MQ 2014 - Two: Mt. Wachusett

I needed to get out of the house, so after a quick dash to the comic shop to spend the $50 gift certificate Kevin gave me a few weeks ago, I drove over to Mt. Wachusett for a hike.

I began at the Echo Lake Trail, passed the lake, hiked up, transferred over to the High Meadow Trail, passed the meadow, and kept going until the humidity (and the thought of a late lunch) made up my mind not to finish the ascent. So basically it was an hour of walking up and down a relatively steep trail. I listened to the music of Abbie Barrett on the way down. It was a worthy interlude in my day.

Sunset

I went down to the lake today from 6 pm to 8 pm.

Productivity

I keep track of a few things each month that in my mind are a sign of being productive:

Worked Out:

• April - 11 days
• May - 10 days

Hikes:

• April - 1
• May - 0

Other Physical Activity (walking long-distance other than a hike, shoveling snow, kayaking, etc...):

• April - 2
• May - 3

Books Read (both: novels, and collected series/graphic novels):

• April - 4 books
• May - 7 books

Not bad. Ideally I would work out every other day, but 3 times a week is fine (12), plus hikes and other activity thrown in. I would like to average 2 hikes per month. Back in 2011 I went on 14 hikes, all within the months of September - December! 

A book a week is good. I also try to draw (or do something visually creative) as much as possible. January - March were very prolific, and April wasn't bad, but last month was pretty weak. I read more than I drew.

Spring Fever is nearly over. Time for Summer Fun!

Second Fyah

I went down to the lake today (after drawing for most of the morning, and then deciding not to waste the sunlight after 3 cloudy days). I made a fire, read a bunch of "Wrath of a Mad God", and broke in my Brave Star Selvage denim and my new Vans shoes.

I ate hot dogs & Wachusett chips (ruffled), drank 2 Wachusett beers, and read until it began raining. I packed up the car, read some more to see if the rain would stop (it did for about ten minutes), and then drove home in a downpour that included a few minutes of pencil eraser-sized hail! It was worth the trip, though Two hours of sunny lakeside peace.

First Fyah

I had 3 hot dogs and 3 beers (Sam Adams Summer) today at the lake. I also read 100 pages of "Flight of the Nighthawks". It was a great afternoon.

Dig and Build

I went down to the lake today to clean out the fire pit. I also tore it down, and moved it a few feet farther from the water before I reassembled it. Then I built a bench out of a good piece of lumber and two of the more sturdy tree stumps. It will hold either two adults or three kids safely!

And except for all the biting flies, it was a perfect spring day. I read some of "King of Foxes" (Feist), had a Magic Hat 'Ticket to Rye' (finally, another good beer besides their #9 from their Spring Sampler),and enjoyed the sun and breezes.

Tavern

I headed over to Tavern in the Square last night to hang with my friends from Brookstone, after stopping in at the store to see who was working. I got to hang out with Tommy, Nick and Kevin for a bit (walking into the store was like visiting one's old elementary school classroom while in high school - it looked a LOT smaller than I remembered). Then at 6:30 it was over to the restaurant.

Mike & Cody were in the parking lot, so the three of us went in, grabbed two booths (we wound up only needing one, but better safe than sorry), and had a round and two appetizers between us. We got cheese & bacon waffle fries and a calamari to share, and I got a tall Harpoon IPA.

The other guys arrived an hour later and we all got dinner and hung out until around ten. What a good time. I missed that group of guys, and I can't believe it'd been six months since we all got to hang out. I plan to make it more frequent. Side note: the staff of the Burlington location was top-notch.

Dinner menu: I had the Cowboy Burger (cheddar, apple smoked bacon, BBQ sauce and onion fries) medium well with french fries and a Cisco Grey Lady. What a good beer! Oddly spicy, and I didn't finish it, but I plan on getting it again soon, most likely when I head down to the lake.