"Mountain Crabby"

I'm placing a title on something I often feel due to loving the West while living in the Midwest:

"Mountain Crabby".

I just came home from finishing teaching two weeks of back to back recurrent ground schools, which translates to being overworked for half the month, and not getting much sleep. The weekends nestled between weeks in the classroom are vital to keep a outdoor recreation addict like myself from reaching a foul mood.

It wasn't that last weekend wasn't enjoyable; I spent it with family that I hadn't seen in a while (some of you are no doubt reading this), and it was a great time to catch up. We were celebrating my cousin's wedding. And Sunday did involve a very quick drive up to the North Shore to show the area (what you can see in 5 hours from the highway) to my brother and his wife, who live in Texas. So there was a small glimpse into the outdoors, but not enough to recharge amidst all the recent long workdays.

I'm feeling now the grumpiness I get when it's been a while since I've been out West to play in the big stuff. It doesn't take long for me to reach this state of mind. I like MN and ND, but all who know me and have ever read this blog know that I need the mountains on a regular basis so as to not get grumpy. When you have a passion for something, separation from it results in cranky times.

I'd be fine, but I think it may be several more weeks until I can use the flight benefits that keep me pacified living in the Midwest, as they are my connection to the West. I know, complain, complain- most people aren't fortunate enough to have this kind of benefit, but it's harder to use than one would think. There are schedules, commitments, etc. that hold one back from using a weekend to get out, and then when you are free, travel involves either finding someone who lives in the area that you are headed to go cheap, or rental cars start to get expensive in a hurry. There's a lot to cancel weekend outing plans to the West.

So when things cancel multiple attempts to get out, that's when the "mountain crabbiness" sets in and I fuss over how much I miss the mountains. And once again, it's not that I am unlucky in my circumstances here at home (I do have a wonderful life), it is simply the depth of my enjoyment of the mountains that causes me to wish I was there.

I'm sure I'll end up on an impromptu trip in the direction of higher elevations before too many more weeks. For now I'll just need to attempt to set aside the "mountain crabbiness" and focus on what I have around me.