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LilaBiene
Trad climber
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Topic Author's Reply - May 1, 2013 - 09:09pm PT
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Bump for Mouse & Neebs <3
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rgold
Trad climber
Poughkeepsie, NY
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BITD when we used to have tied over-the-shoulder slings, I had one of those Dolt nuts on every one of them. Since the sling went straight through (and the hole was beautifully chamfered), the nuts didn't weaken the sling at all when it was used as a sling. I have no idea what became of those nuts; I certainly never consciously got rid of them...
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Just blown away sitting here with tears too.
Stuff like this is just ... wow
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
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Topic Author's Reply - May 2, 2013 - 08:58am PT
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I agree with "WOW"...heartily.
The folks I've encountered since this part of my journey began (whether in person, by phone, email, in cyberspace, in stories I've read) are...very simply said...extraordinarily beautiful, thoughtful (and thought-provoking), generous, inspirational and above all the KINDEST of souls.
I've said this before, but it bears repeating. If you had been in the (Kletter-) shoes of Ann or Bill, and for a multitude of challenging, heart-wrenching reasons not able to raise your own (surprise!) offspring, what more could you ever want for her than to have her taken under the wings of your greater family made up of your friends, family and the climbing community, who all loved you dearly?
A giant, multi-faceted prism taking in the sun's light, mixing it together with love and memories and connections, and emitting a dazzling array of the indescribable...
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, lialabien... wow, all those treasures!!!!
gettng back, things that you felt were lost, is the cherry on top, as the ol' saying goes, :O wow!
so very glad the painting got there, well and GOOD!!...
i worry just a bit, in case folks may not be home, etc...
but it worked out perfect!!!
hugs to you, as you enjoy the missing pieces of your childhood, come
to bloom, blossom and fruit!
:)
god bless!!
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Seamstress
Trad climber
Yacolt, WA
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Love the good stories about the good people. Love watching those random acts of kindness. This is what a true community will do.
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Bad Climber
climber
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Wow. That Muppet is a killa. Kinda lost it there. Great story--sad, true and wonderful.
BAd
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
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Topic Author's Reply - May 8, 2013 - 10:50pm PT
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On Saturday the planets aligned, and we had beautiful weather in the Boston area...which meant we could finally go check out the bouldering and climbing walls at our Y. The muppet was beyond excited and left me in the dust running for the playground...
So, needless to say, we (surprise!) wound up at REI (again), this time in search of climbing shoes and a harness for the muppet. She dug the "Rock Monkey" shoes even though they weren't pink and even wore them to bed. ")
Unfortunately, the weekend was over all too soon and we're back slogging through the weekday madness. But tonight when we got home, there was a mysterious package addressed to the muppet peeking out of our mailbox...what could it be?
Thank you GLee!!! The muppet sends you big hugs for the t-shirt she calls "SO cool"!!!
Edit:
Ack -- trying to fix the pictures.
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FRUMY
Trad climber
Bishop,CA
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Jul 25, 2013 - 12:12pm PT
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Thanks, for one of the Taco's best threads.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Jul 25, 2013 - 12:27pm PT
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Amazing Lila. Good on you for your "detective" work and research.
Jennie gave up her infant daughter (Rachel) for adoption in 1970 (Jen was 19, and it was Ireland after all, single mothers were not allowed). She then fled to France (Nice) not too long after. And of course, the natural parent cannot look for their offspring by law here in Ireland. The meeting must be initiated by the "child".
Years later (2006), Rachel contacted her (I met Jen in August 2007) in Dublin. Jennie met up with Rachel. She had ended up in a well-to-do family and was running her own equestrian centre in the Wicklow Mountains.
That was the only time they have met. No word since.
Her boyfriend at the time, Richard, that was the father and from a very, very wealthy family, wanted to marry Jen and keep the baby, but he was a control freak (so Jen tells me), two years older, and totally dominating. And of course Jen's father was the same way (having abused Jen since she was five).
I can understand her decision to put her infant daughter up for adoption and get the "hell out of Dodge". Provence is much nicer anyway.
Lila, I am glad that you found some closure. Good luck and best wishes.
Cheers
Patrick
And Lila, it must be comforting in a way that in the climbing community (and I am sure elsewhere) that your natural father was well-respected and a pioneer in climbing equipment. What a great legacy.
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
Technically...the spawning grounds of Yosemite
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 20, 2013 - 02:34pm PT
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Patrick, thanks for sharing Jennie's story. The mother's point of view is not something that's captured very often, and I can only imagine how difficult and painful her experiences must have been. One of my deepest fears, which kept me from searching for my birth mom for most of my life, was that my re-appearance would have brought back many sad memories, causing my birth mom to go through experiencing loss all over again.
A few weeks ago I learned that Ann never told Bill she was pregnant, so he never knew about me. Until then, the question had remained unanswered, and given all of the unknowns, I had found a comfortable place where I could accept what I didn't know. Learning about and accepting this has been the most difficult experience on this journey so far. I can't write much more because it just hurts too much. The weight of responsibility is more than I can conceive of or bear. Had I been able to make contact with Ann, I am now certain that it would have been horrible for her.
This hurts all the way around, so I am trying with everything I've got to make something good come out of it...one way or the other.
As has been the case throughout the past year and a half, whenever things get to be too much, the invisible forces at work reconnect me to Ann or Bill. In this case, it is Valerie Cooley, who knew Bill through her good friend Laurel. (The photo above is of her pack, which she still carries today.) Makes me smile.
Valerie wrote to me of her own accord and shared some things about Bill that really touched my heart. I have a better idea now of who he was and how he related to the world.
Valerie mentioned that she had recently found some poems of Bill's, and said that she wanted to send them along to me. I was looking forward to photocopies...I never imagined she would send the original. (I'll post the poems in a separate TR.) She also included a couple of the most beautiful, handmade handkerchiefs I have ever seen -- the needlework is exquisite. Bill gave these to her "just because"...and she gave them to me...
Valerie, thank you, more than I can say in words.
My birth parents' friends are their reflection...and what a beautiful image they have made for me.
No room for sadness in my heart; it's filled with love.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, audry... bump...
for 'little girls' everywhere, that may be thinking of their beloved daddy's, tonight...
they help make us who we are, even if we don't get that time with them, that we wish we had, and in the case of miracles, like yours:
the time comes when you DO get to retrieve that lost time, in
remarkable ways that you'd never EVER dreamed of...
wow and amen, :O
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
Technically...the spawning grounds of Yosemite
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 7, 2014 - 11:17am PT
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Thanks, Neebs...just found this. <3
Thinking of YOU especially now, with thoughts and prayers.
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
Technically...the spawning grounds of Yosemite
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 22, 2014 - 06:41pm PT
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I just looked at the dates when I first posted pictures of the below, and turned beet red in the face -- it's been a rough year, but I didn't realize so much time had passed. Well, I finally got it together to put some things in frames, and so I thought I'd post a handful of pictures just to say a humble thank you, again, for the generosity of heart shown to just a couple of Dolts. <3
Also shown in the last photo are a beautiful original painting by Neebs, a water color of El Cap from Mouse, a mounted piton from Mastadon, the photo of Bill taken by Tom Frost @ the base of El Cap with a beautiful butterfly from Frank Hoover and a lovely white ceramic owl, representing Ann's spirit, ever present.
~
It's hard to believe that it's been just two weeks shy of two years since I first read the Alaska State Police report about Ann's passing and the rather outlandish revelations that followed. And yet it feels as if I've spent an eternity in that same, brief space in time...reeling from the initial shock, returning to face fact after fact with as much grace and strength of character as I can muster...relentlessly wondering, searching, assimilating...stumbling (howl!)...being raised up again and again by this incredible Community, experiencing outrageous coincidences making me question my most fundamental beliefs about what is real and possible...living this amorphous and persistent reworking of...well.............Everything.
But then, it hardly seems possible that all of this could have been shoehorned into just two short years.
It is with my deepest gratitude and whole heart that I thank all of you for giving me life as I never could have imagined it.
Don Lauria, you gave me my World. If there's a greater gift, I don't know of one.
LilaBiene aka Odd aka Dolt's kid
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
Technically...the spawning grounds of Yosemite
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Topic Author's Reply - May 22, 2014 - 09:58pm PT
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So I just wanted to report in that I actually finally found my first living relative of Dolt's!!! I'm the first cousin twice removed of his great uncle's mother...I think... ")
What's even more amazing is that his daughter has celiac disease, also, so there's a link to Dolt's family there, and, you'll never believe it, but his son is a serious rock climber over in Zurich. Makes you kind of wonder how much you really do control in life.
Finally made it to the Gunks this weekend and I have to admit, I kinda fell in love with it.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 22, 2014 - 11:41pm PT
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Statistical probability indicates the Gunks will love you, too.
When you get a chance, busy mommy, please post some Doltish rhyme
and stop hoggin' it!
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Outside the Asylum
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As it is Thanksgiving Day here in Canuckland, a time for thinking of family and such, I thought I'd bump this thread. Although some of the links are now broken.
Rumour has it that Audrey and Camilla recently received more goodies from Faceliftians. I wonder what? Greg? Brian?
In her first post, Audrey said that "my nickname with close friends has always been "Odd". However, Aud the Deep-Minded was one of the great female characters in the Icelandic sagas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aud_the_Deep-Minded
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Saw the kid's post to her page, MH.
I only had a hand in it thanks to GLee, who kindly included my note with his "Facelift CARE Package."
Seems to me GLee was the first camper Odd & I met in YPCG in 2012. She'd never been to the Valley, of course, and neither of us had been to Facelift, either.
I guess this is my favorite pic of Lilabiene, taken by Boo Dawg that week.
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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a bump for the title of the thread as it seems to fit this couple as well
NO NOT THAT COUPLE this one [=425660] these two, have sent me a note or two, but im always missing a chip of whats apropro, so so
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 31, 2019 - 01:53pm PT
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hey there, say, ... wow, zbrown... here, i found it...
dedicated to supertopo, and all its info and history:
and, what it has done for folks, ...
now it is SINKING INTO THE WEST-- the sea of 'no more postings'
yet-- LOOK AT THIS WONDERFUL POST...
it will LIVE ON, AND AUDREY WILL HAVE THIS TREASURE, forever...
thank you chris and supertopo!
thank you, also, to god above...
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