The Hazard Chronicles

I just got off an extremely refreshing weekend that I didn't even realize I needed. Does that ever happen to anybody else, or is it just me? I don't know. But I do know that, like a boiling frog, there were a number of things that had been building up some stress lately without me noticing. Kid extracurriculars seem really busy right now. They are also in the middle of testing at school and that tension has carried over into the home. For me, work is slamming with a number of somewhat complicated cases, and last Friday was particularly demanding. Skiing is not a thing any more on the weekends, which I had come to really look forward to. I know these are all small first-world problems, but they have added up a little bit.

And then the weekend happened, and it was like a big reassurance from the universe that spring was here and we could just move ahead, and sure, all those same little things were still things, but there was a new sort of energy in the air that made them seem very tamable. Sort of like when a child (or adult) lies awake at night worrying about monsters and boogeymen, only to laugh at themselves in the morning about how insignificant their concerns actually are.

So, what did we do this weekend? Well- one thing we did NOT do was take pictures. But that's okay, because it gives me a chance to tell our activities as a series of "written photographs." Challenge accepted. It's not an easy task, as they say a picture is worth a thousand words. I'll try to be a little more succinct though. 

Photo #1:

It is Friday night, and our whole family is on our way into the high school production of "Into the Woods." I am still dressed in a button-down shirt since I am running in straight from a busy day at work, but I have at least managed to take off the tie and loosen the collar. Rachel is composed, as always, although her smile might betray a slight concern about the amount of energy that is running through the kids at the moment. Addy and Lindsey are looking really exited- the first because she is really into musical theater, and the second because she just walked in and saw Rapunzel. We grab a quick student-made playbill and Jackson holds it up in front of us, probably blocking his face in the process. I pull out my phone, tell everyone to look, and snap a family-selfie before we all walk in and find our seats.

For the record- it was a great night out. 

Photo #2:

I am in Leavenworth with Eric. We have been driving almost four hours, but it was still morning as we got our climbing stuff sorted and started walking up the approach trail. The air is brisk and we have our sweaters on, but our faces are rosy from the exertion of the short hike. Before starting his first lead I tell Eric to look over at my phone which is held in front of me. His face is probably still registering confusion as he realizes that I am about to take a photo. As for me, I have a tight close-lipped smile that makes me appear smug and overly pleased with myself. That's just how I smile though. 

Photo #3

Probably a photo of a perfect splitter crack on pitch 2 that nobody except for climbers would appreciate. Being fully aware of this, I include it in the blog anyway. 

Photo #4

It is now late afternoon on a beautiful sunny day, which means I have weird shadows on my face. My expression is one of utter relief, with lingering hints of the terror I was feeling just moments ago. My mouth probably has a crooked frown on it, slightly parted lips, and teeth clenched tight. Like a ninja turtle when they realize that Master Splinter has been taken captive. My helmet is probably a bit askew, and my face is flushed from effort, and I am hanging from a belay anchor looking down. The caption would read: "No real danger, but I just finished one of the most terrifying pitches I have ever led. Body is stronger than ever, but my mind is in a coma from a winter of bouldering."

Seriously though- that was a scary pitch.

Photo #5

I went back and forth for a while in my head trying to decide which photo to use here- the selfie with me in it, or the one that was just the scenery. I ended up with the selfie, because I feel like photos with people in them are always better, and because there was no real way to capture the essence of the place anyway. How I wish that you could put feelings into a bottle for later use, although perhaps its their ephemeral nature that makes them so meaningful in the first place? Anyway, what you see here is a photo of me crouching down in the lower right-hand corner, puffy jacket and green beanie pulled tight, making myself small in order to accentuate the beauty around me. The angle is from the ground, looking upward slightly since I have perched the camera against a rock in the middle of the trail. The pathway is wide- an old forest-service road that is no longer in use, and is littered with fallen leaves. On either side of the path are a thousand different shades of green, from the low lying ferns, to the moss-covered alder, to the towering red cedars. There is a mist rising up from the ground, and the perception is that of an enchanted forest where one would not be surprised to come across mythical creatures from childhood fairytales. Though you wouldn't know it from the picture alone, I am just about to go back to the truck where we had spent the night in a rooftop tent. Being me, I had woken up early and gone on a five-mile jog through this spellbinding wonderland of the Pacific Northwest. I can smell coffee brewing at camp below, and my face exhibits anticipation and excitement to climb at one of the greatest crags in America. We are at Index.

Photo #6

Probably another photo of a rock. Maybe Eric and I are smiling in the foreground  and making "hang loose" or "thumbs up" signs as we revel in the perfect granite of Index.

Photo #7

This is one of Rachel and me with a sunset low over lake Coeur d'Alene in the background. We are at a table, and you can see an acoustic guitarist in the background which is the only sense of movement that you get in an otherwise completely quiet image. What I am trying to do with this photo is capture the mellow laid-back feel that predominated the evening. Nights like this are why I moved here in the first place. This particular musician happened to be one of our favorites, and enjoying that night on the waterfront with Rachel dressed in all of her elegant charm was a wonderful way to welcome in the spring. Once it got dark, we walked to the resort where our fireside conversation lingered long into the night.

Photo #8

Another one of Rachel and me. I am flexing and making an exaggerated "strong-man" face while Rach is trying her best not to laugh at me. After less than thirty minutes of work I had just made a clean ascent (no falls) of a climb that I had thought would take me several sessions to do, and I am somewhat surprised and proud of myself. This climb represents my current top-grade ever, and to do it so quickly makes me think I might still have a lot of potential for improvement. This means a lot to someone who, as Evelyn loves to calls me, is "a middle aged man who thinks he is still living in the 90s." I guess it's fitting, then, that as I am about to turn forty, I hear the soundtrack of my youth:

So here I am,

Growing older all the time,

Looking older all the time,

Feeling younger in my mind

Here I am, doing everything I can

Holding on to what I am,

Pretending I'm a superman

   -Goldfinger "Superman". 1997

Photo #9

Hey, look- a real photo! While I was away on a climbing trip, the rest of the family went and got Gooeys (large ice-cream sundaes). 

It rained this morning, and as I drove to work the distinct music and aromas of spring filled the air- budding trees, petrichor, singing birds, and a sense of newness. 

I feel refreshed.

Have a good week!