Summer Chill

Summer term is coming to an end. I'll be done this week, finally. This weekend has been fun and relaxing. Not much of note in my life to relate, so I've dedicated this post to an ancient film. I'm writing on my new Windows 7 system, much improved from Vista. But that's for another post.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang may be one of the coolest lazy Sunday afternoon videos ever made. From Truly Scrumptious' lovely hat collection to Dick Van Dyke's uber-sweet inventions, the show is just full of treats. Truly Scrumptious was even made into a celebrity barbie. I really wish I had one of those egg and sausage makers in the mornings. The characters are classic. The little girl is Jemima, reminds me of syrup, and grandpa is hilariously eccentric.


Watching this movie is really a walk down memory lane. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was one of the staples of my childhood. I watched it frequently along with such movies as All Dogs go to Heaven, Swiss Family Robinson, and Robin Hood. I will never forget the songs from the movie. Roses of Success was my favorite. I think it still is.

I'm sitting next to my friends Michele and Nero (aka Ron John) in Jose's apartment. Ron John is from Nepal and seems to really be enjoying it. Michele the hispanic brazilian wannabe keeps making faces. There's also Cassie who sings to every song, and Rachel and her friend who just giggle at everything on the show. And Korance can quote the movie extensively. A classic - All in all a good Sunday evening party.

Monster Nebo

About a month ago Blake, Stephen, and I took on the monstrous Nebo. It was a beautiful summer Saturday morning following a light rainstorm the night before.


The drive brought us almost to the top it seemed, so we had our doubts about how difficult the hike was actually going to be. The tall peak on the left was our destination.


I kept myself busy with a new found hobby of mine on the way up: picking wildflowers. I loved the red clay.







After an hour or so we made it to the ridge. The hike to this point wasn't too challenging. The ridge offered some fantastic views. That's Mt. Timpanogas in the distance. Yes, Mt. Nebo is taller than Timpanogas.






It was a pleasant stroll on the top of the world, until we got to this:



I was sucking wind within 2 minutes, dripping like a wet towel.


We made it to one peak, but had one more to go after that. The last quarter mile was climbing over loose rock along the ridge to the very top. By that time I had to stop every 15 steps for a few seconds to rest my exhausted quads.




At last we made it!


Jumping over 11928 ft (3635.7 m).


Someone had a little too much fun in the glorious sunshine!


Some friendly local folks from Utah county showed up as we were eating lunch at the peak. I kept overhearing them talk about "Spanish." Saying Spanish is this, and Spanish is that. That confused me because they didn't seem to be the type to know a foreign language. But then Blake explained to me that they mean Spanish Fork! That's local talk, that is!

On a scale of 1 to 10 for amateur hikes, I would rate this hike as a 9.5. It stretched me that much! The incredibly steep climb at the high elevation just about did me in. The wildlife and the extensive stretch along the ridge though make this hike far worth the effort. It was definitely a highlight of my summer.