moosilauke (a fragment of all the other things I have to write about)
Cost to hike up Mt. Moosilauke on the 19th: $20 to do the official trip, $40 for an extra night's stay in the dorms. Back at UC Davis on the 23rd, $20 for an "urgent care visit" to the student health center, $30 for an X-ray, $15 for a pair of crutches. At Transportation and Parking Services on the 24th, $43 for a monthly student parking pass, plus $2 for a "medical" pass that also gets me into faculty spots and metered spots (but not handicapped spots). So that's $170 so far, plus a lot of limping although I've gotten used to that and it is definitely on the mend. (Plantar fascitis, not too serious.)
Pretty sweet though. It was great to have a deep experience of the misty woodsiness of New England because I sure am not getting any of that in the CA Central Valley. I kept up with the faster part of the group for a little bit until the last person behind me kindly asked my permission to "close the gap" and leave me behind, at which point I paused and realized that my heart was beating like crazy and I better make my own pace. I wish I had no time limit at all so that I could have stopped and make friends with some lichen. I knew that two of the hike leaders were bringing up the rear, so I didn't have to worry about getting left behind for real, and I had no friends on the trip other than people I'd just met that day, so there was no emotional blow like there usually is when this happens. I hiked a lot of the 7.5 miles up and down the mountain by myself and really enjoyed the quiet. And I was very very pleased with myself for doing the whole thing, not that there was any other option. I am so grateful that the injury I did get did not prevent me from getting down on my own, because I think I would have been better off crawling than being carried in a stretcher on that wet and steep path.
Other reunion highlights:
*Awesome time reminiscing with friends
*Steam tunnel tour!
*Chilling out with my feet in the Connecticut River, then canoeing on it with friends
*Dinner catered by the college dining services was much tastier than the dinner catered by an outside service, although the dining services one did include three different desserts that were all tiramisu, just arranged differently
*Someone threw a vacuum cleaner down the stairwell in the dorm in the middle of the night
*A guy who used to have a thing for me is apparently now banned from the campus due to multiple accusations of sexual assault. Am horrified, creeped out, not too surprised.
*The best dorm room on the planet has been converted to a sad one room double, which was conveniently unlocked for us to check out.
*Breakfast in Courtyard Cafe with mah peeps before finally heading out
Pretty sweet though. It was great to have a deep experience of the misty woodsiness of New England because I sure am not getting any of that in the CA Central Valley. I kept up with the faster part of the group for a little bit until the last person behind me kindly asked my permission to "close the gap" and leave me behind, at which point I paused and realized that my heart was beating like crazy and I better make my own pace. I wish I had no time limit at all so that I could have stopped and make friends with some lichen. I knew that two of the hike leaders were bringing up the rear, so I didn't have to worry about getting left behind for real, and I had no friends on the trip other than people I'd just met that day, so there was no emotional blow like there usually is when this happens. I hiked a lot of the 7.5 miles up and down the mountain by myself and really enjoyed the quiet. And I was very very pleased with myself for doing the whole thing, not that there was any other option. I am so grateful that the injury I did get did not prevent me from getting down on my own, because I think I would have been better off crawling than being carried in a stretcher on that wet and steep path.
Other reunion highlights:
*Awesome time reminiscing with friends
*Steam tunnel tour!
*Chilling out with my feet in the Connecticut River, then canoeing on it with friends
*Dinner catered by the college dining services was much tastier than the dinner catered by an outside service, although the dining services one did include three different desserts that were all tiramisu, just arranged differently
*Someone threw a vacuum cleaner down the stairwell in the dorm in the middle of the night
*A guy who used to have a thing for me is apparently now banned from the campus due to multiple accusations of sexual assault. Am horrified, creeped out, not too surprised.
*The best dorm room on the planet has been converted to a sad one room double, which was conveniently unlocked for us to check out.
*Breakfast in Courtyard Cafe with mah peeps before finally heading out