Showers are 15 minutes each. I heat up a stockpot full of water on the stove, and then pour it into a 5 gallon bucket and call over a student. They take the bucket and a few drops of camp suds, along with their clean laundry, back to the "shower," which is three tarps hung from juniper trees behind the teepee. They must call their name out loud every three to five seconds as they shower. It is more of a billy bath than a shower, really, as the girls stand in the snow and strip down half at a time, washing their top, putting on a clean shirt, than washing their lower half, and putting on clean long underwear. Usually the girls wear a cotton tee, a thin long undershirt, a thick long undershirt, a red fleece pullover, and a blue windstopper fleece coat. On the bottoms they wear their thin long underwear, their thick long underwear, blue fleece pants, and the shorts from their hiking pants. Sometimes they will also wear their raincoat bottoms. The current trend is to wear things inside out and backwards. I don't know why. While showers are happening, girls are stacking wood, helping me cook pizza, and doing "deep clean." Every week, they wash the pots and pans, food bags, spice bottles, and cups with soap, bleach, and hot water. There is lots of wandering around at this point, starting to help and then getting distracted, getting some lunch, asking for more food, forgetting things in the teepee and asking staff to go with them to get it, and general slow motion chaos. With lots of prodding, it all happens and we begin crossing chores off our list. We cook the pizza in the coals in dutch ovens and it is a raging success, fluffy yeast dough with caramelized onions and sharp cheddar cheese. We used almost an entire stick of butter caramelizing the onions. My cook's helper is from New Orleans.
With hair wash, we set up a salon on the deck. I heat more water and have the girls brush out their hair. Everyone puts on rain jackets and tucks in the hood. Then they stand just below the deck and bend over and I carefully pour the hot water over their hair. Shampoo and conditioner are passed around and there is lots of calling out of my name and demanding more water or more conditioner or more time or a different temperature, but eventually it is done and everyone goes back to the fire to dry their hair before it freezes. At this point they start asking for their mail, and I know the day is starting to draw to a close.
Break
(spoon carver, bread baker) gypsy, nomad, wandering errant walker.
21 February 2012
12 February 2012
Dinner Party Menu
One bottle of red wine
Two carafes of iced tea that "smells like christmas and tastes like summer"
One large container of whisky
Endless supply of tap water
V-8 Juice
Lemon and pepper almonds
Green olives
Jawbreakers
Jeweled rice
Moroccon chicken with prunes and figs
(Cilantro)
Roasted cauliflower with cumin seeds
(Feta yogurt sauce and pomegranate seeds)
Spinach and red cabbage salad
(Orange tahini dressing)
Dinner Rolls
Jonathan's poppy seed cake
And games from the book "After Dinner Games"!
Two carafes of iced tea that "smells like christmas and tastes like summer"
One large container of whisky
Endless supply of tap water
V-8 Juice
Lemon and pepper almonds
Green olives
Jawbreakers
Jeweled rice
Moroccon chicken with prunes and figs
(Cilantro)
Roasted cauliflower with cumin seeds
(Feta yogurt sauce and pomegranate seeds)
Spinach and red cabbage salad
(Orange tahini dressing)
Dinner Rolls
Jonathan's poppy seed cake
And games from the book "After Dinner Games"!
09 February 2012
Pathway Work Part 1
Daily life at Open Sky. I think we'll start with a base camp Monday schedule.
Monday morning, my alarm goes off at 6:50. I struggle with the zipper of my -20 degree sleeping bag, open it up, and then lay back down for 10 minutes. At 7:00, I shimmy out of my bag, take my puffy jacket that I have wrapped around my feet, pull it on, and am fully dressed. I slide my feet into my liners and overboots, grab the med bag, food bag, camp chair, and paperwork, and head outside the teepee to the camp center fire. The sun is just rising and the tops of the junipers are silhouetted with a line of pink and orange. It is going to be a beautiful day. I drop my stuff by the firepit and walk down the bust trail out of site to pee. I wash my hands with a few drops of Dr. Bronner's rose soap and several handfuls of cold, cold snow. Next step is getting the fire going. Sometimes there are banked embers that I can coax back into flame, sometimes my co-guide will bust a coal with his bow drill set. Sometimes I soften up some juniper nesting and pull out my lighter. We build the fire high, warm our hands, and set our metal Klean Kanteen water bottles in the fire to boil for tea. We talk about the coming day, disscuss students, answer questions like "Why are wilderness metaphors important in the field?" We drink tea, eat oats, rice crispie treats, cheesy torts. We do call in on the radio, letting the field manager know that we are doing just fine. Then it is time to wake up the ladies.
We walk back to the teepee. Sometimes they will already be awake, tending thier own fire, writing letters home. Sometimes they will be soundly asleep, buried as deeply as possible inside their sleeping bags. We tease, sing, cajole them to get up! Put on your pants! They are wearing baggy fleece pants, but it is the rule that they must wear hiking pants over these. They slowly rise, go out to pee one at a time, and then we all walk out to the kitchen to get their food bags. I dole out soap, eucalyptus this time, for another snow handwash, and we duck back inside the warm teepee. Breakfast is cold oats or warm oats, granola, cheese, trail mix, spoonfuls of peanut butter--whatever they have left at the end of the week. Food resupply is tomorrow. After they eat, they must show me their clean cup, and then it is in to hygiene time. Witch hazel and pads are passed around, the witch hazel bottle starts to melt from the heat of the fire and is rescued, toothpaste is passed, and sunscreen after. Floss and foot powder are optional. I unlock the med bag, find my black pen, and administer morning medications. Then comes the challenging moment where they have to put on their boots and overboots, crusty with mud. The ladies know what is coming next and they move slowly, joking around, asking me lots of diverting questions, stopping to brush hair. We've got to do wood and water runs today.
Our Cleo camp is about a quarter mile from the Open Sky parking lot, where the cistern and five gallon cubes are stored. We have sleds and wheelbarrows, but even with those, it isn't easy to get back and forth on our trail, which at the moment is snowy, icy, and very muddy. We decide that four 5s will be enough for showers and hairwash, cooking and drinking. There is lots of stopping, things fall off the sled, lines bite in to hands and waists, frustration, anger, temper tantrums come to the surface. We give them a little time, and then keep going. Each lady will fall at least once during this run, one of them headfirst into the frozen mud. We drop the water, encourage everyone to drink from their Nalgene bottles and turn around for wood. There is a good wood pile in camp, but the wood is still green, and smokes terribly in the teepee. There is a larger, drier pile down at the road, halfway between camp and the parking lot, so we set out again, at the same slow pace. One of the guides will get the axe from the field manager's cabin so that we can split these big chunks into small pieces that will burn faster, hottest, and with less smoke. Smokey teepees are killer. Chopping wood is one of my favorite guide chores.
To be continued...
Monday morning, my alarm goes off at 6:50. I struggle with the zipper of my -20 degree sleeping bag, open it up, and then lay back down for 10 minutes. At 7:00, I shimmy out of my bag, take my puffy jacket that I have wrapped around my feet, pull it on, and am fully dressed. I slide my feet into my liners and overboots, grab the med bag, food bag, camp chair, and paperwork, and head outside the teepee to the camp center fire. The sun is just rising and the tops of the junipers are silhouetted with a line of pink and orange. It is going to be a beautiful day. I drop my stuff by the firepit and walk down the bust trail out of site to pee. I wash my hands with a few drops of Dr. Bronner's rose soap and several handfuls of cold, cold snow. Next step is getting the fire going. Sometimes there are banked embers that I can coax back into flame, sometimes my co-guide will bust a coal with his bow drill set. Sometimes I soften up some juniper nesting and pull out my lighter. We build the fire high, warm our hands, and set our metal Klean Kanteen water bottles in the fire to boil for tea. We talk about the coming day, disscuss students, answer questions like "Why are wilderness metaphors important in the field?" We drink tea, eat oats, rice crispie treats, cheesy torts. We do call in on the radio, letting the field manager know that we are doing just fine. Then it is time to wake up the ladies.
We walk back to the teepee. Sometimes they will already be awake, tending thier own fire, writing letters home. Sometimes they will be soundly asleep, buried as deeply as possible inside their sleeping bags. We tease, sing, cajole them to get up! Put on your pants! They are wearing baggy fleece pants, but it is the rule that they must wear hiking pants over these. They slowly rise, go out to pee one at a time, and then we all walk out to the kitchen to get their food bags. I dole out soap, eucalyptus this time, for another snow handwash, and we duck back inside the warm teepee. Breakfast is cold oats or warm oats, granola, cheese, trail mix, spoonfuls of peanut butter--whatever they have left at the end of the week. Food resupply is tomorrow. After they eat, they must show me their clean cup, and then it is in to hygiene time. Witch hazel and pads are passed around, the witch hazel bottle starts to melt from the heat of the fire and is rescued, toothpaste is passed, and sunscreen after. Floss and foot powder are optional. I unlock the med bag, find my black pen, and administer morning medications. Then comes the challenging moment where they have to put on their boots and overboots, crusty with mud. The ladies know what is coming next and they move slowly, joking around, asking me lots of diverting questions, stopping to brush hair. We've got to do wood and water runs today.
Our Cleo camp is about a quarter mile from the Open Sky parking lot, where the cistern and five gallon cubes are stored. We have sleds and wheelbarrows, but even with those, it isn't easy to get back and forth on our trail, which at the moment is snowy, icy, and very muddy. We decide that four 5s will be enough for showers and hairwash, cooking and drinking. There is lots of stopping, things fall off the sled, lines bite in to hands and waists, frustration, anger, temper tantrums come to the surface. We give them a little time, and then keep going. Each lady will fall at least once during this run, one of them headfirst into the frozen mud. We drop the water, encourage everyone to drink from their Nalgene bottles and turn around for wood. There is a good wood pile in camp, but the wood is still green, and smokes terribly in the teepee. There is a larger, drier pile down at the road, halfway between camp and the parking lot, so we set out again, at the same slow pace. One of the guides will get the axe from the field manager's cabin so that we can split these big chunks into small pieces that will burn faster, hottest, and with less smoke. Smokey teepees are killer. Chopping wood is one of my favorite guide chores.
To be continued...
31 January 2012
23 November 2011
Open Sky 11/8/11
Here we are in this cottonwood valley
Branches holding out their last offering to the wind
Trembling at the change of seasons
Golden sun dries the sweat on our backs
Toss football, harvest sage, drink water
Revel in the feeling of lightness
At a packs off break
Here we are underneath this pyramid rock
On a plateau layer cake of juniper and sandstone
Here we are at the confluence of lake and
Monument canyons, a tongue of rock
Hovering over dead rivers, mesas rising over and over
A rumpled cloth of land
Here it is, the harvest moon through the tree
As the sun goes down, a ringed round halo
Wisps of clouds, frozen moisture hovering above
Winter moving in with a snap, bite in the air
Nipping fingers and toes
Here we are, the Open Sky chamber orchestra
One small guitar, seven male voices
Harmony, then disharmony
We all have pain, we all have sorrow
Here we are spilling dinner, boiling rice
Orange embers fanned into yellow flame
Simple foods, many thanks
Gather close, 'bows tie us together
Lean on me
Song fades into the night
Here I am one small green tarp
Under the bright blaze of Jupiter
Orion hunting over the horizon
Shut eyes into desert dreams
Hail Ganesh, remover of obstacles!
Branches holding out their last offering to the wind
Trembling at the change of seasons
Golden sun dries the sweat on our backs
Toss football, harvest sage, drink water
Revel in the feeling of lightness
At a packs off break
Here we are underneath this pyramid rock
On a plateau layer cake of juniper and sandstone
Here we are at the confluence of lake and
Monument canyons, a tongue of rock
Hovering over dead rivers, mesas rising over and over
A rumpled cloth of land
Here it is, the harvest moon through the tree
As the sun goes down, a ringed round halo
Wisps of clouds, frozen moisture hovering above
Winter moving in with a snap, bite in the air
Nipping fingers and toes
Here we are, the Open Sky chamber orchestra
One small guitar, seven male voices
Harmony, then disharmony
We all have pain, we all have sorrow
Here we are spilling dinner, boiling rice
Orange embers fanned into yellow flame
Simple foods, many thanks
Gather close, 'bows tie us together
Lean on me
Song fades into the night
Here I am one small green tarp
Under the bright blaze of Jupiter
Orion hunting over the horizon
Shut eyes into desert dreams
Hail Ganesh, remover of obstacles!
04 October 2011
01 October 2011
Yum
Farmer's Market Day
Dinner
Spinach and Pine Nut Ravioli
Asiago Cheese
Fresh Arugula
Sauteed Green Beans with Caramelized Onion, Garlic, and Jalapeno
Cowboy Motorless Parade
Earth Prayers and Poems Research
Liberty Mountain Gear Shopping
Book Reading
Dinner
Spinach and Pine Nut Ravioli
Asiago Cheese
Fresh Arugula
Sauteed Green Beans with Caramelized Onion, Garlic, and Jalapeno
Cowboy Motorless Parade
Earth Prayers and Poems Research
Liberty Mountain Gear Shopping
Book Reading
12 September 2011
first day of school
Breathing, relaxing, sitting with tense muscles. My spine is not comfortable with spending time aligned. Talking, de-escalating, cooperating, requesting. Positive Control Systems. Almost 12 hours of training. Also jumping jacks and peeing in a cup.
11 September 2011
SeaTac
101 pounds of checked luggage. No curbside check in. Bag got pulled in airport security because they thought my headlamp and belt buckle were a bomb. Took twenty minutes and three runs through the scanner and unpacked two sleeping bags, sleeping bag, a tray of clothes, two trays of small stuff--it was the bottomless carry-on bag. Walked a stick through security. Next step, Phoenix.
31 August 2011
22 May 2011
may already?
sorry its been so long, lots of things have been happening, i will try to get my inspiration back...
28 February 2011
little big econ state forest
Well, hello. Writing from the airport wi-fi, as per usual. Sad to be leaving Tucson, there were a lot of things that added up to a nice feeling--people I enjoyed, who were into going out and doing cool activities, in an interesting place, with as much work as needed to keep busy. I will certainly miss folks. It will be nice to be making some money, though, and to get some more trail crew in before summer--help me to get ready for crew leading. Most of my day dreaming time has been taken up with fast forwarding one month, and I am possibly setting myself up for disappointment, but on the other hand...road trip, exploration, camping, climbing, eating, dancing. Maybe it will be everything I hope. Lots of new music to listen to, another hat to make, new books to read. Orlando, here I come.
23 February 2011
wheels
Just finished registering my car, a white 99 Isuzu Rodeo. She's pretty sweet. I just hope I can keep her running nice. I'm sure we'll have many fine adventures. I'm looking to figure out her name, and in honor of the Rodeo, I've been leaning towards western style names, but also started thinking about some spanish words. Imput or ideas welcome.
Sweet Marie
Nellie
Luna
Jancy Jane
Paula Jo
Bessie Belle
Clementine
Slew Foot Sue
Daisy Mae
Dusty Lee
Sweet Marie
Nellie
Luna
Jancy Jane
Paula Jo
Bessie Belle
Clementine
Slew Foot Sue
Daisy Mae
Dusty Lee
15 February 2011
14 February 2011
13 February 2011
05 February 2011
Lightweight Seminar
Excuse the stream of thought, it was too chilly for complete sentences.
Thundersnow. Only 1.5 Miles today. As we walked away from the van, snow blown sideways, thundersnow. I was warm while hiking, very easy road walking. Quick start tomorrow good idea to get warm. New Schwag! GoLite packs and puffy coats. Couscous dinner, bear hangs. Next time: Neoprene socks.
Long cold night. Especially toes. Felt sick and achy into the morning. Ryan is serenading us. Evac this morning, Matthew had blood in his urine, we all joke how smart he was to get out when he did: it’s cold. Day hike then move when CL Matt comes back. Lots of Cat Claw Acacia. Much booze and cold on this trip. Via coffee break. Cold.
Let me set the scene for you. 10hrs of hiking ass-cold blowing wind steep slope no trail no water foot of snow don’t know where we are going hiking in the dark bouldering broke our aqua mira water freezing as we watch it.
Breakfast on a frozen slab of rock sunrise just a tease wispy frozen clouds water freezing as we pour it in to the pot. Nohl’s cold toes on warm stomach. Hiking hiking trying to find the trail up and over rather than around and down. Past the cat claw into a Manzanita forest through red split trunk trees in the saddle of giant’s cairns, the stone jaws and fingers of rough golden stone on the other side is a tumble of rounded blocks falling haphazard into the valley far below. Poles stowed clambering leaping squeezing climbing down, like Alice through the rabbit hole spit out in the land of Lower Holdout…a rainbow of windshirts jumping for joy, for the camera crew, to stay warm. A carved out creek sinuous and strong. Running singing laughing until—splash! A misstep and cold wet leg gross red gloop scrape it off! Stay warm walk for warmth.
Walk through the desert and onto our trail, pink flags leading the way through Upper Holdout, beauty in the desert rocks, weak sun in front, snow behind on the high ridge. We are walking so fast now, I am keeping up, but missing out. Light and fast, we are going, light is right, but where is the time to soak in the magic of this place? We’ve got to make it to Reef Tank—maybe even before dark? Leave behind the holdout, enter the mundane world of the Santa Teresa Wilderness. No water at reef tank, just lots of cow poop. Making dinner in a blizzard—it finally caught up to us. Coldest night ever, must have fallen asleep twice, because I remember that there were two dreams. One where we were camped at the branch and I couldn’t understand why we didn’t go and get extra sleeping bags from the issue room. Wake up and skip breakfast. Let’s get out of here.
Golden rocks gravel ribbon ridge road. Insolent mountain cows. Blue shadows white snow. Coyote tracks and cold cold sunshine. Sore knees, tender toes, dry throat. Stepping home. The first time I am able to meditate to wonder ponder think breathe and walk.
I am so glad I got to go on this seminar—such an adventure, so much laughter. Pushed at a lot of my comfort zones, skill levels. If I can get through that in good spirits, I can get through pretty much anything.
26 January 2011
Not stellar
I am doing this thing that I occasionally do, where I find myself chasing circles around nothing, and I am sad for no reason, and I go to check Facebook, and then gmail, and then yahoo, and then webmail, and then my blog and the answer is always the same, nothing new--not that I am really expecting anything new. It is a failure to live in the moment and to appreciate all the good things that are going on and even the brilliant blue skies outside can't break me out of it. I feel like one of those birds who keeps grooming its feathers over and over, trying to look good, but instead slowly shredding the edges until it is frazzled and frayed. I'm really okay---I just want to be able to hang on to these folks that I come across in my travels instead of having to say goodbye way too soon. Nomad living leaving me unfulfilled right now.
17 January 2011
NOLS SW
Sesame pita, Greek yogurt, Kalamata Olive Hummus, Red Onion, Baby Arugula, NOLS Falafal Mix. Good Dinner.
I'm here in the southwest, settling in, feeling pretty glad that I came here. Drove out to a course in the field to bring them their next ration of food today. Tomorrow I guess that I am helping to build a fence, and then Laura is supposed to visit me. Waiting for SCA to tell me how the interview went. People here are very nice and friendly, even the instructors, who are in and out. We made pizza and played Settler's of Catan last night.
30 December 2010
haven't thought of resolutions, yet
I am facing a dilemma that I was not anticipating. Seems that I might now be looking for spring work--could go back to the old job, but it isn't a great fit, and they know it, and I know it...So now I am looking around madly for something to make a little bit of money, unlike this entire winter. And I've actually found some really great options.
SCA is hiring leaders for their alternative spring break, which is one month of work, and means that I could bop around with Sky and Laura, or hike the AT for a little bit, and maybe pick up some other short trip-like jobs somehow.
Also there are Ridgerunner and Caretaker positions open for the southern part of the AT, which actually sound very fun and exciting, talking to people about hiking and LNT and gear and fun stuff like that. It is different from everything else I have done, and I am rather jazzed about it.
But I don't want to get my hopes up too high, and I need to decide soon what I am doing and tell Salish. Bounce. I also need to get my WFR recert, and want to talk WTA into paying for half of it, or something. I will scrub floors, peel potatoes, whatever.
Also must prepare to apply for summer WTA work. Not even thinking about fall. Trying to leave Tole Mour behind--though that may not be the right choice, either. A huge part of me wants to GO BACK!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)