Well since the 19th I’ve been on a pretty steady streak of good days. Anything which could have normally made it a “bad” day failed to have a significant effect on it. Looks like I’ve escaped the doldrums of my usual crappy days for now at least. Rode a pretty significant high all weekend, as I got through most of my workout at the gym, and then stared menacingly at the bench-press machine… “Why the Hell not” I thought. So I went over, set it to 230lbs, and nailed it 10 times. I can’t explain how good it felt to actually do that. I’m slowly reaching the point where I am maxing out all of the machines, once I do that I will move on to the free-weights. Its still a little frustrating that I can’t quite get past 90lbs on the preacher-curl, but I’m sure I’ll nail it at some point. Stopped at one of my favorite haunts to meet up with some friends from work and have dinner, had the ‘bistec Hacienda’ which was a steak layered with cheese, topped with onions and salsa, plus rice and refried beans. The Hacienda has outstanding food, service, and dude, $2.50 Corona’s all day long. How the hell can you top that? After Hacienda, I trekked down to the Vernon Inn to meet up with some more friends. I can’t believe how packed the place was. Every Friday there are more people. I remember when they first opened up the Tiki bar, I didn’t think they could fill up the expanded parking lot. Now there are people fighting for every last square foot of parking space. They also opened up the inside of the bar. Previously there was a bar behind the bar which led to some pretty tight quarters when the place was busy. Now it is easier to move around, and one doesn’t have to knock people out of the way to reach the bathroom. Rounded out the evening with a jaunt to the Sussex Queen diner. They were also absurdly busy, I guess they are on their Summer hours now. I sat and waited for about a ½ hour before finally heading back out so I could meet up with friends on Saturday for some hiking. Was a little funny at the Diner, ran past the girl who used to work at the Inn, would stare at me the whole time I was there, then once I gave her my phone # she pretended I didn’t exist and repeatedly blew me off. I really don’t know what I saw in that…LOL
The usual hike for my friends and I involves parking on route 94 in Vernon, NJ and hiking up the Appalachian trail to what is commonly known as “Pinwheel’s Vista.” I’m not certain as to the exact distance, but if you’re in decent shape the trek can be made in about a half hour. Normally, Pinwheel’s Vista is where the hike ends… Then someone suggested we go further. After the first vista there’s a small mailbox which has been sitting in the elements for God knows how long, but inside is a pen and a notepad where people can leave notes and such. I usually just drop the ‘tothemetal.net’ domain name in there hoping to catch a few other fellow hikers online. At the mailbox there is a sign “Old AT Vista .8.” We headed out for that vista, got a bit off track, but eventually meandered over a rock-wall and past a swap, then came upon the greatest view from the mountain I have ever seen. Later on I’ll tack on a satellite photo from Google Maps, but for now, I’ll just explain that this vista is at the highest point on the mountain, and almost directly across from Maple Grange road. It’s actually hard to spot as it is on the top of the mountain. The terrain there is much more agreeable, not nearly as difficult to navigate as the boulders on the face of Pinwheel’s Vista. It’s just big, flat, and about as panoramic as you can get. From now on should I hike to the Vista, I’ll stop at Pinwheel’s to take a break as the hike itself is rather excruciating, but after I’ve gotten my wits back I’ll hike another mile or so to the real vista. After returning to our cars, we all congregated at the Vernon Inn for lunch. They definitely make the best wings in the area. I had wanted something a little more significant, but the wings held me over. I don’t think there’s a single item on their menu I don’t like. Saturday night I just kicked back with a friend and beat the shit out of people in Fight Night Round 2. After I had beaten the game with a character built like me, I created a 6’8″ tall mass of muscle named Lord Bukkake who I designed to look like The Terminator. If the guy lands 4 hooks, the other fighter’s face is already cut.
Sunday was pretty laid back for the first half. I was hungry as Hell when I woke up, so I proceeded to make myself 5 pancakes, 2 eggs, and 2 strips of bacon. That held me over until lunch at Maggie’s in the Rockaway Town Square Mall in Rockaway, NJ. 2 of my friends have the same birthday, unfortunately the twat my guy friend works for decided to schedule him to work (HEY JACKASS, GET OVER TO MY HOUSE BEFORE I DRINK YOUR BIRTHDAY PRESENT). So the rest of us went to lunch at Maggies for the other’s 21st birthday, halfway home through West Milford I get the call that we’re going bowling in Franklin…haha. Go figure. So I head to Franklin, display my lack of bowling prowess, and in all have a good time.
Busy weekend, good weekend. Looking forward to the next one. I’m also planning a trip to the Hacienda on Friday evening after everyone is done with work. If you’re interested, drop me an Email.