A day in my life :) A good day

I dont know where to begin. I woke up and I knew that it was going to be a great day. Most of us dont have days where its just all about "me" But today was that day for me. It was about my 1000 geocaching finds, even though I worked so super hard trying but couldnt get there just yet to make it to 2000 !

I dont know when I was happier than today in such a very long time.

I set out to find a cache that would make the day something I would never forget. Something special. I looked at doing the SBCP cache since it was him who got me "hooked" on this silly thing that I am so in love with but as I was driving that way, it hit me, the day would be perfect if only I could find that crazy cache that I had searched for at the top of the Moses Case turnoff at Sidney. Could I climb up that one again and with the ice and the snow against me on this run actually FIND the dang thing. So my jeep pulled off to the side of the road I took a large breath and sat out on the journey.

I found the climb this time to be much easier. I wasnt looking at the gps this time but just carefully making my way back to the spot where I knew it just had to be.

(Me & Mr Blue&Gray today)

I made it up to the top in no time it felt. I could hear myself outloud talking to Mr Blue&Gray. I was saying all sorts of things to him on this trip. I started to be angry with him before ever I got to the top ! Knowing in my heart that I was just NOT GOING TO FIND it ! But I wanted to try so here we are at the top, again.

I spent about an hour and a half at the top before I did the usual "phone a friend" and send out requests by email and text to every cacher I know who might be able to tell me just the size of the container that I was searching for ?!!! Is this another one of Mr Blue&Grays standard, tiny little micro hides ? Is there an ammo can up here that I am looking directly at and just cant see because I am too excited ?

The reply came from Jumpin Jack first, I dont know the size of the container he said ! Oh no !!!

Then SBCP came through. Breath he said. Just stop and think. You are there and you are too excited to find it. Slow down and use your "geosense" he said. I was setting on a large rock at the moment and I hung the phone up and said....Well I said some things to You know who....lol...that I cant repeat here...Then I looked all around me. Where is this thing. How can it be "that" size and me missing it ? UGH

I got up and walked to the center of the gap and let my gps think. Then I did what Spongebob had said. I took a breath and went to the direction that the gps said and then put it into my pocket and just started to look, search, frisk the area ! I can hear myself and wish only that someone else was there to have heard me, When I screamed in excitement at the sight of this container ! HA!!!!! MR BLUE&GRAY !

I hope that I never forget the smile that I felt across my face as I made the little happy walk out of the gap ! I called my geo friend, Brady, and shared the moment with him. I AM HERE and I DID IT ! lol

I called my husband and son and said Drive right now to Sidney and take a photo of me standing on top of this mountain ! Which he did but turns out he doesnt know how to work the camera so my pics from the top of the gap will have to do ! hehe

I left inside on of my pathtags and I took a toy girl figure which I thought was perfect for my geocaching junk jar so that everytime I pass it I will remember the day and how happy I felt in the success of the find.

Then we went to the 1k party being held for me in Pikeville at the Gattiland cache, that started my whole addiction to geocaching.

I will never forget that sciencecacher made the long journey down to spend a day with me. I just love you "Steve Briarpatch the Marshall Man" You are one of those "guests" for the B&B that make owning a B&B so very worth the trouble :) lol

Puddle Jumper it was so nice to meet you and I look forward to many many more events with you in the future.

Jumpin' Jack, I cant put to words how sweet you are. You act all tough but I already know you are a teddy bear. And I dont care what the guys tease ya and say,I know you are just a sweetie :)

Mtmanva2, It was fun to cache a minute or so with ya and I so enjoyed all your tales from the trails. I hope to find every single cache that you have out there just one at a time,I am tired of the push now I want to just cache and enjoy it. I will be searching for yours and enjoying them along the way.

Ky3, Wildcat Angel, CatAngel, I have enjoyed caching with you and meeting your family. Thanks so much for making the journey to the event and for all the fun :)

Wizard Austin and Granddad Brian thanks for coming on the trip with my buddy Steve :) It was so nice to meet you both and I hope that in the future we can do some real caching :) It seems a bit odd that I took you to two caches today and both were of all peoples.Blue&Grays ! lol One find out of two is okay I guess ! I am thankful now that someone besides me is gonna be able to say that there just was nothing under there !!! lol hehe

Chef, You may be the biggest teddy bear of them all. I love love love my pathtag. It is my very favorite pathtag so far ! It is adoreable, Just like you. "the lady" will ride with you anytime :)

DMFlyer, it is wonderful to finally meet you and I must say that I am totally impressed ! You are somewhat of a geo-king and I have signed alot of logs in crazy little spots and seen your name many times and I am so very thankful to finally meet you in person and say I know the man !

Kelfay97 &Vollyballgirl#1, You both know that I love you. Kelfay97, My life without you in it....well....I hope I never ever know what my life is like without my bestest buddy ever :) I love you girlie !

Innkeepermichaelj, thank you ! Thank you for being the cachers husband. The guy who just gets stuck jumping on airplanes and flying off to far away lands to cache even though you really do not enjoy it :) (he says he does but he realllly doesnt, he is just going along with me as usual)

littlemikey2, I am sorry that mommy has been so crazy this past three months. LOL I hope that I have given you a lifetime geocaching hobby. I hope that (once mommy gets all the logs in) You enjoy your brag at school that you are ranked in the top 40 geocachers in the state of WV :) Mommy loves you !!!!!!!!

Mr. Blue&Gray, I seen you from afar today and I knew that you were sorta kinda thinking...is she going to hug me or hang me ! I told you today and I will say it again.....I have shared every find with you. I think of you,I curse you, I bless you, I talk to you like a crazy person when you cant hear a word that I am saying, I say prayers for you even if they are sometimes not nice but I repented all of those today when standing at the top of the gap #4 and holding that crazy cache in my hand, giggling like a silly fool without another person around, screaming to the top of my lungs......HA ! TAKE THAT MR BLUE&GRAY !!! LOL You keep hiding them, please, and I promise to keep searching for them. Of coarse you dont really even need to hide anymore because I may never find the ones you have out there already ! hehe My family was happy to meet you. Your name is spoken in this house pretty much on a daily basis. They were glad to put a face with the name.

And Finally, To SBCP, I cant think of what to say to you....how do I tell you what I want you to know ? YOU are the reason that this madness has came into my life. YOU are the reason that I cant stop ! YOU & That Gattiland cache made my life crazy ! It was appropriate that we held the event there at that cache ! I just love you for bringing this into my life :) Logs are fun with you. Going out in search of the next cache is fun because of you. You have inspired me in so many ways that I cant put here in words. I remember thinking....SBCP is a geocaching GOD ! ( I have since met Brady who has 21,000 finds and now I know that you are just a "menion" as Mikey would say) But to me, I will ALWAYS tell the story of how I found that silly string (which Kandis dropped down into the pipe, oops) (needs repairs) on the Gattiland cache and how I walked away from there knowing that My life was never going to be the same. I would always be looking for another one of those moments of joy that I found right then when I pulled it up out of its hidin' spot and went....Gosh he is clever ! You have become my "wing" man when I cant find them and I appologize for the many "phone a friend" moments that I have had with you at you know who's caches ! lol You make me wish I were a boy ! Then I could just jump in the car and go caching with ya and no one would think it was not okay ! hehe Thank you is all that I can think to say ! Just thank you :)

To everyone....just thank you for the wonderful day and for how tired I feel right now. The feeling of a task complete. The feeling of happiness.

Life last year was horrible. Some of you were there for that. This feeling of joy is not a feeling that I remember having many times over the past year and I must admit....I like it :)

I later cached with my new found friends and the ones that have been with me for a while. I even searched for a Mr Blue&Gray cache that I couldnt find ! LOL

I will lay my head on my pillow tonight and feel joy and happiness. I like it.



A little thank you to the Big Sandy Area Geocachers :)

Hey guys, (The Members of the Big Sandy Area Geocachers Club)

 

I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart, I mean to tell you ALL that I have cried, like the girl that I am over the event page in my honor for my 1000th find. I was logging in some finds from today just now and using the map to retrace my tracks when over there out the corner of my eye I saw a new event and clicked on it to find what you have done ! I know who you are and I will promptly wrap my arms around you (both) and hug your necks when I do attend this event on the 22nd. Each of the boys that I have had the honor to meet have touched me in different ways.

I have said more than once in the past couple of months since starting this caching thing that I have a love/hate relationship with each of you. Some of your caches (Spongebob's Gattiland cache and Blue&Gray's Stupid Gap #4) are the reason that I can NOT focus and can NOT stop searching for the next one !

(I have a good little record going now with police muggle stops)

On days like today when I went in search of "respect your elders, by SBCP" I am literally moved with excitement and as I said to Spongebob, Filled with respect for "my elder cachers" This cache to me was so cleverly done and the moment I discovered it I felt a little tingle of excitement and a smile came over me that I couldnt stop. The same smile that I had the day I fished out Gattiland and the day that I climbed to the top of the Moses Case cut through with the Blue&Gray.

 (lights out where I discovered my need for a jeep)

 (my family enjoying the hunt for the Gattiland cache)

(flat stanley)

The kindness of each of the men that make up this club has overwhelmed me today. Pikeville Cacher, Cachemaster Yoda have been very kind and Its been an honor to play this game with you. And of coarse Ky Trio who helped me to hurry late the night before the run to Nevada to gather up the needed info to plan the trip. I didnt even know how to do a Pocket Quiery for heaven sakes without him or how to cache along a route. Thanks Mike.

(the boots)

Some of your caches I have yet to stumble upon (jumpin'jack) but I am excited to reach and know that I WILL get to them. Then there is ones like Mr Blue&Gray...sweet Mr Blue&Gray...lol...who hides caches that I know were hidden long ago without me even in his mind when he hid them but when I am on the hunt for them its almost as though we are on a date. (lol) I spend the entire time searching and usually not finding them and thinking about him and what moved him to be so rotten !

(the Alien Highway)

I Go looking for Chef's and I think of him and how sweet he was the first moment I met him and he said..."Boys you can jump in the back of the truck and the lady can ride up here with me" (hehe)

I have had conversations with each of you in person, over facebook, on the phone and in my head (sometimes even out loud) while on the side of rock cliffs and in pipes with rats chasing me and I am always thankful for the moment that I fished out that Gattiland cache and became "hooked" to this sport.

Thank you boys for this little honor. I told SBCP the day that I met him that I would for sure someday set across the table from him and say that I was just one ahead of him and I swear to you all I wont stop til I am !!!!! LOL Then I heard mention of the ammo can and I must confess the SBCP personal coin promised me at 1000 caches and within hours I was on a plane to Nevada ! Patience is not a virtue that most of us girls have and once I knew it was there I had no choice but to have it for my very own ! My husband offered to purchase one immediately for me in order to avoid the flight and expense and wear and tear on his back needed to accomplish the task of gathering the alien highway series but that was not going to do ! I needed the Big Sandy Area Geocachers Golden Ammo Can and once it is mine I am not sure what I will do with it but I assure you that I will ALWAYS have it and every time that I look at it I will think of the boys in the back of that truck the day I met you and I will smile

Geocaching has brought to my life more people than I can possibly mention here. Jumpin' Jack said to me on facebook yesterday that "its not about the numbers" and tonight I am clear that he is correct ! "It" is NOT about the numbers. "It" is about how I feel right now. "It" is about the Honor of the game and the pride in the find.

Tonight I am filled with Honor and Pride over my finding you all :)

(the alien, Curtis)

(me) *thinking to myself, Golden Ammo Can !!!!!

-Wendy