Baby Elephant

Rozie the elephant that I saw as a baby 16 years ago now has had a baby on last Wed. 09-02-09. I hope to be able to go see this baby girl when she can be seen by the public. This photo came out really small when I posted it. It is someone elses photo and can be seen at this sitehttp://www.cabq.gov/biopark/elephantcalf.htmlt It is always wonderful to hear about the birth of animals and especially those near extention. The Rio Grande Zoo in Albuquerque is known for the gariffe births that occur frequently. I think there may have been a baby gariffe born earlier this spring and there were snow leopard cubs born in May this spring. Snow leopards are extreamly endangered. The Rio Grande zoo is doing really well at raising endangered animals.

Unhurried daily life in Trinidad

Trinidad is an intimate little town, especially in the old historical town centre, everything moves slowly and everyone seems to know each other.

Time stands still in this UNESCO World Heritage town. The locals gladly spend their days sitting from the window sills or their doorsteps watching people go by, while others gather together in groups, laughing and chatting with each other. This relaxed social sphere and people watching activity seems to be a national culture and pastime. Many even upped their comfort by bringing their own chairs outside on the street. Voila, the old centre has become an extension to their living room.

Ah, such is life in a slow, provincial town.

With my complex and pressurised ‘the deadline is yesterday’—‘they need it now’—‘projects’—‘constant changes’—‘numbers, numbers, numbers’—‘politics’ life, I can definitely use a little laidback provincial town feel.

In Facebook (and other blogs as well), you get all sorts of meaningful sayings flashed on the newsfeed. One statement caught my eye—‘When was the last time you did something for the first time?’

I understand that perhaps many people out there might have a more relaxed and pampered life than most of us, but really, there are times when I WANT TO STOP DOING THINGS FOR THE FIRST TIME. There are times when I just want to go with the flow. There are times when I just want to sit down and do nothing. Maybe stare at the wall. Smile to myself?

There are times when I wish I could just sit back and watch life go by in front of me, without having to think of time and duties... just like the locals in Trinidad. But I know this is just wishful thinking. And even if it indeed happens, I know for sure that my pleasure will just be short-lived.

Life must go on. Tanden bijten. Doorzetten.

Below are my snapshots of the unhurried daily life in Trinidad.

In Trinidad old historical centre:

Here we are again, taking a souvenir picture with the church and convent at the background.

Many local women love wearing leggings paired with above the crotch shirts and blouses. Cuban women seems to think it is normal that their 'thing' is taking centre stage (read and see: camel toe fit). And some of the enterprenurial locals sell fruit, i.e. bananas on their doorstep.


Outside Trinidad old historical centre:

Outside the old historical centre the streets and houses are rundown. It looks very desperate.

More of Trinidad next!

Morning in Cathedral Valley

We woke early to break camp before sunrise and head back down to the valley for the early morning light.Both of usslept very comfortably in the tent as it was probably the warmest night of the trip, with the temp not dropping below 45 degrees. At first the sky didn't look too promising, as it was still cloudy. The clouds were thinner than they were the previous night, though, and seemed to be breaking up. By the time we got to the valley floor there were patches of blue starting to show through the clouds. Before long the sun was peeking out from behind the clouds and illuminating the sandstone monoliths of Upper Cathedral Valley. We walked along the main row of cathedrals and enjoyed watching the changing light as it washed over the sandstone cliffs. It was a supremely beautiful morning, a fitting end to our last morning in the southwest before heading for home.

Starring Nobody

I took on a touch too much this weekend. Huge group at work, cooking for 150 hungry black belts, rush out for a lap on the project with Lee and Sam, dash to Brissy for photos with The Red Phoenix Style team (AKA my twin daughters), back to work for Ethical Pickles production team (Yaana and Sandra) and more.

Let's just say corners were cut. Things were compromised. Mistakes were made.

But the results were fab.

Celebrity blogger "Starring Nobody" AKA Kirsten Morrison modeled some stunning threads by some totally important designers.

But this is not one of them. Lotus picked up this sparkly number in the op shop for 10 bucks. That's immersion quality clothing. And in she went.











The whole shoot was for the client "The French Peg" a sweet little Paddington boutique.

But this is not that.








Climbers, it's possible you are getting a pre-release peek at The Red Phoenix Emporium collection of necklaces and earrings "Nature in Neon"

This cowboy blogger never checks permissions. No time.








Adrift.































The style team at jjobrienclimbing are totally and utterly impressed with the new collection, seriously I don't know how those girls keep hitting the trend bang on.








Kirsten looks superb in this rig, confirming the fact that an RPE necklace will make a $10 dress look a million. That's a fact.








Snapped between shivering bouts. Kirsten is die hard dedicated to style.






Is the collection online yet? Keep checking Red Phoenix Emporium or drop into The French Peg


2/237 Given Tce, Paddington Brisbane.








There is nothing this girl has not covered in style on her blog starring-nobody.blogspot.com

Thank you Kirsten, Lotus, Willow and all for another amazing shoot.




jj

Sunset at Horsethief Campground

Utah is blessed with five National Parks, two of them near Moab – Arches and Canyonlands. I decided to try and find somewhere else to stay for a couple more nights rather than having to “wait and see” if a camp site was available at Arches.

The road to Canyonlands is a few miles north of Arches but then it is a 30+ mile drive to get into the Park and the campground is a little further in. It is a magnificent drive however. Arriving at the Canyonlands campground I discovered that there are only 12 sites! 12. Of course, they were all taken. Ugh. But, the Ranger says “There is a BLM campground ten miles back from the park entrance.” I had passed it on my way in but didn't check it out because it was on an unpaved road. So I turned around and went back.

Horsethief Campground is on a high plateau with little protection from the wind and other elements but it is in a beautiful location. The amenities are few. A place to park, pit toilets, no water. If you put up a tent you have to use rocks to keep it in place – stakes just can't go through solid rock! But there were a couple of the 60 or so sites still available; I ended up staying there for three nights, using it as a base camp to explore the area – Canyonlands, Arches, and Moab.

It was early afternoon when I arrived at Horsethief Campground and as I was walking back to my site from dropping off payment, there was Hunter (the older gentleman with whom I had shared a site last night at Arches)! He was sitting at a picnic table in the site a short distance from mine. We talked for a few minutes then I headed back to my site. I had decided to spend the afternoon just lazying around, reading a book, relaxing.

It wasn't too much later that the sky quickly darkened and gray clouds moved in above us. I grabbed my chair and book and slid into the van just as rain came pouring down. It lasted a good while, well into the evening and cleared up shortly before sunset. Along with about a dozen other campers, I made my way out of the campground to a little rise for a good view of the sunset. I looked for Hunter but didn't see him. I stopped at his site on the way back to mine but he was no where around. I didn't see him again. In the morning I was just getting out of bed when I heard something hit the windshield. I looked out and Hunter was walking away toward his site. By the time I got out of the van he was gone, but he had left me a note beneath the wiper blade, now soaked by the morning dew. It said, simply “Becky – Happy Trails. Hunter.” What a touching gesture. What a sweet man he was.

If I get nothing else out of this journey, the joy and pleasure of meeting some wonderful people, will suffice. I find it truly amazing how quickly friendships form. We meet someone, spend a few minutes or hours together, then go our separate ways. But the thoughts and memories linger and I often wonder about them. Larry, at Big Bend. Sophia, on top of Angels Landing. Hunter, at Arches and Horsethief. I've been astounded by the people I've met on the trail who, after talking with them for perhaps half an hour, have invited me to visit them when I get in their area – they have given me their email and phone number and fully expect me to contact them. And I just might! This has been an incredible experience thus far – almost nine months on the road – and it isn't over yet!

Lewis & Clark Bridge

Going south from Washington state to Oregon state.

Seymour Blueskies

As some have already noticed, I recently acquired one more bicycle that I have not yet written about. It is a vintage Trek roadbike - fast and aggressive, with super-responsive handling. Don't ask how I got the bike; sometimes these things just find you. It was in exactly my size, and came along at a time when I had begun to experiment with more aggressive road cycling. I wanted to try a "real" roadbike without spending more money, and here was my chance.



So please allow me to introduce Seymour Blueskies. He is a Trek 610, built in 1982. The lugged steel frame is made with Reynolds 531 tubing, and cro-moly fork and stays. The frame is 52cm, with 700C wheels.It is an interesting blue-gray colour that Trek called "gunmetal"in its catalogues.



The 610 was a higher-end model, and the previous owner built it up with nice components - though over the years they had become somewhat of a medley.



The wheels were handbuilt using Rigida racing rims with a gunmetal finish, a Campagnolo rear hub, a Suntour XC 9000 front hub, and double butted spokes. The drivetrain is Suntour Sprint 9000, with Suntour downtube shifters. The stem is vintage Nitto and the handlebars are ITM. The bicycle also came with a Brooks Finesse Titanium(!) women's saddle.



I have kept all of the components as they were, except for the brakes and brake levers, which we replaced with newTektros.We also added cork bar tape, installed SKS fenders and a bottle cage, replaced the original clipless pedals with MKS Touring pedals (withPowergrips), and attached my Zimbale bag and a Crane bell from another bike.



I prefer cloth tape on handlebars, but these bars have a weird, squared-off shape to them with a carved-out channel for cable routing. This can all be felt though cloth tape, making the bars uncomfortable to hold without a layer of cork. They are also a bit too narrow for me, and if the Trek ends up being a keeper I would like to replace them with something like Nitto Noodles, or a vintage equivalent.



The reasoning behind the SKS fenders was initially budget-driven, but I am very happy with this choice. They are quieter and less fussy than Honjos; I hardly even notice them. The Co-Habitant hates SKS fenders, because he thinks they are "ugly". I do not find them "ugly"; just more sporty than Honjos - which was exactly the look I was going for here. Incidentally - even with the fenders, saddlebag and waterbottle, the Trek is the lightest bicycle I own.



After a few weeks of ownership, I have also justreplaced the original Michelin 25mm tires with 28mm Panaracer Paselas in white. The Michelinsthat came with it are supposed to be fantastic, but they felt hard as rocks and made for a very harsh ride. The Paselas, on the other hand, feel as if I am riding on a cloud. 28mm tires are probably the widest this bicycle will fit with fenders, and that is fine with me.



Now, for the ride quality... The vintage Trek handles very differently from the Rivendell Sam Hillborne. The best way I can describe this bike's behaviour, is that it wants to go fast and does not like to go slow. At slow speeds the Trek feels unstable and difficult to maneuver, especially when cornering. It took me a few rides to learn how to handle this without panicking, but eventually I got used to it. By the same token, it becomes amazingly stable and precise at fast speeds: Once I exceed 16mph, it seems to magically "relax" and almost floats above the asphalt. Accelerating is easy - almost too easy! One turn of the pedals, two turns - and before I know it, I amflying. This is great fun now that I am more or less comfortable on a roadbike, but even a couple of months ago I would not have been able to handle this kind of cycling. When riding the Hillborne, I feel that I am exploring - I can go fast, or I can go slow. Riding the Trek, I feel that I preparing for a race - going slow is not really in the cards.



All other factors remaining equivalent (road and traffic conditions, my energy levels, etc.), the Trek is a faster ride than the Rivendell. I cannot tell how much faster exactly, because conditions are never identical on any two rides - but when the Co-Habitant accompanied me, he said the difference in my speed on the two bikes was noticeable. One explanation for this could be that the Trek's handlebars are set lower, but it could also just be that the bike is designed to be a bit racier. On the flip side of the speed advantage, the Trek is not as comfortable as the Rivendell(which is insanely comfortable) and encourages over-exertion - leaving me feeling far more exhausted after a ride. One curious thing about how I feel on the Trek, is that my hands always hurt at the beginning of a ride - but stop hurting as the ride progresses and I pick up speed. This is surprising, because when something hurts at the start of a ride, it typically only gets worse the longer I cycle - so each time I get on the bike I have to suspend disbelief and remind myself that my hands will stop hurting in a few minutes. And thankfully, they always do. I also find it challenging to hold the drop portions of the bars on the Trek (something I have already mastered on the Rivendell) without losing some control of the bike or at least weaving a bit. I am sure this will feel comfortable eventually, but I am not there yet. Just yesterday, I was finally able to use the downtube shifters for the first time - after having tearfully declared that they were "impossible" time after time on previous rides. Everything takes practice.



When I first got the Trek, I was not at all sure that I would be keeping it. We modified it just enough to make me comfortable, and it would be easy to resell this bike at no loss. I wanted to experience a "real" roadbike without the coddling qualities of the Rivendell, and now I have. So what next? Well, I don't know yet, but I don't really want to let it go. It has been bewildering to discover that I kind of, sort of might actually be good at road cycling, and I would like to see this discovery through. Depending on how much time I have in a day for a ride, I take either the Rivendell (for long rides), the Trek (for medium, but fast paced rides), or the fixed gear Moser (for shorter, intense rides) - and together they are helping me understand my potential.

Walking the walk?

Easy to sit in the office and tap out total bs on a blog. Ya gotta wonder just how much of what I write, am I really willing to do. How deep do I get?

After getting rained out of the alpine yesterday morning at 3AM and then waking up to sunshine at 10AM I was more than a little depressed. For me the 3AM starts are generally the crux. Getting up at 3AM driving to the trail head and then bailing is not easy for me. So, for much of yesterday I planned a resurrection.

But I wanted something different. A new challenge. I wanted to do a climb as light as possible (in my context). All this new gear and technology and I had yet to push both and then myself.

For a quick test I choose a 2 mile hike with 2200' of elevation gain and another 800' of AI up to 70 degrees to finish.

Gear? All my clothing including socks and gloves weighted 3.25# total. For the bottoms I used a set of poly boxers and a pair of super light weight Gamma Lt Arcteryx pants. I added grommets and elastic to the pants legs so I could ditch the gaiters. Two pairs of socks and the silver bullet, La Sportiva's Trango Extreme Evo Gortex boots. The top? A short sleeved, wide open, fish net poly bicycle t shirt, a lwt merino wool zip front and a new Eddie Bauer, Frontpoint jacket, a lwt silk bandanna and a polar tech pile head band. Gloves were the REI multi-sport Minialmist. Big day for Petzl! Tools? Nomics, with BD umbilicals. Crampons were Dartwins clip-ons and my helmet was a Meteor, harness a Hirundos. I also bagged a 65m 5mm rap line, a small rope Reversino, a long spectra sling with 3 ultralight biners, 2 wire gates and a locker.

Temps were between the low 30s walking in and the mid 20s on the climb. But I still forced myself to start in the fishnet t shirt and the silk head band. Yes sir, it was a little chilly for the first few minutes in the legs, more than the torso, surprisingly.

2 hrs later and just short of the ridge I added the EB Frontpoint wind shell. In the wind and fog on the ridge crest, while others were adding belay jackets, I peeled the Frontpoint jacket and added my dress weight (very lwt) Merino wool sweater ($30 from a Men's Warehouse sale) and zipped up. The other climbers already on the ridge were well kitted for the weather as long as you weren't going to actually move!

An hr. later I was on top and comfortable. My clothing still dry. The first climber up behind me (who started before me) was complaining that he had to take a break and peel some layers before he could continue. He was both, over heated and wet.

C2C ...even with breaking some trail I had set a personal best for the route and had cut hrs. off my time. Better yet it was the most enjoyable time I have had on the climb. While the conditions were the hardest ice conditions I've seen there.

Good reminder for me to be selective of your gear and pay attention to what it weights. Wear less, be more comfortable and climb faster! Good day out for me. But obviously in the grand scheme, not all that deep :)

"Cool muscles work more efficiently."

For more on the subject of lwt gear and a great read try Mark Twight's "Extreme Alpinism"




A 24/48/60 hr follow up on this little adventure. Typically I would be dehydrated the evening after a climb and well into next day. I drank less on the approach and climb and wasn't dehydrated later that day or in the next 48 hrs. Which means in this case I could carry less weight in water and still be comfortable. I had less muscle soreness than usual. A lot less. I ate a bit of sugar and carbs and a drank a pint of water after I arrived at the car and had a really hot shower when I got home. We ate a typically light dinner that night. I did an casual, hour long, hike the next day but recovery was much, much faster than usual.

The one thing that really sticks in my mind about this trip was being able to literally run out the last mile of so of the trail and actually thinking it was fun! I was having the rare day physically. But I suspect that "rare" day might well be repeated on demand given the right circumstance and preparation. That idea obviously deserves further investigation and documentation.