On The Way Back From Ice Caving

Bilbo finds the car has a very... *interesting* license plate

Ice Caving, Part 2

Loook at me go!

The "Ice" in Iceland

While in Akureyri I decided to go ice caving. *Total* Bridget Jones moment on my part, but worth it. At one point I literally had people pushing my bum through a tiny cave opening to leave, while I struggled not to lose my pants (since I'd only planned for one day there and impulsively left 90% of my stuff with the hotel I last stayed at in Reykjavik, I only had one pair of pants with me. Unfortunately they were jeans. Not exactly ideal for sliding on ice, let me tell you). But I'm glad I went because it was fucking beautiful.

Bilbo agrees of course.

In Akureyri!

Have been forced out of Reykjavik by the sheer number conferances going on taking up all the openings in hostels and hotels. Considered sleeping at the bus stop, but thought it might be nice to see northern Iceland.

On the way Bilbo found some old friends! Can you spot him? He's being rascally and taunting them. Hasn't he learned his lesson yet?!

LOL clearly I am going mad here. It's common on less densely populated island nations, isn't it? Thank god for the couchsurfers here, or I'd go raving. Apparently Akureyri's culture night is coming up too so I'm going to go see it with some CS people. I really like it here. It reminds me of Wales a lot.

Bilbo climbs volcanic rock!

Look at this mofo!

Eating Willy

Not like that!!! I meant like the whale. Get your mind out of the gutter .

Anyway, it didn't taste very fishy. There was kinda a fishy aftertaste, but I ate vegetables in the same sauce and they had the same aftertaste, so Idk if it was the whale itself that tasted like fish or just the sauce. In any case I found it kinda hard to down. It was pretty chewy. And then afterwards I ate "Icelandic pancakes" for desert which are basically like little rolled up crepes.

Reykjavik's Culture Night

So tonight was Culture Night in Reykjavik. There were SO MANY people it felt like suffucation just walking around. The fireworks and music were lovely though.

I met up with a couple couchsurfers (one from Belgium, one from Australia) for food and then we thought to get drinks, but it was much too crowded, so instead I came back to Hotel Floki's dorms.
I am getting old, as one of the couchsurfers said.

I asked facebook who wanted postcards this time and many replied and it made think when I'm dead I'll send postcards from hell. Wouldn't that be a feat??

Goodnight Iceland.

Egg Burger! Common Here, Delicious Anywhere

Shhhh don't tell him it's not Mt. Doom!

A traditional Icelandic stew

Hiking on Glaciers

So I gave in and bought a guided tour to Vatnajökull National Park's glaciers. Here's the link. It was great, although I found myself hoping we'd go even higher. We put crampons on our shoes and it was much like regular hiking, only you had to make sure to push down when you stepped or else you might start sliding (that happened to me once). The naturally made caves were the most gorgeous things I've seen in Iceland so far.

The group I was with was very strange demographically. There were tough looking men who looked between the ages of 25-30, a few middle aged women, and one young couple I found it hard to age. There were no other Americans. There was a Damish guy, an Australian guy, two Spaniards, three Chinese women, plus a few people whom I didn't overhear talking to our guide, and so was unable to identify. I suspect I was the youngest person in our group, and certainly the youngest women (which only matters because the guide seemed particularly hmmmm I guess the word might be, worried for me- I'll find a better word later). I suppose the guide was right to worry, since I was the only one who ended up falling, though I was very quickly back on my feet and determined to show I was fine. If it wasn't for how slow I was walking back down (it's much harder to walk downhill on a glacier, much too easy to not press down hard enough when walking and start slipping), I'd consider a tougher climb. But that would be a *lot* of money and I'd rather come back and do that with a friend sometime, so as not to make everyone resentful towards me when I inevitably fall behind when we start walking down.

Afterwards we went on a duck boat (!) to Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon and then *that* became the most beautiful thing I've seen her.

Bilbo Rests After a Tiring Journey Around "The Golden Circle" in Iceland

Asexuality and Being "Sex-Positive"

Before going on to write more about Iceland I thought I'd rant a little. A friend of mine wrote a note on facebook writing about how ridiculous it is to pretend everyone doesn't want sex, and how stupid it is to judge people for what they want in bed. etc... Which is all great and fine, but he also wrote that asexuality doesn't exist, and if you think you're asexual you have a mental illness and should go see a therapist. That bothered me and I commented saying, "I don't think it's very sex positive to say that people who don't want sex are mentally ill. If they have a problem with their lack of sex drive, then that's one thing. Being sex positive is not about saying it's normal and fine to want sex under your own terms, but only if those terms are acceptable by everyone else. Even with the really basic classes in neuroscience I've taken I can tell you that there are a variety of hormone interactions that determine sex drive, and can indeed, cause someone to not have a very high one/not have one at all. In my opinion saying people are mentally ill for being ok with that is just as bad as saying people are mentally ill for being ok wanting a particular kind of sex."

And then it turned into a huge mess and I realize I did overreact defriending him but that's not what I'm writing about. A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to be an extra in metahuman's music video for "So Pomo" a sex-positive song (even if a bit ridiculous) that embraces a view of sexual identity and gender without clear cut labels. It was shot at the queer center at Pamona College in Claremont, CA and one interesting thing I noticed is that on their list of identities the club embraced, it mentioned asexuality.

Now I know there are several definitions of asexuality going around the internet. One is simply not being sexually attracted to anyone. Others might say it's about not having a sex drive at all. Some might say they're "aromantic," others might say they love romance, but not sex. It is not my place to define what it is or isn't, though I am starting to suspect I may be demisexual, since I have no real desire to have sex with anyone I'm not emotionally attached to (I've tried and it always fails, believe me). What I'm interested in is how others view asexuality. Do you see it as a sexual preference? A sexual identity? Or a mental illness in need of treatment?

Hello Iceland

I have had a less than auspicious start, but that's ok. I'll be here for another two weeks. In any case, the fact remains that Delta managed to lose my suitcase, and so I will (eventually) be somewhere between $50-100 richer for it. Plus in the meantime I have an adorable bag filled with toiletries and a giant t-shirt to make up for it (I am too easily placated). My only major complaint is how long it took them. We arrived at 9 and I left the airport at 11. Then I took a taxi because the next shuttle wasn't until 12 and I was fed up. Turns out I Sid not have enough money, but the taxi driver found me amusing so he drove me anyway. I got to the hostel and my bed had been given away (and also, I had thought it was a hotel not a hostel, but oh well). So that took a long while to figure out. But I got free coffee so I guess it's ok.

Then I passed out for a while. Then I walked by the water and got lost.

...and now I'm exhausted. I kept starting and stopping this but I fear I shall have to go to sleep before my bunk mate here starts snoring again.

In any case, I like it here. I do. Everyone's kind and everything's beautiful and I've yet to meet another American here! I just hope tomorrow goes a little bit better

Bilbo Fails

Bilbo Pounces!

It appears the chickens are getting closer...Bilbo gets out his sword!

Update on the Chicken Situation: Bilbo in Hiding

Bilbo investigates a chicken coop...

At my friend Sabrina's house outside Seattle