Relative Something

It occurred to me last night, that I have developed a bit of adventure deprivation. I have allowed myself to become all wrapped up in the activities of moving Cyndie to Boston and figuring out how to function on my own at home; granted, both adventures of their own, but not the kind I long to explore.

My mind has been busy dreaming about our future on a horse-hobby farm, another good adventure, but right now, entirely virtual. I also haven’t been venturing outside lately, for my back-health-promoting half-hour walks. (Oops.)

Getting the house insulated in the nick-of-time before winter has been something of an adventure, but one that is contrary to the kind of which I am feeling deprived.

Alas, my good friend, and fellow Himalayan trekker, Pam, has alerted me to the upcoming Midwest Mountaineering Winter Outdoor Adventure Expo. After reviewing the talks, and the trailer for one of the films, I realized how far I have drifted from the mindset of plotting such bold adventures.

This isn’t meant to imply that I haven’t been putting a little thought into preparing my Icebox igloo tool for the coming snow season. I have. It’s just that it’s been very little thought. Also, I harbor a fair amount of skepticism based on my inability last year, amid generous amounts of raw material for the project, to successfully complete what I started. I’m missing some of the mojo that is required to push myself to the next level there.

Pam and I will listen to presentations on the subject of adventures in the Everest region and watch world-class movies of extreme adventurists and I will soak up some much-needed inspiration to knock me out of my outdoor adventure complacency.

Come to think of it, I will also have the advantage, this winter, of not needing to shovel off my roof every time it snows. I should have that much more energy available for whatever entertaining explorations materialize on my horizon.

Regular readers here will recall that I am big on the planning. It’s as much a part of my adventures as the events, themselves. Just reading about the Outdoor Adventure Expo –the presenters and their seminars, and planning out what we are going to attend– has energized my mind, awakening the thrill and feelings of well-being that outdoor expeditions do generate.

I thoroughly appreciate this readjustment of my thinking, as I was getting a bit too focused on my upcoming non-adventure: navigating airports on the busiest holiday-travel weekend of the year. Julian and I are scheduled to fly to Boston to be with Cyndie for Thanksgiving.

That… –the airport part–  is one more of the kinds of adventure that I have  NOT  been longing to explore.