About 15 years ago, I went on holiday with someone I had only met twice. They won a holiday for two to Les Ges in the French alps. They asked if I wanted to go. Before you knew it, I was half way up a mountain staying in a fantastic cabin with someone I had completely fallen out with!
I remember it was about 7pm in the evening and I had no food. She had gone into the town using the Land Rover but didn't get me anything. I asked to borrow it and she said no. How very civil of her. So, I walked down the steep mountain, and into the town to get myself food to bring back. By the time I was walking up the mountain, it had turned pitch black. In the UK, there is light pollution everywhere. But over in the French alps, dark really does mean dark!
Part of this trip involves going through dense forest, and looking back, I could have easily been attacked by a wolf or bear. It was so dark I could hardly see more than two foot in front of me. As I neared the end of this journey, there was a huge storm. I am not kidding you when I say there must have been hurricane force winds. Fortunately, I got back to the chalet before the worst of it hit. I made it literally within about 5 minutes.
As I got inside, the witch was waiting, probably eating something smugly in all her narcissism. The storm was so severe, we both rushed around to close the shutters, because of concern that the windows may get blown in! I looked outside and saw the wooden table and chairs being blown across the decking. I have never seen such wind come out of nowhere!
As I look back from my wiser vantage point of today, the stupid thing I did was to take the shortcut through the dense forest, putting my life at risk as a meaty morsel for the hungry wildlife. I could have taken the meandering road route, but that would probably have turned a 2 mile downhill walk into a 3 mile one. It was cold, getting dark and I was very hungry. A long journey was something I wanted to avoid. I would have probably ended up caught in the middle of that enormous storm had I chosen the longer journey, but smart decisions are not just based on the outcome you get. You can make a poor decision but come out on top or vice-versa.
Given the same circumstances again, I would go the long route, in spite of the fact I would have become a helpless piece of tumbleweed.
I remember it was about 7pm in the evening and I had no food. She had gone into the town using the Land Rover but didn't get me anything. I asked to borrow it and she said no. How very civil of her. So, I walked down the steep mountain, and into the town to get myself food to bring back. By the time I was walking up the mountain, it had turned pitch black. In the UK, there is light pollution everywhere. But over in the French alps, dark really does mean dark!
Part of this trip involves going through dense forest, and looking back, I could have easily been attacked by a wolf or bear. It was so dark I could hardly see more than two foot in front of me. As I neared the end of this journey, there was a huge storm. I am not kidding you when I say there must have been hurricane force winds. Fortunately, I got back to the chalet before the worst of it hit. I made it literally within about 5 minutes.
As I got inside, the witch was waiting, probably eating something smugly in all her narcissism. The storm was so severe, we both rushed around to close the shutters, because of concern that the windows may get blown in! I looked outside and saw the wooden table and chairs being blown across the decking. I have never seen such wind come out of nowhere!
As I look back from my wiser vantage point of today, the stupid thing I did was to take the shortcut through the dense forest, putting my life at risk as a meaty morsel for the hungry wildlife. I could have taken the meandering road route, but that would probably have turned a 2 mile downhill walk into a 3 mile one. It was cold, getting dark and I was very hungry. A long journey was something I wanted to avoid. I would have probably ended up caught in the middle of that enormous storm had I chosen the longer journey, but smart decisions are not just based on the outcome you get. You can make a poor decision but come out on top or vice-versa.
Given the same circumstances again, I would go the long route, in spite of the fact I would have become a helpless piece of tumbleweed.
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