Somehow this seems too appropriate

XKCD Link

Yikes!! Here come the Mall Ninjas and Keyboard Commandos!!

The comic is pretty funny.

What mountain is that though?

Marmaduke wrote:What mountain is that though?

Engineer, with the highway to Coal Bank Pass.

Marmaduke wrote:What mountain is that though?

Someone spends too much time in front of the PC.

K2

"This will make for a great SummitPost entry"

"Dude, this was a sweet day. Can't wait to get off this mountain and type the trip report for it".

First I quit posting TRs, then I quit posting trip albums on Facebook, then I even quit taking pictures.. all in a quest to prove to myself that these things don't play a significant roll in my motivation to risk life and limb to get to the tops of things.

Even with no documentation of the awesome things I've done, I still climb... much to my relief (I'm not as vain as I feared).

Ben Beckerich wrote:
Even with no documentation of the awesome things I've done, I still climb... much to my relief (I'm not as vain as I feared).

I was always told document ... document ... document ... gotta document in order to PROVE IT.

But --- doesn't always have to be that way ! Sometimes, the only person WORTH impressing is ourselves, so why document ? Geez Louise.

But it's fun to be a story teller. I've certainly enjoyed some great stories others have told me. Keeping it to yourself... that's boring... for us!

My grandfather documented his entire trip of hiking the Appalachian trail along with his traveling the world and his experience during world war II. Now at 92, his wife, his brothers and sister and all his friends have passed away. his only visitors to his nursing home are his children and grandchildren. And when were not there, you can find him smiling by the window and reading of his journeys.

He told me these memories are the only things he has left, and that it important to document as he did. Great advice from a great man!

seano wrote:

Marmaduke wrote:What mountain is that though?

Engineer, with the highway to Coal Bank Pass.

Bingo, Sean. Truth is stranger than fiction. Make up the names of that mt. and road in a novel, and folks will call it weak writing!

As to the comments about documenting and the value of writing as memory, Hotoven and Josh make the case as well as anyone could. Those of us over [some age or other] come to understand what we've lost in the records of our own families and friends, in addition to the pleasures of going back to find notes, letters, photos, and more from fine times generations ago. If you think it's just for yourself, that's ok of course, but then keep it for your survivors to discover!

aglane wrote:Make up the names of that mt. and road in a novel, and folks will call it weak writing!

Even just making up the road would be a stretch, what with the Animas River cutting straight through the San Juan right next to it, avoiding two avalanche-plagued passes. Well worth the drive, if you haven't been there, thought it's sadly out of the way to work week...