimal place and even after all those numbers, the sequence still doesn't repeat. So the odds of it ever repeating are very small indeed. However, that wasn't the reason for selecting today's title. Here at the "cat house" I have four cats and they all have extra toes. Now every now and again I have seen a cat with extra toes, but what are the odds that all four cats in the same household would have them? My guess is that it would be pretty slim, especially in light of the fact that they aren't all related. I guess with all these extra claws walking around the place I should be concerned about scratches, however these guys and girls all seem to be pretty mellow and I think we will all get along just fine for the rest of the month of March.
It's been a long couple of days for the Thoughtful Wanderer, and I am looking forward to a rather early night tonight. The house rule here is that the master bedroom is kept as a cat free zone, and even though I am used to and even prefer having a cat or two (or four as the case may be) to cuddle up to during the night, I also like to stick with the rules that the owners have in place. So tonight, they will all be on one side of the bedroom door, and the housesitter will be on the other side. I feel confident that there will be ample time to curl up together here in the living room, or upstairs or the kitchen or wherever, so all should be well.
And if this rain continues, I will be spending more time indoors as a result, so the cats and I will have plenty of time to bond.
The house is located very close to the ocean, and as Spring is right around the corner, I am looking forward to plenty of walking and bike riding so that I can continue to increase the strength in my right leg. Even though I am becoming less and less of a city dweller these days, as far as cities go, Victoria isn't too bad, at least for now that is.
The day is yet young, however after a short sleep last night and the accumulated travel over the past two days, I think I'll keep this on the short side for today. My new feline friends are back to giving me "the look" and so I guess I should take the hint and get their dinners ready. After that, we can all settle in for our first evening together and for this cat, it's going to be an early one indeed.
Time to catch up to a few emails and maybe get in a quick ride before the sun goes down. The odds of that happening are very good.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Four pairs of cats eyes gaze at this stranger in their home. James, Essie, Gaffer and Sally complete the team of furballs here on a quiet street in Victoria, where only a few hours ago, I arrived after a quick overnight in Vancouver, which was preceded by an extended bus ride from Grand Forks.
These cats are new to me, and maybe it will take a few days for us to settle in with each other, but we'll see how that goes. At this early stage they all seem to be quite friendly but it could be that it's just getting close to dinner time because as soon as I get anywhere near the room where their dishes are located, they come a running. "Don't worry you cats, I haven't forgotten about you yet, but I need to get a few other things done first, if you don't mind." Like type up this blog for instance.
I heard today that it is international pi day, as in the number pi, 3.14159 etc. and so forth. I also heard that we have now calculated pi to ten trillion digits after the decimal place and even after all those numbers, the sequence still doesn't repeat. So the odds of it ever repeating are very small indeed. However, that wasn't the reason for selecting today's title. Here at the "cat house" I have four cats and they all have extra toes. Now every now and again I have seen a cat with extra toes, but what are the odds that all four cats in the same household would have them? My guess is that it would be pretty slim, especially in light of the fact that they aren't all related. I guess with all these extra claws walking around the place I should be concerned about scratches, however these guys and girls all seem to be pretty mellow and I think we will all get along just fine for the rest of the month of March.
It's been a long couple of days for the Thoughtful Wanderer, and I am looking forward to a rather early night tonight. The house rule here is that the master bedroom is kept as a cat free zone, and even though I am used to and even prefer having a cat or two (or four as the case may be) to cuddle up to during the night, I also like to stick with the rules that the owners have in place. So tonight, they will all be on one side of the bedroom door, and the housesitter will be on the other side. I feel confident that there will be ample time to curl up together here in the living room, or upstairs or the kitchen or wherever, so all should be well.
And if this rain continues, I will be spending more time indoors as a result, so the cats and I will have plenty of time to bond.
The house is located very close to the ocean, and as Spring is right around the corner, I am looking forward to plenty of walking and bike riding so that I can continue to increase the strength in my right leg. Even though I am becoming less and less of a city dweller these days, as far as cities go, Victoria isn't too bad, at least for now that is.
The day is yet young, however after a short sleep last night and the accumulated travel over the past two days, I think I'll keep this on the short side for today. My new feline friends are back to giving me "the look" and so I guess I should take the hint and get their dinners ready. After that, we can all settle in for our first evening together and for this cat, it's going to be an early one indeed.
Time to catch up to a few emails and maybe get in a quick ride before the sun goes down. The odds of that happening are very good.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Saturday, March 9, 2013
FACING MY FEARS
POST # 63
It's over with. Bob the cat is sacked out on the couch, and Sadie the dog is doing the same, but on the floor. Sadie's pooped. And the Thoughtful Wanderer is happy. But let's go back a couple of hours and take it from there shall we?
I was awake very early this morning, and the crescent moon was hovering low in the east prior to the sunrise. The sky was perfectly clear, and this was the first day since arriving in Grand Forks back on February 25th, that this was the case. I took it as a good omen. You see, today was the day that I was scheduled to go back over to the house-sit on the Granby River, located about ten kilometers north of the town of Grand Forks. Bev and Brian, the owners, had decided to take a three day vacation to the States, and as their former housesitter was in town, it was a good opportunity for them to take a break, and for me, to go re-visit the place where just over a year ago, I fell and broke my leg.
Brian arrived early to collect me, and soon after, we arrived at their place, had a brief visit, before they headed out on their adventure, and me on mine. My adventure? Well, ever since I tumbled down the hill last year, I had wondered if I would get the opportunity to re-climb it and conquer my fears. Today that chance presented itself. Sadie was up for it, and I thought I was too.
That is, until we stood at the base of the hill and looked up. How long we stood there, I am not exactly sure, and I let fear take control of me many times while I thought about the ascent. Finally I asked Sadie if she was up to it, and because I didn't receive a negative response from her, I took my first tentative steps up.
We would climb a few feet, and stop, and the mistake I made early was to look back down the hill, and wonder if I would be able to go down once I got higher. What to do? Continue up, or call it a day right now and just head back to the safety and comfort of the house? Well, maybe just a few more feet up won't be that bad, so I continued to climb. Occasionally I would throw the ball back down the mountain so that Sadie could get some more exercise, and I could pause for a rest and try and decide if I should continue or not. It was a constant mental effort to concentrate on the task at hand, and try not to think back to last years' fall. At times I was winning this mental battle, and at other times, the thought of me climbing further made me weak at the knees. Still I continued on. Somehow, with Sadie there to talk to and be with, it seemed to make my journey somewhat less daunting.
About half way up now, and I managed to find a good rock to sit on for a few moments in the sun. Speaking of rocks, as I looked over the rocky landscape, I really couldn't help but wonder how on earth I managed to survive falling and only getting a broken leg last year. This was the first chance to have an up close and personal look at this hillside. Last year, it was just a blur as I bounced over this same rocky ground, to end up in a heap at the bottom. Feeling rested now, and seeing that we were now around half way up, it made sense to try going a few steps farther. Up and up Sadie and I climbed until we got to the section near the top where the angle changes dramatically and becomes significantly steeper. But now we were close to the top, and at this point I certainly wasn't going to stop.
The angle being so steep, I took extra care to make sure that each foot was planted firmly on the ground before going higher. A fall from here, would no doubt result in a few more broken bones, or worse. THAT WOULD BE BAD. My world at this point became very small and extremely focused. I was only concentrating on each hand hold and foot hold. A little bit higher now, and our goal is in sight.
Some loose rock underfoot reminded me that danger was always hovering in the background, and even though I could see the top, I must continue to just focus on each step. At this point, Sadie was already hanging out on the top, probably wondering what was taking me so long.
Finally around 11:30am on Saturday March 9, 2013 I sat down on the big flat rock that just over one year ago, I sat on just prior to my fall. So many memories both good and bad flooded into my mind, but the overall feeling was one of extreme happiness because I had faced this fear and managed to overcome it. Sadie was just sitting there wondering where her ball ended up.
Try as I might to re-construct the exact trajectory of my journey to the bottom last year, it was difficult to see just exactly how it all happened. I guess I will probably never know, but it doesn't really matter. However, just looking back down the mountain side at all the rocks, tree stumps and other nasty obstructions, I still find it hard to fathom how on earth I only broke my leg in five places.
So here we were, at the top, Sadie and I, and for a while we just sat there and enjoyed the view. And I really did enjoy the view but of course our job wasn't yet complete. Plenty of climbers have successfully climbed various peaks only to come to grief on the journey back down. I was certainly aware of this fact, and I knew that I had to remain extremely vigilant until we had made it safely back to the house.
I decided to down climb on the north side of the slope which I knew from last year was not as steep as what we had just climbed up. My one concern was the extent of the snow on that side, but it proved to be minimal and ever so slowly I picked my way back down to the safety of the house. Sadie was there waiting for me.
So as I stated at the beginning, it's over with now. Whether I ever get another chance to climb this hill again I don't know and I really don't care. What I set out to do has now been done, and life can move on for the Thoughtful Wanderer.
One final note. Of course the above journey could have all been made up in my head and typed out on the screen with no actual proof that it was ever accomplished. Thankfully my dear friend Mary, loaned me her ipod, so I have ample record in both still shots and video of this morning's journey. Now if I can figure out how to download some of these onto the blog, then it will be proof positive. Keep checking back to see if I have been successful with this endeavor.
.JPG)
My fall began near the tree at the centre of the photo at the top of the slope.
Next week, it's off to Victoria where four cats await my arrival, just in time for spring.
happy trails (and hill climbs)
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
It's over with. Bob the cat is sacked out on the couch, and Sadie the dog is doing the same, but on the floor. Sadie's pooped. And the Thoughtful Wanderer is happy. But let's go back a couple of hours and take it from there shall we?
I was awake very early this morning, and the crescent moon was hovering low in the east prior to the sunrise. The sky was perfectly clear, and this was the first day since arriving in Grand Forks back on February 25th, that this was the case. I took it as a good omen. You see, today was the day that I was scheduled to go back over to the house-sit on the Granby River, located about ten kilometers north of the town of Grand Forks. Bev and Brian, the owners, had decided to take a three day vacation to the States, and as their former housesitter was in town, it was a good opportunity for them to take a break, and for me, to go re-visit the place where just over a year ago, I fell and broke my leg.
Brian arrived early to collect me, and soon after, we arrived at their place, had a brief visit, before they headed out on their adventure, and me on mine. My adventure? Well, ever since I tumbled down the hill last year, I had wondered if I would get the opportunity to re-climb it and conquer my fears. Today that chance presented itself. Sadie was up for it, and I thought I was too.
That is, until we stood at the base of the hill and looked up. How long we stood there, I am not exactly sure, and I let fear take control of me many times while I thought about the ascent. Finally I asked Sadie if she was up to it, and because I didn't receive a negative response from her, I took my first tentative steps up.
We would climb a few feet, and stop, and the mistake I made early was to look back down the hill, and wonder if I would be able to go down once I got higher. What to do? Continue up, or call it a day right now and just head back to the safety and comfort of the house? Well, maybe just a few more feet up won't be that bad, so I continued to climb. Occasionally I would throw the ball back down the mountain so that Sadie could get some more exercise, and I could pause for a rest and try and decide if I should continue or not. It was a constant mental effort to concentrate on the task at hand, and try not to think back to last years' fall. At times I was winning this mental battle, and at other times, the thought of me climbing further made me weak at the knees. Still I continued on. Somehow, with Sadie there to talk to and be with, it seemed to make my journey somewhat less daunting.
About half way up now, and I managed to find a good rock to sit on for a few moments in the sun. Speaking of rocks, as I looked over the rocky landscape, I really couldn't help but wonder how on earth I managed to survive falling and only getting a broken leg last year. This was the first chance to have an up close and personal look at this hillside. Last year, it was just a blur as I bounced over this same rocky ground, to end up in a heap at the bottom. Feeling rested now, and seeing that we were now around half way up, it made sense to try going a few steps farther. Up and up Sadie and I climbed until we got to the section near the top where the angle changes dramatically and becomes significantly steeper. But now we were close to the top, and at this point I certainly wasn't going to stop.
The angle being so steep, I took extra care to make sure that each foot was planted firmly on the ground before going higher. A fall from here, would no doubt result in a few more broken bones, or worse. THAT WOULD BE BAD. My world at this point became very small and extremely focused. I was only concentrating on each hand hold and foot hold. A little bit higher now, and our goal is in sight.
Some loose rock underfoot reminded me that danger was always hovering in the background, and even though I could see the top, I must continue to just focus on each step. At this point, Sadie was already hanging out on the top, probably wondering what was taking me so long.
Finally around 11:30am on Saturday March 9, 2013 I sat down on the big flat rock that just over one year ago, I sat on just prior to my fall. So many memories both good and bad flooded into my mind, but the overall feeling was one of extreme happiness because I had faced this fear and managed to overcome it. Sadie was just sitting there wondering where her ball ended up.
Try as I might to re-construct the exact trajectory of my journey to the bottom last year, it was difficult to see just exactly how it all happened. I guess I will probably never know, but it doesn't really matter. However, just looking back down the mountain side at all the rocks, tree stumps and other nasty obstructions, I still find it hard to fathom how on earth I only broke my leg in five places.
So here we were, at the top, Sadie and I, and for a while we just sat there and enjoyed the view. And I really did enjoy the view but of course our job wasn't yet complete. Plenty of climbers have successfully climbed various peaks only to come to grief on the journey back down. I was certainly aware of this fact, and I knew that I had to remain extremely vigilant until we had made it safely back to the house.
I decided to down climb on the north side of the slope which I knew from last year was not as steep as what we had just climbed up. My one concern was the extent of the snow on that side, but it proved to be minimal and ever so slowly I picked my way back down to the safety of the house. Sadie was there waiting for me.
So as I stated at the beginning, it's over with now. Whether I ever get another chance to climb this hill again I don't know and I really don't care. What I set out to do has now been done, and life can move on for the Thoughtful Wanderer.
One final note. Of course the above journey could have all been made up in my head and typed out on the screen with no actual proof that it was ever accomplished. Thankfully my dear friend Mary, loaned me her ipod, so I have ample record in both still shots and video of this morning's journey. Now if I can figure out how to download some of these onto the blog, then it will be proof positive. Keep checking back to see if I have been successful with this endeavor.
Next week, it's off to Victoria where four cats await my arrival, just in time for spring.
happy trails (and hill climbs)
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Thursday, March 7, 2013
DELAYED POST
Due to my limited time at a library computer here in Grand Forks, I will be writing my post this coming weekend, when I will be back housesitting at the same place where I broke my leg last year. Should be fun.
More to follow,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
More to follow,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
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