The GeekHiker

“Let’s see where this door goes…”

I wrote that at the end of my first post, a year ago today. It was a reference to the blog, of course, but also I think a reference to my life as a whole. I’d been stuck in neutral for some time, and the blog was a small part of kicking me out of it.

It was just a journal, I thought at the time, but as it turns out, I had no idea just what lay behind that fanciful door.

What happened in the last year?

• Just prior to starting the blog, the girl I’d been dating for four and a half years and I broke up.
• I started going to the gym and, for the first time in my life, stuck with it. Honestly, I have no plausible explanation for this.
• I joined some social groups in an attempt to re-invigorate my social life. The success has been only moderate, but it’s a start.
• I started writing about and photographing my hikes, which people took more interest in than I ever could have anticipated.
• I met an amazing woman in the spring and, in a fit of romantic hopefulness, flew out to meet her. I fell for her hard, but she only saw me as friend and ended the whole thing. I didn’t want to admit to myself at the time that I had fallen that hard for her, but looking back at the posts now, I may as well admit that I did. And so what? People fall for people who don’t want them all the time. It happens. Oops.
• I also learned an important lesson: always, always, always trade photos first. You know, just in case she thinks you’re fugly.
• I went hiking in new places. I took a weekend trip to the Eastern Sierra and went backpacking in the Angeles and Yosemite. I led my first hike.
• I started to get back into photography. Speaking of which, here’s last night’s eclipse:



• I flirted (poorly) with a multitude of women, none of which took any interest in me.
• Even had one practically run away at the end of the “date”. Gotta love that.
• My Parents sold their house and a bit of my childhood went away with it.
• I traveled to see my family a couple of times and to SF to see The Best Friend a couple of times. Speaking of which, I need to call her…
• I made a turkey sandwich on a picnic lunch in the mountains that was, for a short time, rather a popular subject amongst my small group of readers.
• I met a second reader, the lovely Just A Girl, on a trip to Oregon. The trip was just about the best I’ve ever had, covering a wide range of sights and scenery, with the added bonus of making a new friend.
• I watched as my favorite outdoor spot, one near and dear to me, burnt to the ground. Simply referred to as “The Secret Spot,” I miss it and long to return.
• Yet, out of it, came one of the few things that I’ve written that I’m genuinely proud of.
• I found myself tempted by a co-worker, with whom I shared an obvious physical attraction, but she blew me off/played games, and I quickly realized that all she would end up doing would be messing with my head.
• Now that the cat’s out of the bag: I saw Yosemite in winter, all covered in snow, for the first time.
• I’d end it by saying that I learned to ski but, well, just glance back two posts to see how that one went.
• It seems like there should be more… but hopefully that covers the big stuff…

I never really expected anyone to read all of this, mind you, and I don’t have a huge cache of readers stopping by every day. And that’s okay. Those of you who do are regulars and take genuine interest in what I write. And I thank you for that.

A few have even become friends, something I never really expected. And a couple have become companions in the real world as well. It’s something that’s pretty exceptionally cool.

Without a doubt, it has been an interesting year on this side of the door.

* * *

Yet…

For all that I’ve seen and done and been through in the last twelve months, my life is fundamentally unchanged. I still rent and live in the same house. I still work at the same job. I’m still single.

I’m not saying that those are good or bad things, but there are things in my life I continue to yearn for and things I strive to change. I just haven’t managed to do it quite yet.

‘Cuz I’m still trying to figure out how…

* * *

When I first started writing, I didn’t know what this would become. And to be frank, I’m still not entirely sure what it is.

All I do know is that it’s pretty much me. Well, maybe a slightly better version of me, as I’m not nearly so well spoken in real life.

It’s still fun, though. So I guess I’ll keep going a while…