Getting high
------------

So, I've recently got into indoor rock climbing, or perhaps it would
be more accurate to say that I am in the process of getting into
indoor rock climbing.  I went for the first time (well, not counting a
once-off attempt about 20 years ago) last week with some coworkers.
It turns out there is quite a nice climbing gym *right* next to the
building I work in, and since we had a visiting colleague with us who
is an avid climber we decided to check it out together.  I went back
tonight and I think I'm going to make a regular thing of it.

I used to get a nice 40 minute walk in to work and back each day when
I lived in NZ, but here I live only 500m from work, which is super
convenient but it means my incidental exercise levels have dropped a
lot.  I really have very little interest in exercise for its own sake
and would far prefer to either get it incidentally or as a consequence
of doing something I actually enjoy and find interesting, as opposed
to, say, running on a treadmill in a gym.  But team ball games and
things like that hold zero interest for me.  The only remotely
physical things that I've ever been able to really sustain an interest
and enjoyment in are non-competitive things (or perhaps
"self-competitive" things) with a significant mental component as
well, martial arts being a good example.  I think climbing fits this
bill quite nicely, as it's already clear that to get good at it you
have to think a lot about the mechanics of the situation you are in
and plan your moves in advance.  I also really enjoy just going for
long and aimless wanders outdoors, but this is unfortunately dependent
upon decent weather and also on getting somewhere nice to wander,
which without a car can be difficult.  The fact that climbing is
indoors and is literally just a few minutes away from my desk is
really appealing in that regard.

It doesn't, at least not yet, really seem to get my heart rate up in
the way more aerobic activities do, but if I throw in some occasional
bike rides on the weekends then hopefully it will help stave of the
very worst consequences of the fact that all the things I *really*
love to do pretty much involve sitting still and hammering away at a
keyboard or soldering things.