webike

today i biked to work. never done it before and now probably never gonna stop.
one of the best things about riding a bike is that you're out in the open. the windows are always down and you can easily roll through 'optional' stop signs at your discretion.

sidewalk, road, sidewalk, bike lane, someones driveway, jump a curb, park trials, road.
wherever you wish, you can go. i'm in a state of liberation when i'm moving on a bike. not only will i be starting my day with exercise and a daily dose of sunshine but i will save some money on gas and even more thrilling, opportunities to explore new places my car won't take me. and there are countless ways to get to work. today i took the "don't really pay attention to street names and just head in the general southeast direction to work" and this panned out great. i passed an inviting little park that i will have to stop and spend some time in soon. i'm sure next time i ride to work the course will be different and hopefully lead me to something alluring.

i hope to bike to work as much as possible since the weather is so accommodating and blissful this time of year. everyday is not realistic since there will have to be days for appointments, days of rain, days of meeting friends for lunch and of course days of friday happy hours with no desire to obtain a BUI. until i learn to fix a flat i will be commuting on my hybrid but really relish the day when i can get my 1975 trek rolling smooth. just a few tune ups and maybe even a fresh paint job should do the trick.

trueinspiration

i recently had the opportunity to hear erik weihenmayer speak and wasn't going to miss it. truly inspiring. on top of this, i was excited about the location: historic east high school at city park in denver. yes, i am a dork who takes such interest in local architecture.
just in august 2008 he completed his voyage to climb the seven summits- reaching the highest mountain on each of the seven continents.

[in no order]
mt. kilimanjaro | africa
mt. mckinley | north america
vinson massif | antarctica
elbrus | europe
kosciuszko | australia
carstensz pyramid | austral-asia
[when in the hoo-hah did we get a new continent?]
everest | asia
aconcagua | south america

fewer than 100 mountaineers have accomplished this triumph.


"people get trapped into thinking about just one way of doing things"
-erik weihenmayer, blind rock climber

yes, you read that correctly. he, in fact, is blind. making this feat all the more unbelievable and astounding. his words touched me deeply in my passion for seeing more of this world and climbing to the summit of life's many pursuits.

desertclimbing

only a white-out blizzard could come close to stopping me from getting into a car and driving straight west into the rocky mountains. but with great coincidence a spring snow sprung on denver early thursday morning and apparently this was even uncommon for denver. AWESOME, not. not awesome. do you know when you have something on your mind that is heavenly and soon to be happening and you will learn to do a triple back flip over night to bring it to fruition if need be? well, going to moab was that. once the idea is instilled in the brain even 12" of non-plowed snow roads won't hold you back. and it didn't. so maybe against out better judgment we set out.


our destination was moab, utah and this place turned out to be even more entrancing than i had imagined. nothing is better than topping your expectations. we set up camp on the colorado river and strategically located ourselves near the only bouldering around and just a short drive from the crag. the city of moab itself caters to the outdoor enthused souls and is sprinkled with the everyday tourist here and there. though mostly around town are avid mountain bikers, off-roaders, hikers and even ballsy base jumpers [one of which we saw].oh, and of course trad|sport|boulder climbing lovers. you can feel the energy and the passion that each collection of people has for their respected extreme sport.

we climbed slab, we climbed cracks, we traversed on flakes, we took the wind head-on and reached the top of the most pleasant multi-pitch climb i've encountered so far and all the while rejoiced in the fact that we were of the few denverits who were not treading through countless inches of snow. yee haw! however, one thing i do recall missing a sight of: a sunset, unforgettable or just the same as any third tuesday dusk of the month, i didn't see one. well, there it is, i've got to go back and see a sunset and of course check out more of what moab has to offer. if you are close you should not pass up this treasure in our country.

picture skills: pat harris :)

lunch funSchlessman

who says you can't have an adventure on your lunch break?
I simply can NOT stand going to the hangout/break room, grabbing my lunch and plopping back down at my desk to stare yet again into the oversize monitor. which by the way does not lend itself to being discrete enough to watch humorous you-tube videos or anything else as equally inappropriate in this office. and plus, I'm on a busy corner that gets a lot of foot traffic, yeah as opposed to bikes or scooters..just sad.
so usually, when the weather permits and it most often does in colorado, i venture into Lowry. formerly the lowry air force base but permanently closed in 1994 and just missing the awful developer's suburbia sprawl that leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. lowry has truly been well executed as an urban development neighborhood and i like it. the feel, the flow, the functionality, the uhhhh aged flora. okay that was a stretch. but there are many aspects of this denver tract that i admire. and i work here, so bonus.
one place i go often, say a couple times a week especially in the winter is the public library. this is just a small branch of the mondo size dowtown hub library and i believe is designed with the reader in mind. i usually drive there which i am a little ashamed of but yesterday walked for the first time. i guess i value the library time a little more than the stroll to get there and plus i can't be taking 2.5 hour lunches, unless i fall asleep in the park, then its more than okay [which has been accomplished many a time]. so the Schlessman library is always packed with all sorts of folk. the lowry up scale type, border line homeless, small cute children, elderly, business men and women on lunch breaks, nannies with 6 kiddos and i'm sure many more stereotypes if you observed enough. essentially all the combinations of people in such a small well flowing place is an attractive atmosphere. It makes sense that "in a complex social fabric, human relations are inevitably subtle. it is essential that each person feels free to make connections or not, to move or not, to talk or not, to change the situation or not, according to his judgenment."[pattern language:the flow through rooms]
even just an hour of my day spent diving into books on foreign countries, religion, wine and|or magazines on climbing, improving physique or revamping and making the most my hall linen closet makes me love life a little more. and as taking the place of a top favorite pastime of 'going to barnes and noble to read books and scan through magazines' you can now leave debt free with books [i think like 15] in hand. well, i have accumulated a few small late charges. eeeeeee.

dexternew home

the unavowed secret of a man is that he wants to be confirmed in his being and his existence by his fellow men and that he wishes them to make it possible for him to confirm them, and . . .not merely in the family, in the party assembly or in the public house, but also in the course of neighborly encounters, perhaps when he or the other steps out of the door of his house or to the window of his house and the greeting with which they greet each other will be accompanied by a glance of well-wishing, a glance in which curiosity , mistrust, and routine will have been overcome by a mutual sympathy: the one gives the other to understand that he affirms his presence. this is the indispensable minimum of humanity.
[house cluster:towns:pattern language]

For some odd reason, I like moving. Yes, organizing, boxing, transporting, de-boxing, and re-organizing. I think it is the modest idea of simplifying your possessions that i am most attracted to. and disgustingly enough, we as humans are a representation of our possessions. well, as it goes moving means that you are relocating to a new place. we all know how i feel about new places; new place is synonymous with fresh adventure. park hill is the setting and sweet is the vibe. the developmental high for park hill was during the City Beautiful movement creating tree lined streets up and down. this is where you feel like everyday is that perfect sundays drive.
i can't wait to live and venture through out the streets and into the local flavor of this historic district.

here's the house. come visit! vegetation to come.

haikus are funrunning is fun

cold night, treadmill sucks.
temperature means nothing.
running from the porch.

up hill. fox sighting.
enduring promenade stretch.
snow paved. downtown glimpse.

sketchy sweep onward
liquor store frenzy. dead lot.
dog walkers, relieved.

a pace to the beats.
problematic. deep long breath.
last lap. refreshed bit.

as winter set in, any running i was doing came to an abrupt halt. there were less sunshine hours in the day and it was near black when i came out of work. my options were: wake up earlier to run... not happening. i tried it, nothing was accomplished. option 2: run indoors on the treadmill while trying to keep my mind on anything besides the fact that i was moving on a lame piece of anchored equipment. while this lasted for like two workouts i was slowly opting to not run at all and were definitely feeling the side effects. to me, you either run because you have a lot of extra time so you decide to fill it with long running/walking excursions [at least how i thinkof them] or you MAKE time for it because you feel its a part of who you are. i might be crazy but i missed running. so i did the unthinkable and signed up for a half marathon. wowzers, i better get my butt in gear. shortly after, my last and final option popped into my head: i will have to run at night after any other obligatory happenings are over for the day, no excuses, and this will have to happen in a safe environment since running at night, alone, near train tracks and being female is never smart.

so i got in the groove and choose my trail. it is just a loop that keeps you on the perimeter of the development i live in and i'm guessing is roughly a mile. but who's keeping measure anyways? it allows me to get out and be free for an hour right within a few steps of my own residence. this small adventure i take before turning in for the night lets me digest the day or wander about nothingness. nothing but my feet hitting the gound and my body in motion. maybe i'll visit sometime during the day, i'm sure it will be notably different and maybe even unfamiliar.

eldoradocanyon
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there are so many places to climb in colorado it's out of your mind. even all the 'close' places haven't seen my eyes. or better yet, my eyes have not yet feasted on and my mouth hasn't drooled upon. ALL saturday [unintentionally, but sweetly] was spent climbing at eldorado canyon. i honestly had no idea how close i was living to such great climbing. driving there was nothing too exciting, just through the dry brown colored hills of the denver outskirts. then, as approaching the foothills the base of the mountains just seems to open right up and just enough for you and your vehicle to slip on inside. and then... wa-la.bam.boom.bam. you're there and it would be crazy to look back because there is so much ahead.
that day we were placing our own gear into fissures in the rock and hoping that the decision made every 8' or so was a good choice. more simply, we were traditional climbing. however, i was just following so the pressure laid very lightly on my chest. still, such a great first experience trad climbing and in the magical slippery sandstone world of eldo, i couldn't ask for much more.

set alarms. get there early. kinda. hike to crag. climb. mind wanders into bliss. reach summit. check out view. descend. gather gear. ride home. eat lots. happy.

i like this scenario. but i forgot to throw in there that you are always meeting new people and making friends, even if you will never see them again. two sets of guys were following us on the 6 pitch climb we were getting after and one pair was climbing slightly like morons. what can you do? so we climb on, reach the top and do check out the view with a sublime sunset. the two, non moron climbing guys arrive and we all hang out. then the others follow shortly and beg us not to leave since they won't make it out with enough light to guide the way and are unfortunately headlamp less. once his partner makes it up and over he informs us that he left a piece of gear that he couldn't take out. i think this guy was a second time climber, err maybe third. so we wait some more and get to check out all the lights coming on across the city which is always cool from some 300 feet up. oh dear. we have to get down some how and suddenly its not so cool. stories of people having to often camp out up there is coming out and it makes sense if you don't know the way only marked by carins. but we set off ever so cautiously and arrive, who knows when later, injury-free. lucky us. very lucky us. no more traveling without my headlamp from here on out.

cold nightsshelf road

pitching your tent on a 4" layer of snow doesn't always give someone the comfort that it's going to be a cozy night sleeping. things that make this thought go away. . . the stars, someone to curl up next to, climbing in 60 degree sunshiny weather, burnt food tasting like pure campfire [yummm] and knowing that you are in the middle of a knockout landscape. a little shivering in your sleeping bag is minor compared to these luxuries. i've been to shelf. rd. three times since i've moved to colorado and it is pretty much an awesome place to spend a weekend climbing camping and hanging out with friends. it's a relatively short drive from denver and takes you right into the heart of the Wet Mountains. a perfect get-away location for the weekend. the whole idea of being far away but not too far to drive for two days, but just far enough sort of thing. it's the whole process of getting in your car and moving yourself to a new far off location that sets your mind right. i don't feel that this could be achieved by spending the night in your local park or wooded backyard. but maybe that is the imagination i've lost since i was six =( i believe the authenticity in people have the opportunity to come out when placed in nature. this is outside of our everyday environment [or so the majority] and allows the soul to open up to new heights. at least this is true for me and i love it. and for the bonus, the shower you get to take once you get home is always and over again 'the best thing'.
so we camped. climbed to our hearts content. burnt our own food and ate it. star-gazed. drank some snow-chilled beer. had a blast. and least of which tried to stay warm.

on another note, but still in the frame of mind. i've been thinking about urban camping and all that entails. urban dictionary defines it as camping in an urban setting by sleeping on rooftops, under bushes, and in public parks.hmmm...looks like fun.

skieldora

this past weekend was quite an wonderful one which involved a new city scene for a night, a new skiing town for the adventuresome and new humor for the soul. my friend got this killer of a deal where we could stay the night in boulder and ski our hearts out at eldora mountain. off we go..

words that come to mind when i think of boulder is energetic, esoteric, hippie but not hipster and flatirons [that i want to climb]. such a gem of a city that i think dearly of and love living within a short drive to. i admire its density mostly achieved by the 1960's 'no growth policy' and the innate desire for locals to transport themselves via bike or foot from here to there. the balance of college town thrown into the mix is always one that confuses me. maybe it's because boulder is just not fayetteville [my college town], so i try not to dwell on that too much. i think if i ever moved to boulder i would HAVE to go to school. if only they had a paramount masters program for urban design i would be moving tomorrow and enrolling yesterday. so it goes, i will just visit.
well, pearl street was a blast, people watching mostly and strangely enough it was a little dead for a friday night. then the hour struck 11 p.m. and from every which way crowds of vibrant people filled the streets. it was activated and showing its true colors.

skiing on minimal sleep is not recommended...ever. lazy and skier are not a good combo. surprisingly, the small amount of sleep i got sufficed for the day, lucky me. my skiing experience goes no further than steamboat so getting to adventure around a new mountain was great. the runs were much more hidden than i was used to which allowed my mind to wander and thoughts just took off as the snow fell around us. i love how a place can do this to the mind. new places evokes new thoughts and stifles unwanted ones. [even though i'm not having many of those these days] i guess that proves that adventuring into uncharted lands, for the individual of course, is stellar for the soul.

move overgolden

the ability to get in my car and drive 10 minutes west and be at the base of a climbing destination is remarkable! the best part of this particular destination is that even though how close it is to 'home' you still get the feeling that you are out of the city. which ever town you are coming from it doesn't matter. only thing important is that you are up and away for a warm winter sunday afternoon. the town almost directly below is Golden. home to coors beer, intelligent Mines students and apparently jolly rancher candy that i am ironically eating right now [weird]. then looking southeast you see denver and all its flat glory. if you look hard enough you might see the kansas state line. okay maybe not. it really is a great view onto all of the infrastructure and even the sad and ridiculous amounts of suburbia sprawl. this concept of the 90's never ceases to fascinate me. anyways, golden is fun, its cute but i whole-heartily think that it should be denver. now if you just close your eyes and think for a second [i understand this might be hard if you have never been to colorado and more specifically denver and even more specifically golden and most specifically north table mountain] that we super-impose the urban city of denver and i suppose a few of the metropolitan surroundings of my liking, right there at the foothills of the rockies. i can see it now.

why did this not happen? isin't it all about 'location, location, location'? don't get me wrong, i like denver, i love denver. i just think if it got up and ran 8 miles west it would be a dream city. and we would go climb during the week at lunch and rarely return. the boundaries would be the mountains and also our backyard, quite literally.

why do cities land where they do? duh. because of gold and such discoveries. but if i was the founder of denver colorado i would have chosen the mountains over the gold.

taa-da. the city.