cyberhobo

Month: September 2003

  • Wagon Wheel Destruction

    Walter is in the front area when I arrive, staring sadly at one of our favorite boulders. Someone has made a super-hot fire at the base of it, and the rock has crumbled away. The thin foothold that starts the best problem there is gone, and the face is black with soot. Inside the rock…

  • Jeff Engle

    Ann and I met Jeff and Karen climbing Come Sail Away in Joshua Tree. They seemed to have a hoboesque appreciation of life, and we met them again this last weekend for more good climbs. Jeff is a climbing guide, and took us to some excellent climbs we hadn’t done yet. Like me he’s also…

  • deadlock detected

    ERROR: deadlock detected This error is popping up in my PostgreSQL database server logs. It’s supposed to be pretty hard to get a deadlock, so we must have some good code out there. We have a routine that’s been hanging up lately that is the prime suspect, but it would be a job to find…

  • Movie: Shanghai Triad

    Visually and musically influenced by American gangster movies, this tale of a 1930’s gang in Shanghai made me wonder how much influence I was seeing from western films, and how much was actually present in China at that time. The story itself is not at all western. It moves slowly and thoughtfully, muting violence, examining…

  • Dihedral Rock, Joshua Tree

    Ted and I head out to hang Brownie on another hard route. The slick-walled dihedral just looks impossible from the bottom. Once I’m on it though, I seem to enter another realm of possibilites, and it feels good to squeeze the last drops of strength from my body. To my surprise I make it most…

  • The Sentinel, Joshua Tree

    A bunch of us are hanging out in camp having some lunch, discussing what to do next. Ted recounts his battle on The Flake ( 5.8 ), and Jeff suggests we move the party to Ball Bearings (10a) in the Real Hidden Valley. He leads it on Brownie so the rest of us can TR…

  • Echo Rock, Joshua Tree

    Ann and I have a domestic conflict this morning. I’m antsy to get going to Echo Rock to climb Stichter Quits (5.7+), and she is into her cup of tea and crossword puzzle. I’m worried about limited shade, and she would be too except I didn’t mention it before, it’s morning, and what’s the point?…

  • Chimney Rock, Joshua Tree

    Once again, Ted goes up The Flue to hang a TR on the unknown 11b. Once again a crowd gathers. Strangely, he isn’t able to do it again. Jeff, after an extra-fancy start, gets the blank face after a few tries. I go up as it’s getting dark, and I can’t do it again either.…

  • The Blob, Joshua Tree

    Watching Jeff and Karen climb Boussonier (5.7), just to the left of Papa Woolsey, I am intrigued and decide to lead it. It starts in kind of a box, with only thin features on the faces. Then the crack starts behind a prominent flake such that you get into it facing left, always feeling about…

  • Echo Cove, Joshua Tree

    I make a beer run during the heat of the day, then find Ann and Ted in Echo Cove. Ted has a toprope up on Big Moe (11b?) and is ecstatic about making it up. It has this hole with a slopey hold at the bottom and a rounded lip at the top, then maybe…