~ the edge of civilization ~

On Friday, there was a random moment of gloriousness which Josh and I seized after I got off of work to go on a mountain bike ride. We rode some of the trails around and behind Table Rock, which I have scarcely ridden before. To summarize the ride, it was rad! I was feeling particularly energetic after a day of sitting in front of the computer, and utilizing my muscles in the fresh air felt so good. The trails had a good mixture of hard climbs and technical areas to make it interesting, but it was a very doable and fun ride. One of the great things about living in Boise is the immediate access to amazing outdoor recreational opportunities. Now, I'm not sure if my non-Boise readers truly understand my use of the term "immediate." To clarify, by "immediate," I mean that I can exit the front door of my downtownly located apartment and be mountain biking within three minutes. If you take a moment to examine this photo to the left, you'll notice me relaxing on a pile of rocks above the city, after having riden my mountain bike around some very awesome trails. One of the spectacular aspects of mountain biking outside of Boise is the view of the city that may be experienced from a variety of altitudinal perspectives. It consistently provides me with a renewed appreciation of where I live.

After our ride, Josh and I consumed several glasses of cheap vino at a local drinking well which has recently come under new ownership and has turned non-smoking in the process. I cannot quite find the words to express my impressedness with the fact that we now have a few drinking establishments that are non-smoking. This means that I can go out and spend the evening at a bar, but I don't have to worry about reeking of cigarette smoke or having a sore throat the next day because of inhaling second hand smoke. It is wonderful! What is more, Penguilly's (the non-smoking), is known for being a venue for good live music. Last night, Josh and I enjoyed the tunes of this rockin' "bluegrass" band and it was so awesome! The bar has this fantastic "Western" (as in, the Old West) feel to it, with the dark wood paneling, huge photos from old Boise days, and mounted Jackalopes!, but now I don't have to experience it being engulfed in a plume of cigarette smoke.

After drinking much more than I've drank recently, I hopped onto my bicycle cruiser and headed home (a nice four minute bike ride - - another great thing about my current living arrangement). On my way, I had to navigate the numerous drunk pedestrians congregating around the downtown bars and I was the receiver of numerous intoxicated comments about my amazing bike handling skillz in a crowd of drunk pedestrians. Call me anti-social, but I don't understand why so many people feel the need to comment out loud to strangers about stuff that isn't their business. Like, for example, my ability to safely and skillfully navigate a bicycle through a crowd. There was a group of drunk dudes sitting on a bench shouting out "Easy!.. Easy!.." as though they didn't think that I could slow down to almost a full stop while navigating the crowd. pfft! Piece of cake. ...even if I was slightly intoxicated.

Anyroad, I've finally gotten around to uploading my photos from the Zoo which we visted a few weeks ago.

Posted by jennifer at 8:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)