Went Indoor Rock Climbing
A friend of mine is into this, so another friend and I went with him. We signed a bunch of wavers, rented climbing shoes (which are different from gym shoes in that the toes are deliberately stiff since you have to perch on those little toeholds), and headed into the climbing room. It's not very tall here, only about 12 feet probably, so they don't do harnesses. One wall was straight up (and was therefore a bit easier) and the other one curved. Both had routes taped out for you to follow, some being a lot harder than others.
Now, as it transpired, I am genuinely terrible at rock climbing. Part of it is not my fault--it is a sport which is much better for long-limbed, slender people, and I am 5"3' on a good day, and spectacularly ungraceful to boot. I could not finish any of the routes, because the last move is usually to pull yourself up and I just do not have long enough arms! And my arm muscles are pretty nonexistent. When I told my father how bad I was, he said, "of course you were honey, you don't have any upper body strength," and he's right. This is a different type of upper-body strength too, centered in your forearms and wrists, which are muscles that get neglected when I go to the gym! My arms hurt so much the day after that I had to turn my head upside down to wash my hair since I couldn't raise my arms. It was still fun, mostly because some of the other people were really good--one guy was climbing with just his hands! And, I chalked my hands, so I didn't get any blisters.
Fell off the Rock Wall
Did I mention that I'm really ungraceful? I got better at switching my feet on a toehold, but the first few times I fell, which wasn't a big deal as a large part of this is dropping off the wall when you're done. But the last time, I was standing about 5 or 6 feet off the floor (I had gotten better as the day went on, so this is the highest I was standing), and fell. And landed on my ankle. I thought it was fine--I'm no stranger to rolling my ankles--but then we went garage-saleing and I walked to the grocery store and went out that night and it swelled up. I iced yesterday and have been elevating today, but it's pretty puffy. It doesn't hurt if I'm just walking, but stairs are pretty painful, as is flexing my foot. So, rock climbing may not, in fact, be the sport for me.
Made Pie Crust
I made blueberry pie yesterday and made pie crust for the first time without my mother's direct supervision and it turned out quite well! The pie hadn't set fully before I cut it so it was a bit of a mess, but it was tasty. Photographic evidence: (we consumed half the pie before I got my camera out)
Played Table Shuffleboard
We went to a bar which we don't usually frequent, because during the school year it is filled to the GILLS with hipsters. It's a nice place though, and less crowded in the summer, which is nice. The reasons for its popularity are the games they have: skeeball and table shuffleboard, as well as really decently priced drinks. I got pretty good at regular shuffleboard in high school, and usually say that I am the best at sports which your average 75-year-old could play, i.e. shuffleboard, bocce, ping pong, and badminton. Table Shuffleboard is the same concept as regular, you just use your hand instead of a stick thing. It was really fun. THAT is a sport which I can do!
I also bought some boots and a shirt at a friend's garage sale, studied Arabic, watched Jeeves and Wooster, and cleaned my apartment. And, as always, the weekend was not quite long enough.
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