Monday morning, 7am. Nikki is off to her school, where she will be teaching 5 year old little monsters for the rest of the week. I'm staying in bed for another half hour, drinking coffee and thinking about far away places. Then I'm off to the office.
I'm currently working as a software developer for a small company that specializes in software for genomic data and biological analysis. It's a nice and friendly little Kiwi company and, in all honesty, a great place to work at. There is only one problem: I am not a software developer.
Let me explain. I studied computer science in Vienna for 6 six years, and I've been in the business ever since. So how come I'm not a software developer? Well, I just don't see myself as one. If I would be asked to describe myself, being a software developer would be the last thing that comes to mind. I just happen to be relatively decent at it. The fact that this is what I do for 8 hours, 5 days a week, is just a minor and unfortunate fact of life.
Every now and then however, I manage to gather some friends for the weekend and somewhere between the packing of our cars and the first breath of fresh, cool country air things slowly start to shift. A discrete but tangible feeling of authenticity, something that comes more naturally. We are no longer software developers, teachers or lawyers. It's just us being ourselves, footloose and fancy free.
"Weekend Warrior: A person who works all week, especially in an office or other indoor job, and uses the weekends to go out and do more active and/or dangerous physical activities" - Oxford Dictionary
The activity of choice is rock climbing. It is hard, mentally and physically, and takes one to amazing and inspiring places. It puts you in uncomfortable situations, where your only options are to grow and break through your barriers or back down and come back another day. It makes you learn things about yourself and realize the unimportance of your daily routines. But most importantly, Nikki does not hate it.
So on the weekends, when the sun is shining and the living is easy, look for us at the nearest crag.