Crossing to the other side

Posted by: balzaccom

Crossing to the other side - 04/13/15 01:45 PM

So let's talk about crossing a stream. Not a river, but a tumbling little stream full of rocks and boulders.

I tend to rock hop across, a skill developing over decades of fly fishing in the Sierra. I can't dance a lick, but I can glide from one rock to the next quickly and seemingly without effort. My wife, on the other hand, struggles a bit with streams. She uses hiking poles, which help her balance, but she takes a slow, cautious, and even a bit fearful approach. This despite the fact that she dances with great elegance and style, and can never figure out why I am such a klutz on the dance floor.

So on our last trip into the wilds of Yosemite, I struck out across each stream and hopped across easily. My wife took much longer, slowly picking her way along. At least, until the last crossing of Bridalveil Creek, just a mile or two from the trailhead. In this case, she had really worried about this creek on the way over, and I was determined to find an easier way for her to cross.

So instead of carelessly hopping from rock to rock, I gently eased out onto a larger boulder, sat down on it, and then worked my way around to the other side, where I would reach a series of smaller stones and walk across. All went swimmingly (!) until it came time for me to push off the larger rock with my right foot. The bottom of that hiking boot had become wet in the process, and when I pushed off, it immediately slipped off the rock and threw me face first into the stream.

My wife hid her delight with expressions of concern, then walked twenty feet downstream where she carefully picked her way along a series of small flat rocks successfully. With bruises on both knees and wet feet to boot, I hiked the last two miles with a severely bruised ego.
Posted by: dylansdad77

Re: Crossing to the other side - 04/14/15 10:16 AM

Yet you live to tell the tale. And I am fairly certain that when your wife has a different approach to an obstacle, it poses a "no-win" situation for you. 2 options become clear:

1 - you succeed using your approach and she fails using hers = she's totally pissed at you for allowing her to fail

2 - she succeeds, you fail and she snickers at you for your stupidity

There is a 3rd option where you both succeed - this is the most dangerous because you walk away thinking you did everything right, but she still walks away thinking your a schmuck...alas this may be the most difficult of the 3 pills to swallow. As for me? Ignorance is bliss. At the end of the day, had you not slipped, this post most likely would not exist.

Aside from your pride, glad to hear you're ok...
Posted by: balzaccom

Re: Crossing to the other side - 04/14/15 10:46 AM

Originally Posted By dylansdad77
Yet you live to tell the tale. And I am fairly certain that when your wife has a different approach to an obstacle, it poses a "no-win" situation for you. 2 options become clear:

1 - you succeed using your approach and she fails using hers = she's totally pissed at you for allowing her to fail

2 - she succeeds, you fail and she snickers at you for your stupidity

There is a 3rd option where you both succeed - this is the most dangerous because you walk away thinking you did everything right, but she still walks away thinking your a schmuck...alas this may be the most difficult of the 3 pills to swallow. As for me? Ignorance is bliss. At the end of the day, had you not slipped, this post most likely would not exist.

Aside from your pride, glad to hear you're ok...


Actually, the fourth option is one we usually see: I succeed, she also succeeds, and we both continue down the trail without incident.
Posted by: Gershon

Re: Crossing to the other side - 04/14/15 12:54 PM

When someone falls, it's always the man's fault even if he is at home.
Posted by: OregonMouse

Re: Crossing to the other side - 04/14/15 02:13 PM

I never knew that I could blame someone else if I take a tumble! Thanks, Gershon!
Posted by: Glenn Roberts

Re: Crossing to the other side - 04/14/15 04:57 PM

Danger, Will Robinson! You're perilously close to walking into the "If a man says something, and there's no woman around to hear him, is he still wrong?" trap. As with walking off of any other cliff, it usually doesn't end well for you. smile