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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 06:12am PT
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[Click to View YouTube Video]
Wise men, virgins, hah!
I asked her to marry me after spending five days at her place.
I could not help myself
[Click to View YouTube Video]"I Can't Help Falling In Love With You" is the music to which my bride came to me on our wedding day in '90.
Liz's brother-in-law, David, sang an interminable version, accompanying himself on guitar,
all for a thirty-foot march down the aisle of the tiny Unity Church.
It went on and on, but it was done well.
Nobody joined in singing that time.
Not much for pomp in my circle, either.
[Click to View YouTube Video][Click to View YouTube Video]
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 06:33am PT
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Oedipus Rex
by Tom Lehrer
From the Bible to the popular song
There's one theme that we find right along
Of all ideals they hail as good
The most sublime is motherhood
There was a man though, who it seems
Once carried this ideal to extremes
He loved his mother and she loved him
And yet his story is rather grim
There once lived a man named Oedipus Rex
You may have heard about his odd complex
His name appears in Freud's Index 'cause he
Loved his mother!
His rivals used to say quite a bit that
As a monarch he was most unfit,
But still and all they had to admit that he
Loved his Mother!
Yes he loved his mother like no other
His daughter was his sister
and his son was his brother
One thing on which you can depend is
He sure knew who a boy's best friend is
When he found what he had done
He tore his eyes out one by one
A tragic end to a loyal son who
Loved his mother
So be sweet and kind to Mother,
Now and then have a chat
Buy her candy or some flowers,
Or a brand new hat
But, maybe you had better let it go at that
Or you may find yourself with a quite complex complex
And
You may end up like Oedipus
(I'd rather marry a duck-billed platypus)
Then end up like old Oedipus Rex!
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 07:01am PT
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In Owens Gorge, not Owen's Mouth.
On on a gorgeous new multipitch (!), "Diamond in the Tuff" - 5.11a.Nice climb, Mr. T.
Nice climb, Mr. E.
Nice climb, W.L.
MisterE, you and JTM have come a long way from Canoga Park, I realize. I'm very glad you've found a dreamscape to inhabit, one free from ants, tenants, and piss-ants found in the city.
But is it all that far from Owensmouth to Owens Gorge?
A semantic glitch?
A romantic itch?
Wed in a ditch?
Where was Skip in all this? That's what you left out. Or was it a "guy thing?" If I'm being too nosy, lemme know.
We will miss you two at Facelift.
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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May 23, 2016 - 07:30am PT
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Ha I've put up a traditionally protected route
, in the Owens River gorge,
the tip top of the 'rim' of all that choss is scary deadly.
It is the ball bearing stuff of nightmares, of skitchen' off the edge of some slab, but instead one is perched on edge with monitor and car hood sized loose blocs all around .
while benign at the bottom of an avalanche debris field.
I read the Trip Report as well and liked it.
That makes me want to start a thread
welcome to the gorge, what routes stand out?
what was your 1st onsight? what was your 1st route? your favorite?, one you just couldn't get ?
Return to try to revive some stoke, 5571,- 5647 whew, 76 posts, before I'm restored, almost . .. .
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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May 23, 2016 - 09:45am PT
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Land of Ten Thousand Lakes
The Department of Interior focuses on the land of ten thousand lakes, Minnesota, in this 1930s film.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 01:16pm PT
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Thank you, Marlow!
I'll homage (oh-mazjh) this ^^^ on to Bob, but he's probably tuned in to KMFM off and on daily. He lurks, in other words.
The word got out and he's Flames-curious, apparently, as a young man of 75 ought to be.
This is a list of lakes in Minnesota.
Although promoted as the "Land of 10,000 Lakes," Minnesota actually has 15,291 lakes of 10 acres or more,
but only 11,842 of those lakes are named.
The prevalence of lakes has generated many repeat names.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lakes_in_Minnesota
It has generated several poems, too, I'll wager.
Why, here's one now, hot off the KMFM thingamabob...the KMFM Grapevine, yeah!
Sunk In Thought
or Musings While Bobbin' Around in Lake Zimmy
Some time back after the Noachian flood
When most of the world was mostly still mud
Out of the ark came the beasts and the birds
Soon to become vast flocks and large herds
They increased of course as anything will
When given the chance and there isn't the pill
The humans involved were no better it seems
The Earth now is flooded beyond Noah's dreams
With Muslims and Catholics and Hindus and Greeks
With Whos and Have-Nots, lots of Sikhs, and some Freaks
I could go on in this Seussian vein
To put it mildly it causes me pain
To see how we've treated this planet so fine
And trespassed on the good will of the creator divine
--MFM
Pressed in like cattle in a car
We won't go very blankin' far
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 01:44pm PT
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Visit your National Parks on a regular basis.
Win valuable prizes, such as:
A Healthy Respect for the High Prices.
A Patient Tolerance for the Ignorant and Stoopid.
A Sunburn or some Exotic Disease, like hantavirus.
(I realize it's not an exotic, but a domestic--don't harsh my mood or I'm liable to come un-glued and you don't want that.)
A Ticket to See The Judge, compliments of that nice young man in the Campaign Hat.
("Five over the speed limit?" "That's a Federal Offense, sir. License and registration, please.")
See How Easy It Is To Forget Your Troubles--try getting the new names right in Yosemite, for instance.
All in
YOUR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM!
Ranger Harsh Mellow
He's a super-happy fellow,
a super-duper marshmallow,
until he stops you with a gun,
thereby spoiling all your fun.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 02:23pm PT
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This morning I talked myself into going out to the VA for my blood draw and a doctor's visit.
They provided me with a visual tour of some of the national parks and I thought to share them with you.
I'm very glad that I went to see the Dear Doctor.
He told me that mainly due to my weight gain that I am in Heart Failure Mode and just a skosh away from being in a hospital so let's get you some more Metolazone blah blah medical blah-blah and no, forget about any hernia surgery for at least three months IF "we" have your CHF under control.
There is more to this medical merry-go-round but I'm living it and it sucks and don't wish to bore you with old man's medical woe stories.
As I began typing, I had to answer the phone...Will from the Thinner Blood Lab to discuss Warfarin dosage. Shut the front door on that, too.
I simply wish I had the werewithal, the ability, the means to get to the Valley to shoot some waterfalls and climber falls and rescue calls and whatever crosses my path.
Reminds me...GENE, buddy, can you call me? Please?
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Slym
climber
Merced, CA
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May 23, 2016 - 02:56pm PT
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mouse,
looks like we gotta get that beer, and maybe a drive out to the ditch.
cure all things.
i'll call you tomorrow.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 03:19pm PT
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^^^^Sounds good, like a full-choke auto.
Bob Drillin, everyone. Give him a round (of applause).[Click to View YouTube Video]Go someplace quieter and higher.
Even the Hills North of Town
Though they're turning brown
But crispy though they be
It's a better place, UC.
Or we could flow uphill to the ditch
It depends on how bad is our itch
You know I am not very rich
But into the tank I can pitch
Maybe ten bucks or so
That's not very much dough
I thought you should know...
I'm at your beckoning call.
Yr. servant
MFM
And thanks.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 09:02pm PT
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Bon soir.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 23, 2016 - 09:08pm PT
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Bird on the Wind.
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Bushman
climber
The state of quantum flux
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May 24, 2016 - 06:10am PT
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Social Security Guard
They bored a hole into my brain
With no anesthesia while I was sleeping
Without my consent
When first they started it woke me up
As they shaved a spot in the back of my scalp
I cried out for them to stop
I begged them to release me
But as my loved ones held me down
I cursed and disowned them
The pain was so excruciating I passed out
Soon after I was dead
The surgeons had all gone
My soul and my family members sat around
We discussed all the gruesome particulars
I asked them why they did this to me
They said it was inevitable
Next time I die I would prefer not to have any semblance of a soul
Nor any hereafter
It would be much less painful that way
And far less complicated
-bushman
05/24/2016
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 24, 2016 - 07:41am PT
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the donini
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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May 24, 2016 - 08:48am PT
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Hey there, say, thanks for the kind words and advice Mouse!
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Bushman
climber
The state of quantum flux
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May 24, 2016 - 11:22am PT
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Twenty One Thousand, Four Hundred, and Seventy Eight Days
Just Yesterday she kissed my cheek
Once my mother held me to her breast
It was long ago I know
But feels like only yesterday
When first she took me to my school
But now she's gone so far away
Since my first crush and broken heart
It seems like only yesterday
A lover held me in her arms
Since I learned broken hearts would mend
But for every person that I've loved
The pain was tenfold multiplied
When love was lost or people died
The bones were set and the cast applied
The stitches and the surgery done
"Take these pills until they're gone"
I cursed myself time and again
For hastiness and ignorance
I was too stubborn to allow
Experience to become my friend
Unloving and unkind was I
Hard on myself until the day
I saw my mother waste away
And swore I would not let the fates
Suffer me thus my dying day
Little did I know back then
It isn't always up to us
When things just happen anyway
Once my children followed me
Over hill and sometimes under hell
Again like only yesterday
My grandchildren they did the same
Now some they've grown and gone away
Doing things like I once did
I've told them all a thousand times
Please don't do what Papa did
But defiantly they've stood up to me
And told me what was what instead
Like it happened only yesterday
Standing looming to come in
Near the bedside of my loving wife
The reaper almost called her in
So soon the time since yesterday
When cold and heartless death came near
I sought to hold its clutch at bay
Though yesterday's no judge of time
I hope for now she's here to stay
I know that just since yesterday
I could've died so many times
But reflect instead to long for this...
The little moments that I find
Remembering those that I have loved
Though so many thousand days gone by
For what seems like only yesterday
I've lived these moments long enough
To see our lives are somewhat like
The beauty of a sunrise
And in these moments all I have
To remember them that way
Until the final sunset
Upon our final day
-bushman
05/24/2016
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 24, 2016 - 12:19pm PT
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"...our lives are somewhat like the beauty of a sunrise and in these moments all I have..."
Sharing the entrances and exits of the players in our life's stage production ...priceless.
It takes courage, as well, for ghosts are sometimes not easy to lay to rest,
as are children, who are so eager to know it all that sleep is like a test,
for them an outrageous curtailment of their simple quest
to see what life is made of:
repetition of a daily theme which revolves around the central star.
Heaven can wait.
I still have much for which to thank the Creator, or Watchmaker, or whoever holds the key that winds this universe.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 24, 2016 - 04:48pm PT
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Getting from there to here was a trip.
Thanks to everyone who had a hand in my journey to date.
A little gift from me to you on my birthday, this excellent documentary on the Great Indian Railway.
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1957BD45405EF658
More to come later on.
http://www.hellotravel.com/stories/most-famous-trains-in-worlds-history
This train is having one of the oldest and longest rail networks which are still used in India.
Its final destination was Peshawar (which is now a city in Pakistan) before the partition of India.
After the partition this train started running between Amritsar and Bombay (Now Mumbai).
It covers up its present day journey in 32 hours passing by 33 halts.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Topic Author's Reply - May 24, 2016 - 06:22pm PT
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Threshold
--Rabindranath Tagore
I was not aware of the moment
when I first crossed the threshold of this life.
What was the power that made me open out into this vast mystery
like a bud in the forest at midnight!
When in the morning I looked upon the light
I felt in a moment that I was no stranger in this world,
that the inscrutable without name and form
had taken me in its arms in the form of my own mother.
Even so, in death the same unknown will appear as ever known to me.
And because I love this life,
I know I shall love death as well.
The child cries out
when from the right breast the mother takes it away,
in the very next moment to find in the left one its consolation.
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