Weekend Report

Friday climbing: my partner tried a pitch in an indoor gym and didn’t find the full-on, put-your-arms-down-pull-out-the-cell-phone-and-order-a-pizza places to take a natural rest. I mean, there were places you could stop climbing and put your hands in your pockets and just stand there, on the wall. He just kept going, getting more and more tired and finally finished, but called out “take” several times and sat in the rope. So he didn’t succeed, in the way that climbers count “succeeding” : putting the rope up without sitting in it, without cheating, and doing all the moves. However, the radio was playing Don’t Speak when he was climbing: (refrain, Don’t tell me because it hurts). I succeeded, but I had the advantage of having seen him try all the moves, and when I was climbing? The song was We Are the Champions.

Saturday a friend of my partner’s had a birthday party, but while she had the party she wanted, it was not so very much fun for the rest of us. Especially me, since it was all in Swiss German, a language that I only barely understand. I gave up at around ten-thirty in the evening, after a politician friend of hers had been going on…and on….and on for just under an hour. It wasn’t even really about her, but about himself and his career, as far a I could figure out. He had fun. She had fun. I went home, and got up veeeeerrry early.

Sunday was a climbing training (how many of these have I done?) but in addition to learning about security things, we got to break stuff. We were in this workshop where it’s possible to test the strength of knots and ropes and different material. It was insanely early on a Sunday (okay, eight o’clock but on a Sunday? seriously?) but I don’t think there’s a better way to get folks out of bed in the morning: “Hey, want to go destroy stuff, but like, officially and for a good your own further education?” How could a girl say no?

So we had big machines that added pressure to ropes until they busted, and tested knots and whatever. Fun fun fun. And cold. No heating in this place.

Then we went to my partner’s daughter’s place for dinner.

All of this was kind of a marathon, fun, interesting, but non-stop. I barely got to see Foro, who was left alone, but at least he has his comfy sweater.