Entry tags:	linkage
Crossposts:	http://astridv.livejournal.com/200985.html

I only very recently started bouldering outside of structures actually designed for it. The other day I tried climbing around a bit on the abandoned monkey house at the old zoo which has a natural stone wall: the feeling was not that different from climbing on that rock in Zion. We don't have any boulders in Westphalia, but spots like this definitely make an interesting substitute. So anyway, I'm looking for more potential bouldering spots and while looking into tips for good spots I found this very neat short film on Youtube - buildering in my home town! Well-edited and pretty funny (at least if you live here it is.)
The Usual Madness There are outtakes after the credits; the last one really cracked me up. Just a pity that a lot of the spots seem to be on the other side of town.

And while on the topic of climbing, there was an interesting article on BoingBoing: Climb On! - on why rock climbing is great for geeks

There's a huge problem solving factor to climbing; it's like a giant physical algorithm or brain teaser that you solve by knowing how to use your body as your mathematical tool. "Climbing is like solving a giant dynamic first-person 3D puzzle," says Tantek Çelik, author of HTML5 Now: A Step-by-Step Video Tutorial for Getting Started Today and a competitive climber himself. "Your body is a flexible puzzle piece and the wall is a puzzle. You have to figure out how to fit your body into the wall, how to twist, turn, stretch, grab, hang, push to climb up the wall hold by hold. It takes spatial reasoning, body self-awareness, balance, and fine motor-control."

When I was a kid, I played a lot of sports. I also played a lot of Tetris. The two were always separate. Climbing feels like playing Tetris with my body. In other words, it's like being inside a video game. Kind of.

It's 2:36. There's my chance to go to bed before 4 am! I think I'll grab it. G'night internet. :)