VEGAS!! Chilling w/ Brian Bowman and Sandra

Vegas

Let's see here.....we drove from Bishop to LV through Pahrump. We randomly stopped to gape at Mt. Whitney (highest point in the lower 48) and I had to use the bathroom, so I stumbled into a museum that commemorated all of the movies filmed in the area. It was mind blowing. They had a car that had coins all over it w/ guns mounted all over it w/ spurs on the mirrors. Other random stuff.....kind of cool actually. We also pulled over at Zabriskie Point in Death Valley, and it had some amazing land formations (would have passed it if we didn't have to pee!!). We drove in from 160 along Black Velvet Canyon and the front side of the majestic mountain range that is Red Rock Canyon. It is 4-5 IMMENSE mountains w/ a ton of facets and walls on each mountain. We drove the loop rode and climbed at the Magic Bus (classic 5.8) as the sun was dropping. We woke Brian up (at ~9:00 PM) and shot the shit for a while (it was his first day back to work the next day after a month off) before he went back to bed. We also met Sandra, his Chilean GF. She's super nice and looks like a gymnast (small little thing that looks like she could pick you up over her head).

Next day went to the Black Corridor in the second pullout. Warmed up on a 10b w/ a cruxy little boulder problem (two crimps to a toss to a jug), then a couple more 10's on the top wall. Then we climbed a 9 on the lower wall, then I climbed another 10 on lead before finally falling on a top-rope 10b on the steeper side of the canyon. We finished the day back at the Magic Bus for some sunset action.

Tues. May 4th

Went to Bootleg Canyon today. Last time I was there I left at ~9AM for the hospital w/ two gashes around my eye from eating it into a rock. This time I was back on the Iron Horse Sunday. I studied the map and decided I wasn't going to warm-up on Ginger since it was the only triple black diamond rated trail there. Well guess what? I ended up on it. It was STEEP w/ loose rocks ON the rock slabs w/ mandatory corners on loose dust/sand/rock. Oh and there was never a continuous line. There was always something that just didn't seem right about "the line." Maybe something to hook a pedal on, or a gnarly G-out, or it appeared that you would pick up too much speed on a steep section and come into the next section w/ WAY too much speed. I walked more on that trail than probably any other trail I've ridden in the past few years!! I felt like a total GAPER!! Lily and I took turns shuttling each other and she picked off some of the blue squares and single black diamonds (w/ one wreck in a rocky swithback). I checked out Snakeback to Kevorkian (double black- had to dab/walk one or two sections), then checked out but didn't ride the Poop Chute (WAY steep w/ jagged rock and pedal catching zones). The Love Channel was a cool small canyon that you could swoop through, riding up on the walls, w/ one steep move to a hard G-out that I talked myself into riding. I also hit the 30' gap a couple times (w/ a loud creak out of the bike every time). Last lap I rode Armageddon, then only trail I on-sight cleaned. It had some cool moves- a turn w/ a rock steepie immediately, a cool rock garden, and unfortunately some chunder that claimed my first flat on the DH bike since I can remember. At the bottom I stuck the road gap a couple of times for the camera. Besides coming out way down the road from the van a couple of times this place was a fun, but humbling encounter. I'd have to get some more armor and get more aggro before sending it all here!!

Wed. May 5th

Climbed Frogland (5.8- 6 pitches- ~800'). Rallied the Toyota Sienna back on some GNARLY dirt road w/ lots of rocks and some steep ups and downs- a lot gnarlier than I remembered it. Grabbed way too much stuff, and waddled off into the desert. We hiked and stashed the packs after ~25 min. I harnessed up and hiked the steep part up to the base of the climb w/ all the gear clanging around w/ each movement. There was a party on the first pitch and they looked kind of slow. We started up the climb and caught them at the second pitch. I goofed up and stopped at a rappel station where I should have kept climbing another ~50' to another small blocky stance. Lily had a little trouble w/ her huge pack on and some solid climbing on exposed moves, but she worked through it. I ran the next two pitches together and had a little mini-epic trying to finagle gear for a belay (forgot my cordolette). It had a sweet move where you had to chimney through this big boulder chockstone that is wedged up in this slot. You get on top of it and set up another belay (super wild belay stance w/ a CRAZY view of the mountains and Vegas). Lily had her second mini-epic while trying to chimney through w/ the pack on. She got stuck a couple of times and I tried to talk her through it. Finally she just unbuckled the pack, got an arm out and put it in front of her while grunting and squirming her way up the last 10 feet. She threw down the pack in disgust and had a few choice words to say to it (she was fired up!!). She mentioned "surreal" a few times while describing the views and the stance that we were now chilling at. I finished up the last pitch on some RUNOUT slab climbing. I almost went the wrong way a couple times because there were a bunch of ways that you could go. It topped out and I set up a belay near some blocky terrain. She finished out the last pitch and we spent the next ~40 min steeply descending a gully w/ lots of sharp, pointy vegetation. Thankfully we didn't have to hike back to the base for our packs!! We wandered out amongst the yellow, red, blue, white, and purple flowers that turned the harsh environment into an "as far as the eyes could see" blanket of color. We finished off the night w/ some turkey burgers, a cold beer, and THE COUCH!! YEEEEEES!!

Thurs. May 6th

Went climbing at the Black Corridor and Sweet Pain Wall. Stuck a 10a, b, and c on lead, then got goofy on a 5.9+ TR and had to take a fall. Undeterred, I went and led another 5.9 on the lower wall, before heading over to Sweet Pain. There was the Nova Scotia group (Sam, and Jeff from Vancouver) working on Sweet Pain. I got geared up and BARELY made it up Glitter Gulch (11a). First good pump of the trip!! There was a horn at the lip of the last bulge that I wrapped my whole hand around (thankfully because I couldn't hold onto anything other than a horn!!). Lily got to the first bolt but didn't get the love from the steeps. Next I went next door and TR'd an 11b that a girl had just lead w/ one hang. I made it but had to utilize the "saddle up" rest where you literally straddle a large feature. It was desperate and there was no way that I could have led it!! We bailed and got Brian off the couch for an evening lap on the Cottonwood Trails (rode from Black Velvet across the street, then DH back to the parking lot, then Little Viagra across the street- a never ending ribbon of flowy trail at the base of the Red Rocks Range. A short climb led us back to the car. What a great day!!!

Fri- May 7th- rest day in preparation for Epinephrine!!

Sat. May 8th

Woke up at 5:15 to get breakfast going. Today was going to be a BIG day.......finishing some business left over from 1997 when Rondo, Bowman, and I tried Epinephrine. We were in Bowman's 4-runner at 6AM and bouncing down Black Velvet's approach road before we knew it. The hike in was fast (trying to keep up w/ Brian). When we got to the base we were dismayed to find a guide and client in front of us (still on the first pitch) and then a very amped group behind us. The group behind us ended up passing us (the leader passed us while Brian was on lead)- they linked a few pitches together that we didn't. The guide group hung us up for a little while and Brian comically climbed RIGHT behind the second, occasionally offering up advice of where to go, or which direction to point. After the second pitch we started hauling the two mini haulbags that we were toting. Brian would lead w/ two ropes, then once at the belay he would have me clip the haulbags on a butterfly knot. When that rope came taught to me I would start climbing (as would Lily). It worked well, and we were in the chimneys before I knew it. The 3 chimney pitches were a mix of funky, strenuous, and tricky. I had to employ chicken-wings, fist jams, foot jams, and lots of "shimmying." Both feet on one wall; one foot on each- lots of weird body positions. Then we were on top of the Black Tower. From there 6 pitches of beautiful climbing led to the top of Black Velvet Canyon Buttress. We started climbing w/ the packs again. At the "top" there was still a 10 minute hike up to the true summit, where we filled out the summit log and reflected on the magical day that had just unfolded. From there, we could look DOWN on the Frogland summit (a good 1000' below). There was one sketchy spot of scrambling that Brain roped us up for. It was a "sidewalk" that was ~1' wide and had over 1500' of exposure. You had to make a few high step moves on less that perfect feet and although Brian only put in one cam, it made or a "piece of mind." We both moved through it w/o any problems- just between our ears!! We hiked along the ride for a while, seemingly on 3 separated summits. Then it got turned downward and we steeply scrambled for a good 90 minutes straight. After ~1 hr we were at the descent for Frogland. By then we were in cruise control and went through the motions of down climbing and scrambling, the ground slowly getting closer. The cars still looked a LONG ways away!! Eventually we found ourselves back at the car and giving out some serious high fives!! We made some pesto pasta, asparagus, corn on the cob, and garlic bread for a worthy feast!! What a day!!!!

Sunday, May 9th.

Official rest day after the full body soreness from Epinephrine. We hung around, made a phat breakfast, and watched the Cavs get dismantled by the Celtics to even their series at 2 apiece. We went to a camera shop in town and I scored a Tamron 18-200mm lens, so that my zoom is much more substantiated!! We went back to the house and caught Brian coming back from the "secret 13's" crag where he got 2 5.13 climbs w/ one hang each. We mowed down some left-over turkey burgers and collapse BACK into the couch!! Rest days rule!!

Monday, May 10th

Rallied out to Pine Creek around 12:30 for a early afternoon ascent of Olive Oil (700' 5.7). The hike took a little longer than I remembered and was very close to the surreal Crimson Crysalis which I had done previously w/ Bowman and Andy (party of 3 epic story for another time). The first pitch (a slabby "rib") was a bit runout, then a quick crux over a bulge and onto the "sandy alcove" where I skipped the first belay point in order to make it to the semi-hanging belay of pitch 2. The second pitch ran up a corner for a while then to a perch off to the R where we could stretch out a little more. Pitch 3 traversed up and R before terminating at the base of the 190' varnished black corner that summits the Rose Tower. I ran the rope out and set up a belay just below the finishing ledge. Lily brought up the last of the gear, I belayed her to the last ledge, then we both untied and scrambled another few hundred feet to the top. There weren't any cairns so we loped along the ridge for a second before plunging ourselves down yet another STEEP hike off. It only took ~30 min to get off a 700' climb!! Before I knew it we were back at the base, retrieving my pack from under a big boulder. The wind picked up pretty good and some gnarly black clouds rolled over the Red Rocks Range as we finished out the hike in near darkness. Back to the car at ~8:15. We stopped by the grocery and made some chicken burritos and corn on the cob before settling into the couch for the end of Silence of the Lambs.

Sun. May 1st, 2010- Buttermilks and Lower Rock Creek DH

Woke up around 8:30- sun blazing and the wind gently rocking the van back and forth. We made coffee, ate some granola, then had a dip in the best pool there. My hip is absolutely killing me. I did a TON of accupressure and myofascial release on myself. We had another gentleman named Joe join us w/ his dog Maggie. He was remembering a friend of his that had passed a year before. He told us a few stories and had some interesting body language w/ clenched fists and contorted hand posturing. I didn't feel intimidated by his presence, but you could tell he'd make a LOT of people uncomfortable. We rallied back to Lower Rock Creek for another round of DH. Lily rallied the first lap and got to ride the bottom section (the best part in my opinion). I surprisingly feel good and charge the run at nearly full force. The trail takes ~45 min at full clip. We pack back up and drove into Bishop. We hit up a coffee shop for a quick turbo boost and then wander around town (Wilson's Sports). Then we rallied the van out to the Buttermilk's. Let's just say that the van in its currently loaded down state isn't a gnarly dirt road destroyer. I had to gingerly drive it around rocks and holes. I would have loved to have a truck at that point!! I thought we were going for a joyride since the road we were driving down was stunning visually, but not panning out for the Buttermilk Boulder search. Then we rounded a small mountain and BOOM there they were. We hiked around for a good few hours- mainly just gawking, but we did throw on the shoes and got on top of Green Wall and a couple others. My hip wouldn't let me get rowdy and I felt pretty worked in general. I need to stretch and do some yoga!! We watched the sun go behind the surrounding mountain range from on top of a cool scramble/climb that we did (I actually got nervous watching Lily free climb it from below, so I charged up it in my Chaco's). We scrambled down, then headed back into town and hit the Upper Crust for a huge pizza and yummy salad. We lucked out and got to watch most of the 4th quarter of the Cav's game 1 series w/ the Celtics!! We waddled out of the pizza joint and out to the hot springs camp. We got to soak for about 20 minutes before we got invaded by 10 young teenagers who I wanted to slap each and every one of. They were rude, stupid, and LOUD. We tried to block it out for a while but succumb to the wrath of the teenager. With all the bodywork I did on my hip it actually felt better and I was able to sleep soundly on it. California dirtbaggin it!!

April 30, 2010- Driving to Bishop/Hotsprings

Woke up to Delheimer getting ready for a day of skiing. Got moving since today was the day that we had chose to bail from Truckee. Luckily my transceiver turned up in Delheimer's toy bin in the basement, and we lugged all our stuff up his steep set of steps (his house is on a steep hillside). Lily has a little system for the packing that makes it pretty easy. We headed over to Nate Dawg's house to retrieve our bikes and got a pretty legit lock and cable at the hardware store. We changed our oil (the Sienna takes 5 quarts I found out), and had the unfortunate task of taking back the wrong oil filter once I had already changed the oil out. We got on the road and made our way to Lake Tahoe. We stopped at T's Burritos on the way through Incline Village and munched on some of the best burritos anywhere. We stopped along the drive around the Lake for some photo op's (crazy blue/green water and huge snow capped mountains in contrast w/ one another). We got onto 395 and took it along Bridgeport and into the Eastern Sierras. One amazing view after another for hours. A funny thing happened along the way. I called Brian Bowman on a whim and found out that we were nearby a kick ass downhill mountain bike trail- off Lower Rock Creek Rd. We stopped and I jumped on the Enduro and sped off down the trail. The first couple sections were fun and flowy and followed a creek bed w/ HUGE snow capped peaks off to the right and a rocky canyon w/ crazy fingers of rock on the other side. I was pretty much content to call it good at that point, but Lily spurred me on to ride the next section. The road peeled away immediately and climbed way up w/ no idea of where it goes in relation to the trail. "Oh well" I said as I ripped off down the trail. It wove through boulders near the creek and had lots of flowy sections w/ some sandy corners sprinkled in to keep you honest. I honestly started to panic when the trail turned upwards into the talus field above. I pictured myself hiking my bike out after dark because I foolishly thought I could milk some more vertical pleasure. But it quickly turned downhill again and I rode on with purposeful quickness. It got a little more tech-gnar at the bottom and had some slow rocky tech sections. I almost ate it a couple of times trying to clear stuff w/ my xc bike and clipless pedals. When I ran into a jogger going the same way I was pretty stoked to know I wasn't going to be spending the night spooning my bike!! I finally popped out onto LRC Rd. in the middle of a hairpin corner. I only had to wait 5ish minutes until Lily rounded the corner. She had been waiting down below but decided to make a couple of sweeps. We quickly returned her to the top and she rode the first two sections. She was pretty stoked on the trails (not SUPER gnarly and no BONKER climb). We rallied back into Bishop and did some shopping at Von's (the only grocery store in town was of course in a strip mall w/ K-mart). We then headed out to the Kenoi Hotsprings which Daron recommended. Sure enought- there was a stream that came down the mountain and filled numerous pools. We had to poke around a bit to find one w/o people in it (It was Fri night). We soaked in a couple of different pools- the first one was NOT hot- and finally found a nice temped pool. In a daze we stumbled back to the van and crashed nearby the only vegetation in the whole place- a tree that shaded us a bit from the wind/sun. A weird thing happened that night. My hip just absolutely KILLED ME every time I moved and especially if I rolled onto it. Hmmmmmm....maybe those couple of days of feverish skinning caught up with me?!! I'm definitely getting older!! Snore!!

Aug 28th- POW at the Closed Bowl w/ Daron, Dawg, and Lily

Woke up in Matt Delheimer's bed this morning (w/ Lily not Matt!!- he's at work all week). Still snowing hard. Daron was up getting breakfast ready at 6:30 am. I could barely move for another 20-30 min. Finally I got up. We made some oatmeal and coffee, then I went up and slapped the chains on the Sienna. We drove over to the old neighborhood and set the lake run with Daron and Nate Dawg. Nate and Daron scissored in the back (a bed) while we drove across 80 (40 was closed), through Soda Springs, and on to "The Bowl." We skinned up the Judah chair and over to the Lake Run. It was a bit scrapy in places, but once we got on the backside it was much more filled in (windy as hell!!). We dropped the first 1/2 of the Lake Run, then skinned back up to Trestle Peak. This was a great call as the run was nice and fall line as well as being very well filled in!! We launched off a bunch of little rocks towards the bottom. I stuck all my airs (rarity!!). We then loaded up Daron's "new" Subaru and "rallied" back up to "the bowl." It sucked getting out of his car all warm and wet, and into the blowing sideways snow w/ howling winds. We got on the move and rallied over to Disney. There was a HUGE path of snow that had been cleared by some HUGE equipment- and it snaked half the way up the mtn. We struggled getting over the far side and I nearly ate it hard when I got disoriented and pointed it off the 3+' wall (luckily landing on my skis). I set the skin track all the way up the mountain and was blinded by the fog on my goggles for most of it. I could have run straight into a wall w/o realizing it!! It took a bit longer than I thought (and more effort). 1200' and probably 1 hour and change and we were on top. We dropped Nancy's Couloir and shot out near the bottom of Lincoln. We decided to "sack up" and go for a lap on Lincoln. It wasn't as steep for most of it, but still got me sweating pretty good. The wind and snow were absolutely blinding. I passed Dawg and almost caught Daron. Then I watched both of them bail while I waited on Lily. She's a trooper and pushes herself beyond what most people would tolerate on a rather consistent basis. We dropped down Fuller's Folly (double diamond) into the Sister's, then Rockgarden. The visibility crapped out on us a couple of times on the last run, but the snow was SOOOOO deep!! Super light and deep. Hip wiggle was all that was needed to ride it!! We got back to the parking lot and Daron/Dawg were already gone. Lucky for us a front end loader pulled in and started plowing the lot right as we were taking off our soaked gear. Later on we would find out that Daron and his 4wd Subaru had fits getting out of the lot, but our Sienna w/ chains got lucky and backed out w/ barely any hesitation. We drove back to town, got a bunch of veggies from New Moon, and made a yummy veggie pasta dish w/ Thai peanut sauce. Daron baked up some chocolate chip cookies, stoked the fire so I'm sweating while writing this, and Lily and I are chilling on a COUCH!! Life is good!! We're meeting the Dawg at 7:30 AM for some more Lake Runs. Definitely getting to bed at a reasonable time tonight!! Snore!!

4-26-10 Auburn w/ Daron, Stubby, and Aaron

Monday morning Dawg rolls out at the usual 7:30 AM, and I reluctantly get up and start drinking coffee in order to prepare myself for another day of punishment (biking). Nate let me take his front wheel off his bike (he had to clean carpets at Sugarbowl w/ Socko), and borrow his Jeep to rally to Auburn. I swung by the Backcountry and met up w/ Aaron, Stubby, and Daron who were hanging out in the parking lot dialing in their bikes. Daron jumped in w/ me and we rallied down 80 towards Auburn. One cup of coffee later and we're sweating profusely driving down the highway immersed in conversation. We dropped Stubby's rig at the bottom of the Confluence trail and drove all the way up to Forest Hill. We parked the Jeep in the back corner of a grocery parking lot and soaked in some sweet views of the backside of Desolation Wilderness. We jumped on the road for a few minutes, then dropped into the Western States Trail (w/ a no biking sign) that was right next door to a lone house and didn't really seem like a trail at first. But damn was it fun right off the bat!! We dropped over a thousand feet, swooping in and out of creek crossings, while riding a serpentine-like ribbon of dirt. After a while the trail leveled out and the water bar jumps slowed down. Then we ran into the first "headwall" that got us all huffing and puffing. It seemed like the temp rose about 20 degrees on that stretch of painful road climbing. Thankfully the four members of the ride didn't want to make it race pace (for once), and we all stuck together. Then we rode some sidehill that was mega exposed and had views all the way down to the river rushing below (1-2k ft below). The trails just begged you to ride faster, daring you to push through that blind corner harder. While the focus was mostly on the trail, you had to have one eye glimpsing at the poison oak (po-yo) which was dripping w/ oils. We rinsed off a few times throughout the ride to limit our chances of itching for days to come. We climbed the Connector Trail to the Confluence Trail, then onto the Flume trail. I stopped and had a look at the jump that tossed me over-the-bars (OTB) last year and cost me 17 stitches and 3400$. Daron hit them both right in front of me. I probably could have as well, but I was in no shape to try stupid stuff (no health insurance). It's funny....the smaller jumps are usually built like crap and are contrived whereas the larger, big air, high consequence moves are usually designed more thoughtfully. There were a bunch of small doubles scattered throughout the descent, some of which hipped you onto the hillside. We got to the bottom, laughing and grinning from ear to ear. We immediately dove into beers and headed for the beach. The river was flowing strong and one by one we all made the plunge (except Stubby who splashed off w/o full submersion). I am admittedly not a cold water fan, and boy did it take just about all I had to commit to laying down in the frigid water. Being numb from a 32 mile ride and a quick beer helped out tremendously. Stubby and I retrieved the shuttle vehicle and when I got back Chef Greg and Jen were handing over the Subaru Loyale (w/ Cheese) to Daron. They sped away in their "new" 1998 subaru outback, Jen expecting their first child in a month and change. Greg's bachelor party is this weekend in Reno. We'll see if I make it to that (could be trouble!!). Currently it's snowing/slushing here in Truckee. Lily is in Santa Cruz visiting her mama, and I hope she makes it back over the pass before the snow gets too disorderly. We didn't get any chains w/ the Sienna!! Looks like it's going to be a pow day later this afternoon up high and definitely tomorrow!! Then off to Vegas to kick it w/ Bowman!! Wahoo!!!!!

I'd also like to give a big shout out to the best mom in the world......MINE!! She had her birthday yesterday (I won't add a number to please her!!). HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMA!!

Downieville Round 2

Yesterday (Sat) we rode in Downieville again. We were joined by Socko, Delheimer, Daron, Nate, and Natalie. We slept overnight at Nate's and made the journey over to Downieville Outfitter's where Nate was putting on his 4th 2-step fork on his bike. I got a pair of gloves (somehow forgot my 2 pairs in WA). We stashed some beers in the river and took off on the River Trail. We rode the new section all the way down to Rocky Rest campground. It's a pretty techy ride with a pretty solid ~2k ft climb. Then we hit the N. Yuba trail for 10 miles. It's a beautiful ride w/ some suffering thrown in for good measure. At the end of the trail there was a huge mound of shale/rock that Daron was standing on. He did a chute that looked cool, and I climbed up to the top w/ my bike. Just about that time a Sheriff drives by then turns around just as another one coming the other direction pulls in. Both want to watch me hit it, not bitch at me. I hit a little drop to steep tranny a couple times. We then hit the road for 7-8 miles. Lily did a great job at keeping up and drafting and we broke off w/ Nate Dawg for a while. Then we dropped back into the New trail from the opposite direction. Natalie bailed, but Lily decided to hang it out. She made it about 1/2-2/3 of the way up and started to get pretty worked. I stuck back with her to keep her encouraged. We ended up popping out at 7:30!! 30 miles and 5+ thousand feet of climbing!! Daron, Socko, and Delheimer had already bailed, so Nate, Natalie, Lily, and I bailed back to Rocky Rest to make some food and hang out at camp. We had a yummy tortellini and salad dinner w/ tasty beers. We played a game of Yahtzee which I won, then retired to our minivan for the evening.

Nevada City Goose Egg Hunt (Sun April 25th)

We awoke to the sound of Nate tapping on our window.....again. It's 8am and he's already firing it up. We jump in the truck and head to Convict Flat day-use area to make breakfast (and wake up). It's nice and sunny and we lavish in it while making a yummy veggie omelette, bacon, and coffee. We shared the spot w/ some raft guides that were blowing up their rafts and getting ready for a day on the river which was roaring behind us. We then got Lily to shuttle us up Hwy 20 off 49 to Skillman Camp. Within 100 yards there is snow and downed trees. We hike for a few minutes through snow, then get going again. I got a stick jammed in my tire and I used my foot to try to kick it away, but instead I stuffed my foot into my front tire. Immediately I took the long arcing over-the-bars, and landed with a thud in the small stream that was running in the middle of the trail. I hit some baby heads w/ my forearm and it swelled up super quick. It was a text book goose egg and had my attention for a few minutes to make sure it didn't burst or make my hand go numb. Then I realized that by front rim was taco'd and I had ripped a line of 4-5 spokes out of one side of my rim. Nate Dawg came back up trail and helped me transplant some spokes to the problem area. About 45 min after the wreck I was riding again. I felt every single bump on the trail. We rode Hallelujah (which was pretty beat up w/ branches down and clutter all over the trail), to Pioneer (~15 mi), to Miner's (the finish trail). We ended w/ just under 20 miles. We jumped in the Jeep and headed back to Truckee where Natalie made some yummy bean dip and enchiladas. The Cavs won game 4 vs. the Bulls, and I got to take an amazing shower (and clean up my wounds). Looks like riding in Auburn w/ Daron tomorrow (he's supposed to get a Subaru from Chef Greg, who inadvertently is getting married and having a baby very soon). I dodged a bullet today and didn't have to go to the ER. Let's keep it that way!!!