DAY 150
09.01.07
TREE 103
Today my brother and I went to a guitar store… no good trees. Then we went to the high school track to time ourselves in a mile. I got a 6:20 and he, amazingly ran a 5:46. But there were no trees there. I debated climbing the other red maple out in front of the house but held out for a better option. So I showered and dressed in my Sunday best. We headed out to the Steer Barn for dinner. After a couple beers and a prime rib I had to go to the bathroom. After that I just went outside noticing the sun was about to set. A perfect time to get my climb in. I had scanned around the area for a good tree when we arrived. So I walked right up to the sycamore right out front. The restaurant was crowded so I waited till no one was looking for me to jump in. I climbed up choosing the best limb for height, but when I got to the top the view wasn’t very good. I repositioned my left hand and foot then reached out with my right. I grabbed a hold of a limb, got a good foothold, and released from the other branch. I went up another couple limbs and then I took some pictures. A beautiful sunset on a perfect day. My nice dress shoes and pants didn’t seem to be a problem with the climbing. But this tree wasn’t too big or challenging. I scrambled back down and then joined my grandma and nephew outside the entrance to the restaurant. I really do like new climbs. 
9-1-08: I still can’t believe my brother ran that fast in a mile. I wonder what he can do now? I wonder what I can do now? All the parkour training has given me some shin splints so I might not be able to get another 6:20. But I sure can bike better than ever. I’ve almost lost 10 pounds since I got my bike and I’m not even trying to. I eat more now than I have in a long time, I just bike so much.
Oh, and one of the reasons I left the restaurant to climb was because of the non-stop noise my nephew Mitchell was making. It was like he just discovered his ability to make a constant tone and enjoyed doing so… loudly. I love my nephew but it was getting a little old. He starting to say words now, and quieter. That’s cute. Here are some pictures of him a year ago.
It’s amazing how much kids grow in a year.
Mitchell now:
Thanks Amy….
Yesterday I biked like mad over to Drew’s parents place for a little time by the pool and the U of L vs U of K football game. After a few hours of snacking and corn hole I biked over to Ballard High School to climb this maple tree I had seen and always wanted to climb but always found some other tree to climb instead. 
When I walked up I saw some cicada shells and took a picture. It is strange how I am drawn to them. 
Then I pulled myself in on the low branches. It was a quick and easy climb like most of the maples I’ve been climbing lately. I got up to the top and split my footholds between two limbs. I was up in the small ends of them really close to the very top. 
I had an okay view but I have climbed so many trees here at Ballard and some much taller that I wasn’t too thilled with the shots. 
I have some more but they just seem repetitive to me. I did get a nice shot of the leaves with the sun behind them.
When I was done I started to climb down and noticed the limbs I was on were cracking. I am hoping it was just the limbs outgrowing the bark, but it made me nervous. 
But I guess it was no reason to worry since the limbs held me and I was on my way down anyway. So I went down to the bottom and hung from the bottom limb. The branch was a little wide, however, and I felt I was going to slip off so I didn’t hang long. I dropped down and biked like mad back home.