Roughin' It, Reading Readily, and R-Twork
One of the pleasures of a close relationship, romantic or otherwise, is that you get to open yourself up to a whole new set of experiences that you wouldn't necessarily seek out on your own. Friends and family have left their mark by introducing me to some great artists or works of art (I learned a whole lot about Alfred Hitchcock when I tagged along for Chrissie's classes at USC), fun activities (I was introduced to wine tasting by my good friend Tiffany), and interesting places (I first encountered Barnsdall Art Park when I accompanied my sister to a play there).
So, it is no surprise that I have picked up a few new hobbies from Andy. Most obviously, I have been camping regularly over the past three months, visiting sites all around the Los Angeles area.
Until this year, I had not gone camping since I was a student at Marlborough and the school took us on field trips to Catalina, Joshua Tree, Sequoia, Marin, and Yosemite. I didn't get the "camping bug" at that point, possibly because, in my high school days, I was more averse to the outdoors, less willing to put up with the unexpected, and a bit more easily winded by outdoor activities. Plus, camping with ninety other students and a handful of chaperones is a fundamentally different experience from going in a small group, where a person is more likely to set her own pace and follow her own agenda.
Now that I am in better shape, and more able to go with the flow, I am in a good position to give camping another shot. And, since Andy is a recent transplant to Los Angeles, he was eager to explore the parks and camps in the area.
The camping trips have been great fun. I have been able to improve my skills at roughing it over the past few months, as I've learned through trial and error what to bring, and what is better left behind. I've also enjoyed the experience of getting out in nature and becoming untethered from technology and other burdens of everyday life. It has also been wonderful to experience a variety of environments in my own backyard, encompassing rocky outposts, deciduous forests, and even snowy mountainous areas.
As an adjunct to camping, I've also tried my hand(s and feet) at bouldering, a form of rock climbing where you stay low to the ground and try to make your way across boulders by placing your hands and feet in secure crevices or ledges. The trick to bouldering lies in getting a sense as to whether a particular grip will support you as you move around.
Naturally, I have remained mindful of my limitations, and we've stayed safe by keeping a crash pad around and spotting one another, so the experience is not as scary as it sounds.
It has taken some getting used to, but bouldering has provided me with a good workout without proving tedious; I know that my arms and legs felt pleasantly sore after my most recent effort.
In addition to opening up new experiences, a close relationship can also motivate a person to invest in shared passions which had previously been set aside due to the stresses of life. Andy is a voracious reader (for example, we attended the Festival of Books this weekend), which, in turn, encourages me to make reading more of a priority. It is all too easy to get caught up in work, or in procrastination, and to neglect things like reading. When there is someone else (be it a close friend, a family member, or a boyfriend) who is enjoying your shared passion, it reminds you of that passion, and likewise motivates you to not give it up.
Finally, someone who is close to you can motivate you by providing encouragement and validate your abilities. Andy has been a fan of my drawings and artwork for some time (in fact, one of our first conversations involved the comic I created a year ago), and knowing that there is someone who wants to see more (to be fair, there are a number of people aside from Andy who also want to see more artwork from me) gives me a reason to put time towards art projects, both small and ambitious. And that interest, from Andy and my other friends, has helped me to think more seriously about investing in my artistic talents.