Yesterday we went crabbing and after dropping the crab pots our boat had engine trouble. I was stressed out not knowing how to retrieve the pots. This morning DW put out word on social media that we needed help and within 15 minutes she’d heard from someone she’d met at a garages sale, who promptly met us at the boat launch and took us out in their boat to pull in our pots. Not only did they refuse gas money or a fresh crab reward, they invited to their Labor Day barbecue.
Kid is very excited that their work got published by a very well-known and highly regarded journal. According to the paper, she assisted in the conception and design of the study, literature search, translation, data interpretation, writing, drafting responses to reviewers, and approval of the version to be published. I will also add that she was the head “cat herder,” prodding and waving the proverbial carrot in front of the collaborators so they would deliver their pieces of work on time.
Unbeknownst to DH and me until after the event was completed, S1 and S2, plus their mates, each drove ~4 hours to meet in Minneapolis and spend the weekend together. I’m delighted that they are not only brothers, but friends.
My S has had Type 1 Diabetes for 10 years, testing his blood sugar about 8 times per day. He just got a new insulin pump and continuous glucose monitor (CGM) and he doesn’t have to test his blood sugar at all! His CGM reports his blood sugar to his iPhone every five minutes then passes it on to mine. If he goes high or low, we get alerts and the insulin pump even stops delivering insulin if his blood sugar starts going low.
We’re moving/downsizing, and that includes cars. DH took his Subau Outback to Carmax for an appraisal, fully expecting them to lowball us. Instead, they’ll pay us more than $1000 more than we thought the car was worth.
Leaving for Chicago tomorrow to attend my neice’s college graduation party. (She doesn’t walk until December but didn’t want people to suffer the cold, so she’s hosting a beach party this weekend.) It took her ten years to earn her degree, but she never gave up. We are so proud of her and happy for her. In addition to a thousand hugs, she’s getting a very, very nice gift from us.
Yay, I have been trying hard to conserve our nonprofits meager funds. I was down to our last 3 checks. I called the personal acct manager who handles our two other (larger) accounts and he said they will order me another 120 checks and waive the fee! Yippee! It was such a nice surprise!
I told him the next batch of checks should last us another decade or so!
Tonight is a reception/reunion for the 40th anniversary of the first American summit of K2. A short account of the effort here: https://www.himalayanclub.org/hj/36/26/k2-the-american-ascent/ What’s not in the story is that Wickwire, once he finally made it down to camp, had blood clots in his lungs and the other climbers had to keep him alive until they could get a helicopter to take him to the hospital.
I want to add a short bit from the summer I heard just recently. Some young climbers were rock climbing in a canyon not too far from us. Three of them, two girls and a boy, got bored and decided to scramble off-trail up to the top of the ridge. One of the girls was having trouble with the terrain, lots of boulders and steep rock on the way, and turned back. The other two continued on.
As they neared the peak, they came across a woman struggling. She had taken the trail but had fallen and injured her foot. They decided it would be best to take the direct route to the bottom which was miles shorter. The two stayed with her, carried her pack and supported her as she struggled her way down. It eventually dawned on them that they were not going to make it down before dark and were not well provisioned. The young man put the woman on his back and carried her the last 1 1/2 miles, hopping over rocks and down climbing some steeper sections. They made it to the parking lot before the sun was going down, then drove her up to get her car at the trail parking.
As the story went on, I got a creeping suspicion I might know the kids involved. When I got home, I asked S2 if he had heard about this. Yes, he had told us lots of details of his weekend climbing but thought this was insignificant enough that he could omit it.
ETA: I guess my point is that even though this was a blatant brag about my kid, I know 100 more who would have done the same thing. The next generation is not all selfie-stick wielding Instagrammers and Unite the Right marchers. Mountaineers tend to be a strong and empathetic group. And no, we are not going to the reception tonight. I decided to leave our spots open so people closer to the Himalaya climber community could be there.
Last week I realized how out of shape I’d gotten. Mid-50’s, 50 pounds overweight, hadn’t run since major surgery 6 years ago. I decided to do something about it. My first first time out I barely made it to a quarter mile before collapsing in a pool of my own sweat, but I came out again the next day, and the next… This morning I ran 2 miles. They were the slowest 2 miles known to man, but I didn’t take a break, and I am so PROUD of myself!
Something good is that I can’t remember the last time I had a whole day at home with no real need to go anywhere - except walking the dog and running myself if the rain ever stops. Staying busy with a combo of kitchen tasks (made homemade granola, marinara and lasagna), making a bag of trash from my closet and taking care of other stuff at my leisure. It’s a rarity but it is very nice and GOOD.
Baby kid lead the team that organized their class of 2008 HS reunion bash! The managers of the venue told her that they were very impressed with how well organized the group was and how well behaved everyone was! And I am happy that the boxes of props and decor that she ordered for the party are finally gone from our living room!
Someone’s diploma arrived in the mail today! You know how sometimes, even though you saw the email, you need to see the diploma to believe it’s true? Yep! So happy someone finally checked graduating off her list!
Today I got flowers delivered to my desk from the 3 executive business sponsors of an IT project I just dragged (kicking and screaming) across the finish line for my client. With nice notes from all 3, including one wishing I’d stop consulting and come to work for them. It was really gratifying after a MUCH less pleasant experience with my last client before this one.
I will also add that she was the head “cat herder,” prodding and waving the proverbial carrot in front of the collaborators so they would deliver their pieces of work on time.