Mincing Down The Mountain: or, How A Bunch Of Things Went Wrong With Phnee's Day
I am sore beyond words. Also, at work. Also, no sleep for... *counts* 33 hours. Also, drenched (explanation to follow). As such, this post will be in point form.
1- Discount Car Rental = Fail.
The horking big monster they gave me (some sort of Dodge monstrosity with a lot of chrome) is not a "compact." Also, the guy laughed when I told him I was expecting a smaller car. ("You think that's big? That's a compact!") It guzzled nearly a full tank of gas today.
They also unexpectedly insisted on "freezing" $350 on my credit card, although I told them that Communauto had mentioned no such necessity when I reserved the car through them. It was "lucky" I had my credit card at all, and "lucky" that there was room on it.
2- Construction. Everywhere. In spite of the construction holidays. The new specialty appears to be having a whole bunch of barriers up, but no one actually working. I had to make three detours, which cost me about half an hour.
3- Crossing the border = Semi Fail.
I got across, but it took 51 minutes of waiting.
4- Meeting bodhifox, raven_albion and her partner, two other people whom I'm not sure are LJ-enabled (crowgirl13 maybe?) = definite win. fearsclave was also there, but I already knew him. ;)
5- The scarf went over reasonably well, I think. The new fishing rod was a much bigger hit. :D
6- Breakfast was delicious, but ultimately a mistake. Because of 1, 2 and 3, I arrived 53 minutes later than I said I would, and was frazzled. Everyone else had already finished eating, and I was self-conscious about making people wait, and gnarr. Ended up trying the biscuits and gravy, which were delicious, but ohmygodsoveryheavyurgh. It felt like I'd swallowed a bowlful of concrete for most of the day.
7- Had to go rescue "the boys" when they took a wrong turn after breakfast on our way to the mountain. Many, many man-points were lost, but at least they never consulted a map or asked a local for directions. As ravion_albion (who was in the car with me) put it: "How did all the girls end up in one car?" (Not quite accurate, actually, but it was funny all the same)
8- Hiked up Camel's Hump and back down. bodhifox lies like a cheap rug when he says it's "a leisurely though not excessively so hike up." Hah! It took three and a half hours of climbing what felt like a 30-degree incline (though I know it likely isn't), wheezing and hoping my legs wouldn't give out. Also, going down didn't take an hour, as promised, but more like two.
Going down was weirdly more difficult than going up. Less hard on the lungs, to be sure, but my legs were having none of it, and I ended up having to go down a good part of the rock faces rear-first, clinging to the rock with my fingers like an oversized limpet with opposable thumbs.
The view from the top was breathtaking. I could have stayed there for hours (though it was a good thing I didn't, given how late I ended up being at work) and just sat and watched the world. It was difficult to remember, looking at the sprawling hills, the rich, verdant forests, the haze of mist which rose to partially obscure and partially enhance the hills in the distance, that our world is really fundamentally screwed up. Up there, everything seemed right with the world.
8- Vermonters, or maybe Americans, are extraordinarily friendly. Everyone we passed on the way up (and down) paused to say hi. I was also called "ma'am" more times today than I've ever been called that in my whole life. There was a great deal of: "Thank you, ma'am." "Good afternoon, ma'am." "'Scuze us, ma'am." etc.
9- Lots and lots of dogs. Also small children, but mostly dogs. Including a dachshund, which stalwartly made it all the way up on its stubby little legs. Inspired me to bitch a little less about how hard the climb was. ;)
10- It rained. Pissing giant sheets and buckets and gallons of the stuff. Five minutes before I reached my car. fearsclave was kind enough to give me an emergency blanket-thing to put over the seat of the rental car so I wouldn't drench it.
11- Driving back to Montreal = Fail. I was wet, cold, and tired. There was construction, I had to stop for gas again and 1) the boy at the counter was *thisclose* to being the village idiot, and 2) the pump malfunctioned temporarily, causing yet more delays. I ended up being 45 minutes later than my earliest ETA, fiften minutes later than my latest ETA.
I am still damp, sore, cranky and out of sorts. I attribute this mostly to the sleep-deprivation. I had a fantastic day, otherwise. I just wish so many little things hadn't gone wrong. They made me edgy and more unpleasant than is my usual wont.
1- Discount Car Rental = Fail.
The horking big monster they gave me (some sort of Dodge monstrosity with a lot of chrome) is not a "compact." Also, the guy laughed when I told him I was expecting a smaller car. ("You think that's big? That's a compact!") It guzzled nearly a full tank of gas today.
They also unexpectedly insisted on "freezing" $350 on my credit card, although I told them that Communauto had mentioned no such necessity when I reserved the car through them. It was "lucky" I had my credit card at all, and "lucky" that there was room on it.
2- Construction. Everywhere. In spite of the construction holidays. The new specialty appears to be having a whole bunch of barriers up, but no one actually working. I had to make three detours, which cost me about half an hour.
3- Crossing the border = Semi Fail.
I got across, but it took 51 minutes of waiting.
4- Meeting bodhifox, raven_albion and her partner, two other people whom I'm not sure are LJ-enabled (crowgirl13 maybe?) = definite win. fearsclave was also there, but I already knew him. ;)
5- The scarf went over reasonably well, I think. The new fishing rod was a much bigger hit. :D
6- Breakfast was delicious, but ultimately a mistake. Because of 1, 2 and 3, I arrived 53 minutes later than I said I would, and was frazzled. Everyone else had already finished eating, and I was self-conscious about making people wait, and gnarr. Ended up trying the biscuits and gravy, which were delicious, but ohmygodsoveryheavyurgh. It felt like I'd swallowed a bowlful of concrete for most of the day.
7- Had to go rescue "the boys" when they took a wrong turn after breakfast on our way to the mountain. Many, many man-points were lost, but at least they never consulted a map or asked a local for directions. As ravion_albion (who was in the car with me) put it: "How did all the girls end up in one car?" (Not quite accurate, actually, but it was funny all the same)
8- Hiked up Camel's Hump and back down. bodhifox lies like a cheap rug when he says it's "a leisurely though not excessively so hike up." Hah! It took three and a half hours of climbing what felt like a 30-degree incline (though I know it likely isn't), wheezing and hoping my legs wouldn't give out. Also, going down didn't take an hour, as promised, but more like two.
Going down was weirdly more difficult than going up. Less hard on the lungs, to be sure, but my legs were having none of it, and I ended up having to go down a good part of the rock faces rear-first, clinging to the rock with my fingers like an oversized limpet with opposable thumbs.
The view from the top was breathtaking. I could have stayed there for hours (though it was a good thing I didn't, given how late I ended up being at work) and just sat and watched the world. It was difficult to remember, looking at the sprawling hills, the rich, verdant forests, the haze of mist which rose to partially obscure and partially enhance the hills in the distance, that our world is really fundamentally screwed up. Up there, everything seemed right with the world.
8- Vermonters, or maybe Americans, are extraordinarily friendly. Everyone we passed on the way up (and down) paused to say hi. I was also called "ma'am" more times today than I've ever been called that in my whole life. There was a great deal of: "Thank you, ma'am." "Good afternoon, ma'am." "'Scuze us, ma'am." etc.
9- Lots and lots of dogs. Also small children, but mostly dogs. Including a dachshund, which stalwartly made it all the way up on its stubby little legs. Inspired me to bitch a little less about how hard the climb was. ;)
10- It rained. Pissing giant sheets and buckets and gallons of the stuff. Five minutes before I reached my car. fearsclave was kind enough to give me an emergency blanket-thing to put over the seat of the rental car so I wouldn't drench it.
11- Driving back to Montreal = Fail. I was wet, cold, and tired. There was construction, I had to stop for gas again and 1) the boy at the counter was *thisclose* to being the village idiot, and 2) the pump malfunctioned temporarily, causing yet more delays. I ended up being 45 minutes later than my earliest ETA, fiften minutes later than my latest ETA.
I am still damp, sore, cranky and out of sorts. I attribute this mostly to the sleep-deprivation. I had a fantastic day, otherwise. I just wish so many little things hadn't gone wrong. They made me edgy and more unpleasant than is my usual wont.