Hiking, bakpacking and camping

I appreciate manicured nails, Cosmo mags, little black dresses and other stereotypically girly things, but more than anything else, I find so much peace and become quite centered in the untamed, pristine woods, grasslands, or mountains. I love being surrounded by something so much larger and grander than perception allows me to grasp. Being out where there is little if any evidence of human alteration is what really resets me and makes everything in life come into a clear, crisp focus. I hate to sound snobbish, but I think I enjoy camping for a completely different set of reasons than most people do. To me it is not just a time to take the RV, TV, beer and chairs to the outdoors and create an outdoor house. While that can be fun with family and friends, true camping to me is the most sensitive spiritual experience to be had. When you leave behind all the non-essentials, take only the bare minimum, go into the woods without a plan of where you will end up, and have the intent of being intimate with the Earth itself, that is when spiritual things will happen. I don't want to sound all new-age hoity-toity, but it is how I like to experience nature.
Hiking is also great with select others. I sound like such a selective snob! But when hiking, it is of utmost importance to me that whomever I am hiking with also understands the deep meaning of each tree, every stone, and can appreciate the beauty of the natural world sprawling before us and walk upon the land with intent and reverence.
I guess to me, pristine nature is like a temple or church. So when i see people disrespecting nature; littering, ruining flora for no purposeful reason, taunting fauna, and acing like they own th land; it is analogous to a devoted Christian seeing their church, with all the symbols of Christ and God, in flames with bystanders pointing and giggling at the smoke.
To me the outdoors are not to be tamed or conquered. Whoever tries is like Don Quiote jousting with the windmills. Nature is to be cherished, we are the stewards of the land, not the owners.
This summer I plan on taking as many camping, hiking and backpacking trips around the pacific northwest as I can between work and a few summer courses. So if you have a true reverence for nature and want to go on some outdoor adventures with nature and myself, let me know, good camping company is hard to come by!

Collections

Over the years I have had many odd collections. Breyers were huge for ages (and I still cannot part with a few of them, actually), and there were pound puppies, of course. Then there were lizards (sand-filled, hand-made from beads, and plastic) and pogs. Oh man, I wish pogs were still around! Those were super fun. I remember playing pogs with my sister and her friend, Sara and then going out to jump on the trampoline. Enough on that tangent!
More recently I began a marble collection. They are fascinating to me and I really like the vintage-y feel of them. And my most recent collection is.............FUNKY VINTAGE WINE GLASSES! I don't know if it's truly a collection yet, as I only have one so far. But I am hoping to get a good collection, no two the same, so at my future fun parties, everyone will know whose glass is whose. I am just enamored by the sophistication of some of the old wine glasses I see in antique shoppes and think thy are so unique. Plus, I like how when you flick really good quality crystal, it resonates so crisply. So, that is my new collection in case you were wondering.

What an odd day it was.

Some days looks can get you a lot. I usually don't consider myself very attractive, I'm sort of awkward, not stereotypically beautiful. But today I felt really good about myself, really confident with my personality and felt like I could conquer anything that came up. So, that confidence must have had some sort of a radiant effect, I don't recall opening any doors for myself (except at my apartment), I was offered a cut in the line at the bank by a gentleman in front of me, and then came the video store. I had a gift certificate there I needed to use, so I went in and asked if they had a certain movie for sale and I was just overlooking it. They did not have one for sale, but the clerk pulled one out of circulation for me, then said to go pick out four more movies and he'd only charge me for two! Looking back, I really should have said no, but I am poor, and enjoy movies, so I accepted the offer. I don't know if it's just coincidence or if my being confident really had that much impact on how others treated me, but it was an exceptional day!

Long TIme, no Blog!

I have gotten some complaints about my lack of blog activity, so for all you whiners, here is a random blog! I hope you all are happy.
I don't really know what to write about, so I will do a list of random things that make me giddy, happy, exhillirated, or the like:

• bubble wrap
• jeans that actually fit and are long enough
• freshly plucked eyebrows
• the smell of campfires
• big, open fields surrounded by forests
• track jackets
• rich humic soils
• peeling oranges in one peel
• steel drums
• music by Bob Marley and the Wailers
• music by Hootie and the Blowfish
• music by Dave Mathews Band
• music in general
• wildflowers
• the smell and taste of coconut
• driving with friends when it's sunny out
• aviator sunglasses
• chunky, tribal-esque bracelets
• little black dresses
• the magic bullet blender
• north face jackets
• hiking
• the smell of fresh cut hay, especially fescue or alfalfa
• bucking hay
• getting done at the barn in the summer just as the sun is setting
• hammocks
• laying down with sleeping horses
• examining the exquisite musculature of horses
• clavicles
  
• tee-shirts and scarves
• knee-high boots and elbow length gloves
• smiling strangers
• swings
• long philosophical chats
• yerba mate
  

This list could go on and on and on, but alas, I will save some more for a part two!

Snacking, snacking and more snacking

These are items you will probably find with me at all times. I can no longer be like an average person and eat three normal meals per day...oh no, I need to eat around eight small meals every day if I don't want to pass out. That's because at the beginning of this year I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia--low blood sugar. Fun stuff! I also, much to my sister's amusement, get these weird muscle spasms in my legs if I eat too much sugar, and they hurt like a biotch! (Don't tell my nutritionist, but I still splurge and eat sugary treats, and just bear through the spasms.)
I guess the point of this post is to say that there are some really yummy snack and protein bars out there. I personally am a huge fan of the traditional PowerBar. Some dislike its texture, but I actually really like the texture. Odwalla makes some delicious flavors (like chocowalla) and use all non-gmo products and many organic ingredients. Clif Bars have the best texture out of all the bars I have tried. They have some really unique flavors, too, like carrot cake and banana nut bread. Tiger's Milk is alright, and is very inexpensive, which I appreciate as a college student (45 cents at Winco). And my favorite recommendation by the nutritionist: a jar of peanut butter. So that's what comes with me to classes every day, just in case I feel like I'm about to lose consciousness.
I was pretty sure that eating so many times per day would make me gain weight, but to my surprise, I have actually lost a little...not enough to take back what I gained my freshman year, but a little. I guess it's because my body doesn't have to wait for more nourishment, so it doesn't slow down it's metabolism like it usually does if there are hours and hours between meals. Pretty neat!

You Look Like a Cow...Sorry, but it's True

I have a really odd pet peeve. I hate it when people chew gum. I think it makes them look like a cow. The whole idea of chewing on something you are not supposed to swallow weirds me out--big time. Even worse is when people sit there and play with their gum, and then stick it back in their mouths. Are you freaking kidding me!?!?!? DISGUSTING! It is just as bad as chewing with your mouth open, or talking with food in your mouth! It is a sign of poor manners in my opinion.

I get it...some people chew gum to get rid of bad breath. There are better alternatives. Mints for example. They freshen your breath, do their job, and then are gone. Perfect. There's also ginger. It takes all smells away and leaves you feeling refreshed, even better as it doesn't start tasting gross and stale. Or you could actually be hygienic and go brush your teeth! Are we really so lazy we can't take a moment to brush, REALLY!
And as for a way to release nervous energy...try getting more exercise. And if that doesn't help, don't eat so much sugar! For goodness sake, do you know how much sugar is in an average American's diet? Too much! Or if you really have am anxiety disorder, don't mask it by chewing gum and getting on everyone else's nerves...get some help and give your jaw a break!
Lastly, chewing gum to whiten your teeth! Bull-oney! If it really whitens your teeth, it probably has some sort of chemical which you will swallow because of all the saliva excreted from all the incessant chewing. That can't be a good thing. If you really need to whiten your teeth, use those strips, or trays, or even better, get a professional to do it.
I see no legitimate reason to chew gum except to look like a cow. So if that's your goal, have at it, cow-ey McCow cow!

I'm a big 'fraidy cat

You probably see this picture of a cat and think it is cute, that it is a friendly companion animal. You are wrong. Cats are frightening. Here is a list of other things that frighten me:

• eighteen-wheelers
• driving on ice
• walking over man-hole covers
• cooked green beans
• infants, toddlers, and small children
• strap-less bras
• dead fish that still have their heads
• guns
• jumping into water
• falling down waterfalls
• prosthetic eyes
• big houses with partially pulled blinds at night
• getting lost
• toilets overflowing
• making other people mad or disappointed
• swimming with my face in the water
• war, fighting and arguing
• public restrooms
• one of the gardens at Belknap Hot Springs
• really crowded places
• really muscle y men who slather themselves with oil
• prescription medications
• waking up with one or more extremities completely asleep
  
• getting all tangled up in my blankets and waking up unable to move
• throwing up
• birds
• touching live fish
• overly aggressive and confrontational people
• making phone calls, even if I've known the person for years
• money issues
• southern baptist bible thumpers
• a whole chicken in a can
• backing cars up my driveway

So I think this sums it all up, I am afraid of a lot of random things.