There's hate in this series now.  It was evident that these two teams had taken a serious disliking to one another around the mid-point of that wild first period.  The way these two teams played in the first period, you wondered if it wasn't going to end up a 10-8 game or something.  It seemed that both teams forward units had great hop, and the defense and defensive schemes were flat.  The punch/counterpunch of the first was enjoyable, if a bit stressful for fans of either team.  The flow of the game was fast and up and down the ice, with many good chances being earned by each team.

Both teams seemed to settle down in the second period.  Obviously both coaches had a word or several with their teams about playing defense.  Yet Carolina made another glaring error during a line change, and Maxime Talbot got loose and wound up, blasting the puck past Ward.  As the second period went on, the Pens forecheck wound up, and they had several long puck possessions, and the one at the end of the second period was a nightmare for Carolina.  The strength of the bangers, and their skills along the boards and their ability to shield Canes defenders from the puck wore down the Hurricanes.  While it was a nice, nifty shot by Kunitz that staked Pittsburgh to a 4-3 lead, you could see that it happened because the Canes were exhausted.  They were simply done in by the relentless pressure.

The third period started even again, and the Canes seldom-used fourth line got what should have been a huge, momentum-changing goal.  But it didn't seem to energize the team that much, or Pittsburgh stepped up their defensive game.  That was when Evgeni Malkin took over, and basically by himself scored the next two goals for a natural hat trick.  Versus mistakenly showed a graphic that said Malkin's hat trick was the first for the Pens in 10 years, but they forgot about the hat trick that Crosby earned in the game 2 loss against Washington.

Now, the end of the game was marred by a pretty nasty scrum/fight.  The Versus announcers were rather vague as to the reasons for the 5-minute major, but I thought that it was obvious.  During regular game action it looked to me that the Carolina played had raised his elbow rather obviously when crashing into Letang when Kris was touching up the iced puck.  Letang obviously had to retaliate for that dirty hit.  When the Versus announcers said that a Carolina player had been given a match penalty, they said that it must have been for something said or done in the scrum/fight that resulted.  I'm guessing that it came from the leading elbow.  Now I know the NHL is totally topsy-turvy when it comes to dishing out fines and suspensions, and while it was a dirty play, there were enough of them in this game and in game 1 that I think it would look somewhat unfair to assess a suspension to the Canes player when Matt Cooke didn't get one from his knee-on-knee hit to Cole.  I'll guess we'll have to wait and see about that.  I'm thinking that in the end it was about leading with the elbow; the fight and the resulting scrums were all about defending yourself and venting a little frustration (by Carolina) and protecting players (for Pittsburgh).  So in the grand scheme of things it meant absolutely nothing, but certainly has provided the necessary hate for this series.

I doubted whether Carolina could win this series to start.  When I looked at their comparative lineups, I thought that they had a slight edge at goal, but were not as solid in their forward units or defense pairings.  Cam Ward has been brilliant at times, but you can't lay all of the blame on him.  His defense has let him down at times, especially in game 2, and he's playing against the most elite goal-scorers he's seen yet.  To win this series, the Canes have to win both at the RBC Center.  I don't think they'll win both; I think they'll win one, however, but a 3-1 lead for Pittsburgh will probably signal the end of this series. 

The hype that will surround Vick from now until he signs with a team will remain fairly constant.  I personally think that it's almost a foregone conclusion that he'll sign on with a team.  There will be an NFL owner who will be willing to overlook his past, the fans' hue and cry, and general bad press in order to secure a player with Vick's many skills.  How he plays this year - whether he plays, what position he plays - will be a huge question.

First of all, I think Mike Vick's easiest path back to the NFL is to publicly approach the ASPCA and even the total bleeping idiots at PETA (an organization I personally loathe) and beg them to make him the public face of the two organizations.  The topic will be dog fighting, and on it Vick will explain that he was a total knucklehead, and that his mistakes should not be repeated nor tolerated by anybody.  Vick will have a certain sway among a group of people that are considered his peers; white suburbanites will remain angry with him because they have no way to relate to a man like Vick, with his history, but black families and youths will listen to him.  They'll remember his unbelievable feet, and his drastic fall, and seeing him speak on the subject may influence those people.  He'll have to agree to do this for a long time - perhaps as long as he plays in the NFL and for a few years beyond that.  And, he'll have to agree to do it pro bono - not accepting a penny of compensation for his time.  If he does that, then I think both PETA and the ASPCA will relent to a degree, and at least grudgingly let him off of the hook.  I think that would also make an impression in NFL corporate offices, and there's a group of people that protect the NFL's public image very carefully.  That kind of move will also have them nodding their heads.

So, assuming that Vick does something to convince people that he's learned his lesson, and is reinstated in the NFL, he'll need a very special team that will welcome him into their football family.

My guess - and this is pure conjecture - is that Vick will probably land in one of these franchises.

Buffalo.  Look, they brought in TO.  There's already speculation that they're in the market for him.  Their fan base wouldn't care (too much) about Vick's past because they'll look at Vick's talent and their existing team and realize how much he can contribute.  Would he be a starting QB?  Maybe not - but you can bet that the "Wildcat" formation would be in heavy use in Buffalo, and while Vick was never the strongest passer, having a runner that dangerous AND the ability to deliver a ball might be the kind of offensive spark that the Bills can use.  Plus, having a receiver like TO might actually help Vick.  Trent Edwards wouldn't like it, but then he's not exactly setting the NFL on fire, is he?

Dallas.  Yeah, they have a QB in Romo.  But Jerry Jones makes the final decision, and it's hard to tell what kind of thoughts run through his head sometimes.  He's the same person that brought in Adam "Pacman" Jones, TO and Tank Johnson all in the same year.  He's about selling tickets and generating buzz, and Vick would certainly do both.  Plus, imagine what kind of offense the Cowboys could have if they created some kind of hybrid position for Vick - a dual-shotgun formation or having Vick just kind of float around.  You'd have to defend him, and have to dedicate someone to him, and with the rest of the Cowboy weapons they have, it would add great stress to defenses.  But in the main, I think the likelihoood here is rather low.

Washington.  They've almost disavowed Jason Campbell as a starting QB, and Dan Synder hasn't shied away from controversy before.  Plus, it's not like Hampton Roads is that far from DC, and that's Vick's home stomping grounds.  I think, though, that in Jim Zorn's offense (the west coast variety) Vick would find great difficulty in passing; Atlanta tried that, and it failed as an offense with him leading it.  So at least personnel and scheme wise, Vick is a poor fit.  But you have to factor Synder into that equation, and then all bets are off.

Tampa.  Hell, they've brought in every other QB under the sun!

St. Louis.  They have a carpet - and a fast track for Vick - and are in desperate need of an excitement injection.  The midwestern types in St. Louis wouldn't approve of him, though, but the Rams could really use a man with his talents.  It's not like Marc Bulger has done a whole lot at the position.

Minnesota.  Let's assume for a moment that Favre can't come back.  Minnesota would be facing a nightmare scenario of a dominant running game and defense, and no passing game to speak of.  They, too, are a west-coast variety, but while Vick's never been the most accurate passer, he's certainly better and more accomplished than anyone they have now.  Plus, with Peterson, Vick wouldn't be the centerpiece of the offense, and just maybe he could operate and thrive within it.  The fans wouldn't appreciate it, and it would be a risky move, but the Packers and Bears both improved in the off-season, and Minny hasn't.  There's a need there.

Carolina.  They know what kind of dangers he brings.  The Panthers are a run-first, play-action style team, so again it's not the best fit for an inaccurate passer.  But after Jake Delhomme's bomb in the playoffs last year, the Panthers could consider such a move.  And with that run-heavy offense, there would be less pressure on Vick to be the top passer.  As long as he was effective enough...  Fan-wise, I don't think that there'd be much hue and cry as in other cities. 

Two reasons why Tampa and Carolina are extreme outsiders here is that Atlanta still controls Vick's rights, and I think Blank would go back on his word and bring Vick onto his team before he'd see Vick play against his team twice a year, and potentially extract revenge. 

The vast majority of teams wouldn't dream of bringing him onto the team.  Say the Steelers even considered it.  I think that after Dan Rooney got down bringing down the wrath onto anyone boneheaded enough to even suggest it, the Chief would rise from his grave and slay those dumb enough to think it.  There are many teams like that - Miami doesn't need Vick because they've already got Pat White and plan on using him in a Vick-like role.  The Jets took Sanchez and wouldn't risk that level of bad press.  The Pats have Brady.  The Ravens have Flacco, and I don't think Ozzie Newsome would want to risk that kind of bad press.  Same for the Browns with the press, although their QB situation is somewhat fluid.  Cincy's always a possibility, but Mike Brown has already garnered enough bad press and a worse reputation.  The Colts have Peyton, the Titans already have a head-case problem QB on their roster, the Texans don't need him nor do the Jags.  There are more teams that don't need his services than need his services, and unless there's a need for his services I don't think teams would risk the potential bad publicity.

But let's also be totally honest here about the NFL and its' fans.  Assume that Vick lands in Buffalo.  Further assume that the Bills roll out a version of the Wildcat offense that looks very similar in nature to Rich Rodriguez's West Virginia offense that had been led by Pat White.  Say that in that first game, Vick rushes for over 100, Marshawn Lynch rushes for over 100, the Bills score 5 TDs including an Edwards to Owens TD pass (to keep TO and Edwards happy) and the Bills win easily.  At that moment, every fan of the Bills would miraculously have selective memory failure, and completely forget that Vick ran a dog-fighting operation.  All they'd see is the next victim to the BillCat offense and what it can do for them.  Yeah, you'd hear references to his prison term and two-year absence all year, but even the ESPN guys can't get over his skills, and let's say that the BillCat offense has the Bills with a 7-3 mark after 10 games and atop the AFC East.  Go ahead.  Imagine it.  And tell me if I'm wrong that on ESPN, FoxSports, CBS, and NBC that Vick wouldn't be hyped like he was three or four years ago.  That dogfighting conviction would become an afterthought, mentioned only because someone felt it was appropriate to keep it in the public's eye, but mostly they'd drool and marvel over his skills and how he turned a moribund franchise into something worth watching.  

What did we learn?  And of what we learned, how much of it will be used in the next games?

Some, and very little.

Look, coming into this game you knew pretty much all there was to know about these two squads.  Pittsburgh is incredibly dangerous offensively, smart but not overwhelming defensively and have a good goalie.  Their work ethic is tremendous and they never give up on a game.  Carolina is dangerous offensively especially when their defense gets involved, smart defensively and has a tremendous goalie.  Their work ethic matches or exceeds Pittsburgh.  If there is one word that can easily define both teams, it's this: relentless.

That was on display last night.  For stretches of the game, one team carried the play with their usual relentless style.  It was the two goalies who stole the show last night.  Fleury's early brilliance was matched by Ward's second period brilliance.  Look at the unbelievable saves both guys made last night - Ward simply robbing Guerin and Fleury stoning a wave after wave attack by Carolina early in the first.  Ward may be the more accomplished goalie in this series, but his legs aren't better than Fleury's.  Fleury again demonstrated the amazing flexibility and speed in his legs.  The man's more like Gumby than anything else. 

The Canes never gave up.  Not once.  Pulling their goalie when Brooks Orpik handed them a late PP, the Canes worked and worked and worked and pushed the puck past Fleury, which in turn set up a very tense last 90 seconds.  Again, the Canes work ethic and relentlessness gave them an unbelievable opportunity to score.  I think the pass came to Staal just a little too quickly.  His blade was down and he was ready, but a milimeter's difference in that blade angle and we're talking about an OT thriller in game one, and not simply a 1-goal Pens win.  The Canes are going to be a very difficult team to put away; any Pittsburgh fan that thinks otherwise has been smoking something illegal.  They are relentless, just as the Pens are, and the flurry around Fleury in the last 2 minutes of the game is the prime example.

Injuries may force a difference into the Canes team.  If so, that would be unfortunate.  I didn't think either play was a deliberate attempt to injure.  In both cases, Pens players were dealing with Carolina's relentless pressure in front of the net and were, frankly, scrambling to keep up.  It's unfortunate that it happened that way, and to two of Carolina's most important grinders.  If they are out for any length of time, it will be unfortunate.  They are hard-nosed, tough players that complement the skills of guys like Staal very well.  The team's chemistry on the ice will be disrupted if they are out.  My hope is that they are not injured.  If Pittsburgh is going to win this series, I'd rather it be against a full-strength Carolina squad. 

There are two things that I think Carolina will take away from this game.  First, if they are flat-footed for even a second it will (not might) cost them.  After Miro Satan's breakaway goal, the Canes were flat for about two minutes.  They made a horrible line change, and Geno Malkin made them pay with his brilliant backhand shot over Ward's shoulder.  It needs to be said that there are probably two or three players in the WORLD (not just the NHL) that could have made that shot.  But, the fact remains that for those two minutes Carolina looked out of sorts, and the Pens jumped on them and pressed the offense.  So it didn't surprise me that Malkin got that particular goal.  It also settled Carolina down, and after that goal they were far better in cleaning up and defending their own end.  Secondly, Carolina has now found the necessary "hate" for this series.  Matt Cooke will be a marked player, and the drive that was already there has now had some major irritation added to it.  That will spur Carolina on to some degree, possibly making the team tighter and more ready than ever to go play.  If anyone thinks game 2 won't be a flat-out dogfight of a game, then they're in for a surprise.  That game will probably have the Canes showing desperation like they were facing elimination.

No, I think this was the right tone for a game 1.  The teams played their game and decided that they can play it and find success.  Both goalies played exceptionally well.  Both teams executed pretty well, and both teams have a long list of things to work on for the next and future games.  My guess is that with injuries this could end up being as shorter series, but without injuries figure this series to go 6 or 7 games.  It has that feel.

The highly anticipated battle between the Caps and Pens, and the sub-battle between each team's superstar, didn't exactly play out as everyone had hoped.  Me?  I'll take the easy win, but that certainly wasn't what I was expecting.  I was expecting the Caps to play a lot better hockey.  Maybe the nerves caught up with them.  Maybe it was just that Varlamov came back down to earth.  Or that the suspected injuries to many Caps players finally caught up with them.  What's not in doubt is that the Pens flattened the Caps, beating them in every statistical category and beating them soundly in the style of play on the ice.  The refs called a very loose game - to my knowledge the Caps didn't get even one power play, and the Pens had what, three?  One was the unavoidable high stick called when Crosby's face met Laich's blade.  The other one in which the Pens scored was when Sergei Federov stupidly cross-checked Brooks Orpik in the back well away from the play. 

The Pens were the better team throughout this series.  Their defense was better, and their offense was better.  Their goaltending wasn't better - if anything that was a draw or a bit of a Caps advantage - which is why the series went seven games.  The Pens were throwing everything imaginable at Varlamov only to see him stone the shots.  My congrats to him - despite tonight's hook the boy played a terrific series.  The Caps defense made too many mistakes.  It's unbelievable the amount of odd-man rushes the Pens generated over the entire series.  That's simply unforgiveable, and that gets laid directly at the feet of the Caps defense.

Offensively, the Pens outplayed Washington in long stretches of time, but most importantly at the beginning of nearly every period in every game.  What's more, the Pens entire team was lifted by the play of their star Sidney Crosby.  That, we'll get to shortly.  The Pens outworked the Caps - beating them to the puck, and forcing the Caps into mistakes.  How many times did the Caps whack away at the puck to clear it, but without any kind of breakout plan?  They just needed a gasp and cleared it to center but in a way that allowed the Pens to immediately press the advantage once again.  The Pens were relentless in their offensive attack, and it obviously didn't matter what type of offense it took.  The pretty plays - the tape to tape passes and nifty drop-passes - were all over the place, but the solid cycling game was there as well.  This isn't to say that Washington had no offense - that's entirely wrong.  It's just that Washington's offense wasn't as consistent in their attack.  They got the cycle going, and really pushed Pittsburgh around in long stretches.  But far too often the Caps seemed to wait for Ovechkin to do something and then fed off of that.

In the discussion about the game's best player, it's hard for me to be objective.  But, the game's best player in my opinion was clearly Sidney Crosby in this series.  No one scores like Ovechkin - not even Crosby.  Alex the Great is a pure sniper, a lethal winger who can score in any fashion, from any spot on the ice.  His wrister is wicked and slap shot terrifying.  He's creative and as fluid a skater as there is.  But, as an all-around hockey player Ovehckin pales in comparison to Crosby.  Here's my bottom line take on Ovechkin - he makes plays that gets him adulation.  The scores and the big hits.  The crowd loves it, and he feeds off of the crowd's energy.  He'll always be right there when you discuss the game's best players.  But he made some boneheaded plays this entire series - tonight's horrid pass backwards - cut off and turned into a power play breakaway - was just the most glaring example.  He made that same pass several other times in this series, and several times the Pens jumped on it and turned it into scoring chances.  Crosby did none of that.  He played with a vengeance, working constantly at both ends of the ice.  His brilliance is more subtle - the small play out of the corner, the no-look pass, and the hard work he puts in on defense.  Crosby's goal-scoring ability is not shabby - he even surpassed Alex the Great with 12 goals to Ovechkin's 11 over their two-series run.  You can build a team around Ovechkin, which clearly Washington has.  What they need now is to flesh out that team and find a way to instill more discipline in Ovechkin.  Once he has that, then this discussion perhaps changes.  The bottom line is that Ovechkin has and always will have a better shot, and Crosby has and always will have a better play-making ability.  It's now the intangibles, and the small things that Ovehckin can work on to improve.  Man, assuming he does that?  Yikes will he be even more of a terror than he already is!

Another note for Alexander Semin.  Next time, shut up.  Hockey doesn't get the same kind of treatment that say the NFL does regarding locker room comments.  But for Semin to publicly state that Crosby was "nothing special" only served to irritate Crosby and stoke his fires for this series.  Plus, Semin was nearly invisible.  He scored what, one goal?  Two?  Something like that.  Between him and Mike Green, they made the boards cringe in fear every time they were in the offensive zone, but putting the puck on the net seemed very difficult for them.  Will it come out that one or both players was injured in some way?  Probably - that seems likely.  But, in a series where the stars battled to a near-draw, it was the Pens other top talent that vastly outplayed the Caps other top talent. 

This was, and will remain, arguably one of the greatest series that hockey has ever seen.  The 0-2 lead turned into a 3-2 deficit, a dramatic overtime game 6 win in a game in which both teams had the lead and lost the lead.  The sparkling play of Varlamov, and the superior talents of Crosby and Ovechkin on constant display.  It was a great series, and will be remember as such even though the end tonight lacked the same level of drama as the first six games. 

Last year, the Pens marched steadily through the Eastern Conference before meeting and getting beaten by a superior Wings team.  The Pens were simply stunned by Detroit in the first two games, and while they battled hard for the remainder of the series, being in a 0-2 hole to Detroit was the fatal flaw.  This year, despite losing Hossa, they have turned into a better overall team.  Their grit players are better than their grit players last year.  Their secondary scoring talent is better than what they had last year.  They're healty.  Their defense is improved over their prior year unit.  They have another tough, tough series to handle if they want to return to the Cup Finals, but this team is capable of it.  They are capable of defeating both Boston or Carolina.  Capable, mind you, does not immediatley equate to WILL.  But they can do it.  They have rounded into the most dangerous team in the East.  They are led by the East's best player, and arguably the NHL's best player.  They have all the elements necessary to win the Cup, and perhaps the one thing they have this year is the one thing they truly lacked last year: experience.

It was a great series, and I think Washington will be back.  The cadre of talent on that team is astonishing - Semin, Green, Backstrom and Ovechkin form a truly dynamic, elite core of players.  Get a few more players, especially on the blue line, and the Caps will be a top level team.  It would not surprise me to see an Eastern Conference Final one day between these same Pens and Caps.  It just has that feeling already, that despite being in different divisions, these two teams are using the other as a measuring stick.  Pittsburgh won this round, but there's more to be written in this drama.  But it will have to wait.  GO PENS!!!

The first white water kayaking trip of the year tends to make me a little nervous.  Add to that the fact that I only managed to boat maybe twice all of last year.  Further add to that the fact that during tax season (and winter in general) I got fat again.  Combine all of that together, and I was actually a little nervous to be heading onto the water for my first run of the year. 

It's not that the Slippery Rock Creek (Rose Point to Eckert) is that difficult of a run.  The water level was about a foot or so, translating into some really fun boating with a combination of play and technical skills to be worked out.  And it's not like this was an unfamiliar river; I know every inch of Rose to Eckert, having inspected all of the eddies (both right side up and upside down) and both in and out of my boat.  I was just feeling some general nerves caused from not being in my boat nearly enough. 

By the time we got to the usual chaos on Eckert Bridge, the rain was falling gently but steadily.  The temps were in the high sixties.  I was glad that at the last minute I'd thrown my dry top in the truck, but then I tried to put the damn thing on and remembered why I hate that dry top with a passion.  Sure, it keeps me dry and warm when the water's frigid, but getting into it is more like being an anti-Houdini.  Wriggling into it takes work!  Anyway, fifteen or so minutes later we were in the truck driving to Rose Point.  At the put in, a guy had "lost his boat" because he'd given to someone else to drive up to the putin separately from him.  Lots of headshaking at that.  Finally, the wayward driver appeared and we were on the river.  We zipped down to the fun rock that splits the creek just below the Route 422 bridge.  There's a great eddy line there, useful for practicing your bow stalls and enders if you're into that sort of thing.  In the huge calm pool behind the rock I tested whether or not I remembered how to combat roll.  I did remember.  I then jumped into that eddy line to see whether or not I remembered how to bow stall.  While I did remember, I also found that I was out of practice, and flipped.  I rolled up, carving up my thumb in the process (a normal hazard with me in that boat of mine) and then we moseyed on down to the Ranger Station wave.  There, I surfed a couple of times, avoided bumper boats and generally relaxed as the large group of boaters played.  We moved onto the next rapid and there, as I was lining up to zip into the eddy on my right (to get access to the great play wave that's there) I was cut off by a newer boater.  I was not happy with that, as she blocked my access to the eddy and I was already too far down and right to get into the river left eddy.  So I had to cowboy the bottom half of the drop.  I realized that I was on a decent line to run the maw of this Class II+ rapid, and when I dropped into the hole I squirted out in an ender.  I recovered quickly and watched as the others moved their way down. 

Airport rapid is next, and I decided to go into the right-side eddy.  This is a nice rapid for working things out.  The river right eddy is large but exiting it takes a bit of experience - at least to exit it cleanly.  I made a clean exit and zipped on down and ran through the Hole at Airport.  Again, not much trouble there, and found myself grinning as we waited in the calm stretch after the hole.

At Hawaii 5-O, I surfed twice, enjoying carving back and forth on the wave.  My first attempt to get onto that wave was quite lame.  I was irritated with myself for not being aggressive enough, so my second ride was much more fulfilling.  I didn't want to extend myself so after a nice, fun surf I turned and peeled out and ran over the big boof line at the bottom.  At Maytag, I skipped the Splat run that I usually do (when it's not my first run of the year and it's a little warmer and I've already spent the first half of the trip playing everywhere) and just boogied through the rapid. 

The Mill rapids went quickly.  I tweaked my shoulder again a week earlier working around the house, and it had already begun to ache by the time that I'd hit the Mill rapids.  In the interest of not pushing that sore joint much more, I didn't bother with trying to surf much.  I just kind of zipped around making sure to punch through the waves.  At Chicken Legs I ran right and punched the hole easily.  At Kildoo I cowboyed the run again, but this time by design.  I enjoy driving through that rapid, using the water's force to run the rapid as much as steering through it myself.  If you do it right, you get pushed left then right in perfect synchronization with the drop and movement of the water.  I did it right.

Triple Drop gave me fits at the top.  I was either getting lazy or tired, or both, but I squirted at the top of the rapid and it took me quite a few feet to correct myself, and then I was already just lined up to go.  So I went.  I ran through the eddy wall on the left and waited for some others to come down.  The second drop was a splashy fun time, and the third drop was another big blast.  Gotta love Triple Drop at one foot.  Not much snarl, but a great hoot. 

The rain began picking up then, making it harder to see whilist paddling through the rapids.  To my great surprise, the water felt refreshing - not warm but definitely not frigid.  A good temperature.  The rain was a tad bit chilly, but not so overpowering that it made me cold to the core.  I started working with a newer paddler, guiding him with some suggestions, and then I followed him safety-boat style through the remaining rapids.  He did well, and I had no problems at all.  Honestly, after rolling back up I was comfortable with being on the water.  If anything I was cursing myself yet again for not heading to the gym more often during tax season.

But I was back into that utterly calm, comforting state of perfect well-being.  It's a zen-like state in my opinion.  The air is crisper, the green leaves look greener, and all is well with the world.  A good day of paddling resets my head for a long time, and it's an addicting feeling.  I'm not addicted to the adrenaline rush - although that's a component of it - but I am addiciting to that all mind and body sense of well-being that I feel when paddling.  In my opinion, there's nothing better than that sense of well-being. 

Until the next trip report...