Just spent a few days playing at The Pinnacles, which is a place I absolutely love. It's so close to San Francisco, but still feels worlds away. It's nice for me to have a refuge like that since I'm not much of a city girl.

Highlights included a tasty dinner of S'mores and beer and a 13 mile hike that included dark, scary caves, a sucky hill, warnings about being eaten by wild pigs, fence climbings, rain, and tons of gorgeousness. We hiked the Chalone trail to the highest peak on the North side of the park - only about 3,500 feet, but it was pretty tough. This trip also proved my theory that penis-shaped rocks are always funny.

We stopped at the climbing gym on our way home despite the fact that we smelled a little like alcoholic bums who had been set on fire (it was below freezing at night, so we spent a lot of time by the campfire).

As for today, looks like some more climbing, and then I'll head out for a nice long run while Ant goes kiting or surfing.

It's a good life. Just wish some of my friends were on this section of the globe so I could share it with them.

I tried to pose like snot coming out of his nose, but the German tourist taking the picture got freaked out and wouldn't take it, so I ended up just having to stand there. :-(

ring. ring.

Ant: Hello?

Me: Hey!

(lots of noise and static in background)
Me: Oh! Are you still out? Sorry, I didn't mean to bother...

Ant: (interupts) I'm in the parking lot!
Me: Huh?

Ant: (whispers) I'm in the parking lot. There's a helicoptor. I gotta take cover.

Me: Wha???? At The Beach Chalet?!?

Ant: (still whispering) A helicoptor! I gotta go! I gotta take cover! I'll call you when I'm home!
click.

Me: Huh?!? Hello???? Hello?

How freakin' weird is that?!? He did call a little later, but I was half asleep and forgot to ask him what the hell had been going on. My gut instinct tells me that there were probably too many margaritas going on! :-)

Anywho...I found my hotel, checked in, got settled, went downstairs for some food, had a rather large "issue" with the front desk because THEY GAVE MY ROOM NUMBER TO SOME DRUNK WHO WAS AT THE BAR (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) so I checked out and found another hotel. I would've expected such utter nonsense at the last place I stayed, but this place was quite a few steps up and they should know better. Anyone with a little common sense should know better. Morons!

And thanks to the drunk at the bar, I have a few pick up lines that I can safely say will NEVER work. Men, pay attention!

#1. I just called my wife from the parking lot and told her I was never coming back. I'm through with her. She's white like you, so you don't gotta worry that I won't like you cause you're white.

-The vastness of the wrongness of that statement is just immeasurable.

#2. Since you refuse to tell me your name, can I just call you gorgeous?

-If there was ANY chance that I wanted you to talk to me some more, I would've told you my name. Or at least given you my friend Stephanie's name.

#3. You wanna go to Vegas? I don't have a car, but I'll pay for some of the gas if you drive.

-Riiiiiight.

#4. I got kids about your age. Shit, I haven't seen any of my kids in years.
-Oh good Lord!! Check, please!!

Let me explain that the whole time this dude is talking at me, I am shoving my face full of food in a most unattractive manner, and I have my nose in a book. There is nothing about my vibe that says, "Hey! Why don't you plop your ass down next to me - even though there are plenty of empty seats elsewhere - and proceed to talk my ear off?" It was so painful that finally another guy a few seats down was like, "Man, I don't think she's interested. Or maybe she's deaf? She don't seem to be hearing you." And I was like, "The sound of his voice is making me wish I were deaf!"

Anyway, I'll spare you the details of the stream of 4 letter words that came out of my mouth once I got ahold of the guy at the front desk. I'll also spare you the feminist rant I gave when I was told that the bartender said I acted "a little bitchy" to the dude at the bar, but it started out with "DO YOU HAVE ANY DAUGHTERS?...feminist rant, feminist rant, words words words, cursing, cursing, feminist rant," and ended with something like, "So because I didn't encourage conversation and give personal details to a man that I've never seen before and didn't invite to sit near me or talk to me, I'm a bitch?!?" GRRRRRRR!!!! Why are women expected to "just be nice" in situations like this??? Just being nice to this guy could have put me in a very unsafe situation. I know alot of women who have had to deal with alot of hassle because they were raised to "just be nice" and never learned to stick up for themselves. If that drunk moron couldn't figure out that he should leave me alone based on my "bitchiness" then what was he gonna do with just the slightest bit of acknowledgement?!?

I heard one of them call me a lesbian as I stormed out. REALLY?!? In 2009??? That's the best you've got?!? You think that's an insult??? SUCK IT, HOTEL STAFF!

So. There you have it.

And now, without further ado, some pics from today!!! Aside from the above BS, I had quite a lovely day - even if I did end up driving hours out of my way due to my less than stellar sense of direction. I spent the morning at Joshua Tree N.P., and the rest of the day in Einstein. Now, I'm gonna read until I fall asleep. Not sure how I'll spend my days now that I don't have thousands of penis shaped rocks everywhere to make me giggle nonstop.