When I worked at VA, one of my coworkers, Richard Lee, would hike to the top of Mission Peak on a semi-regular basis. It was the closest mountain to climb to both work and his house, so it had its charms. I had intended to go several times, but never quite made it out.

Andy suggested the hike as "something short this weekend, how about Mission Peak?" A few friends were also hiking it this weekend, and meeting up with them, one of whom had a dog, would be fun. We didn't know quite what we were getting in for, and thinking it would be similar to the Mt. Diablo hike we went on 5-6 years back.

Yeah, other than the straight up, not so much.

We arrived slightly late, having left our house slightly late, having woken up slightly late. Yet, even with our late arrival and walk from the most distant parking spot, we still arrived before the rest of the group. Looking up the hill, we couldn't see the top of the hike, as the whole area was covered in smoke from the Henry Coe wildfire and some level of morning fog. There was little green, and lots of exposed areas, explaining why Andy wanted to start early. He had never come on the weekend, so was a little surprised at the number of people on the hike. There were a lot

The first three miles were uphill, with maybe 50 yards of the hike level, and none downhill.

Just before the peak, the path turned from a 12' wide, flat, practically paved dirt road to a series of rocks, not unlike the path to the Giant's Causeway in Ireland. Just as I approached the base of the rocks to climb up, another group paused to look up the rock path. Andy chose that moment to run up the path. Like a mountain goat, he pounced from rock to rock, dashing up the side of the mountain with grace.

The group next to me watched him for about twenty seconds, then simultaneously turned to look at each other, a look of incredulity on their collective faces. I saw the looks, and turned to them. "Yeah, we think he's crazy, too."

"I'm tired just watching him," was the response.

The smoke and haze so stifling from the bottom of the hill was below the height of the peak, so we had great views of, well, cloud and smoke coverage of the Bay Area metropolis to one side of the peak, and smoke covered rolling East Bay hills to the other side. The top was, as Andy told us, windy, but pleasant. We went down the back side of the peak, away from the crowds, which was nice. We passed through a creek a couple times, and convinced the dogs to jump in a couple times. I would have taken pictures of the way down, but, well, the camera died at the peak.

Kris had some routine tests done today, so I spent the day with him.

Sorta.

I spent the day taking him to the hospital, waiting for him, waiting even longer for him, waiting even longer longer for him, picking him up, driving him home, assisting him into the bedroom, and waiting for him to wake up hours later, worrying as he slept that he wasn't okay.

He wasn't allowed to eat anything solid yesterday, nor anything at all since 10PM last night. I've been sick and not eaten for a day before, and it's not a pleasant experience. At least I would have water, which Kris couldn't have. At some point, you just stop being hungry. I'm not sure Kris ever hit that point - he was in good spirits this morning.

So, off we went. When we arrived at the office, there was one other person in the waiting room. When Kris actually left me to head into the back room by himself, about 45 minutes late, the entire waiting room was full, with more people arriving as I was leaving. I was on a mission to find wi-fi I could use for the next hour and a half while Kris was, uh, busy.

Instead of lugging my 20# backpack, I dropped it off at my car and called Dad to let him know he'd be receiving a set of keys this weekend. He wondered what was happening with the Larson house, and was pleased to hear the purchase had gone through (Five page. FIVE pages. That's how many pages you have to read, signing only two of them, when you purchase property in Indiana without financing, five. Crazy.). We talked for a half hour, and off I went in my wi-fi quest.

Times like these are ones that I really really wish I had an EVDO connection, or some mobile modem connection. Instead, I spent 25 minutes walking to the Starbucks, to realize there was one 20 minutes closer to the medical office only after I arrived. A glass of milk and a quick note to the office letting them know if I arrived this afternoon, it'd be later, as Kris went in late, and back I went to the office. I arrived to an empty waiting room, and notice that Kris would be another half hour.

I managed to read a couple magazines today. Does that count?

Sans wi-fi, I worked on client work I could work on, work I had downloaded, but was still feeling a little disconnected. Not nearly as disconnected as Kris appeared when I finally went into the back room to pick him up. He was so out of it, he didn't even use "Kitt" as his wife's name, causing me to wonder who the nurse was looking for when she kept asking for "Kathryn."

Kris slept when I brought him home. Cramping and severe abdominal pains are post-procedure possibilities, so I was unable to leave until he woke up, which wasn't until around 6.

The day was fairly pleasant, though strange. Not sure what Kris went through was worth it to get me to stop working for a day, but it was still a good day.

Next time, maybe I won't feel so guilty about not working to actually enjoy it.

Update: Ah! At one point, after I was listening to the doctor tell Kris, and hence me, the preliminary findings of the tests, the nurse was explaining the possible post-procedure problems. She said Kris may feel bloated, so, if he wants to, let him, uh, ... She paused. I almost said, "Fart?" but her level of discomfort made me look at her with a blank expression.

"If he wants to, uh, you know," she gestured to her stomach, "pass, you know, his stomach, if he needs to,"

The effort to suppress my laughter almost made me fart. How can a nurse not be able to say, "pass gas," "break wind," or "fart?"

Note to self: when demonstrating the high-impact jumping you did in the morning's workout, verify you're wearing a sports bra before you start jumping. There's a reason you wear a sports bra to the workouts.

The Bauers were neighbors of the first house I lived in as a child. Somewhere on their property, I honestly can't remember where, they had morning glories. To this day, I associate morning glories with the Bauers, and smile fondly every time I see them.

A month ago, after I had accidently left the hose running on a plot of ground near the front of the house, a few morning glories sprouted. Despite the heat an my lack of general care for them, they grew. This week, they flowered. Each day, I'm greated with a different flower, each lasting about a day.

This morning, three flowered. Before my camera died, I managed a couple pictures:

Today, at lunch, Doyle commented, "Just like L.A." Puzzled, I asked him what he meant. He pointed up and said, "All hazy like smog." I looked up, and realized, hey, he was right. His comment made me think of L.A. Sometimes I really miss L.A. It's said, people either love or hate L.A. I can't say I lurved L.A., but I did enjoy a lot living there.

I'm 2 months away from being here in the Bay Area for ten years. I was in L.A. for just over ten years. I've been here, in California, longer than any other state, but two decades? Good lord, that's a long time. Almost like this is where I'm going to be, where I'm staying. Honestly, it's a great place to be, even if it is as messed up as other places.

As much as I think I'd like to retire to a farm (well, actually, an apple orchard), I can't imagine being away from a metropolitan area. I like the ease of cultural exposure. I like the convenience of goods. I like access to educational opportunities. I don't like the people per se, but I do like having friends close.

Take for example, my journey to a craft store. Yes, the store prices were greater than a craft superstore like Michaels, but the selection was amazing. In this instance, I'll support the little guy, the family store. In a smaller town, I wouldn't be able to just head over. Internet ecommerce would be a godsend, but still, the waiting.

Eh, don't know. The Bay Area is pretty spectacular. Kris wants to be here, he loves it here. Will I ever convince him otherwise? Do I want to?