too much sun

Day 13: When Disaster Strikes!

There is much in this world that we don’t know. How do you rock climb? Where can you find the best stunt doubles (those last ones couldn’t even finish the problems)? Where are the most photogenic boulders for good stunt double photo shoots? I’d hoped that with a BA in Film Studies and a few succesful shorts, Ceri would know the answers to these questions that are so critical to our trip’s success. Some might expect that this misunderstanding would cause a rift in our friendship, but we’ve banded together to learn about the world. What we’ve found so far is that Ceri is likely in the 20% of people who do not react to bed bug bites while still in the 80% that hates their guts. I sadly fall in that reactive 80% but do not respond so violently or profanely to their presence, enjoying a simple smush, as opposed to a shouting match. We also learned, during a touristic trip to a weed dispensary (Ceri, straightlaced as she is, wanted to visit an “artisinal” dispensary where they’d describe the flavor profiles of the different varieties of plant), that weed comes in multiple varieties, some producing an energetic high while other strains induce a dude like trancesdental state. While we can’t personally comment on the different strains at Earl’s (much to the disappointment of the talkative weed venor) we can say that some of what they sell smells like kitty litter. Sadly, we still haven’t learned what that funny fry pan with ridges from the Jon Chen Fry Pan Co. is all about.

Day 11: In Which We Learn Life Is Finite

Despite the crusty shell I’ve worked hard to cultivate over the years, on the inside I’m a girl who loves daffodils and big yellow butterflies. I reveal this not because I want you to think I have a softer side, but so that you can fully appreciate the tragedy that occurred when I hit one of these big beautiful butterflies while driving. The butterfly went splat on the windshield and peeled off as I continued driving. It left behind a mustard-colored trail of what I imagine were butterfly innards. I wanted to stop the car and see if we could offer the bug any medical assistance, but Mico was worried about running out of gas, so we continued on. I consoled myself with the fact that there was probably little we could have done for it. I had been driving about 60mph. As with every sad event, there was a silver lining. The butterfly tragedy afforded me a moment to contemplate myself  and my place in the cosmos. I realized that life was finite and precious and that I could not afford to waste it climbing routes that got below a four star rating or eating healthy food.

 
 
 

We’d like to take a moment to thank a couple of our sponsors who made these videos possible. The Jon Chen Frypan Company for providing us with the cast iron skillet (we still have not figured out how to use the other thing which we think might be a griddle) and Archangeli Oils for the quality canola oil which we nearly finished during our fry everything bonanza. We hope these videos inspired others to follow in our footsteps and dream big because it is possible to fry anything you put your mind to!

Day 8: White Noise

A bit of climbing, some sun, a forest bushwhack, and a whole lot of white noise made for a tiring day. We spent the early afternoon sport climbing and the late afternoon searching for a lost crag. I learned that when the sun filters through trees and grass, turning browns golden, greens emerald, and the clouds pink, and the white noise is replaced by silence, the shackles of sarcasm fall from my crusty climbing companion giving birth to an unburdened youth. It’s fun, unexpected, and touching.