Having done the cave tour, I’m at the snack bar of the Timpanogos Cave National Monument. I’m relaxing with a cup of coffee and a book I’d bought the day before.
At an adjacent table are two guys in full bicycle gear, who are taking a break from some obviously serious ride (lots of steep roads nearby). Also present are two hiker-outfitted guys staying close together in a somewhat curious way; it soon becomes evident that one is blind, and mostly keeps his hand on the shoulder of the other.
One bicycle guy introduces himself to the blind hiker: “Hey - I met you at that talk you gave in Anchorage - and my company helped sponsor your climb!” From their conversation, it becomes evident that the climb in question is Mt. Everest, and the blind guy is Erik Weihenmayer, who has climbed all the “seven summits” (and done a lot more).
I can’t resist showing them the book I’m reading: it’s The Crystal Horizon, by Reinhold Messner, about his 1980 solo climb of Mt. Everest.
On Wednesday, United Airlines, the New York Stock Exchange and the Wall Street journal all had computer problems / outages to varying degrees of seriousness.
