Fight or flight?

Well the apartment has emptied out, and with the exception of the occasional sneeze from cat dander, they left no trace that they were here. My sister is a blast. Case closed. If you don't have one, I recommend running out right now and getting one for yourself.

In a boo hooo hooo my sister is gone tantrum, Liz called and drug me out for a 2 hour tour. Now NORMALLY I would tell you where we went. But selfishly I'm not going to. Why you ask? Because I want it all to myself. Bruuhha ha ha. The secret stash. Ok ok, that is selfish of me. How about this...If you show up here, I'll take you. Blindfolded in the bus.

There was a bit of the trail that was overgrown. It would have helped if I had packed the machete to bush wack our way through, but like a dope I forgot. About 3 steps in you could hear the hum of the bees. I turn and ran back out. 'Liz. There are bees. How far to the mines?'
'20 minutes'
'Ok. I'm going in' (I put on everything I can to cover up biteable skin and take a deep breath.)
'Liz, don't run. Be one with the bees. The zen of bee.'

(oh yes, so wise for such young grasshoppers)

The bonus was at the other side was this......


Score.

Then the trail turned white from the quartz. Really it did.

We were getting close.

Everything turned white and pink and it was HUGE. To get an idea, Look at the picture below and find the dog. Found her? Ok. Now I was only half way up.


Then it happened.
There was a noise.
And some russeling.
And as we looked down below us, you could see something moving through the thick brush across the cravos from us. Something big. I think it was a puma.
My first thought is....This bum hip is going to get me eaten by a mountain lion. Everyone knows that in the wild they attack the weakest link. I thought about pushing Liz over the side and running. I'm just kidding Liz. (I am totally not kidding everybody.) So we didn't stick around to see what it was.

It was nerve racking. I won't lie. I felt better once I realized how calm my dog had gotten later heading back. I swear. That dog will find water in a desert. The only water on the entire hike, in a rock crack no less, and she squeezed herself into it and layed down.
The rest of the hike I was taking pictures like a Chinaman at Disneyland.

Then there was the snake.....I mean python. Of course I had just made the comment earlier that I hadn't seen a snake since I was a kid, then I have to go and step on one. Well, not on it, but damn close enough that the snake and I made eye contact and both screamed. The running came instinctually. I look over to my right and Liz is shoulder to shoulder with me arms pumping, dust flying behind us 'I heard you scream, and saw you take off..... Why are we running?'

'Snake' (I barely get out from the lack of air in my lungs.) And right then and there she passed me, into mock speed no less.

I should have pushed her off the cliff when I had the chance.