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November 21, 2024
Hi Folks,
So what did you do since last Thursday? Personally I didn't even try to pretend that it was winter. [wry grin] Instead, I smiled my way through what turned out to be a sweet late late fall week. Sunny, bluebird and mild days that were perfect for bike riding, rock climbing and more yard work. I know that winter will be here soon enough, so IMO it's smart to savor what we are given.
I was fortunate to be able to get out once again this week on yet another mild and bluebird day. This time with Matt Bowman. We managed to get in more than half a dozen short pitches ini a sunny place. After not leading or even climbing that much this past summer, it was great to get back on the horse. Nothing hard mind you, but just enough to stoke the fire. I have been feeling a lot more like my old self and am consciously thinking that this could be a fun ice season, assuming we have much of one. And I do have my fingers X-ED!
I think that the following kind of plays to that thought... Recently I was looking for something to read and picked up a random book from the local library based o n the cover art - "Worst Case Scenario" by T.J. Newman. The book is a bit apocalyptic and frankly overall isn't very good, but I bulled through it rather than watch political TV. [HA] Anyway, for some reason a short segment in the last 1/3rd resonated. Indulge me for a moment; here it is, with a few small edits so it makes sense out of context:
<--- start --->
The concept of time had changed for him. He was suddenly so aware of its passing, of its existence. He thought he understood, but now he realized that he didn't get it at all. If he truly understood what it meant - that time runs out - he would have done things all so differently.
Maybe you can't understand until you're the one standing on the brink. maybe we're not meant to. Maybe it's some biological trick designed to keep us safe from the saber-toothed tiger, only now it keeps us building big cities and worrying about deadlines. Maybe we're not supposed to get that it will all be gone, we will all be gone - until it's too late to do anything about it. If life's a joke and death's the punch line, in any good setup, you never see it coming.
Because if we did understand, we would spend it all in the sun with the grass between our toes. What else was the point? We're here, then we're not. And before that and after that, the mountains stay put, the waves keep crashing and the storms come and go - and none of any of those are aware that for a brief, fleeting moment, we were here too. We were a part of it too. None of it, none of us matter. And once you see that, once you get it, once you're free from the false belief that you think you have time, you can just enjoy it for what it is.
<--- end --->
So the annual Fundraiser for NEClimbs and The White Mountain Report is open. Like every year for the past 15 or so, I humbly ask you readers and subscribers for a small donation. Tho I have been doing this since 1999, I haven't always asked for donations! That only started in 2004. Quite honestly, without your support it would be very difficult to justify keeping this going like it is.
Year-round I put out our weekly White Mountain Reports on Facebook, Instagram and the NEClimbs web site. Usually only for 4-5 issues of the Report. It's kind of like those pesky NPR fundraisers. Keeping you up to date with happenings in the Whites, providing the latest ice and rock conditions, reporting on events and people in the local climbing community and more consumes around 6 hours a week. That's not insignificant for anyone, and I'm just like every other overworked semi-retired dude you know.
A $20 donation isn't a heck-of-a-lot, is it? Heck, that's just a couple of latte's at the Frontside! Don't wait to make YOUR contribution. and don't assume that others will pick up the slack. YOU are the one who signed up to be included on the mailing list! YOU read it every week, and I'm the one providing the service!
Please support NEClimbs and The White Mountain Report, send your check or money order for $20 now, OR make your contribution ON LINE via PayPal. It's easy & painless and you can use your credit card. Simply click the link in comments to make your donation...
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I'll be playing jazz at the Majestic Cafe on Friday with my friends Mike Sakash (sax) and Peter Moutis (drums). That's right, no chordal instrument so it can go in any possible direction - but that's jazz, right?I've known these guys for years so it should be a gas. We are playing a bunch of tunes we know, but done up in new threads, and several that we've never played before. We just pick tunes and keys, but never rehearse, so it will be a lot of fun and quite frankly a free-for-all. [grin]
s
If you're interested you can always see my schedule here:
http://www.alhospers.com/?PageName=2
The trails on both East and West sides have been great. Considering how dry it's been, I don't think that even an inch or so of rain would make them muddy. Stay tuned...
Up on one of the Mount Washington Valley's finest crags and want to know what that climb you're looking at is? Or maybe you're on your way up from Boston and want to check out the Ice Report for your upcoming weekend plans. Or more likely, you're at work just want to daydream about your next adventure. Well if you have a smart phone handy, you can get to NEClimbs from anywhere you have cell service. While it doesn't offer every single feature of the site and it's not an "app", in mobile form, it does do a whole lot and is very useful. Here is the live link to the mobile version of NEClimbs:
http://www.neclimbs.com/mobile
Check it out and if you have issues on your specific phone, please feel free to let me know.
Join us and LIKE us on Facebook. I'll try and post interesting pix every Thursday and the latest Ice Report in the season, tho certainly not the whole Report. Here's where you can check it out:
http://www.facebook.com/NEClimbs/
Remember - climb hard, ride the steep stuff, stay safe and above all BE NICE,
Al Hospers
The White Mountain Report
North Conway, New Hampshire
| The summit is just a halfway point. |
| Ed Visteurs |
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