Forgive the incoherence. I�ve barely slept at all this week.

Around� oh, mid-August, I got an email from what I thought was a completely random stranger. I�d been talking about surfing on a hiking discussion board, and he sent me email.

After going back and forth a bit, I learned that he�s also a buddhist, a vegetarian, and he�s one of the leaders of one of one of my outdoor clubs. After awhile, it became apparent that he wasn�t actually a weirdo emailing random a stranger about surfing; we�d met hiking this past spring. I just didn�t remember it.

The past few weeks have been filled with hiking, surfing, attending meditation together, and chatting.

It was really bizarre for me, at first. All of the above mentioned things that we have in common are things that I�m not accustomed to having in common with anyone. My friends are soft and geeky.

It has been a little disorienting hanging around someone who is more fit and athletic than I am. He can both out-hike and out-surf me. That shouldn�t be surprising, I�m not a super-human athlete, and he has a naturally bigger and stronger body working for him. It�s just been different from my previous experiences with friends.

It�s convenient that he�s also a vegetarian, but eats twice what I do. I�ve been giving him my extra food. I enjoy giving people food. It must be my grandmother coming out in me.

I may be converting him into a geek. I�ve been talking to him a little bit about technology, and he�s interested in learning about it. He�s certainly smart enough to pick up what I know, anyway.

He has a degree in physiology (among other things). He is an ex-personal trainer. I haven�t been injured in karate in awhile, but I�m glad to know that the next time I am, I have someone to consult about it.

Ummm, transitions are always hard for me. When I�m with my outdoor clubs or outdoor friends, I chat and have a nice time, but there�s very little attachment. Suddenly gaining this kind of friend is new for me. It�s new, and new things create anxiety, but compared to previous changes, this transition has gone remarkably well.

This week was difficult. The realization that we�re likely going to be spending a lot of time together in the future was overwhelming for me. That, combined with late night phone calls and late nights on the roof of his apartment building (there�s a breathtaking view and the weather has been fantastic) has driven me into another state of extreme sleep deprivation. That�s the other thing. His primary tool for communication seems to be the phone and not the internet. Sheesh, normal people!

I�ve talked to him about my anxiety (but not the ptsd). I think the bad nights will be over soon (they haven�t really been any worse than any typical stress-filled week).

He�s leading a 3 day hike somewhere in new york this weekend. I can�t go, and I�m glad. I�ll be happy to stay home and catch up on sleep and house work. This is assuming that I choose not to go surfing on Sunday.

The call of the beach might be too much for me. Nicole told me that the forecast says it will be 81F on Sunday. In October!

I can�t believe how long it�s been since my last update. I haven�t been that busy.

0 comments so far