so much for serenity

today, i climbed 3,165 feet by myself. by "3,165" feet i mean Mt. Monadnock and by "by myself" i actually mean with an entire mountain full of Franklin Pierce college kids.

it took me about 2.5 hours to get there (it is only SUPPOSED to take about 1.75 hours - i got a little lost thanks to faulty mapquest directions). my car's oil light came on and it told me that it needed service in 100 miles. good thing it is smart, because i have no idea about car health most of the time. oh, and because some lam-o audi predator stole my antenna (that's right. another theft), i didn't get any radio reception most of the way. this left me singing myself into insanity. luckily, i think my own voice is pleasant enough (like i said, insanity), but you try finding songs that you know the words to for two hours straight. i ended up singing the freakin' star-spangled banner like 20 times!

once i got there and started up the hill, i realized just how gosh darn out-of-shape i really am lately... or at least i am not in hiking mountains shape. in all of the excitement of going on my first solo hike, i forgot to eat breakfast. luckily, i packed (in my awesome pack that has a list on it of what you should pack.. so cool) some nutrition bars. i ate half of one and drank some water. the college kids surrounded my every move all day there. wasn't nearly as peaceful as i was hoping for, but i'll still settle for the feeling that comes after hiking the whole thing and making it back down alive, legs shaking. also, got a rejuvinating text message the moment i reached the top. perfect timing - precisely when i needed it.

on the way home, i stopped to get my hands dirty at a gas station and refilled the oil for my car, got some gas, and side-stepped some lame attempts at flirtations from the two gas attendants. although, i did get a semi-funny out of my conversation with them. apparently, i am supposed to tell my new york yankee fan friends (as if i have that many) that the NY on their hats stands for "next year". i then picked up some york peppermint patties to boost my mood on the way home. i thnk they have officially been added to my hiking traditions. along with the goat cheese and pretzels at the summit (thanks, R for the idea).