today's lecture will be on the Isle of Skye

2004-07-21

Last night I dreamed I met someone who was blind, and I for some reason was able to see what that person saw and it was very weird. It was like I could sort of see (through fuzziness) and semi-function with that vision, but I had the realization that because that person was blind from birth, he or she (don't know) wouldn't be able to function with that vision, because they would have no context in which to process what they're seeing. So why am I telling you all this? Beats me--just a weird dream, is all. I've always wondered what blind people actually see--is it darkness or what? My brain was trying to help me out with that last night, in the best way it knows how.

Okay, if you knit and haven't seen the summer issue of Knitty, I urge you to get thee hence! It's got some really, really cute patterns and I'm totally going to make 'Hush-Hush'. I've been feeling the knitting yen again, as of late, and I need to get started on some projects. First up, a sweater vest thing (don't let "sweater vest" fool you--it's a good-looking garment) for Francisco.

A quick paragraph about the Isle of Skye--an amazingly beautiful place, like the rest of Scotland. We did a hike there that was great, because the weather was perfect and the hills were covered with extremely green grass, and there were sheep grazing and bleating all over the place. Our group hiked a ways in, on a trail that was fairly steep in places, but not constantly steep, and we got to a point where Budgie gave us the option of going on up some very steep rock scrambles and in a loop back to the van, going straight back to the van, or of going off on a little offshoot trail (also steep, but not very long) and then going back to the van. Three of our group had already stopped before that point, and the rest of the group wanted to do the scramble, and though I knew I Could do the scramble, I didn't want to. I was already very sore from the hike we did in Edinburgh (there's a hike that overlooks the city--pretty steep) and from the couple of hikes our group had done since then, so I chose to go up the little offshoot before going back to the van. And let me tell you, that was Such a good decision. I climbed up the trail to a place where I could sit on grass and look out over the fields and at the ocean that was not too far away, and I ate my lunch and wrote in my notebook and took pictures and listened to the sheep and the crows and the buzzing insects. After about an hour I made my way back toward the van, walking slowly so as to look at everything without falling off the trail, and met up with the three who had stayed behind. We went back to the van, which I'd been given the keys to, and they played soccer while I sat in the Seat of Power (Budgie's seat) and rifled through Budgie's cds. When the rest of the group got back to the van, they looked done in, except for Budgie, of course. He was not an especially fit-looking person (had a bit of a beer belly) but he is the best damn hiker I've ever seen. We'd get to a trail (usually quite steep) and he'd start walking and there'd be a blur and a sort of whooshing noise and your hair would blow back a little and Budgie would be gone. Amazing. So of course he got back to the van several minutes before the others, and when they showed up, they looked like they'd been through the wars. They all felt a sense of victory, though, which gave them an inner glow. I know how that feels, because I've done some pretty hard hikes in my day, but I still didn't regret not going with them. And a couple days later I was no longer sore and could hike in much less pain, and I'm sure if I'd gone on the steep scrambles, that wouldn't have been the case.

Skye is all I have time for today, and anyway, telling about my vacation is going to be a lot easier if I do it in little chunks than if I try to do it all at once. So, more next time.

Oh, but we watched The Assistant last night (from Monday) and if you saw it, wasn't it brilliant? That thing with the washing of the Hummer, and especially how that guy stole the 1st place trophy--I have a feeling that guy's going to win. I tell you, that show is killing me.

Love,

E |

cats-kittens

come over some time & see me - 2011-02-25
let's not say goodbye - 2011-02-23
the Rachel Zoe collection - 2011-02-10
I feel happy today - 2011-02-04
the tiny snow stalker - 2011-01-25

design by simplify