I was thinking about 2023 as a whole a few days ago. I'm not sure I accomplished anything noteworthy, but every day I feel like I'm scrambling towards an unknown goal. I'm moving as fast as I can towards... something. I'm not sure what. A realistic version of myself thinks it's Death. I learned about the Call of the Void, or as it's sometimes called High Place Phenomenon. A sort of intrusive thinking that draws your attention to how thin the line can be between what you're doing and total destruction. Oblivion. Somehow learning this was a documented pattern among humans made it easier to bear and seemed to lift the weight of what I had previously considered to be self-destructive thought. The visions I had of my own death falling from a high place seemed less realistic, though I was hiking more than I ever had, increasing the chances of this every week. This year I spent a little more time thinking about the ideal age that I had been in the past. I'm still journeying towards a better self, and some days it hurts. The following list is comprised of people who, for better or for worse, will no longer improve:
Jeff Beck
Lisa Marie Presley
David Crosby
Tom Verlaine
Raquel Welch
Gary Rossington
Dick Fosbury
Klaus Teuber
Al Jaffee
Arie deJong
Gordon Lightfoot
Tina Turner
Ted Kaczynski
Cormac McCarthy
Sinéad O'Connor
Paul Reubens
Robbie Robertson
Dianne Feinstein
Dick Butkus
Suzanne Somers
Matthew Perry
Henry Kissinger
Shane MacGowan
Sandra Day O'Connor
Burt Bacharach
Jerry Springer
William Friedkin
Bob Barker
Chaim Topol
Pat Robertson
I also looked through a list of albums that came out 20 years ago. 2003 was my junior/senior year in college, so a lot of these choices reflect that time period and seeing the list brings me back there pretty quickly. There are a few albums that I got into later, but most of these remind of where I was and who I was there with. You know who you are. Thank you.
Children of Bodom - Hate Crew Deathroll
The Postal Service - Give Up
Stars - Heart
Cursive - The Ugly Organ
AFI - Sing the Sorrow
Linkin Park - Meteora
Opeth - Damnation
Sleep - Dopesmoker
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Fever to Tell
The Dandy Warhols - Welcome to the Monkey House
NOFX - The War on Errorism
Cold - Year of the Spider
Led Zeppelin - How the West was Won
Metallica - St Anger
Radiohead - Hail to the Thief
Biffy Clyro - The Vertigo of Bliss
Brand New - Deja Entendu
Mogwai - Happy Songs for Happy People
Sufjan Stevens - Michigan
Arch Enemy - Anthems of Rebellion
Avenged Sevenfold - Waking the Fallen
The Decemberists - Her Majesty The Decemberists
The Wrens - The Meadowlands
I Am Kloot - I Am Kloot
A Perfect Circle - Thirteenth Step
Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow
Explosions in the Sky - The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place
Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway
Albums I picked up this year include:
Big Wreck - Ghosts
Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
Thelonious Monk - Genius of Modern Music Vol. 1
Rhododendron - Protozoan Battle Hymns
Books I read include:
James Fennimore Cooper - The Last of the Mohicans
Garth Ennis - The Boys Omnibus Vol 3
Garth Ennis - The Boys Omnibus Vol 4
Garth Ennis - The Boys Omnibus Vol 5
Garth Ennis - The Boys Omnibus Vol 6
Ian Fleming - Moonraker
Dan Simmons - The Terror
J R R Tolkien - The Two Towers
Susanna Clarke - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
Chaim Potok - My Name is Asher Lev
Johann Hari - Stolen Focus
William Goldman - The Princess Bride
Frank Miller - Ronin
Chuck Klosterman - Killing Yourself to Live
Frank Miller - Elektra: Assassin
Mary Shelley - Frankenstein
Bill Willingham - Fables Vol 1
Bill Willingham - Fables Vol 2
Bill Willingham - Fables Vol 3
Bill Willingham - Fables Vol 4
Bill Willingham - Fables Vol 5
E E Cummings - The Enormous Room
Frank Miller - Batman: Year One
Frank Miller - Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
Anne Fadiman - The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down
Frank Miller - Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again
George Orwell - Animal Farm
Jeph Loeb - Batman: Hush
J R R Tolkien - The Return of the King
Douglas Adams - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Dashiell Hammett - The Maltese Falcon
Peter Benchley - Jaws
Beverly Cleary - Ramona and Her Mother
Alexander Burgess - A Clockwork Orange
Valentina Grande - Bauhaus
Ellen Raskin - The Westing Game
Karl Marx, Martin Rowson - The Communist Manifesto, a Graphic Novel
Mark Twain - The Prince and the Pauper
C S Lewis - The Magician's Nephew
Vladimir Nabokov - Lolita
Raymond Chandler - The Long Goodbye
Terry Pratchett - The Light Fantastic
Stephen King - The Shining
Whitney Gardner - Fake Blood
I picked up a handful of board games this year including:
Telestrations 12player
Throw Throw Burrito
Calimala
Struggle for Catan
Import/Export
Praga Caput Regni
Junta: Las Cartas
Kitchen Rush
Endeavor: Age of Sail
Incan Gold
Mysterium Park
Marathon
Pagan: Fate of Roanoke
Bargain Quest
Exploding Kittens
Clue Escape: The Midnight Hotel
Clue Escape: Robbery at the Museum
Clue Escape: Sabotage on the High Seas
I also managed to sneak in a few hikes this year, probably one per week, which was a personal goal of mine. Here's where I went:
Franklin Ridge
University Falls Loop (Nels Rogers)
Gnat Creek
Boomscooter - Bumping Knots Loop
Mirror Lake Snowshoe
Routeburn Trail (to Routeburn Falls Hut) - Mount Aspiring, NZ
Ben Lomond - Otago, NZ
One Tree Hill - Auckland, NZ
Mt Eden - Auckland, NZ
Blackett's Ridge - Sabino Canyon, AZ
Powell Butte West Loop
Chehalem Ridge Loop
Herman Creek
Spruce Run Creek/Lake
Wind Mountain
Gillette Lake/Greenleaf Pond via PCT
Eagle Creek Trail to Tunnel Falls
Herman Creek to Wyeth, Emerald Falls
Aldrich Butte
Catherine Creek-Coyote Wall Loop
Elk Creek
Dog Mountain to Ausberger Trail
Archer Mountain
Hamilton Mountain Loop
Pool of the Winds
Beacon Rock
Elfin Forest - Olivenhain Reservoir/Lake Hodges Overlook, CA
P Mountain, San Marcos, CA
Montezuma Castle, AZ
Sedona Airport Loop, AZ
Grand Canyon - South Kaibab to Cedar Ridge, AZ
Arches NP - Devil's Garden/Landscape Arch, UT
Arches NP - Windows and Turret Arch Loop, UT
Arches NP - Delicate Arch trail, UT
Shoshone Falls, ID
Ape Caves (both sections)
Tom, Dick and Harry Mt
McNeil Point
Latourell Falls Loop
Shepperd's Dell Falls
Bridal Veil Falls
Horsetail Falls Loop
Silver Star/Pyramid Rock via Grouse Vista
Elowah and Upper McCord Creek Falls
Wahclella Falls
Dry Creek Falls from PCT Harvey Rd lot
Mt St Helens Summit via Ptarmigan trail
Northern Gales Creek
Larch Mountain
Saddle Mountain
Lewis River from Curly Creek - backpacking Day 1
Lewis River from Curly Creek - backpacking Day 2
Huckleberry Mt from Bonanza Creek Trail
Table Mountain from Bonneville Trailhead
Crown Zellerbach Trail area - Mushroom Foraging
Silver Falls SP - Trail of 10 Falls
Tryon Creek - Old Main, Cedar, Terwilliger, N Horse Loop
Cape Horn Loop
Salmon River short option
Wahkeena to Angel's Rest loop
Forest Park - Wildwood Trail segment 1
Forest Park - Wildwood Trail segment 2
Forest Park - Wildwood Trail segment 3
It was 472.5 miles in total with 90,344 feet of vertical gain, which is 17.1mi straight up over 62 hikes, each averaging 7.6miles, 1457 feet of gain, 192 ft/mi gain.
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