One

One.

This is my last. day. in Cheyenne.

…

…

I. need. to. start. packing. Eek!

—

But talk about making the most of my last few days. They have just been absolutely wonderful– last night certainly was no exception. Sagar, Matt and I headed up to Veadeawoo yesterday afternoon and climbed a few routes. The rest of the group eventually showed up, and we enjoyed some hot dogs and cooked-to-golden-perfection marshmallows and smores.

When the sun went down, we split into two teams, and played two super intense games of capture the flag. God, they were fun. It was after midnight when the second game wrapped up– just in time to drive home and get a few hours of sleep before meeting Mr. Wacker at 7:30 for breakfast this morning– it was good to see him. Ha. What a guy.

But last night was great. It was amazingly warm– the stars were amazingly bright. It was wonderful to get to see the old group again. It was wonderful to see Sean get completely soaked in Mountain Dew– head to toe. When struck with a well-swung axe, a can of Mountain Dew will explode, just like an extra juicy fire-cracker, sending a flashlight-lit shower of Mountain Dew bursting in every direction. Way to take one for the team, Sean. And Matt still has his axe-throwing skills– yeah, he showed that tree who’s boss, and from ten paces away, too!

And now I’m hanging out at the Welcome Mat. Ludicrous, really… I’m leaving the country for ten months in less than fifteen hours, I haven’t even started packing yet, and I’m down listening to homeless guys tell stories… about the history of the United States… talk about getting some work packing up rides at the carnival… speculate about the weather. “nah, I got my G.E.D, though. I’ve been to a half dozen trade schools. If I were to go to college, I’d study water. Hydrology. But it’s a little late for that, now– I’m 45. But if you could go to college, get a degree in hydrology, make some pretty good money, and maybe learn some about geometrics and mathematics… ” And I haven’t started packing yet.

But there will be time. There will be time.