Sometimes it seems that my life is just one big adventure, and I know it seems that way to many of the people that know me. My labmates are always eager to hear about the weekend's adventures on Monday morning, and I rarely cease to entertain them about either an amazing new spot that I found or some crazy debacle that I found myself in. It seems to be the story of my life, and one that I am quite happy with.
But, a few weeks ago, during a conversation with my dad, he asked me if I ever got bored or jaded with the adventures. I responded with the negative, but then it got me thinking... I somehow manage to get myself into some sort of adventure pretty much every weekend, and haven't really had a week without one in a long time. So, I decided to take it easy over the weekend and see what it would be like.
I had an enjoyable night hanging
out with friends up in the north Valley on Friday, but ended up staying much later than anticipated, and woke up grumpily on Saturday morning to Hannah's knock on my bedroom door at 6 a.m. Fortunately, Jack had had a late evening as well, and so I wasn't the only one groggily loading my bike into the truck as the three of us headed up to the McDowell's to meet Angel for a morning ride on the competitive track. The sun was shining brightly, but it wasn't terribly hot as we warmed up on the backside of the long loop before we made our way
to the parking lot. By that time, I had shaken most of the sleepy out of my system, and was happy to be out riding. We had a great trip around the 9 mile loop, stopping occasionally to wait for each other at the top of the long hills, and then returned to the parking lot where Jack took another long loop, Hannah and I took the sport loop, and Angel played around the area before heading back to her car. The sport loop is like mountain biking candy, and I can't get enough of its easy rolling hills, fast curving descents, and all-around flow. Yummy. After a successful 15 mile ride, we headed back to the cars and waited for Jack to return before having a filling post-ride Denny's breakfast.
I spent the remainder of the day watching football, reading, and napping. Even in Tiller's last year, my Boiler's haven't changed much... they looked great in the 1st half, but I almost couldn't watch the 2nd as they fell apart against the Fightin' Irish's offense. In the evening, a whole bunch of my grad school buddies and I headed out to Tempe. Even though my once staple Mamacita's has changed hands and no longer offers $2 Coronas or good music, it's an old habit that we can't seem to break, and we started the night there before lots of pool and dancing down on Mill Ave. until the wee hours of the morning.
On Sunday, I stuck to my guns and didn't go out on any adventures. I slept in, which I have to admit was very nice, read a lot, got things done around the house, and went to the lab and even worked for a bit. As the sun began to set behind the White Tanks, I left the lab and headed to the grocery store to finish off the day. Looking east, the sun reflected beautifully off of the Superstitions, and I felt more than a tinge of guilt that I hadn't taken advantage of the beautiful day. I immediately wanted to hop on my bike and at least get in a Greenbelt ride or something that would absolve the feeling of a wasted day. Alas, the sun soon faded with the day as I left the store, and I headed home without any good adventure stories for the weekend.
It just goes to show me how adventure and nature, and just getting away from it all is so important to me. My adventures relax me and reenergize me for the week ahead, and without them, I just don't feel the same. So long as I keep them varied and new, I don't think I will ever get jaded with them. And fortunately for me, Arizona and the West have plenty of places to get lost in, and I look forward to exploring as many as I can while I am out here. Until next weekend...
But, a few weeks ago, during a conversation with my dad, he asked me if I ever got bored or jaded with the adventures. I responded with the negative, but then it got me thinking... I somehow manage to get myself into some sort of adventure pretty much every weekend, and haven't really had a week without one in a long time. So, I decided to take it easy over the weekend and see what it would be like.
I had an enjoyable night hanging
out with friends up in the north Valley on Friday, but ended up staying much later than anticipated, and woke up grumpily on Saturday morning to Hannah's knock on my bedroom door at 6 a.m. Fortunately, Jack had had a late evening as well, and so I wasn't the only one groggily loading my bike into the truck as the three of us headed up to the McDowell's to meet Angel for a morning ride on the competitive track. The sun was shining brightly, but it wasn't terribly hot as we warmed up on the backside of the long loop before we made our way
to the parking lot. By that time, I had shaken most of the sleepy out of my system, and was happy to be out riding. We had a great trip around the 9 mile loop, stopping occasionally to wait for each other at the top of the long hills, and then returned to the parking lot where Jack took another long loop, Hannah and I took the sport loop, and Angel played around the area before heading back to her car. The sport loop is like mountain biking candy, and I can't get enough of its easy rolling hills, fast curving descents, and all-around flow. Yummy. After a successful 15 mile ride, we headed back to the cars and waited for Jack to return before having a filling post-ride Denny's breakfast.I spent the remainder of the day watching football, reading, and napping. Even in Tiller's last year, my Boiler's haven't changed much... they looked great in the 1st half, but I almost couldn't watch the 2nd as they fell apart against the Fightin' Irish's offense. In the evening, a whole bunch of my grad school buddies and I headed out to Tempe. Even though my once staple Mamacita's has changed hands and no longer offers $2 Coronas or good music, it's an old habit that we can't seem to break, and we started the night there before lots of pool and dancing down on Mill Ave. until the wee hours of the morning.
On Sunday, I stuck to my guns and didn't go out on any adventures. I slept in, which I have to admit was very nice, read a lot, got things done around the house, and went to the lab and even worked for a bit. As the sun began to set behind the White Tanks, I left the lab and headed to the grocery store to finish off the day. Looking east, the sun reflected beautifully off of the Superstitions, and I felt more than a tinge of guilt that I hadn't taken advantage of the beautiful day. I immediately wanted to hop on my bike and at least get in a Greenbelt ride or something that would absolve the feeling of a wasted day. Alas, the sun soon faded with the day as I left the store, and I headed home without any good adventure stories for the weekend.
It just goes to show me how adventure and nature, and just getting away from it all is so important to me. My adventures relax me and reenergize me for the week ahead, and without them, I just don't feel the same. So long as I keep them varied and new, I don't think I will ever get jaded with them. And fortunately for me, Arizona and the West have plenty of places to get lost in, and I look forward to exploring as many as I can while I am out here. Until next weekend...
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