Two years ago to this very minute my wife of almost 30 years passed away, December 23, 2007, 3:02 PM PST. Her official time of death is two hours later because somehow we caught Kaiser in a shift change and the person who should have come didn't and the next shift didn't hear about it until an hour or so into their shift. I never really cared what the Death Certificate said. I can't even vouch for the accuracy of the clock I looked at and do not know whether the nurse used that clock or a watch of her own and how accurate that watch, if used, may have been.
In most ways I was glad to be with her when she passed but they primarily had to do with her. Most of all, I didn't want her to be alone. It was almost time for the second dose of powerful pain killer but I had gone into her room just to be with her. I had a couple foam pads on the floor where I slept at night and was just laying on them. I may have been reading but I can't remember what. I can't recall what I heard or didn't hear but I jumped up and held her hand. Her throat moved a few times in a parody of gasping for air but her lungs weren't moving. After the motion stopped, she looked dead. Just a few minutes before she may not have looked well but she was very much alive.
Then all my children and their spouses arrived, well two spouses and one soon to become a fiancee. I don't recall who called Kaiser, who checked her pulse, but I do know who started crying. Soon the family was all doing it anyway. I don't know how long we cried but we weren't when Kaiser came or later when the mortuary came. I still do off and on, like right now. Even the great memories, and there are a lot of them, which are in themselves memories of happier moments can lead to tears as I re-realize the loss.
Her last words to me, which had occurred some days earlier, were, "I know." This was in response to my statement, "I will always love you."
As her disease and the battling of it consumed us, we basically had one common regret beyond the fact of the disease itself. Neither of us liked what it did to our relationship as we slipped into patient and care giver roles. The Gerson Therapy is time consuming and at least in her case it didn't work, or her inability to do it fully allowed it not to work. We were able to get back to being a couple in the early part of 2007 and then later in 2007 when I was able to bring in afternoon/evening help rather than doing it all myself when I got home from work.
Ah work. I couldn't afford to quit, not that Marilyn would have let me, but after I was laid off I often thought to myself, "Why couldn't this have happened a year earlier." Work was a mental change but not a big enough one. I talked with Marilyn at least once a day by phone as many days as she could. My employees, peers, and boss were very understanding. Many of them came to the memorial/open house we had, even though it was right between Christmas and New Year. Then we repeated it in January at her sister's house in Columbus for our families and friends who couldn't make it to the West Coast.
I've been blessed and sustained by people who care, who have helped me now through two years. While I hope no one has to go through loss, I want to be there for others like all who have been here for me. Thank you!
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Happiness
I recently took the CBEST, the required test to allow someone to be a substitute teacher in California, and one of the essay questions was about happiness. The question made me realize three things: I'm not happy; I could be happy; and I write poor essays under pressure. I must admit that I didn't realize the "I could be happy" thing until after thinking about it for some time. What follows is the result of my thinking and probably should have been my essay.
Happiness is really a state of mind that is most usually facilitated through the appreciation of the ordinary and small occurrences of daily life. Unfortunately, happiness is easily overwhelmed by big events and strong emotions, even joy, which is often thought to be exquisite happiness. In point of fact, it appears that almost anything can override happiness. All it takes for happiness to be lost is to lose the sense of appreciation, of contentedness.
I have had some truly joyous events in my life, my marriage to Marilyn, the birth of my children, and while these led to some truly happy moments that could not have occurred without those events, I look back on them with awe and memories of being stressed or concerned or proud. Maybe happiness was in there but when I truly remember happiness, I think of waking beside Marilyn the day after our wedding or my children's first steps.
Then after battling cancer for two and a half years, Marilyn passed away. Until the month of actual passing there were even happy situations during the battle. Admittedly they were fewer than the previous twenty-seven plus years but we did laugh and enjoy just being together. After the passing, however, even my memories of all our happy times became tinged with sadness. It's not that they were somehow less happy but the knowledge that I would no longer be adding to them and the overwhelming missing just took my thoughts from the happy to the loss. Sadness also overrides happiness.
Now almost two years after her passing, with the full realization that the basis for happiness is appreciating the moment, except for some very limited moments, I've been unhappy. While I can't change the past, I can try to recapture the ability to appreciate, to be happy. In fact, I think I'll make it my New Year's resolution. Even if you can't be happy about it, you certainly can appreciate the attempt.
Happiness is really a state of mind that is most usually facilitated through the appreciation of the ordinary and small occurrences of daily life. Unfortunately, happiness is easily overwhelmed by big events and strong emotions, even joy, which is often thought to be exquisite happiness. In point of fact, it appears that almost anything can override happiness. All it takes for happiness to be lost is to lose the sense of appreciation, of contentedness.
I have had some truly joyous events in my life, my marriage to Marilyn, the birth of my children, and while these led to some truly happy moments that could not have occurred without those events, I look back on them with awe and memories of being stressed or concerned or proud. Maybe happiness was in there but when I truly remember happiness, I think of waking beside Marilyn the day after our wedding or my children's first steps.
Then after battling cancer for two and a half years, Marilyn passed away. Until the month of actual passing there were even happy situations during the battle. Admittedly they were fewer than the previous twenty-seven plus years but we did laugh and enjoy just being together. After the passing, however, even my memories of all our happy times became tinged with sadness. It's not that they were somehow less happy but the knowledge that I would no longer be adding to them and the overwhelming missing just took my thoughts from the happy to the loss. Sadness also overrides happiness.
Now almost two years after her passing, with the full realization that the basis for happiness is appreciating the moment, except for some very limited moments, I've been unhappy. While I can't change the past, I can try to recapture the ability to appreciate, to be happy. In fact, I think I'll make it my New Year's resolution. Even if you can't be happy about it, you certainly can appreciate the attempt.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Christmas Letter
You would think that after a full year of independent living, not being dependent on any job, I would have had plenty of time to get out my second ever "Christmas Letter" or maybe some cards. But no. For some reason I am much further behind this year than last when I was gone on my grand Holiday Tour for the whole month of December visiting both Marilyn's and my families. At one time or another while I was in Ohio and West Virginia, all of my children and their spouses showed up, which made it a great family visit as well.
Since I was going to be gone for so long, I drove across country, taking the scenic route that meandered through Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, ...
I started back on January 6th and having decided to take my chances with snow, drove as straight as I could back across the country. The only place I had any snow issue was in Colorado, Friday evening, just after the Continental Divide. After driving downhill for about two miles, I took the first exit I could in the hopes of letting the snow plows do their thing for better driving the next day. I had forgotten that it was ski season. The lobby was packed and everyone I spoke with in the rather long line to check in had reservations. I did get a room, a quite nice room, in point of fact. With a rush of relief that swept all of the adrenaline fed anxiety right out of my system, I slept very well, even without my memory foam pillow, which I had left in the car. (I mention this because sleeping well allowed me to get an early start the next day, when it was just nine degrees. My memory foam pillow was as hard as a rock. It thawed well though as I was able to use it the next night.)
The early start also allowed me to really make distance the next day, all the way to Ely, Nevada. I was even there early but decided to stop anyway, after all, gambling is legal in Nevada and was available right in my Hotel/Casino. The room would have been inexpensive except for the gambling. As it was, I also got to bed early that night as well. This again allowed me to get up early. In fact, I drove by Reno too early to stop and decided to drive all the way home. (After my gambling experience in Ely, I'm sure my not stopping in Reno saved me a lot of money.)
Then there was the commemorative ski trip with my daughter Andrea. She had me post-holing up a steep cliff just to see the sunset. She had me on skis dawn to dusk and then after another half day of skiing to catch all of the trails, she had me back out on snowshoes to go out on a couple trails that were closed.
Next came the Pacific Crest Trail hike preparation. Other than my house looking like a food warehouse for a while and preparing what seemed like an endless supply of chicken jerky, my part wasn't all that much. Andrea and Neil, the actual hikers stopped by and taste tested my sample batch of chicken jerky, taking the sample with them across country to finish their training in West Virginia with my parents. There they helped reinstall some electric fencing that had been substantially removed during the logging a couple years before to allow my parents' 22 goats the illusion of greater freedom and walked.
Then when they once again returned to Pacifica to finish their packing, we walked. Finally, all of their planning came together. They had all of their packages ready with instructions on when to ship them to where using what service and they were ready to start. I had the distinct pleasure of being able to deliver them to the trail head at the U.S.-Mexican border on April 30th. In the brief time we were actually at the border, we had three separate, friendly, border patrol agents come up to speak with us and check us out. Then, they were off and so was I. As I was still in the car, my speed was considerably greater.
As they reached the Los Angeles National Forest in May, they were able to take a day or two away from the trail with Andrea's sister Elisha and her husband Ryan. Since the hiking on the PCT burns up to 5,000 calories a day and they carried only 3,000 calories, Elisha met them with some prepared food in what looked to be a decorated bottled beer six-pack container. She called it a Mackey Meal.
I also got a chance to play Trail Angel a couple weeks later at Tehachapi. Our first stop was for some food they could eat right away. We must have hit every "all you can eat" place in Tehachapi and Mojave, after they got cleaned up. In the relatively short time that we were there, we also managed to see a movie, "Up," and I made a couple extra trips to the trail head to pick up and drop off hikers. Believe me, dropping off is better. It's amazing what eight days of no water for bathing while walking through a dusty dessert can do to body odors. At least the hikers get used to it. (You can read about most of their hiking experience at: http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=9044. You can also see their SPOT recorded progress at: PCT Progress.)
Then it was my time to rush to get ready as I had an opportunity to ride with my parents to Alaska. After my successful car trip across the U.S., I decided that this time I would ride my motorcycle. To see if I could even go the distance, I rode down to visit Elisha and Ryan in Pasadena a couple of times. While that didn't prepare me to do it day after day for five or six days, I was convinced that this additional 1,600 miles of riding after barely riding twice that in the previous ten years would be enough. (Since I made it back, it must have been. If you want to read a little more on my riding my motorcycle, I've posted a Toastmaster speech I gave on it at: http://doingsomething-aboutit.blogspot.com/2009/11/why-do-i-do-it.html. )
On one of my visits to Elisha and Ryan, they took me to Huntington Gardens. Of course I had to take a lot of pictures, some of which are posted here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2008189&id=1288023430&l=6df59e2daf
They also visited here and once again hiking was involved. While I'm jumping ahead chronologically, this is the best place to put my last visit to Pasadena. It seems that hiking has become a tradition in our visits with each other. In my last visit just before Thanksgiving, they took me on a walking tour of downtown L.A. With the reputation L.A. has about their use of cars, this was certainly a unique experience that I'll treasure. Elisha, the person who avoided all musical instruments growing up has decided to learn something about the violin. She has also continued in her CalTech Choir. I'm hoping to catch one of her concerts.
My son Sean and his wife Amanda made it to my house just before I left. They were only going to stay in New York for a certain length of time and that time was up. Even though I only saw them for a week or so before I left, it's been great having them around since I've gotten back. Amanda is going to school for her teaching credential. Sean is taking after his "old man" in being gainfully unemployed.
But back to the Alaska trip. Counting my motorcycle miles, the total trip covered over 16,000 miles. There were spectacular scenes throughout, even the long ride through Canada after the Rockies. The large fields of yellow canola oil plants intermixed with alfalfa fields were truly spectacular in this stretch. (It's given me something to mull over as to whether or not I really want to ride my motorcycle around North America. I'm leaning toward yes but it really requires a lot of other things to come together as well. From this Alaska run, I do know that I want to have specific plans, and reservations, in place.)
We saw Mount Rushmore, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Lake Louise, Hyder Alaska, Denali National Park, lots of glaciers, all of which were spectacular. My sisters, Gail and Joy, joined us in Juneau for about ten days. In fact, they flew out of Fairbanks and we drove out the weekend before Sarah Palin's resignation picnic in Fairbanks. We were in Fairbanks three nights, before and after Denali and after the Arctic Circle. Yes, we were on the road made famous by the Ice Road Truckers. We didn't get a stone chip until we were within a couple miles of being off of the gravel portion, just when we thought we had it made. We had looked into renting a car for the trip but surprise surprise, none were available.
A few of the many pictures I took on this trip, which I've uploaded into albums on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012968&id=1288023430&l=12fe066478
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013233&id=1288023430&l=39d47500db
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013531&id=1288023430&l=422b56dd9e
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013730&id=1288023430&l=c578b7af2b
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013928&id=1288023430&l=7d6e848873
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013977&id=1288023430&l=43273174f5
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014346&id=1288023430&l=f7be62e8cf
I have lots of notes in my 2009 "At-A-Glance," but have only transcribed them, so far, into one story at: http://doingsomething-aboutit.blogspot.com/2009/10/camping-and-not-on-road-to-alaska.html.
After Alaska, most of my time has been spent seriously and non seriously looking for a job. The serious looking happens when I see something that I think might be interesting. The non serious looking is just to fill out my quota for unemployment, which is going to expire soon anyway. The real problem has been my own lack of direction, especially knowing my own desires, well that and the economy whose improvements still haven't reached us.
But all in all, it's been a truly great year, even with heartbreaking news that I haven't included in this "letter." In addition to all of the above, my first grandchild, Sophia Kalina Westbrook, arrived on December 1st at 8:24 AM PST, weighing 7 lbs. 9 oz. and 19 inches long. I've been able to hold her, feed her, and only once had to do a diaper change, so far. With all of these adults around so much to give her lots of attention, she will certainly have every opportunity to be spoiled. In point of fact, her Aunt Andrea made a special trip down to see her. Even her Great Aunt Joy stopped in for a visit. More pictures can be seen in an album I've uploaded to Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024292&id=1288023430&l=bda6c7b3c5.
I hope your holidays are great and wish everyone the best throughout the new year and beyond.
Since I was going to be gone for so long, I drove across country, taking the scenic route that meandered through Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, ...
I started back on January 6th and having decided to take my chances with snow, drove as straight as I could back across the country. The only place I had any snow issue was in Colorado, Friday evening, just after the Continental Divide. After driving downhill for about two miles, I took the first exit I could in the hopes of letting the snow plows do their thing for better driving the next day. I had forgotten that it was ski season. The lobby was packed and everyone I spoke with in the rather long line to check in had reservations. I did get a room, a quite nice room, in point of fact. With a rush of relief that swept all of the adrenaline fed anxiety right out of my system, I slept very well, even without my memory foam pillow, which I had left in the car. (I mention this because sleeping well allowed me to get an early start the next day, when it was just nine degrees. My memory foam pillow was as hard as a rock. It thawed well though as I was able to use it the next night.)
The early start also allowed me to really make distance the next day, all the way to Ely, Nevada. I was even there early but decided to stop anyway, after all, gambling is legal in Nevada and was available right in my Hotel/Casino. The room would have been inexpensive except for the gambling. As it was, I also got to bed early that night as well. This again allowed me to get up early. In fact, I drove by Reno too early to stop and decided to drive all the way home. (After my gambling experience in Ely, I'm sure my not stopping in Reno saved me a lot of money.)
Then there was the commemorative ski trip with my daughter Andrea. She had me post-holing up a steep cliff just to see the sunset. She had me on skis dawn to dusk and then after another half day of skiing to catch all of the trails, she had me back out on snowshoes to go out on a couple trails that were closed.
Next came the Pacific Crest Trail hike preparation. Other than my house looking like a food warehouse for a while and preparing what seemed like an endless supply of chicken jerky, my part wasn't all that much. Andrea and Neil, the actual hikers stopped by and taste tested my sample batch of chicken jerky, taking the sample with them across country to finish their training in West Virginia with my parents. There they helped reinstall some electric fencing that had been substantially removed during the logging a couple years before to allow my parents' 22 goats the illusion of greater freedom and walked.
Then when they once again returned to Pacifica to finish their packing, we walked. Finally, all of their planning came together. They had all of their packages ready with instructions on when to ship them to where using what service and they were ready to start. I had the distinct pleasure of being able to deliver them to the trail head at the U.S.-Mexican border on April 30th. In the brief time we were actually at the border, we had three separate, friendly, border patrol agents come up to speak with us and check us out. Then, they were off and so was I. As I was still in the car, my speed was considerably greater.As they reached the Los Angeles National Forest in May, they were able to take a day or two away from the trail with Andrea's sister Elisha and her husband Ryan. Since the hiking on the PCT burns up to 5,000 calories a day and they carried only 3,000 calories, Elisha met them with some prepared food in what looked to be a decorated bottled beer six-pack container. She called it a Mackey Meal.
I also got a chance to play Trail Angel a couple weeks later at Tehachapi. Our first stop was for some food they could eat right away. We must have hit every "all you can eat" place in Tehachapi and Mojave, after they got cleaned up. In the relatively short time that we were there, we also managed to see a movie, "Up," and I made a couple extra trips to the trail head to pick up and drop off hikers. Believe me, dropping off is better. It's amazing what eight days of no water for bathing while walking through a dusty dessert can do to body odors. At least the hikers get used to it. (You can read about most of their hiking experience at: http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=9044. You can also see their SPOT recorded progress at: PCT Progress.)Then it was my time to rush to get ready as I had an opportunity to ride with my parents to Alaska. After my successful car trip across the U.S., I decided that this time I would ride my motorcycle. To see if I could even go the distance, I rode down to visit Elisha and Ryan in Pasadena a couple of times. While that didn't prepare me to do it day after day for five or six days, I was convinced that this additional 1,600 miles of riding after barely riding twice that in the previous ten years would be enough. (Since I made it back, it must have been. If you want to read a little more on my riding my motorcycle, I've posted a Toastmaster speech I gave on it at: http://doingsomething-aboutit.blogspot.com/2009/11/why-do-i-do-it.html. )
On one of my visits to Elisha and Ryan, they took me to Huntington Gardens. Of course I had to take a lot of pictures, some of which are posted here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2008189&id=1288023430&l=6df59e2daf
They also visited here and once again hiking was involved. While I'm jumping ahead chronologically, this is the best place to put my last visit to Pasadena. It seems that hiking has become a tradition in our visits with each other. In my last visit just before Thanksgiving, they took me on a walking tour of downtown L.A. With the reputation L.A. has about their use of cars, this was certainly a unique experience that I'll treasure. Elisha, the person who avoided all musical instruments growing up has decided to learn something about the violin. She has also continued in her CalTech Choir. I'm hoping to catch one of her concerts.My son Sean and his wife Amanda made it to my house just before I left. They were only going to stay in New York for a certain length of time and that time was up. Even though I only saw them for a week or so before I left, it's been great having them around since I've gotten back. Amanda is going to school for her teaching credential. Sean is taking after his "old man" in being gainfully unemployed.
But back to the Alaska trip. Counting my motorcycle miles, the total trip covered over 16,000 miles. There were spectacular scenes throughout, even the long ride through Canada after the Rockies. The large fields of yellow canola oil plants intermixed with alfalfa fields were truly spectacular in this stretch. (It's given me something to mull over as to whether or not I really want to ride my motorcycle around North America. I'm leaning toward yes but it really requires a lot of other things to come together as well. From this Alaska run, I do know that I want to have specific plans, and reservations, in place.)
We saw Mount Rushmore, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Lake Louise, Hyder Alaska, Denali National Park, lots of glaciers, all of which were spectacular. My sisters, Gail and Joy, joined us in Juneau for about ten days. In fact, they flew out of Fairbanks and we drove out the weekend before Sarah Palin's resignation picnic in Fairbanks. We were in Fairbanks three nights, before and after Denali and after the Arctic Circle. Yes, we were on the road made famous by the Ice Road Truckers. We didn't get a stone chip until we were within a couple miles of being off of the gravel portion, just when we thought we had it made. We had looked into renting a car for the trip but surprise surprise, none were available.
A few of the many pictures I took on this trip, which I've uploaded into albums on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012968&id=1288023430&l=12fe066478
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013233&id=1288023430&l=39d47500db
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013531&id=1288023430&l=422b56dd9e
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013730&id=1288023430&l=c578b7af2b
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013928&id=1288023430&l=7d6e848873
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2013977&id=1288023430&l=43273174f5
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014346&id=1288023430&l=f7be62e8cf
I have lots of notes in my 2009 "At-A-Glance," but have only transcribed them, so far, into one story at: http://doingsomething-aboutit.blogspot.com/2009/10/camping-and-not-on-road-to-alaska.html.
After Alaska, most of my time has been spent seriously and non seriously looking for a job. The serious looking happens when I see something that I think might be interesting. The non serious looking is just to fill out my quota for unemployment, which is going to expire soon anyway. The real problem has been my own lack of direction, especially knowing my own desires, well that and the economy whose improvements still haven't reached us.
But all in all, it's been a truly great year, even with heartbreaking news that I haven't included in this "letter." In addition to all of the above, my first grandchild, Sophia Kalina Westbrook, arrived on December 1st at 8:24 AM PST, weighing 7 lbs. 9 oz. and 19 inches long. I've been able to hold her, feed her, and only once had to do a diaper change, so far. With all of these adults around so much to give her lots of attention, she will certainly have every opportunity to be spoiled. In point of fact, her Aunt Andrea made a special trip down to see her. Even her Great Aunt Joy stopped in for a visit. More pictures can be seen in an album I've uploaded to Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024292&id=1288023430&l=bda6c7b3c5.I hope your holidays are great and wish everyone the best throughout the new year and beyond.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Living
Today as I stopped in at Safeway for my snack lunch, Pretzel Crisps and hummus with horseradish, I saw a couple deciding on some item for their cart. She had obviously just undergone treatment for cancer or was still in the middle of it. While I applauded her commitment to LIVE by doing the normal things like shopping, I also couldn't help but think of all the immune suppressant effects that chemotherapy and radiation have. While a public place like a good sized grocery store is not as bad as a public place like a classroom, anyplace there are a number of people increase the chances that one of them might be a carrier. Safeway now provides a hand sanitizer for their cashiers and cart pushing customers in recognition of this. I haven't seen one customer use it though, including myself.
Cancer, its treatments, and its treatments' side effects have claimed too many lives and while doing so has claimed its victims' living.
With the American Cancer Society saying in 2008 that one in three women and two in three men will have cancer detected in their lifetimes, there are too many opportunities to stop living while waiting to die. I am fortunate that most of the people in my life who have had cancer, lived and are living to the very end, which for the ones still living I hope is still some distance in the future.
I still am amazed at the amount of laughter we shared during both our trips to Baja Nutri Care for the alternative treatment and training. Still, for most of the cancer patients, this was their last hope and for far too many of them, my wife included, the hope didn't last. But there, most of all, we all were LIVING.
Then I get back home from shopping and read that it is likely that the Public Option will be stripped from the final Health Care Reform bill. While I don't expect any Health Insurance, public option or not, to cover alternative treatments, it would be nice to reduce the costs of the treatments they do cover. The best way would be to go to a single payer system that doesn't allow profits. I'm not sure that a Public Option is the next best way, but it is far better than what now looks to be the eventual product. I think I would prefer strict regulation of health insurers, not only regulating their profits but also the expenses upon which they are allowed to claim profits.
Also, the hodgepodge of legal entities that disallow my son to have COBRA because his New York insurance company doesn't exist in California although the New York company's parent company owns a sister company in California in the same business and with the same name, except for the "of California," has to end.
Instead, we are likely to end up with a mandate to purchase health insurance with fines if we don't and without any controls on profits or expenses. I'm not holding my breath. My $8,000 per year health insurance probably doesn't cover that.
Cancer, its treatments, and its treatments' side effects have claimed too many lives and while doing so has claimed its victims' living.
With the American Cancer Society saying in 2008 that one in three women and two in three men will have cancer detected in their lifetimes, there are too many opportunities to stop living while waiting to die. I am fortunate that most of the people in my life who have had cancer, lived and are living to the very end, which for the ones still living I hope is still some distance in the future.
I still am amazed at the amount of laughter we shared during both our trips to Baja Nutri Care for the alternative treatment and training. Still, for most of the cancer patients, this was their last hope and for far too many of them, my wife included, the hope didn't last. But there, most of all, we all were LIVING.
Then I get back home from shopping and read that it is likely that the Public Option will be stripped from the final Health Care Reform bill. While I don't expect any Health Insurance, public option or not, to cover alternative treatments, it would be nice to reduce the costs of the treatments they do cover. The best way would be to go to a single payer system that doesn't allow profits. I'm not sure that a Public Option is the next best way, but it is far better than what now looks to be the eventual product. I think I would prefer strict regulation of health insurers, not only regulating their profits but also the expenses upon which they are allowed to claim profits.
Also, the hodgepodge of legal entities that disallow my son to have COBRA because his New York insurance company doesn't exist in California although the New York company's parent company owns a sister company in California in the same business and with the same name, except for the "of California," has to end.
Instead, we are likely to end up with a mandate to purchase health insurance with fines if we don't and without any controls on profits or expenses. I'm not holding my breath. My $8,000 per year health insurance probably doesn't cover that.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Wanting to write something
What to do when my wanting to write something conflicts with my desire only to write more significant things in this blog? It's not that I don't have significant things to write about, it's just that most of them aren't ready to write about.
For example: I am very much interested in changing careers to be a teacher, a math teacher, and have applied to EnCorps for their assistance in becoming one. (This is in spite of California's financial problems and the numerous pink slips already given to many teachers.) They have accepted my application and I have a scheduled five-minute "teach off," my term, and interview on December 11th. There will be other applicants and we are to be the "students" for each others "teach off." I don't know how many positions they have or how many applicants there are. If I make it through the next round, I will then better know what kind of schedule I will have for the rest of the year and next. If I don't, I will have to go to Plan B, not that I know what Plan B is.
Unplanned B: Since construction is frequently the last to recover after an economic downturn, my son has very limited prospects for finding a job in his field in the near term. As a result, I am trying to talk him into being a handyman. He has the ability. You should see the nursery he painted and put crown molding in. (You would if I could find my camera's USB cable.) He even textured one wall. There are a few other "handyman" type projects around the house. I could be his helper.
Unplanned B2: Contracting. I hadn't looked into this earlier in my unemployed status for a number of reasons, most of which were personal commitments. Then I realized that I don't have medical insurance concerns, except for the expense, $8,000 next year, and should check into this "opportunity."
Unplanned B too: At this level of "unplanning," the options are endless. Unfortunately, there are a lot of "ifs" that have to come together just right to allow them. If the group I'm in wins the lottery, then early retirement and travel becomes viable, including riding my motorcycle around the U.S. and Canada. If the economy recovers or my mortgage is taken care of some other way, then the Peace Corp is viable. If the worst happens, I may be moving back in with my parents.
I know this wasn't something much but whether or not it is worth reading, it was worth writing. My plans may not be any better formed but writing this may allow me to write more and better in other venues, including getting back to my Memories of Marilyn, which I write in an MS Word document before I post in the blog of the same name. I also have several other things to write, one of which is a more serious entry into this blog on my thoughts on sustainable economics.
Until next time, whenever that may be, I promise better reading...
For example: I am very much interested in changing careers to be a teacher, a math teacher, and have applied to EnCorps for their assistance in becoming one. (This is in spite of California's financial problems and the numerous pink slips already given to many teachers.) They have accepted my application and I have a scheduled five-minute "teach off," my term, and interview on December 11th. There will be other applicants and we are to be the "students" for each others "teach off." I don't know how many positions they have or how many applicants there are. If I make it through the next round, I will then better know what kind of schedule I will have for the rest of the year and next. If I don't, I will have to go to Plan B, not that I know what Plan B is.
Unplanned B: Since construction is frequently the last to recover after an economic downturn, my son has very limited prospects for finding a job in his field in the near term. As a result, I am trying to talk him into being a handyman. He has the ability. You should see the nursery he painted and put crown molding in. (You would if I could find my camera's USB cable.) He even textured one wall. There are a few other "handyman" type projects around the house. I could be his helper.
Unplanned B2: Contracting. I hadn't looked into this earlier in my unemployed status for a number of reasons, most of which were personal commitments. Then I realized that I don't have medical insurance concerns, except for the expense, $8,000 next year, and should check into this "opportunity."
Unplanned B too: At this level of "unplanning," the options are endless. Unfortunately, there are a lot of "ifs" that have to come together just right to allow them. If the group I'm in wins the lottery, then early retirement and travel becomes viable, including riding my motorcycle around the U.S. and Canada. If the economy recovers or my mortgage is taken care of some other way, then the Peace Corp is viable. If the worst happens, I may be moving back in with my parents.
I know this wasn't something much but whether or not it is worth reading, it was worth writing. My plans may not be any better formed but writing this may allow me to write more and better in other venues, including getting back to my Memories of Marilyn, which I write in an MS Word document before I post in the blog of the same name. I also have several other things to write, one of which is a more serious entry into this blog on my thoughts on sustainable economics.
Until next time, whenever that may be, I promise better reading...
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Motorcycle Riding in Cold Weather
I didn't think it would be that cold and for the most part, on the way down, I was right. Then the sun set just as I was approaching the highest elevation of my P to P ride, Pacifica to Pasadena. Yes, it was "shiver me timbers" cold over the Grapevine where at least one elevation sign says 4,000 feet. After 300 miles I was committed to complete the last 90 or so. Since it was already dark, I didn't even think about turning around. Besides, I think my range of motion was limited due to the cold.
Thank goodness, once I got down in the LA Basin, it was psychologically warmer. (I couldn't really tell that it was but I convinced myself that it had to be. I also promised myself that I would look up the temperature differential for every 1,000 feet of elevation. I haven't yet.) Part of it was also that I got a haircut just before I left. Not only did this deprive me of my long neck hair, but I specifically asked for it to be cut shorter--for motorcycle riding. Helmut hair isn't very pretty. What's worse, the person who cut my hair had just returned from Disneyland and was telling me that the temperature over the Grapevine just the day before was 49 degrees.
Then Saturday, my walking tour tour guide daughter hikes me all over downtown LA. It really was something to see and the walking allowed us to see more of it. (While that last sentence was really a reference to the details that can only be noticed when one is taking things in a little more slowly, it is also true that there wasn't anyone standing in our way. LA really isn't a hotbed of hikers.) What's more, it was warmer than the cooler I had dressed for. Since I was dehydrated, at least I didn't sweat up my cloths.
A metro day pass allowed us to skip over to Hollywood and walk up and down a few of those streets. I can't say I remember ever getting to Hollywood and Vine but we did get to a Costume store and Amoeba's. We didn't get an outlandish costume, although there were several to choose from but my tour guide and her husband bought several, as in at least ten, CDs from Amoeba.
This made the day just long enough to stop back in Union Station, since we had to to change trains anyway, and eat at Traxx. After the large lunch we had at the Grand Central Market, where each of us went to a different venue for food of our choice, most of us were too full to eat much at Traxx--but we did anyway. I convinced myself that I had eaten such healthy foods with lots of vegetables that I could afford to go overboard for dessert. I don't know what lies my table companions told themselves. The problem was, it was worth it.
After another good nights sleep, we had special griddle cakes with a fruit compote and ginger maple syrup, courtesy of my daughter the chef and former tour guide. After a quick trip to the grocery store, I made sweet sticky rice to go with the mango I had taken down with me for that purpose, packed up and left. I don't know whether or not they tried the sweet sticky rice for lunch or at all today.
My packing was a little more compact than it was on the way down. Not only did I deliver a jar and left it there, but better distribution of what was packed allowed me to put my tennis shoes inside my "sissy bar bag." Plus, I wore more. In addition to my t-shirt, long sleeves shirt, and motorcycle jacket with its liner, I also wore my fleece vest fully zipped up. This combination work for at least 2/3 of the ride back. Once again, when it got dark it got cold. It was so cold that I actually slowed down to 70. It got so cold that I just had to check the outdoor temperature when I got home. It was a balmy 42.3. I turned up the thermostat.
While some parts were colder than others, the only part that wasn't cold at all was the part right over the engine, the part I sat on. Well, my new motorcycle boots also kept my feet and most of my calfs warm. Since I burned the knuckle of the pinkie finger of my left hand on the ride down from turning my heated gloves up too high over the Grapevine, I kept their temperature down on my ride back. My hands may not have been as warm, but blisters aren't so hot.
All in all, it was a really cool trip in more ways than one.
Thank goodness, once I got down in the LA Basin, it was psychologically warmer. (I couldn't really tell that it was but I convinced myself that it had to be. I also promised myself that I would look up the temperature differential for every 1,000 feet of elevation. I haven't yet.) Part of it was also that I got a haircut just before I left. Not only did this deprive me of my long neck hair, but I specifically asked for it to be cut shorter--for motorcycle riding. Helmut hair isn't very pretty. What's worse, the person who cut my hair had just returned from Disneyland and was telling me that the temperature over the Grapevine just the day before was 49 degrees.
Then Saturday, my walking tour tour guide daughter hikes me all over downtown LA. It really was something to see and the walking allowed us to see more of it. (While that last sentence was really a reference to the details that can only be noticed when one is taking things in a little more slowly, it is also true that there wasn't anyone standing in our way. LA really isn't a hotbed of hikers.) What's more, it was warmer than the cooler I had dressed for. Since I was dehydrated, at least I didn't sweat up my cloths.
A metro day pass allowed us to skip over to Hollywood and walk up and down a few of those streets. I can't say I remember ever getting to Hollywood and Vine but we did get to a Costume store and Amoeba's. We didn't get an outlandish costume, although there were several to choose from but my tour guide and her husband bought several, as in at least ten, CDs from Amoeba.
This made the day just long enough to stop back in Union Station, since we had to to change trains anyway, and eat at Traxx. After the large lunch we had at the Grand Central Market, where each of us went to a different venue for food of our choice, most of us were too full to eat much at Traxx--but we did anyway. I convinced myself that I had eaten such healthy foods with lots of vegetables that I could afford to go overboard for dessert. I don't know what lies my table companions told themselves. The problem was, it was worth it.
After another good nights sleep, we had special griddle cakes with a fruit compote and ginger maple syrup, courtesy of my daughter the chef and former tour guide. After a quick trip to the grocery store, I made sweet sticky rice to go with the mango I had taken down with me for that purpose, packed up and left. I don't know whether or not they tried the sweet sticky rice for lunch or at all today.
My packing was a little more compact than it was on the way down. Not only did I deliver a jar and left it there, but better distribution of what was packed allowed me to put my tennis shoes inside my "sissy bar bag." Plus, I wore more. In addition to my t-shirt, long sleeves shirt, and motorcycle jacket with its liner, I also wore my fleece vest fully zipped up. This combination work for at least 2/3 of the ride back. Once again, when it got dark it got cold. It was so cold that I actually slowed down to 70. It got so cold that I just had to check the outdoor temperature when I got home. It was a balmy 42.3. I turned up the thermostat.
While some parts were colder than others, the only part that wasn't cold at all was the part right over the engine, the part I sat on. Well, my new motorcycle boots also kept my feet and most of my calfs warm. Since I burned the knuckle of the pinkie finger of my left hand on the ride down from turning my heated gloves up too high over the Grapevine, I kept their temperature down on my ride back. My hands may not have been as warm, but blisters aren't so hot.
All in all, it was a really cool trip in more ways than one.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Why do I do it?
I like riding my motorcycle! Let me tell you why.
I first thought about riding a motorcycle when I was headed off to college and was looking for cheap transportation. I ended up not getting one because I was going to school in Ohio and wouldn’t have been able to ride it for most of the school year. Brr. Besides, I had just ridden behind my cousin on one and that was enough to make me question whether or not I was truly ready, or, in point of fact, would ever be ready.
A few years ago I finally convinced myself that it really was the weather that had stopped me from getting one. My wife claimed it was a mid-life crisis that brought me to this decision. At the time I was hoping that she was right. Well, actually I was hoping that it was more like a pre- mid-life crisis. Whatever it was, I got my motorcycle license the easy way through California’s Motorcycle Safety Training Class, bought a motorcycle, and started riding.
It didn’t take long to ride over all of the closer “good” riding roads and after getting stung by a rather large stinging insect on a particularly hot day I became a perfect weather rider. The day had to be cold enough to allow me to keep my jacket zipped up to keep those pesky bugs out from inside it but not too cold. After a few attempts to commute into San Francisco from Fremont on the I-880 corridor I realized that I really liked BART even if the weather was perfect. Riding during commute hours, with the morning generally dark as well, let’s just say that it was too exciting.
I bought my current bike in 2005. Due to a host of reasons, I really didn’t ride it all that much before this year but for some reason, I decided to ride across country. My longest previous ride had been to a couple Indian Casinos in the Sierra’s and back. (The joy of the ride was somewhat muted by my luck at the casinos, all of it bad.)
For practice, I rode down to visit my daughter and son-in-law in Pasadena, twice, 400 miles each way. Now, how I became a Twit is another story but it was on one of those rides that I got the idea that saying anything meaningful in 140 characters requires information density very much like poetry. (In fact my first composition was: “Tumbleweeds along the fence: Did they blow there Or did they grow there?” My son-in-law didn’t like my name for them and suggested “twoetry” or “twoems.” He also said something about Elmer Fudd. I don’t think he was referring to me.) The point is that riding for a long time with no phone, radio, or music only allows thinking.
On the cross-country trip I did ride for a long time. One morning I started late to let the rain pass and found myself riding late and composing my first, and so far last, limerick:
Riding late into the night,
With bugs who fought the good fight.
‘Though my visor is hurtin’,
Their salvation is certain.
Because they all saw the light.
Yes, except when it's too cold to ride, bugs are bad. I was glad that I had to get gas every two hours or so because that let me wash and squeegee my visor.
Then there are the smells. You know the good smells are few and far between when “l’odeur du skunk” is one of the more pleasant smells. Other than diesel exhaust, which makes my eyes water and my nose itch, the worst smell on my cross-country trip was when I was trapped behind a hog hauler in St. Louis. At least I didn’t notice any diesel exhaust but then I was trying not to breath.
My longest mileage day, 750 miles, was cut short when it started to hail. Even though I desperately wanted to get out of Kansas the most boring state for motorcycles, I stopped. At least there wasn’t a lot of rain because with a lot of rain my chaps act a lot like downspouts and my blue jeans act a lot like a sponge.
I also found out that there is no speed that makes 103 degrees feel anything cooler than HOT.
If you’ve ever ridden a motorcycle you know that taking your right hand off of the throttle slows the motorcycle down quickly. (Two wheeling friends, and all motorcyclists are friends, greet each other as they pass with a hand wave that is generally two fingers pointed down.) I was barely a quarter of the way across the country and already feeling the strain on my right arm and shoulder when a motorcyclist waved at me with his “right hand.” I immediately jumped to the obvious conclusion: He had cruise control. Two thousand miles later I got one of my own and quickly discovered that a constant throttle is nothing like a constant speed. If there were hills, downhill would be 15 miles above the speed I set and uphill would be slow enough to lug the engine. I did get to use it for about 50 miles in Kansas until a truck tried to pass me. The truck provided enough of a windbreak that my constant throttle sped me up to keep me right beside it. After a couple of miles I took my cruise control off and let him pass. I don’t think it was the same truck that ran me off the road when I got to California.
Heat, rain, hail, bugs, smells, traffic, why am I riding a motorcycle? It’s fun. Besides, how else can you get a helmut hair look half this attractive? So far I’ve ridden over 9,000 miles this year.
I first thought about riding a motorcycle when I was headed off to college and was looking for cheap transportation. I ended up not getting one because I was going to school in Ohio and wouldn’t have been able to ride it for most of the school year. Brr. Besides, I had just ridden behind my cousin on one and that was enough to make me question whether or not I was truly ready, or, in point of fact, would ever be ready.
A few years ago I finally convinced myself that it really was the weather that had stopped me from getting one. My wife claimed it was a mid-life crisis that brought me to this decision. At the time I was hoping that she was right. Well, actually I was hoping that it was more like a pre- mid-life crisis. Whatever it was, I got my motorcycle license the easy way through California’s Motorcycle Safety Training Class, bought a motorcycle, and started riding.
It didn’t take long to ride over all of the closer “good” riding roads and after getting stung by a rather large stinging insect on a particularly hot day I became a perfect weather rider. The day had to be cold enough to allow me to keep my jacket zipped up to keep those pesky bugs out from inside it but not too cold. After a few attempts to commute into San Francisco from Fremont on the I-880 corridor I realized that I really liked BART even if the weather was perfect. Riding during commute hours, with the morning generally dark as well, let’s just say that it was too exciting.
I bought my current bike in 2005. Due to a host of reasons, I really didn’t ride it all that much before this year but for some reason, I decided to ride across country. My longest previous ride had been to a couple Indian Casinos in the Sierra’s and back. (The joy of the ride was somewhat muted by my luck at the casinos, all of it bad.)
For practice, I rode down to visit my daughter and son-in-law in Pasadena, twice, 400 miles each way. Now, how I became a Twit is another story but it was on one of those rides that I got the idea that saying anything meaningful in 140 characters requires information density very much like poetry. (In fact my first composition was: “Tumbleweeds along the fence: Did they blow there Or did they grow there?” My son-in-law didn’t like my name for them and suggested “twoetry” or “twoems.” He also said something about Elmer Fudd. I don’t think he was referring to me.) The point is that riding for a long time with no phone, radio, or music only allows thinking.
On the cross-country trip I did ride for a long time. One morning I started late to let the rain pass and found myself riding late and composing my first, and so far last, limerick:
Riding late into the night,
With bugs who fought the good fight.
‘Though my visor is hurtin’,
Their salvation is certain.
Because they all saw the light.
Yes, except when it's too cold to ride, bugs are bad. I was glad that I had to get gas every two hours or so because that let me wash and squeegee my visor.
Then there are the smells. You know the good smells are few and far between when “l’odeur du skunk” is one of the more pleasant smells. Other than diesel exhaust, which makes my eyes water and my nose itch, the worst smell on my cross-country trip was when I was trapped behind a hog hauler in St. Louis. At least I didn’t notice any diesel exhaust but then I was trying not to breath.
My longest mileage day, 750 miles, was cut short when it started to hail. Even though I desperately wanted to get out of Kansas the most boring state for motorcycles, I stopped. At least there wasn’t a lot of rain because with a lot of rain my chaps act a lot like downspouts and my blue jeans act a lot like a sponge.
I also found out that there is no speed that makes 103 degrees feel anything cooler than HOT.
If you’ve ever ridden a motorcycle you know that taking your right hand off of the throttle slows the motorcycle down quickly. (Two wheeling friends, and all motorcyclists are friends, greet each other as they pass with a hand wave that is generally two fingers pointed down.) I was barely a quarter of the way across the country and already feeling the strain on my right arm and shoulder when a motorcyclist waved at me with his “right hand.” I immediately jumped to the obvious conclusion: He had cruise control. Two thousand miles later I got one of my own and quickly discovered that a constant throttle is nothing like a constant speed. If there were hills, downhill would be 15 miles above the speed I set and uphill would be slow enough to lug the engine. I did get to use it for about 50 miles in Kansas until a truck tried to pass me. The truck provided enough of a windbreak that my constant throttle sped me up to keep me right beside it. After a couple of miles I took my cruise control off and let him pass. I don’t think it was the same truck that ran me off the road when I got to California.
Heat, rain, hail, bugs, smells, traffic, why am I riding a motorcycle? It’s fun. Besides, how else can you get a helmut hair look half this attractive? So far I’ve ridden over 9,000 miles this year.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Official Census Document--NOT!
The envelope said "DO NOT DESTROY OFFICIAL DOCUMENT." Inside was "2009 CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT CENSUS."
It was a Republican fundraiser. I'm thinking of responding to their "census," without money. After all, what is an unemployed person supposed to do.
Their questions:
Political Profile
1. Do you generally identify yourself as a: Conservative Republican; Moderate Republican; Liberal Republican; Independent Vote who leans Republican; Other ________________
2. Do you traditionally vote in all elections? Yes or No.
3. Did you cast a vote in the following elections? 2008 Presidential Contest: Yes, No, Unsure. 2006 Mid-Term Elections: Yes, No, Unsure.
4. What age category below applies to you? 18-29, 30-44, 45-59, 60+
5. How close do you think your views are to other voters in your community? Very Close, Somewhat Close, Not Very Close, No Opinion.
6. From what media source do you regularly receive your political news? (You can check more than one) NBC/CBS/ABC, CNN/MSNBC, News Websites, Local Newspaper, Friends, Fox News, Facebook/MySpace, Internet Blogs, Radio, Twitter, Candidate Websites, National Magazines, Other ______________
7. How much does it concern you that the Democrats have total control of the federal government? Very Much; Not Too Much; Not A Concern; No Opinion
But I do have an opinion: The Democrats may have a majority but control?
General Issues
1. Do you think things in this country are generally going in the wrong direction, or do you feel things are starting to improve? Wrong Direction; Starting To Improve; Unsure
I haven't seen a direction yet, mostly because of Republican obstructionism but some from Democratic Party chaos.
2. Please indicate the top three issues that you believe are most important to people in your area: Economy; Environment; Immigration; Government Expansion; Federal Spending; Energy; National Security; Protecting Traditional Values; Taxes; Health Care; Foreign Policy; Education; Social Security; State Spending; Other ___________
For this question to be of any value I would think that my "views" must be "very close" to "the voters in my community."
3. Which political party do you feel is best able to handle each of the following issues? [Choices for each are:] Republican, Democratic, No Opinion. War in Irag/Afghanistan; War on Terror; Economy; Taxes; Health Care; Federal Spending; Social Security; Strong Military; Foreign Policy; Environment; Immigration; Energy; Education; Protecting Traditional Values
The last, "Protecting Traditional Values," I'm sure they don't define quite the same as I do. I'd like to think that the USA I am a citizen of will continue to protect the traditions of individual liberty as opposed to imposing sanctimonious morals on others.
4. How do you rate the Obama Administration thus far when it comes to dealing with America's major problems? Approve, Disapprove, No Opinion
5. How do you rate the Democrat controlled Congress? Approve, Disapprove, No Opinion
Domestic Issues
1. How confident are you that America's economy will improve in the next six month? Strongly Confident; Not To Confident; Somewhat Confident; Not Confident At All; No Opinion
2. Which Party do you think has the solutions to solve our current economic crisis? Republican; Democratic; Combination of Both; No Opinion
3. Which of the following factors do you feel is most adversely affecting the economy in your area? Burdensome Taxes; Severe Government Regulations; Unstable Real Estate Market; Growth of Government Spending; Threat of Terrorism; Loss of Jobs; Loss of Retirement Value; Other___________
4. Which of the following is the single most important economic issue facing you and your family? Health Care Costs; High Taxes; Loss of Retirement/Investment Values; Unemployment; Inflation/Rising Prices Overall; Other______________
5. Do you feel that the huge trillion-dollar solutions the Democrats have advanced to boost our economy will help or hurt our nation in the long run? Help; Hurt; No Opinion
At least it is less than the multi-trillion dollars that Bush and company spent for nothing. They might as well just have blown the money up. (Oh, they did.)
6. Would you like Congress to pass additional tax cuts to further stimulate our nation's economy? Yes; No; Undecided
7. Should Republican candidates in 2010 push for a total reform of our nation's tax laws that would make them more fair and simple? Yes; No; No Opinion
8. Do you worry that the Obama Administration is committed to greatly expanding the government's role in your life? Yes; No; No Opinion
9. Are you comfortable with our current levels of government spending? Current spending levels are okay; Spending should be decreased; Undecided
Spending should be increased for some things, reduced for some things, and taxes raised to cover the funding--from those who actually have the ability to pay. Corporate taxes should be on world-wide profits based on their percentage of revenue from the U.S.
10. Should Republicans do whatever is necessary to keep the Democrats in Congress from enacting government-run health care? Yes; No; No Opinion
All elected officials should become statesmen on this issue and get the best package for the citizens and residents of the U.S. There is no way that the best package includes the excessive profits of Health Insurance Companies based on ridiculously high expenses. Medicare for all!
11. Do you think that all Americans should be required to have some form of health insurance even if it requires the federal government to underwrite the costs? Yes; No; Undecided
There is no way that anyone should be required to contribute to the profits of Health Insurance companies.
12. Do you trust the Obama Administration to keep America's borders secure to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into our country? Yes; No; No Opinion
No Republican controlled government stopped the flow. In fact, their governing led to the arrest and conviction of two border guards who were doing their job to stop illegal aliens and drugs.
13. Do you believe that global warming is an issue that must be dealt with immediately? Yes; No; No Opinion
14. Using the numbers 1 through 5 (with 1 being the top priority) please indicate the policies you support most to address how the U.S. should meet future energy needs: Increase drilling in Alaska's ANWR; More funds for alternative fuels research; Build new oil refineries in the U.S.; Expand off-shore drilling; Greater investment in wind/solar power; Tap previously unrecoverable oil; Build new nuclear plants in the U.S.; Other___________
15. Do you believe that Congress must reform the current practice of earmarking or "pork barrel spending" that adds billions of dollars to appropriations bills? Yes; No; Undecided
How about the billions of dollars of fraud committed by government contractors?
16. Do you think the Democrat efforts to restore the "Fairness Doctrine" that will destroy conservative talk radio is a violation of free speech? Yes; No; No Opinion
Since the current laws do not give public personalities any recourse for the outright lies and what should be the illegal modification of video and other records, ... Do I believe that any "fairness doctrine" will correct these deficiencies?
17. Do you believe the Republican Party should continue to embrace social issues? Yes; No; Undecided If yes, please register your opinion on the following social issues: Key: 1=SUPPORT, 2=OPPOSE, 3=NO OPINION School prayer; Ban burning of the flag; Ban human cloning; Faith based initiatives; Ban all abortions; Prohibit homosexual marriage; Other______________
National Defense
1. Do you believe the Obama Administration is right in dramatically scaling back our nation's military? Yes; No; No Opinion
2. Do you favor or oppose increasing American troop presence in Afghanistan by tens of thousands of soldiers? Favor; Oppose; No Opinion
3. Do you trust the Democrats to take all steps necessary to keep our nation secure in this age where terrorists could strike our country at any moment? Yes; No; No Opinion
4. Are you concerned about the stability of other key countries in the Middle East--especially Pakistan--and their future as key American allies in the War on Terror? Yes; No; No Opinion
There they go again with the "War on Terror" phrase. I thought that officially we were no longer in a "war on terror."
5. Do you worry that Russia is moving away from its relationship with the U.S. and trying to re-establish itself as a military and economic superpower? Yes; No; No Opinion
If you've managed to read this far, please feel free to comment and let me know how you would like me to respond. If you want me to send money, you will have to supply it. I must warn you that my fundraising costs are excessive, like the Insurance Companies, which means that no money sent to me for this purpose will actually reach the Republican Party.
It was a Republican fundraiser. I'm thinking of responding to their "census," without money. After all, what is an unemployed person supposed to do.
Their questions:
Political Profile
1. Do you generally identify yourself as a: Conservative Republican; Moderate Republican; Liberal Republican; Independent Vote who leans Republican; Other ________________
2. Do you traditionally vote in all elections? Yes or No.
3. Did you cast a vote in the following elections? 2008 Presidential Contest: Yes, No, Unsure. 2006 Mid-Term Elections: Yes, No, Unsure.
4. What age category below applies to you? 18-29, 30-44, 45-59, 60+
5. How close do you think your views are to other voters in your community? Very Close, Somewhat Close, Not Very Close, No Opinion.
6. From what media source do you regularly receive your political news? (You can check more than one) NBC/CBS/ABC, CNN/MSNBC, News Websites, Local Newspaper, Friends, Fox News, Facebook/MySpace, Internet Blogs, Radio, Twitter, Candidate Websites, National Magazines, Other ______________
7. How much does it concern you that the Democrats have total control of the federal government? Very Much; Not Too Much; Not A Concern; No Opinion
But I do have an opinion: The Democrats may have a majority but control?
General Issues
1. Do you think things in this country are generally going in the wrong direction, or do you feel things are starting to improve? Wrong Direction; Starting To Improve; Unsure
I haven't seen a direction yet, mostly because of Republican obstructionism but some from Democratic Party chaos.
2. Please indicate the top three issues that you believe are most important to people in your area: Economy; Environment; Immigration; Government Expansion; Federal Spending; Energy; National Security; Protecting Traditional Values; Taxes; Health Care; Foreign Policy; Education; Social Security; State Spending; Other ___________
For this question to be of any value I would think that my "views" must be "very close" to "the voters in my community."
3. Which political party do you feel is best able to handle each of the following issues? [Choices for each are:] Republican, Democratic, No Opinion. War in Irag/Afghanistan; War on Terror; Economy; Taxes; Health Care; Federal Spending; Social Security; Strong Military; Foreign Policy; Environment; Immigration; Energy; Education; Protecting Traditional Values
The last, "Protecting Traditional Values," I'm sure they don't define quite the same as I do. I'd like to think that the USA I am a citizen of will continue to protect the traditions of individual liberty as opposed to imposing sanctimonious morals on others.
4. How do you rate the Obama Administration thus far when it comes to dealing with America's major problems? Approve, Disapprove, No Opinion
5. How do you rate the Democrat controlled Congress? Approve, Disapprove, No Opinion
Domestic Issues
1. How confident are you that America's economy will improve in the next six month? Strongly Confident; Not To Confident; Somewhat Confident; Not Confident At All; No Opinion
2. Which Party do you think has the solutions to solve our current economic crisis? Republican; Democratic; Combination of Both; No Opinion
3. Which of the following factors do you feel is most adversely affecting the economy in your area? Burdensome Taxes; Severe Government Regulations; Unstable Real Estate Market; Growth of Government Spending; Threat of Terrorism; Loss of Jobs; Loss of Retirement Value; Other___________
4. Which of the following is the single most important economic issue facing you and your family? Health Care Costs; High Taxes; Loss of Retirement/Investment Values; Unemployment; Inflation/Rising Prices Overall; Other______________
5. Do you feel that the huge trillion-dollar solutions the Democrats have advanced to boost our economy will help or hurt our nation in the long run? Help; Hurt; No Opinion
At least it is less than the multi-trillion dollars that Bush and company spent for nothing. They might as well just have blown the money up. (Oh, they did.)
6. Would you like Congress to pass additional tax cuts to further stimulate our nation's economy? Yes; No; Undecided
7. Should Republican candidates in 2010 push for a total reform of our nation's tax laws that would make them more fair and simple? Yes; No; No Opinion
8. Do you worry that the Obama Administration is committed to greatly expanding the government's role in your life? Yes; No; No Opinion
9. Are you comfortable with our current levels of government spending? Current spending levels are okay; Spending should be decreased; Undecided
Spending should be increased for some things, reduced for some things, and taxes raised to cover the funding--from those who actually have the ability to pay. Corporate taxes should be on world-wide profits based on their percentage of revenue from the U.S.
10. Should Republicans do whatever is necessary to keep the Democrats in Congress from enacting government-run health care? Yes; No; No Opinion
All elected officials should become statesmen on this issue and get the best package for the citizens and residents of the U.S. There is no way that the best package includes the excessive profits of Health Insurance Companies based on ridiculously high expenses. Medicare for all!
11. Do you think that all Americans should be required to have some form of health insurance even if it requires the federal government to underwrite the costs? Yes; No; Undecided
There is no way that anyone should be required to contribute to the profits of Health Insurance companies.
12. Do you trust the Obama Administration to keep America's borders secure to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into our country? Yes; No; No Opinion
No Republican controlled government stopped the flow. In fact, their governing led to the arrest and conviction of two border guards who were doing their job to stop illegal aliens and drugs.
13. Do you believe that global warming is an issue that must be dealt with immediately? Yes; No; No Opinion
14. Using the numbers 1 through 5 (with 1 being the top priority) please indicate the policies you support most to address how the U.S. should meet future energy needs: Increase drilling in Alaska's ANWR; More funds for alternative fuels research; Build new oil refineries in the U.S.; Expand off-shore drilling; Greater investment in wind/solar power; Tap previously unrecoverable oil; Build new nuclear plants in the U.S.; Other___________
15. Do you believe that Congress must reform the current practice of earmarking or "pork barrel spending" that adds billions of dollars to appropriations bills? Yes; No; Undecided
How about the billions of dollars of fraud committed by government contractors?
16. Do you think the Democrat efforts to restore the "Fairness Doctrine" that will destroy conservative talk radio is a violation of free speech? Yes; No; No Opinion
Since the current laws do not give public personalities any recourse for the outright lies and what should be the illegal modification of video and other records, ... Do I believe that any "fairness doctrine" will correct these deficiencies?
17. Do you believe the Republican Party should continue to embrace social issues? Yes; No; Undecided If yes, please register your opinion on the following social issues: Key: 1=SUPPORT, 2=OPPOSE, 3=NO OPINION School prayer; Ban burning of the flag; Ban human cloning; Faith based initiatives; Ban all abortions; Prohibit homosexual marriage; Other______________
National Defense
1. Do you believe the Obama Administration is right in dramatically scaling back our nation's military? Yes; No; No Opinion
2. Do you favor or oppose increasing American troop presence in Afghanistan by tens of thousands of soldiers? Favor; Oppose; No Opinion
3. Do you trust the Democrats to take all steps necessary to keep our nation secure in this age where terrorists could strike our country at any moment? Yes; No; No Opinion
4. Are you concerned about the stability of other key countries in the Middle East--especially Pakistan--and their future as key American allies in the War on Terror? Yes; No; No Opinion
There they go again with the "War on Terror" phrase. I thought that officially we were no longer in a "war on terror."
5. Do you worry that Russia is moving away from its relationship with the U.S. and trying to re-establish itself as a military and economic superpower? Yes; No; No Opinion
If you've managed to read this far, please feel free to comment and let me know how you would like me to respond. If you want me to send money, you will have to supply it. I must warn you that my fundraising costs are excessive, like the Insurance Companies, which means that no money sent to me for this purpose will actually reach the Republican Party.
I Don't Blame
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
They wouldn’t settle for an image less than true.
By the time they did the MRI she asked,
Three months had passed.
Then she agreed to the CT Scan too.
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
Maximum radiation through and through
Was their advice and she felt trapped.
So she was zapped
For a colorectal cancer that surgery alone should do.
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
I don’t blame Marilyn, but I do.
She promised me when our vows were new
That we’d grow old together, just us two.
Fifty-nine isn’t old, by quite a few.
I’ve been alone before but never knew.
I don’t blame Marilyn, but I do.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
As normal, I left your decisions up to you.
I should have insisted on pap smears and scans,
Forced you to revise your plans.
There should have been something I could have done to still have you.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
Gone the opportunity to say some things to you.
Often what I did say came out wrong but I always hoped you knew.
Far longer than the traditional vows, my love is true.
I’ve only had one soul mate and it was you.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
They wouldn’t settle for an image less than true.
By the time they did the MRI she asked,
Three months had passed.
Then she agreed to the CT Scan too.
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
Maximum radiation through and through
Was their advice and she felt trapped.
So she was zapped
For a colorectal cancer that surgery alone should do.
I don’t blame Kaiser, but I do.
I don’t blame Marilyn, but I do.
She promised me when our vows were new
That we’d grow old together, just us two.
Fifty-nine isn’t old, by quite a few.
I’ve been alone before but never knew.
I don’t blame Marilyn, but I do.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
As normal, I left your decisions up to you.
I should have insisted on pap smears and scans,
Forced you to revise your plans.
There should have been something I could have done to still have you.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
Gone the opportunity to say some things to you.
Often what I did say came out wrong but I always hoped you knew.
Far longer than the traditional vows, my love is true.
I’ve only had one soul mate and it was you.
I don’t blame me, but most of all I do.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Tenth Toastmaster Speech...
Again with the qualifier that I don't really read it so what comes out is never exactly what was written...
My fellow Toastmasters and Honored Guests:
My speech tonight is “Inspiring. Who me?” It’s a personal story about the way I used to be and why I became better.
I now can admit to being a cynic most of my life, although, I’d rather you think of it as just being a healthy skeptic. My wife said that I should have been born in the “show me” state. In fact, it turns out that I do have some relatives living in Missouri—but I wasn’t born there.
How bad was I?
When I first read about a person who was convicted for his third strike and sentenced to 25 years for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his family, I thought: “Yeah, most crimes never have an arrest. A high number of arrests aren’t prosecuted or are dismissed for technical reasons. He probably committed other crimes.” Besides, it costs more to incarcerate someone for four years than it does to pay for a four-year state college.
I was the kind of person who would walk by a homeless panhandler, and there were and probably still are quite a few in San Francisco, and while trying not to breathe think I was doing something great by looking them in the eye and mouthing “sorry.” Besides, Newsom passed his “care not cash.” I didn’t care, at least not then, not really.
My greatest cynicism has always been reserved for politicians. By the time they get to any higher elected office, they had to have sold themselves to the big buck donors, the special interests, and their cronies. I don’t know why I’ve voted in every election since I became eligible to vote, since often I felt like I was voting for the least worst?
I’ve worked for over thirty years at various companies and at virtually every one of them compromises were always based on figuring out the “what’s in it for me” for each person involved. Very rarely was the “what’s in it for me” something for the good of the company or the environment or people in general. Thank goodness this was always for small things like credit or control and not contracting out hazardous waste disposal to some company that would just pour it down the nearest storm drain.
Cynicism has an outward manifestation. I commuted into San Francisco on BART for years, first from Fremont and later from Pacifica. Every weekday, twice a day, I could have looked around at all the numb expressionless faces but I didn’t. My numb expressionless face was usually buried in a book or work or a puzzle in the newspaper.
It’s easy to be cynical. Events happen almost everyday that are cheap attempts to manipulate someone. Recently we found out that the Balloon Boy who wasn’t was staged in an attempt to gain a reality show. It’s easy to expect the worst in people and always see what you expect.
It’s also easy to parlay these manipulation attempts into believing that all tearjerker stories are made up. Certainly many of the email chains of sob stories are. A cynic would even have doubts about whether the nine-year old boy dying from cancer truly made his “make a wish” a wish for world peace, or, think “what a wasted wish.”
On the other hand, it’s hard not to be cynical. People who look for the best in people are considered fools, or at best gullible—by the cynics. In my cynical reaction to the person who stole the loaf of bread, I never even thought of how hard it is for an ex-con to find a legitimate job.
Even a cynic can be inspired. My loved ones are truly a joy that “inspired” me to endure work, commuting, even my own cynicism. Of course, they had to endure it too.
I’ve also been inspired by deadlines. I don’t know how many all nighters I pulled in college to write papers due the next day, well, later that same day.
I’ve been inspired by humor, not the Don Rickles’ kind of insult humor, not even most jokes as most jokes have victims, the butts of the jokes. Unless I threw them out, somewhere in a box I may have pages of such jokes that a friend gave me with blank lines where the “victim” is to go. My writing certainly improved with some humor—like this—that and a word processor that checks grammar.
While I have been inspired by some of my bosses, I wasn’t by the one who left a meeting with these words: “Be creative.” I can’t even remember what we were supposed to be creative about but I know we weren’t inspired or creative.
From time to time I’ve been inspired by words. I’ve handed out my favorite quote to quite a few of my direct reports because I’ve found these excerpted words from a book about the Scottish Himalayan Expedition inspiring: (Parts of it have been traced to Goethe.)
"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back-- Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."
But what is my commitment? What is yours?
It was in the depths of my despair while commuting after the loss of my wife that an event occurred, which struck me so profoundly, right to my heart, that I credit it as the trigger that turned my life around. This event hasn’t been the only thing that has happened that helped but my life is significantly different, better now in large part because of what this event started. What’s amazing, it’s something that everyone can do.
As I just said, I was commuting with my dead commuter face on, surrounded by other dead commuter faces and someone smiled. It wasn’t even directed at me but the genuinely warm smile brought her face to life and that started me thinking.
I didn’t start smiling right away but my thinking did lead to my own improved outlook. It led to me joining Toastmasters. It led to me taking up meditation. While I still have my moments of despair and outright sadness, I’m making it a point to smile more in the hopes that I can pass along the gift I was given.
Mr. Toastmaster
My fellow Toastmasters and Honored Guests:
My speech tonight is “Inspiring. Who me?” It’s a personal story about the way I used to be and why I became better.
I now can admit to being a cynic most of my life, although, I’d rather you think of it as just being a healthy skeptic. My wife said that I should have been born in the “show me” state. In fact, it turns out that I do have some relatives living in Missouri—but I wasn’t born there.
How bad was I?
When I first read about a person who was convicted for his third strike and sentenced to 25 years for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his family, I thought: “Yeah, most crimes never have an arrest. A high number of arrests aren’t prosecuted or are dismissed for technical reasons. He probably committed other crimes.” Besides, it costs more to incarcerate someone for four years than it does to pay for a four-year state college.
I was the kind of person who would walk by a homeless panhandler, and there were and probably still are quite a few in San Francisco, and while trying not to breathe think I was doing something great by looking them in the eye and mouthing “sorry.” Besides, Newsom passed his “care not cash.” I didn’t care, at least not then, not really.
My greatest cynicism has always been reserved for politicians. By the time they get to any higher elected office, they had to have sold themselves to the big buck donors, the special interests, and their cronies. I don’t know why I’ve voted in every election since I became eligible to vote, since often I felt like I was voting for the least worst?
I’ve worked for over thirty years at various companies and at virtually every one of them compromises were always based on figuring out the “what’s in it for me” for each person involved. Very rarely was the “what’s in it for me” something for the good of the company or the environment or people in general. Thank goodness this was always for small things like credit or control and not contracting out hazardous waste disposal to some company that would just pour it down the nearest storm drain.
Cynicism has an outward manifestation. I commuted into San Francisco on BART for years, first from Fremont and later from Pacifica. Every weekday, twice a day, I could have looked around at all the numb expressionless faces but I didn’t. My numb expressionless face was usually buried in a book or work or a puzzle in the newspaper.
It’s easy to be cynical. Events happen almost everyday that are cheap attempts to manipulate someone. Recently we found out that the Balloon Boy who wasn’t was staged in an attempt to gain a reality show. It’s easy to expect the worst in people and always see what you expect.
It’s also easy to parlay these manipulation attempts into believing that all tearjerker stories are made up. Certainly many of the email chains of sob stories are. A cynic would even have doubts about whether the nine-year old boy dying from cancer truly made his “make a wish” a wish for world peace, or, think “what a wasted wish.”
On the other hand, it’s hard not to be cynical. People who look for the best in people are considered fools, or at best gullible—by the cynics. In my cynical reaction to the person who stole the loaf of bread, I never even thought of how hard it is for an ex-con to find a legitimate job.
Even a cynic can be inspired. My loved ones are truly a joy that “inspired” me to endure work, commuting, even my own cynicism. Of course, they had to endure it too.
I’ve also been inspired by deadlines. I don’t know how many all nighters I pulled in college to write papers due the next day, well, later that same day.
I’ve been inspired by humor, not the Don Rickles’ kind of insult humor, not even most jokes as most jokes have victims, the butts of the jokes. Unless I threw them out, somewhere in a box I may have pages of such jokes that a friend gave me with blank lines where the “victim” is to go. My writing certainly improved with some humor—like this—that and a word processor that checks grammar.
While I have been inspired by some of my bosses, I wasn’t by the one who left a meeting with these words: “Be creative.” I can’t even remember what we were supposed to be creative about but I know we weren’t inspired or creative.
From time to time I’ve been inspired by words. I’ve handed out my favorite quote to quite a few of my direct reports because I’ve found these excerpted words from a book about the Scottish Himalayan Expedition inspiring: (Parts of it have been traced to Goethe.)
"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back-- Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."
But what is my commitment? What is yours?
It was in the depths of my despair while commuting after the loss of my wife that an event occurred, which struck me so profoundly, right to my heart, that I credit it as the trigger that turned my life around. This event hasn’t been the only thing that has happened that helped but my life is significantly different, better now in large part because of what this event started. What’s amazing, it’s something that everyone can do.
As I just said, I was commuting with my dead commuter face on, surrounded by other dead commuter faces and someone smiled. It wasn’t even directed at me but the genuinely warm smile brought her face to life and that started me thinking.
I didn’t start smiling right away but my thinking did lead to my own improved outlook. It led to me joining Toastmasters. It led to me taking up meditation. While I still have my moments of despair and outright sadness, I’m making it a point to smile more in the hopes that I can pass along the gift I was given.
Mr. Toastmaster
Friday, October 9, 2009
Eliminate all laws
In an "Effective Listening" class at Toastmasters last night, I was privileged to be the "speaker" in the first exercise. One other person in our group suggested one of the 29 speech options, "What existing laws should be eliminated," and I agreed.
While I think the question was to generate more narrow selections, such as the laws around drug possession, it is my opinion, which I expressed, that all laws should be eliminated on the way to their complete replacement with much simpler laws. These simpler laws can be summarized even more simply as: "Do the right thing."
The problem is that the current laws are mostly just protection for legalized theft, theft by government entities, theft by corporations, theft by corrupt lawyers, ... All of these thieves wriggle out of their punishment and full restitution through the loopholes many of them have built into the laws. My prime example was the Simmons Mattress company who through a series of leveraged buyouts made all of the five purchasers money, phenomenal money, but loaded the formerly reasonably profitable company down with so much debt that this recent recession meant that they couldn't produce and sell enough mattresses to pay on the debt. They are now bankrupt and their employees are out of jobs. There ought to be a law...
There is. In fact there are millions of them. When combined with all the regulations that have the force of law, there are even more. I'm no lawyer but the robbery of the Simmons Mattress company to the point of insolvency was probably legal. What's more, even if it weren't, there is no redress. The five purchasers who made money just by buying and selling Simmons and didn't contribute to its business at all, will not have to give any of their profits back, will not have to make whole their robbery victims. Even if they did, it would be unlikely that any of the money would go to the business, just the last creditors.
One of the participants in my subteam commented on a ticket they just received in San Francisco. Her father just passed away and she was driving his former car in San Francisco only to receive a $60 ticket because it has a plastic cover over the license plate. San Francisco has a "law" that prohibits plastic covers as they may make the traffic light cameras ineffective. Not that they do, or in point of fact, that the one that her father had on his car for years did, or that she or he ever operated the car illegally, let alone by running a red light even at an intersection with a camera.
Yes, all we need is one page's worth of laws that boils down to "do what's right," disallow ill gotten gains from doing wrong, and further provide full compensation for the victims however long it takes.
While I think the question was to generate more narrow selections, such as the laws around drug possession, it is my opinion, which I expressed, that all laws should be eliminated on the way to their complete replacement with much simpler laws. These simpler laws can be summarized even more simply as: "Do the right thing."
The problem is that the current laws are mostly just protection for legalized theft, theft by government entities, theft by corporations, theft by corrupt lawyers, ... All of these thieves wriggle out of their punishment and full restitution through the loopholes many of them have built into the laws. My prime example was the Simmons Mattress company who through a series of leveraged buyouts made all of the five purchasers money, phenomenal money, but loaded the formerly reasonably profitable company down with so much debt that this recent recession meant that they couldn't produce and sell enough mattresses to pay on the debt. They are now bankrupt and their employees are out of jobs. There ought to be a law...
There is. In fact there are millions of them. When combined with all the regulations that have the force of law, there are even more. I'm no lawyer but the robbery of the Simmons Mattress company to the point of insolvency was probably legal. What's more, even if it weren't, there is no redress. The five purchasers who made money just by buying and selling Simmons and didn't contribute to its business at all, will not have to give any of their profits back, will not have to make whole their robbery victims. Even if they did, it would be unlikely that any of the money would go to the business, just the last creditors.
One of the participants in my subteam commented on a ticket they just received in San Francisco. Her father just passed away and she was driving his former car in San Francisco only to receive a $60 ticket because it has a plastic cover over the license plate. San Francisco has a "law" that prohibits plastic covers as they may make the traffic light cameras ineffective. Not that they do, or in point of fact, that the one that her father had on his car for years did, or that she or he ever operated the car illegally, let alone by running a red light even at an intersection with a camera.
Yes, all we need is one page's worth of laws that boils down to "do what's right," disallow ill gotten gains from doing wrong, and further provide full compensation for the victims however long it takes.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Speaking at Toastmasters...
It all started this way...
I prepared a somewhat humorous speech about riding my motorcycle, incorporating some of the experiences I "enjoyed" in my cross-country trek this last summer. Then three hours before I was to give it, I decided to edit it and add a couple other items. This meant cutting out words that I had already written. (Some of those words were deleted, gone from the electronic copy and as soon as I recycle the paper, gone from the hardcopy as well. Some of them I just put in parentheses as kind of optional words. If I am to keep it under 7.5 minutes, I doubt that I will be able to say many of them.)
I was done with this editing about an hour before I left for Toastmasters. Then I took another look at the Toastmaster book and the instructions for this particular speech. My attempt to be humorous didn't fit. So I pulled out some notes I had been making on Global Warming, less than a page of handwritten facts and decided to make my speech on "Climate Change." While I did review them, I really didn't refer to them for most of my speech.
I was planning on posting my speech, but I didn't write the one I gave out. I will write some of it here with the caveat that my written word is never exactly what I said, even if it were written in advance and practiced.
The speech:
While there are some who still question whether global warming is occurring, the thinning ice fields in Greenland and Antarctica, the ice free Northwest passage, and world-wide receding glaciers make it a fact. Not only that, it's accelerating. In 1910 there were 150 glaciers in Glacier National Park. Today there are 27.
Then there are those who claim it's a natural cycle and mankind has not contributed to it let alone be its cause. The evidence they use is that carbon dioxide always rose after a warming cycle. This is true as warmer oceans are unable to absorb as much carbon dioxide. While I believe the evidence refutes mankind's lack of involvement, which I will get to soon, ultimately it doesn't matter. Whether by the hand of man or nature, the fact of global warming will kill animals and plants up to entire species. As the sea level rises and storms surge higher millions of humans will be displaced. As weather becomes more extreme and temperate climates march further north and south, millions of acres of farmland will no longer be arable. Whether by man or nature, we are already to late to avoid the effects of global warming.
There are a lot of greenhouse gases, gases that accept light from the sun and inhibit the radiation of heat back into space. Carbon dioxide is but one. Water vapor is another. Methane is as well. Even though cows produce methane, I can make the argument that much of their production is also the hand of man. I can make similar arguments that some portion of water vapor is also due to mankind. The real bell weather still is carbon dioxide.
Now as I've already said, past warming cycles atmospheric carbon dioxide rose after the warming as the warmer oceans couldn't absorb as much. Since 1880, the oceans' average temperature is up only 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Over the past 300 years, since the Industrial Revolution, the atmospheric carbon dioxide has risen 35%. There is evidence that this is accelerating and for good reason. In 2006 the U.S. had over 250 million passenger vehicles, excluding buses and trains. These vehicles combined to produce over 1.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide in that year. There are also 600 coal fired electricity generation plants in the U.S. An average plant produces 3.7 million tons of carbon dioxide for another 2.2 billion tons. In point of fact, the U.S. on a per capita basis produces 19.5 tons of carbon dioxide, which is 6 billion tons. Unfortunately, on a per capita basis, Australia produces more at 20.6 tons per person.
Far down on the list on a per capita basis are China and India at 4.5 tons and 1.16 tons respectively. Unfortunately, their production is rising almost exponentially. India has introduced the Tata Nano, a cheap car for the masses of the new lower middle class. A gallon of gas produces 19 pounds of carbon dioxide and the refining and delivery of each gallon produces another 6 pounds. On an absolute basis, China is already the largest producer of carbon dioxide. While it is unlikely that India will surpass China, one is already ahead of the U.S. and the other will be soon.
In the face of this, what can we do? I'm not even sure whether we can become carbon neutral. Even if we were, China and India will keep the manmade cause of global warming moving right along. I also don't recommend buying carbon offsets. In my opinion, this is just a self-imposed fine to enable the excessive polluter to feel better. Even though the Northern Arctic is supposed to be ice free by 2040, I also don't recommend donating to Save the Polar Bears.
What I do recommend is taking the small steps, making sure your next car purchase gets well above average gas mileage, turning off lights in rooms, replacing incandescent bulbs with CFLs or LEDs, unplugging chargers not being used...
It's not just about saving the planet, it's about saving humankind, the lives of our children.
I prepared a somewhat humorous speech about riding my motorcycle, incorporating some of the experiences I "enjoyed" in my cross-country trek this last summer. Then three hours before I was to give it, I decided to edit it and add a couple other items. This meant cutting out words that I had already written. (Some of those words were deleted, gone from the electronic copy and as soon as I recycle the paper, gone from the hardcopy as well. Some of them I just put in parentheses as kind of optional words. If I am to keep it under 7.5 minutes, I doubt that I will be able to say many of them.)
I was done with this editing about an hour before I left for Toastmasters. Then I took another look at the Toastmaster book and the instructions for this particular speech. My attempt to be humorous didn't fit. So I pulled out some notes I had been making on Global Warming, less than a page of handwritten facts and decided to make my speech on "Climate Change." While I did review them, I really didn't refer to them for most of my speech.
I was planning on posting my speech, but I didn't write the one I gave out. I will write some of it here with the caveat that my written word is never exactly what I said, even if it were written in advance and practiced.
The speech:
While there are some who still question whether global warming is occurring, the thinning ice fields in Greenland and Antarctica, the ice free Northwest passage, and world-wide receding glaciers make it a fact. Not only that, it's accelerating. In 1910 there were 150 glaciers in Glacier National Park. Today there are 27.
Then there are those who claim it's a natural cycle and mankind has not contributed to it let alone be its cause. The evidence they use is that carbon dioxide always rose after a warming cycle. This is true as warmer oceans are unable to absorb as much carbon dioxide. While I believe the evidence refutes mankind's lack of involvement, which I will get to soon, ultimately it doesn't matter. Whether by the hand of man or nature, the fact of global warming will kill animals and plants up to entire species. As the sea level rises and storms surge higher millions of humans will be displaced. As weather becomes more extreme and temperate climates march further north and south, millions of acres of farmland will no longer be arable. Whether by man or nature, we are already to late to avoid the effects of global warming.
There are a lot of greenhouse gases, gases that accept light from the sun and inhibit the radiation of heat back into space. Carbon dioxide is but one. Water vapor is another. Methane is as well. Even though cows produce methane, I can make the argument that much of their production is also the hand of man. I can make similar arguments that some portion of water vapor is also due to mankind. The real bell weather still is carbon dioxide.
Now as I've already said, past warming cycles atmospheric carbon dioxide rose after the warming as the warmer oceans couldn't absorb as much. Since 1880, the oceans' average temperature is up only 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Over the past 300 years, since the Industrial Revolution, the atmospheric carbon dioxide has risen 35%. There is evidence that this is accelerating and for good reason. In 2006 the U.S. had over 250 million passenger vehicles, excluding buses and trains. These vehicles combined to produce over 1.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide in that year. There are also 600 coal fired electricity generation plants in the U.S. An average plant produces 3.7 million tons of carbon dioxide for another 2.2 billion tons. In point of fact, the U.S. on a per capita basis produces 19.5 tons of carbon dioxide, which is 6 billion tons. Unfortunately, on a per capita basis, Australia produces more at 20.6 tons per person.
Far down on the list on a per capita basis are China and India at 4.5 tons and 1.16 tons respectively. Unfortunately, their production is rising almost exponentially. India has introduced the Tata Nano, a cheap car for the masses of the new lower middle class. A gallon of gas produces 19 pounds of carbon dioxide and the refining and delivery of each gallon produces another 6 pounds. On an absolute basis, China is already the largest producer of carbon dioxide. While it is unlikely that India will surpass China, one is already ahead of the U.S. and the other will be soon.
In the face of this, what can we do? I'm not even sure whether we can become carbon neutral. Even if we were, China and India will keep the manmade cause of global warming moving right along. I also don't recommend buying carbon offsets. In my opinion, this is just a self-imposed fine to enable the excessive polluter to feel better. Even though the Northern Arctic is supposed to be ice free by 2040, I also don't recommend donating to Save the Polar Bears.
What I do recommend is taking the small steps, making sure your next car purchase gets well above average gas mileage, turning off lights in rooms, replacing incandescent bulbs with CFLs or LEDs, unplugging chargers not being used...
It's not just about saving the planet, it's about saving humankind, the lives of our children.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Camping and not on the Road to Alaska
First, riding a motorcycle with minimum planning, only the route, is not conducive to camping. So I ended up making good time and sleeping in hotels. Future motorcycle rides will require more planning with identified camping spots, maybe even reservations. One thing I can guarantee is that I won't be camping in RV Parks.
That isn't to say they were all bad. In fact, a few were truly great: West Lake Park, Iowa; Spearfish, South Dakota; Denali National Park, Alaska... The good ones all had a few things in common, quiet, clean restrooms and showers, and a nice place for pitching a tent. The bad ones also had a few things in common, mainly road noise and unmitigated dirt and gravel.
Unfortunately, being that far north, both the good and bad had one thing in common: light. I came to realize that I slept well in my first two years of college not just because I was young but because I "dormed" in a sensory deprivation chamber. Being an interior room with thick dark curtains over the window that only led to the hall anyway under tons of concrete, a stadium, was very much like living in a cave. Of course, comparing my fellow "dormies" to cavemen wouldn't stretch the analogy too far either. Needless to say, I was awake until late and awake again early. At least I got some good walking in.
With all the light around the Summer Solstice, I would be irritable in the summer and with all the lack of light around the Winter Solstice, I would be depressed in the winter. I guess I understand better the "unique" personalities of certain northern politicians. (One of whom was in Fairbanks the weekend after we left to quit her first term governorship with a picnic at Pioneer Park. It looked like the whole town was celebrating, maybe the whole state was.)
The real problem with all the light wasn't that the light solely caused the lack of sleep, it was that there was good light for driving at all hours. This was aggravated by the placement of most of the RV Parks close to the road that had the traffic. (If they hadn't been placed there, we probably wouldn't have noticed them and not stopped.) My parents did have a truly big book of RV Parks with a lot of information. This was used as the first filter. We selected the best of the ones both on our way and in a window of when we wanted to stop. Sometimes the choices were few and our first selections were inadequate or unavailable. When this happened, we drove on to the next. At least we didn't need to worry about driving in the dark.
Every once in a while we would stay at a hotel. If I had an unlimited amount of money, I'd probably do this all the time but hotels/motels were definitely a big plus every once in a while. The one plus was not having to put shoes on and walk for a mile to go to the bathroom. (I guess the light helping me get less sleep was a plus when tenting.) One other plus that I'll mention was the air conditioning. When tenting, in addition to being light, it was hot right up until the time it wasn't. This meant that if I were fortunate enough to fall asleep on top of my sleeping bag in spite of the jake brakes and light, I would be awakened in the middle of that sleep, right about when the darkness was as good as it was going to get for sleeping, and have to crawl into my sleeping bag wasting precious minutes of sleeping time. Invariably, the cold would often trigger a hike to the restroom as well.
Sometimes the better RV Parks would have campers that loved their campfire. We didn't have any but I still had all the advantages of our fellow campers' fires. Yes, I am still a smoke magnet. Unfortunately, I found that I don't sleep so well in smoke either. My sinuses clog up.
Unfortunately, Alaska was on fire. After one night of camping, we decided to stay at a hotel in Fairbanks and took the advice of a Northpole, Alaska, visitor center attendant as to where. As we found later but didn't know at the time, this was probably the one hotel that didn't have air conditioning. Instead we had fans that sucked all the smoky air we were trying to avoid into the room to cool it off.
Disclaimer: While it may not be obvious that the trip was fun in spite of the above, there were no exaggerations needed to make this story.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Family Reunion Day
After 2,812 miles on my motorcycle I made it into my parents' place with a day and a half to rest up before we embarked on the roads to Alaska. Of course, I didn't really rest. In fact, I did something to my arm playing my parents on their Wii. As was to be the norm throughout the trip but so far I was unsuspecting, I lost. What's more, I damaged my shoulder. I think it was the Wii baseball. They were just flicking their wrists but to get the speed of my fast ball up, I had to do the full wind up.
After not resting, I got up and was fully dressed for our 7:00 AM departure when my father serenaded my with his traditional "wake up" song. (Calling it a song is being generous, or at least the way he sings it.) Despite my protests that I was not only up but dressed, he carried through to the very end. Later he confessed that certain of my other relatives insisted that he "sing" the traditional morning song. I must admit that he had children who got up promptly without extraordinary measures. On the rare occasion that one of us triggered the "song," the ones who didn't made sure the guilty party didn't have another relapse for a while. Of course, I encouraged his waking my children up that way.
The first stop on our Alaska excursion was the Westbrook Family Reunion. This reunion has been occurring for years. Some of my earliest memories are of it, which means its once a year occurrence definitely made an impression. (Thanksgiving was another major "reunion" memory but that was only my father's parents' descendants.) At least half of the attendees, if not more, were the Thanksgiving crew and their descendants.
When I was a child attending this thing, it was a lot more play but I felt right at home eating and talking, a lot of both. Of course, I missed a lot of them as my family moved West. I was guaranteed the prize for the person who traveled the furthest to get there.
The highlight was the fundraiser auction of all the items each family brought. Since I rode a motorcycle, I didn't buy anything for me but tried to buy something for each of my sisters. It was easy for my two youngest, probably because I bought things they didn't really want. But my oldest sister decided she really wanted something and WOULDN'T LET ME BUY IT. Since it was only money and for a good cause, I kept bidding. Finally I attracted her attention and told her to stop bidding already. I don't think she really believed that I was bidding on it to gift it to her until it was delivered to her.
After talking late into the afternoon, so late it was evening, we finally left for our first night's stop, my middle sister. We got there late enough that we didn't do much but eat again and go to bed. The road to Alaska was beckoning and we wanted to get to it.
After not resting, I got up and was fully dressed for our 7:00 AM departure when my father serenaded my with his traditional "wake up" song. (Calling it a song is being generous, or at least the way he sings it.) Despite my protests that I was not only up but dressed, he carried through to the very end. Later he confessed that certain of my other relatives insisted that he "sing" the traditional morning song. I must admit that he had children who got up promptly without extraordinary measures. On the rare occasion that one of us triggered the "song," the ones who didn't made sure the guilty party didn't have another relapse for a while. Of course, I encouraged his waking my children up that way.
The first stop on our Alaska excursion was the Westbrook Family Reunion. This reunion has been occurring for years. Some of my earliest memories are of it, which means its once a year occurrence definitely made an impression. (Thanksgiving was another major "reunion" memory but that was only my father's parents' descendants.) At least half of the attendees, if not more, were the Thanksgiving crew and their descendants.
When I was a child attending this thing, it was a lot more play but I felt right at home eating and talking, a lot of both. Of course, I missed a lot of them as my family moved West. I was guaranteed the prize for the person who traveled the furthest to get there.
The highlight was the fundraiser auction of all the items each family brought. Since I rode a motorcycle, I didn't buy anything for me but tried to buy something for each of my sisters. It was easy for my two youngest, probably because I bought things they didn't really want. But my oldest sister decided she really wanted something and WOULDN'T LET ME BUY IT. Since it was only money and for a good cause, I kept bidding. Finally I attracted her attention and told her to stop bidding already. I don't think she really believed that I was bidding on it to gift it to her until it was delivered to her.
After talking late into the afternoon, so late it was evening, we finally left for our first night's stop, my middle sister. We got there late enough that we didn't do much but eat again and go to bed. The road to Alaska was beckoning and we wanted to get to it.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Alaska Trip: Road Games
Many of my early memories of car trips involved road games. While many of them had a learning reinforcement aspect, most of them were designed to keep the kids relatively quiet. (This may be why many of our trips before we children grew old enough to participate in the games were at night when we would sleep.) When we were old enough, the games kept us busy enough to keep us from asking, at least frequently, "Are we there yet?"
But my parents must have liked playing the games because they continued the practice even after we children were long out of the house, and car. This is why this Alaska trip reminded of all of our games plus. They've continued to add to them.
I'm not going to go into all of the rules for ABC, Red Truck, Wash/White Horse, ... Nor am I going to discuss the ones they added after we grew up: License Plate Cribbage, Gators and Road Kill, ... However, they introduced yet another game on this trip: Distance Guessing.
Distance guessing involves picking a suitably far enough out road feature, such as the road cresting a hill in the distance and guessing the number of miles it was away, sometimes in tenths. The person with the most accurate guess won. They must have played this game a lot between themselves because both of them were far more accurate than I. I discovered that I really don't know how long a mile is. You would think that driving a Prius with it's navigation system would have acclimatized me to that but I think it had the opposite effect. With a navigation system, I didn't have to think how far I had to go or had gone because I could just refer to the navigation system.
Distance guessing wasn't the only game we played on the road. We played a lot of card games in the morning before we got on the road and in the evening when we stopped. Well, we only played three kinds of card games: Cribbage, Gin, Cutthroat Euchre and Setback. At least Cribbage, Gin, and Euchre had their own game by game scoring system so the actual wins and losses weren't recorded. While I don't think I had a winning record, there is nothing to prove that I didn't.
Unfortunately this is not so with Setback. In fact, since I had my 2009 Daytimer ready to hand, I became the score keeper of record. After I got home I compiled this record and discovered that in the 52 games I recorded for the three of us I came in third. I came in first the fewest times and second the most but the weighted scoring put me in third. (I was actually fairly close to second, my father, but my mother was first by a wide margin.)
I'm glad my parents taught me that "it's not whether you win or lose but how you play the game." I had a lot of fun even in losing.
But my parents must have liked playing the games because they continued the practice even after we children were long out of the house, and car. This is why this Alaska trip reminded of all of our games plus. They've continued to add to them.
I'm not going to go into all of the rules for ABC, Red Truck, Wash/White Horse, ... Nor am I going to discuss the ones they added after we grew up: License Plate Cribbage, Gators and Road Kill, ... However, they introduced yet another game on this trip: Distance Guessing.
Distance guessing involves picking a suitably far enough out road feature, such as the road cresting a hill in the distance and guessing the number of miles it was away, sometimes in tenths. The person with the most accurate guess won. They must have played this game a lot between themselves because both of them were far more accurate than I. I discovered that I really don't know how long a mile is. You would think that driving a Prius with it's navigation system would have acclimatized me to that but I think it had the opposite effect. With a navigation system, I didn't have to think how far I had to go or had gone because I could just refer to the navigation system.
Distance guessing wasn't the only game we played on the road. We played a lot of card games in the morning before we got on the road and in the evening when we stopped. Well, we only played three kinds of card games: Cribbage, Gin, Cutthroat Euchre and Setback. At least Cribbage, Gin, and Euchre had their own game by game scoring system so the actual wins and losses weren't recorded. While I don't think I had a winning record, there is nothing to prove that I didn't.
Unfortunately this is not so with Setback. In fact, since I had my 2009 Daytimer ready to hand, I became the score keeper of record. After I got home I compiled this record and discovered that in the 52 games I recorded for the three of us I came in third. I came in first the fewest times and second the most but the weighted scoring put me in third. (I was actually fairly close to second, my father, but my mother was first by a wide margin.)
I'm glad my parents taught me that "it's not whether you win or lose but how you play the game." I had a lot of fun even in losing.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Living it vs. Writing it
A lot has been happening this summer, much of it without regular Internet access. I'm referring to my road trip to Alaska, some 16,000 miles in all. When I did have Internet access, it was generally for a short time at a relatively low bandwidth and when I needed to sleep. As a result I just made notes in my Day Timer journal. (Eventually I will get back to those notes and generate at least a few blogs about the trip.)
While this entry is primarily just to get me writing a blog again as I have been home from the trip now for three weeks, I will try to start updating with some current news.
Last week I was at a house in Bodega Bay with my daughter-in-law's family. I came home early to job hunt. Yes, I am looking for a job. It doesn't seem like a good idea to have a household of three people with nary a job among us. So far there has been no nibbles so...
I am participating in an Internet business startup. This may not be a money maker for some time but it has good prospects. In some aspects, it is close to my original idea but as a partnership, it will make more progress. I'm motivated.
My daughters are up in the Portland area with, I'm sure, at least one stop at the Powell St. Book Store. That store alone could motivate me to ride up there. I am wanting to take at least one more longish ride this year, just not 2,500 miles long.
I'm also trying to drum up family attendees to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass free concert in the Golden Gate Park on October 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. It makes a good reason to lure visitors.
With my daughter-in-law in school and needing an easy to drive vehicle to get there, the Prius, I'm using my motorcycle more. Today I put just over 40 miles on it riding into and back home from the Financial District in San Francisco. It was a nice and easy ride compared to the limited times I commuted into San Francisco from Fremont. Of course this ride wasn't anything like riding during rush hour but it is nice to have the option and is a lot cheaper and much less time consuming than BART. Parking is only $0.25/hour. It would have been nice to get rid of the Ford Ranger XLT in the Cash for Clunkers program. While my son and daughter-in-law will need a high mileage vehicle, their current state of employment was just the wrong timing. Oh well, when I can get rid of it, Craig's List will have to do. Surely someone will want the top rated truck in its class for it's model year.
While this entry is primarily just to get me writing a blog again as I have been home from the trip now for three weeks, I will try to start updating with some current news.
Last week I was at a house in Bodega Bay with my daughter-in-law's family. I came home early to job hunt. Yes, I am looking for a job. It doesn't seem like a good idea to have a household of three people with nary a job among us. So far there has been no nibbles so...
I am participating in an Internet business startup. This may not be a money maker for some time but it has good prospects. In some aspects, it is close to my original idea but as a partnership, it will make more progress. I'm motivated.
My daughters are up in the Portland area with, I'm sure, at least one stop at the Powell St. Book Store. That store alone could motivate me to ride up there. I am wanting to take at least one more longish ride this year, just not 2,500 miles long.
I'm also trying to drum up family attendees to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass free concert in the Golden Gate Park on October 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. It makes a good reason to lure visitors.
With my daughter-in-law in school and needing an easy to drive vehicle to get there, the Prius, I'm using my motorcycle more. Today I put just over 40 miles on it riding into and back home from the Financial District in San Francisco. It was a nice and easy ride compared to the limited times I commuted into San Francisco from Fremont. Of course this ride wasn't anything like riding during rush hour but it is nice to have the option and is a lot cheaper and much less time consuming than BART. Parking is only $0.25/hour. It would have been nice to get rid of the Ford Ranger XLT in the Cash for Clunkers program. While my son and daughter-in-law will need a high mileage vehicle, their current state of employment was just the wrong timing. Oh well, when I can get rid of it, Craig's List will have to do. Surely someone will want the top rated truck in its class for it's model year.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Travel Hodgepodge
What I write here is filtered by my observations and memory, which is why it will be a hodgepodge. Unlike my trip in the car, I can't take notes, not that note taking even in a car is the safest driving.
What with one thing and another, well two things after everything else was finally ready, I didn't get out until after noon. First the cats didn't come right away to get their treat of wet food and be locked in the house. Then I remembered that I should put on sunscreen. It took me some time to remember where I put one of the spare tubes of 70 SPF I left in the house. (I didn't want to unpack my loaded motorcycle to get out one of the two tubes I had in my toiletry bag.) I was glad that I persevered because this let me remember my Sonic Care. I don't think I would be nearly as good with an old fashioned toothbrush even if I could get the motion back.
I thought I was out early enough to miss the Friday "get out of Dodge" traffic but if I was, I certainly didn't want to be later. What with the normally clogged corridors and the artificial ones caused by miles of construction... Let's just say that I got phenomenal mileage, the best I've ever gotten out of the motorcycle, 48.9 miles per gallon. I also did the most miles of lane splitting I've ever done. Unfortunately the combination was really draining and I had to stop just a little past Reno having gone 275 miles in five hours.
The next day's ride was substantially better, except for two incidents. The first happened when I was following my pace truck going about 80 mph. All of the sudden at just 105 miles since my last fill up, my engine started sputtering. I quickly turned it to the reserve tank setting, really just an intake set a little lower in the tank with about 3/4 gallons before bone dry, in the hopes that that was it. It was. I was fortunate that soon after that was an exit with gas. (I have passed a lot of exits that have that sign "No Service." It's a scary thing with a tank that holds less than four gallons.) The second happened in the high wind and rain in Utah, just before Salt Lake City. This time I didn't have a pace vehicle. In fact, I thought I was going at a reduced speed to get better mileage and to be safe in the rain visibility and wet pavement. This time at 98 miles since the last fill up I had to turn to the reserve tank, 29.6 mpg. I immediately reduced my speed even further making the two miles I had to go to the next gas available exit seem even that much longer.
There were some good things on this portion of the trip. I saw my first motorcycle with cruise control. Now after today's ride of over 600 miles, I definitely have to get me one. What happened was that I was being passed and the rider waved at me with his right hand. My right arm started hurting from then on.
Nevada was really into road reconstruction. Unfortunately their roads before reconstruction are generally better than California's roads after construction.
I also learned that the Nevada High Desert is cold. In spite of my warm fuzzy self-congratulatory thoughts about remembering to bring my jacket liner, I wasn't really getting any warmer until I stopped and put it in.
It was still raining this morning so I delayed leaving the hotel until after it had stopped. In fact, I wrote the following twoem about the experience: "Waited until the rain stopped. Delayed my for an hour. / Within ten miles though, I had a 16-mile shower. / It's beautiful now." The clouds were so beautiful that I actually wrote another twoem but after the fact I wished I hadn't. But all down Highway 6 to I-70 and up at least to the Johnson Tunnel was simply too beautiful for words. The rocks in the canyon walls, the cliffs from the surrounding mesas, the Colorado River, ... I was just elated to be on my motorcycle riding through all of it. I'm sure pictures wouldn't have done the actual scenery justice but that is one draw back to riding a motorcycle. But after the rain, it got warm. Then it got hot. Finally I stopped to take my jacket liner out. My motorcycle jacket has pockets for everything, and they are duplicated in the liner, even one for an iPod. This morning, even though I can't listen to an iPod while I'm riding, the wrong kind of ear phones, I put my iPod in the liner pocket. I then proceeded to take it out of the liner in order to put it in the jacket pocket, except I never did. So, somewhere around the Cisco "no service" exit there is an eight gigabyte nano.
I have to stop to do almost everything. I'm glad no one reading this could see me try to close up my vents. When it got cold later, simply zipping up my vents wasn't warm enough so I finally stopped. It took several minutes to get the velcro all on the right closed strip and make sure I wasn't leaving something else on the motorcycle to fall off.
There were a few slow downs, mostly due to construction constricting the lanes down to one. Unlike similar lane limits in Nevada, the speed was reduced to zero and very low when it wasn't. Unfortunately, one was due to a severe accident. I don't know how many cars were actually involved as there were several cars stopped to help but at least one was on its side right up against the center concrete divider.
I'm sure I could think of even more things but it's late and I want to get ready for the next day's riding. The real preparation is sleep. However, I want to end with a chuckle, at least I chuckled. On the back of one of the trucks I passed I saw: "I started with nothing and still have most of it left."
Keeping the shiny side up.
What with one thing and another, well two things after everything else was finally ready, I didn't get out until after noon. First the cats didn't come right away to get their treat of wet food and be locked in the house. Then I remembered that I should put on sunscreen. It took me some time to remember where I put one of the spare tubes of 70 SPF I left in the house. (I didn't want to unpack my loaded motorcycle to get out one of the two tubes I had in my toiletry bag.) I was glad that I persevered because this let me remember my Sonic Care. I don't think I would be nearly as good with an old fashioned toothbrush even if I could get the motion back.
I thought I was out early enough to miss the Friday "get out of Dodge" traffic but if I was, I certainly didn't want to be later. What with the normally clogged corridors and the artificial ones caused by miles of construction... Let's just say that I got phenomenal mileage, the best I've ever gotten out of the motorcycle, 48.9 miles per gallon. I also did the most miles of lane splitting I've ever done. Unfortunately the combination was really draining and I had to stop just a little past Reno having gone 275 miles in five hours.
The next day's ride was substantially better, except for two incidents. The first happened when I was following my pace truck going about 80 mph. All of the sudden at just 105 miles since my last fill up, my engine started sputtering. I quickly turned it to the reserve tank setting, really just an intake set a little lower in the tank with about 3/4 gallons before bone dry, in the hopes that that was it. It was. I was fortunate that soon after that was an exit with gas. (I have passed a lot of exits that have that sign "No Service." It's a scary thing with a tank that holds less than four gallons.) The second happened in the high wind and rain in Utah, just before Salt Lake City. This time I didn't have a pace vehicle. In fact, I thought I was going at a reduced speed to get better mileage and to be safe in the rain visibility and wet pavement. This time at 98 miles since the last fill up I had to turn to the reserve tank, 29.6 mpg. I immediately reduced my speed even further making the two miles I had to go to the next gas available exit seem even that much longer.
There were some good things on this portion of the trip. I saw my first motorcycle with cruise control. Now after today's ride of over 600 miles, I definitely have to get me one. What happened was that I was being passed and the rider waved at me with his right hand. My right arm started hurting from then on.
Nevada was really into road reconstruction. Unfortunately their roads before reconstruction are generally better than California's roads after construction.
I also learned that the Nevada High Desert is cold. In spite of my warm fuzzy self-congratulatory thoughts about remembering to bring my jacket liner, I wasn't really getting any warmer until I stopped and put it in.
It was still raining this morning so I delayed leaving the hotel until after it had stopped. In fact, I wrote the following twoem about the experience: "Waited until the rain stopped. Delayed my for an hour. / Within ten miles though, I had a 16-mile shower. / It's beautiful now." The clouds were so beautiful that I actually wrote another twoem but after the fact I wished I hadn't. But all down Highway 6 to I-70 and up at least to the Johnson Tunnel was simply too beautiful for words. The rocks in the canyon walls, the cliffs from the surrounding mesas, the Colorado River, ... I was just elated to be on my motorcycle riding through all of it. I'm sure pictures wouldn't have done the actual scenery justice but that is one draw back to riding a motorcycle. But after the rain, it got warm. Then it got hot. Finally I stopped to take my jacket liner out. My motorcycle jacket has pockets for everything, and they are duplicated in the liner, even one for an iPod. This morning, even though I can't listen to an iPod while I'm riding, the wrong kind of ear phones, I put my iPod in the liner pocket. I then proceeded to take it out of the liner in order to put it in the jacket pocket, except I never did. So, somewhere around the Cisco "no service" exit there is an eight gigabyte nano.
I have to stop to do almost everything. I'm glad no one reading this could see me try to close up my vents. When it got cold later, simply zipping up my vents wasn't warm enough so I finally stopped. It took several minutes to get the velcro all on the right closed strip and make sure I wasn't leaving something else on the motorcycle to fall off.
There were a few slow downs, mostly due to construction constricting the lanes down to one. Unlike similar lane limits in Nevada, the speed was reduced to zero and very low when it wasn't. Unfortunately, one was due to a severe accident. I don't know how many cars were actually involved as there were several cars stopped to help but at least one was on its side right up against the center concrete divider.
I'm sure I could think of even more things but it's late and I want to get ready for the next day's riding. The real preparation is sleep. However, I want to end with a chuckle, at least I chuckled. On the back of one of the trucks I passed I saw: "I started with nothing and still have most of it left."
Keeping the shiny side up.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Instead of...
Instead of completing my resume, but there is still some day left to work on it, ... Instead of gassing up my motorcycle and my liter of emergency fuel, ... Instead of stowing the filled boxes currently in the living room in the now room available storage shed, ... Instead of making chicken jerky, making lists, washing clothes, and any of the other million and one things I have to do in the next three days:
- I finally dead headed some plants to supposedly help their blossoms continue to come. This is something that I didn't do at all last year. Nor did I water them well or fertilize them at all. Quite frankly, I thought they were annuals. But with a little fertilizer and water this spring, they somewhat came back. They were planted to make the yard look nice for my youngest daughter's wedding and for my Master Gardener wife. She kept them blooming throughout the fall by directing her helper to dead head them, cut off the dead and dying blossoms. If I've done it soon enough and done it in the right place, they should bloom more. Of course, I won't be here to see them.
- I watered the front yard and pulled a few weeds. My son and daughter-in-law filled up the green bin with their weeding earlier. If it hadn't settled, I would not have had room for even the few weeds I pulled. I also trimmed the one kind of ground cover that was overrunning the other kind of ground cover, the one the deer will eat. (Which reminds me that I should start spraying the stink as I saw fresh deer droppings. There is better food available so they haven't been desperate enough to eat my meager plants but they obviously were checking them out.
- I did make a good start on my resume. It's all formated and only has the last 14 1/2 years and a summary to go to be completed.
- I also found the next batch of checks, no small feat that, and signed a couple for my son to use for expected bills that will be coming due while I'm gone to Alaska.
Somehow it seemed like more and more significant in my mind. The most significant thing accomplished was arranging for some cat (and plant) care and I just did that. I'm to drop off the key and money tomorrow.
Rather than use the rest of the day to complete anything or make it more significant, I think I will go to bed early. I slept in until 8:00 AM this morning and doing so tomorrow will make me miss the start of my Grant/Proposal Writing class. While I like getting up without an alarm clock, even when early, I will put a battery in mine and set it to make sure I get up in time tomorrow.
- I finally dead headed some plants to supposedly help their blossoms continue to come. This is something that I didn't do at all last year. Nor did I water them well or fertilize them at all. Quite frankly, I thought they were annuals. But with a little fertilizer and water this spring, they somewhat came back. They were planted to make the yard look nice for my youngest daughter's wedding and for my Master Gardener wife. She kept them blooming throughout the fall by directing her helper to dead head them, cut off the dead and dying blossoms. If I've done it soon enough and done it in the right place, they should bloom more. Of course, I won't be here to see them.
- I watered the front yard and pulled a few weeds. My son and daughter-in-law filled up the green bin with their weeding earlier. If it hadn't settled, I would not have had room for even the few weeds I pulled. I also trimmed the one kind of ground cover that was overrunning the other kind of ground cover, the one the deer will eat. (Which reminds me that I should start spraying the stink as I saw fresh deer droppings. There is better food available so they haven't been desperate enough to eat my meager plants but they obviously were checking them out.
- I did make a good start on my resume. It's all formated and only has the last 14 1/2 years and a summary to go to be completed.
- I also found the next batch of checks, no small feat that, and signed a couple for my son to use for expected bills that will be coming due while I'm gone to Alaska.
Somehow it seemed like more and more significant in my mind. The most significant thing accomplished was arranging for some cat (and plant) care and I just did that. I'm to drop off the key and money tomorrow.
Rather than use the rest of the day to complete anything or make it more significant, I think I will go to bed early. I slept in until 8:00 AM this morning and doing so tomorrow will make me miss the start of my Grant/Proposal Writing class. While I like getting up without an alarm clock, even when early, I will put a battery in mine and set it to make sure I get up in time tomorrow.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
It was only to the store
I only rode my motorcycle to the grocery store and back but it was enough to get me in the "can't wait" mood. I can't wait for Friday! Friday is when I head out across country to West Virginia. Unfortunately, I have more than enough to keep me busy until then.
First, I have yet to set up my listserv account so I can get my Spot location messages to all that indicated they wanted them. I'm not sure my motorcycle ride will be all that interesting, location-wise that is, but the location reports to, from, and in Alaska should be.
Second, I have to complete my resume. Not only do I want to take a few copies with me on the off chance that I become completely enamored with some community I'm passing through, I need to get it posted to CALJOBS in order to be eligible for unemployment insurance. With the financial state that California is in, I'm not sure how eligibility will translate into money. It would be great to have my mortgage covered while I am still out of work.
Third, I am taking a grant writing class in two days. I met with the head of the National Lymphedema Network Friday to get information on grant proposals that need written. I will be taking my notes, paper, pens, and computer to begin the proposal writing on my trip, and for writing other stuff.
Fourth, I need to find someone to water plants and check on cats. It turns out the other two recent residents of this house will also be heading off on their own shorter trip, eight days, on the same day I am. That is just too long to let the cats and plants go without looking after. Hopefully someone who has looked in on the cats for free in the past for really short trips will be willing to do it for some compensation for the much longer time.
Fifth, I need to pack, no small effort. I've decided that I won't bother cooking, which will simplify my packing considerably. Since I'm going to be making time on the expressways, I will be close to restaurants and grocery stores. I'll take Cliff bars and water and maybe a sliced loaf of my homemade bread.
Sixth, I want to have some fun. After all, so far we've been working to fit what they brought and what I already had into the house, and we still have a little of that left to do, almost non-stop. In fact, I think I will stop this and watch one of the two movies I got from the local rental.
I'm sure there is more but you may not be interested in the detail I've already included. If I don't blog again until I'm on the road, I'm sure you will understand.
First, I have yet to set up my listserv account so I can get my Spot location messages to all that indicated they wanted them. I'm not sure my motorcycle ride will be all that interesting, location-wise that is, but the location reports to, from, and in Alaska should be.
Second, I have to complete my resume. Not only do I want to take a few copies with me on the off chance that I become completely enamored with some community I'm passing through, I need to get it posted to CALJOBS in order to be eligible for unemployment insurance. With the financial state that California is in, I'm not sure how eligibility will translate into money. It would be great to have my mortgage covered while I am still out of work.
Third, I am taking a grant writing class in two days. I met with the head of the National Lymphedema Network Friday to get information on grant proposals that need written. I will be taking my notes, paper, pens, and computer to begin the proposal writing on my trip, and for writing other stuff.
Fourth, I need to find someone to water plants and check on cats. It turns out the other two recent residents of this house will also be heading off on their own shorter trip, eight days, on the same day I am. That is just too long to let the cats and plants go without looking after. Hopefully someone who has looked in on the cats for free in the past for really short trips will be willing to do it for some compensation for the much longer time.
Fifth, I need to pack, no small effort. I've decided that I won't bother cooking, which will simplify my packing considerably. Since I'm going to be making time on the expressways, I will be close to restaurants and grocery stores. I'll take Cliff bars and water and maybe a sliced loaf of my homemade bread.
Sixth, I want to have some fun. After all, so far we've been working to fit what they brought and what I already had into the house, and we still have a little of that left to do, almost non-stop. In fact, I think I will stop this and watch one of the two movies I got from the local rental.
I'm sure there is more but you may not be interested in the detail I've already included. If I don't blog again until I'm on the road, I'm sure you will understand.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
It's not over yet...
This fantastic interlude in the desserts of California, well the towns on the outskirts, will end today. I was to take a couple of hikers back to the trail at 5:00 AM this morning but with the nice, relatively cool weather, they decided to start at 8:00 AM instead. I was glad because this meant that I didn't have to set my alarm clock. While I still woke up at 5:30 AM, it was a complete rest cycle. I'm going to leave the Gatorade I bought at the trail head, this morning in the cooler and when I take Andrea and Neil back to the trail head, I'll pick up the cooler and leave the Gatorade.
Once they cleaned up, they looked real good, healthy. After 20% of the trail, they've only lost five to ten pounds. While they eat really well on their town breaks and zero days, at this stop I've been able to keep pace. Unfortunately I'm not going back on the trail. While I do like the thought of doing something this dramatic, I don't like the level of cleanliness possible. Of the four people I hauled from the Tehachapi Willow Springs road crossing into town, they all had the same unwashed body odor. It was undoubtedly made worse by the dessert heat because it was still less pungent than some San Francisco street people who may not have washed in a year or more. I really feel sorry for the street people, particularly since many of them also have mental conditions that keep them from taking advantage of services that would allow them to wash.
To a person, the people I've given lifts to and the ones I've met at the hotel many of them seem to be staying at, they are enjoying the hike, even the parts they don't. Nothing like common misery to form bonds that last a life time. Last night I met a person who is on his second through hike. Some few people have done it five times. Then there are the yo-yo's who do it both directions in the same year. They have to travel light and fast.
Here are some more pictures of them starting out their last desert section: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011679&id=1288023430&l=cf846bc5b8.
Similar to their start of their PCT hike, here is a video of them walking. At least a portion of this is a better front on shot...
I have a lot more to post and, unfortunately, a lot more to do. The doing keeps me from posting, which reminds me of a recent "Luann" strip, which was just recycled this morning.
Once they cleaned up, they looked real good, healthy. After 20% of the trail, they've only lost five to ten pounds. While they eat really well on their town breaks and zero days, at this stop I've been able to keep pace. Unfortunately I'm not going back on the trail. While I do like the thought of doing something this dramatic, I don't like the level of cleanliness possible. Of the four people I hauled from the Tehachapi Willow Springs road crossing into town, they all had the same unwashed body odor. It was undoubtedly made worse by the dessert heat because it was still less pungent than some San Francisco street people who may not have washed in a year or more. I really feel sorry for the street people, particularly since many of them also have mental conditions that keep them from taking advantage of services that would allow them to wash.
To a person, the people I've given lifts to and the ones I've met at the hotel many of them seem to be staying at, they are enjoying the hike, even the parts they don't. Nothing like common misery to form bonds that last a life time. Last night I met a person who is on his second through hike. Some few people have done it five times. Then there are the yo-yo's who do it both directions in the same year. They have to travel light and fast.
Here are some more pictures of them starting out their last desert section: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011679&id=1288023430&l=cf846bc5b8.
Similar to their start of their PCT hike, here is a video of them walking. At least a portion of this is a better front on shot...
I have a lot more to post and, unfortunately, a lot more to do. The doing keeps me from posting, which reminds me of a recent "Luann" strip, which was just recycled this morning.
Monday, June 1, 2009
The last time I was in Bakersfield
The last time I was in Bakersfield was a little later in June four years ago. Marilyn and I had just watched Sean graduate and were on our way to Sequoia/Kings Canyon. She was having symptoms of her cancer but it wasn't yet diagnosed so she wanted to have some wheatgrass juice. (Ever since her first cancer she made a particular effort to eat healthy and found that wheatgrass juice gave her energy and micronutrients.) I used my Blackberry to find a Jamba Juice and Google Maps to actually get us there.
This trip was just a buzz by but it did remind me of the last time.
I finally met up with my daughter and her husband. I was at the wrong PCT road crossing. So, my walking in about three miles to see them on the trail not only went for naught, but it made me an hour late picking them up at the right road crossing. I was even later because I couldn't see the trail markers from the road in the dark. It all worked out in the end. We got some food from Albertson's, ate it at the hotel after they cleaned up, and they went right to bed, which I'm going to do shortly.
Here are some still pictures I took on my six-mile round trip hike: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011329&id=1288023430&l=116778be77
I was really impressed with the number of wind turbines as well as the number actually turning.
This trip was just a buzz by but it did remind me of the last time.
I finally met up with my daughter and her husband. I was at the wrong PCT road crossing. So, my walking in about three miles to see them on the trail not only went for naught, but it made me an hour late picking them up at the right road crossing. I was even later because I couldn't see the trail markers from the road in the dark. It all worked out in the end. We got some food from Albertson's, ate it at the hotel after they cleaned up, and they went right to bed, which I'm going to do shortly.
Here are some still pictures I took on my six-mile round trip hike: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2011329&id=1288023430&l=116778be77
I was really impressed with the number of wind turbines as well as the number actually turning.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
A new high
Last night in my rush to get the cats wet food treated and locked inside for the night so I could make it to Toastmasters, was the night that Napoleon decided to climb up on the roof. Since the allure of his treat food was so great, he did eventually find his own way down before I could get out the ladder and I did make it to my meeting on time.
I was quite surprised, both by the delay, which caused me to go looking in the first place, and by where I saw him. I didn't see him go up or down so can only imagine where he might have done so.
I have seen Humphrey climb the willow tree and get every bit as high as the roof. I was just glad that he did either remember where he went up and used that path back down or forged a new trail down in time. Unlike a tree, there should be very little traction for his claws, at least I hope there isn't especially hoping he didn't make some.
I got up this morning and got busy outside with watering and fertilizing the potted plants, and the in ground fuchsias. This is what allowed me to learn that the piercing smoke detector battery low sound that caused me to replace batteries was actually a bird. With daylight savings time now being most of the year, I no longer have a good six month rule of thumb replacement date and wasn't smart enough to label or record my last replacement.
I've been doing a lot of thinking on a particular bit of wisdom that I got from a Peach Oo-la-long Honest Tea cap. I don't drink it all the time for two reasons: every once in a while I stop drinking caffeine, and at $1.69 at the local store it is expensive. However, I do enjoy the tea and the caps. In fact, I have a collection of them.
This particular thought provoking cap says: "Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." -Antoine de Saint-Exupery. I still like quotes, particularly those from caps, based on the quote itself not the names of the sources. After using a quote in one of my justifications at work for the words, my supervisor at the time looked up the source and advised me that the source no longer had any credibility and would not advance my purpose. So now, I do look up the source and use the quotes anyway.
Antoine was the third of five children born in 1900 to a French provincial noble family. He was an author, commercial pilot, and a WWII pilot for the Free French. He died in 1944 on a flight to collect information on German troop movements in preparation for the Allied invasion. More details are available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_de_Saint-Exupéry.
But it is really the words. For most of my life I have been adding things that now I realize limit what I can be and do. More, it seems that everything I want to do requires the addition of something else to enable it. I have a storage shed and a garage full of stuff that I rarely, if ever, use. (Although some of the stuff in the garage I would like to "take away.") When is it enough? Why can't it be now?
I was quite surprised, both by the delay, which caused me to go looking in the first place, and by where I saw him. I didn't see him go up or down so can only imagine where he might have done so.
I have seen Humphrey climb the willow tree and get every bit as high as the roof. I was just glad that he did either remember where he went up and used that path back down or forged a new trail down in time. Unlike a tree, there should be very little traction for his claws, at least I hope there isn't especially hoping he didn't make some.I got up this morning and got busy outside with watering and fertilizing the potted plants, and the in ground fuchsias. This is what allowed me to learn that the piercing smoke detector battery low sound that caused me to replace batteries was actually a bird. With daylight savings time now being most of the year, I no longer have a good six month rule of thumb replacement date and wasn't smart enough to label or record my last replacement.
I've been doing a lot of thinking on a particular bit of wisdom that I got from a Peach Oo-la-long Honest Tea cap. I don't drink it all the time for two reasons: every once in a while I stop drinking caffeine, and at $1.69 at the local store it is expensive. However, I do enjoy the tea and the caps. In fact, I have a collection of them.
This particular thought provoking cap says: "Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." -Antoine de Saint-Exupery. I still like quotes, particularly those from caps, based on the quote itself not the names of the sources. After using a quote in one of my justifications at work for the words, my supervisor at the time looked up the source and advised me that the source no longer had any credibility and would not advance my purpose. So now, I do look up the source and use the quotes anyway.
Antoine was the third of five children born in 1900 to a French provincial noble family. He was an author, commercial pilot, and a WWII pilot for the Free French. He died in 1944 on a flight to collect information on German troop movements in preparation for the Allied invasion. More details are available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_de_Saint-Exupéry.
But it is really the words. For most of my life I have been adding things that now I realize limit what I can be and do. More, it seems that everything I want to do requires the addition of something else to enable it. I have a storage shed and a garage full of stuff that I rarely, if ever, use. (Although some of the stuff in the garage I would like to "take away.") When is it enough? Why can't it be now?
Saturday, May 23, 2009
A lot to post, but not tonight...
Blisters and all my youngest daughter and her husband have made it to my oldest daughter's and her husband's place in Pasadena. The lack of the Spot "OK" message the last two nights had to do with the terrain, trees, and inability for the Spot to find the satellites. They are going to spend at least one zero day, i.e., no walking, there and may be buying more shoes. As much as they are spending on shoes, they may need more money than planned to complete the trip. I suggested that they press the Spot "OK" button every day, even the days they are staying at their RR&S.
Yesterday I moved one step closer to my cross-country motorcycle ride by getting my motorcycle serviced. It sounds great again and rides very smoothly with a new rear tire. I also got a new jacket. Not only is my leather jacket too big, it isn't really suited for summer weather riding. Indeed, with the wind blowing up the sleeves, it wasn't all that suited for less warm riding either, especially with the zipper problem with the lining. My new jacket has multiple vents including scoop features along both upper arms and shoulders. It is also very adjustable. Wind will only be getting in where and when I want it to.
As far as the rest of this post, there won't be one. However, I do have a lot of Honest Tea bottle caps that I want to share in some future post. As Ambrose Bierce has said, I like their "predigested wisdom." I also have a couple Toastmaster speeches I've given without posting and my opening remarks from the time I was Toastmaster, basically the emcee of the meeting. I also have a couple more twoems, which I tweet into Twitter via a text message from my cell phone.
Yesterday I moved one step closer to my cross-country motorcycle ride by getting my motorcycle serviced. It sounds great again and rides very smoothly with a new rear tire. I also got a new jacket. Not only is my leather jacket too big, it isn't really suited for summer weather riding. Indeed, with the wind blowing up the sleeves, it wasn't all that suited for less warm riding either, especially with the zipper problem with the lining. My new jacket has multiple vents including scoop features along both upper arms and shoulders. It is also very adjustable. Wind will only be getting in where and when I want it to.
As far as the rest of this post, there won't be one. However, I do have a lot of Honest Tea bottle caps that I want to share in some future post. As Ambrose Bierce has said, I like their "predigested wisdom." I also have a couple Toastmaster speeches I've given without posting and my opening remarks from the time I was Toastmaster, basically the emcee of the meeting. I also have a couple more twoems, which I tweet into Twitter via a text message from my cell phone.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
More Olio
Again, it's not grease or a misspelled cookie.
I had lunch with a person I knew from Amdahl, over 20 years ago. She is planning on going to Guatemala this summer with her significant other to work with people who are HIV infected. We spent about three hours catching up and never did go for the walk she was ready for with a spare set of walking shoes in her car and I wasn't. I had on my polished pair of Florsheim's with the leather soles, not even my concrete ready Ecco Shoes with the rubber soles. Her mother and mother's husband are traveling to Mongolia. (He is eighty.) Her daughter is doing a business project on sustainable farming for her senior project.
Of course, I talked about my children and my own plans to ride my motorcycle and RV to Alaska. She may have a networking contact for my son, the son of her Godmother, a contractor in Marin.
The cats have been needy this morning for some reason. I think it is a combination of a cool outdoors, the diet my daughter insists that I put them on, and the fact that I am sitting down at my computer trying to get something done, this blog posting. I have taken a few more pictures of them but I'll only include one of them here. Napoleon is literally on the fence. At least this doesn't look like a snake hunting position.
It's graduation season. I finally broke down and bought a card. I almost bought a packet of them as I imagine I'll receive a few more announcements before it is over. But then, who do I know that is graduating?
I went out for a latte again today. It's a ritual that I will soon stop, not only because I will be traveling but also because I won't feel nearly so rich. My severance package ends in another month. While out for the latte, I did the puzzles in the paper, including the two crossword puzzles. While I was able to get them all without cheating, the Chronicle has the solutions in the same paper, I wasn't able to do just the downs like I had done on the two previous days. Either the puzzles became sufficiently more difficult or I became sufficiently denser. I do them in ink because, if I make enough mistakes, I stop doing them. It's far better than erasing. I do them primarily as a mental exercise anyway.
My youngest daughter and her husband ended up after a whole day of walking yesterday in a position west and a little bit south of where they were the night before. According to the Google map, they must have walked even further to the south to get around Silverwood Lake. I guess they could have taken a boat across. I can't wait to read about it in their journal (http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=9044) when this day's entry is posted. I can only imagine what they think about going away from their much further north destination. It is really dramatic when you see all of their Spot locations on the same Google map: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=114519601591229133288.00046988bde89eb7ea868&ll=33.408517,-116.559448&spn=2.842849,3.878174&z=8. I believe they are walking on some ridge line in the San Gabriel Mountains and will until they are picked up for a day's RR&S by my oldest daughter and her husband who live in Pasadena. (Rest, Recuperation, and Stuffing.)
I've completed Unit 1 of my 16 lesson Conversational Spanish. Since it doesn't have any written accompaniment, I won't attempt to write the words that I may have learned although rightly or wrongly I was visualizing them as I was saying them.
Well, I'm headed back to the written and mental list of things I must get done before I have guests, and an even longer list before I can leave on my motorcycle ride.
I had lunch with a person I knew from Amdahl, over 20 years ago. She is planning on going to Guatemala this summer with her significant other to work with people who are HIV infected. We spent about three hours catching up and never did go for the walk she was ready for with a spare set of walking shoes in her car and I wasn't. I had on my polished pair of Florsheim's with the leather soles, not even my concrete ready Ecco Shoes with the rubber soles. Her mother and mother's husband are traveling to Mongolia. (He is eighty.) Her daughter is doing a business project on sustainable farming for her senior project.
Of course, I talked about my children and my own plans to ride my motorcycle and RV to Alaska. She may have a networking contact for my son, the son of her Godmother, a contractor in Marin.
The cats have been needy this morning for some reason. I think it is a combination of a cool outdoors, the diet my daughter insists that I put them on, and the fact that I am sitting down at my computer trying to get something done, this blog posting. I have taken a few more pictures of them but I'll only include one of them here. Napoleon is literally on the fence. At least this doesn't look like a snake hunting position.It's graduation season. I finally broke down and bought a card. I almost bought a packet of them as I imagine I'll receive a few more announcements before it is over. But then, who do I know that is graduating?
I went out for a latte again today. It's a ritual that I will soon stop, not only because I will be traveling but also because I won't feel nearly so rich. My severance package ends in another month. While out for the latte, I did the puzzles in the paper, including the two crossword puzzles. While I was able to get them all without cheating, the Chronicle has the solutions in the same paper, I wasn't able to do just the downs like I had done on the two previous days. Either the puzzles became sufficiently more difficult or I became sufficiently denser. I do them in ink because, if I make enough mistakes, I stop doing them. It's far better than erasing. I do them primarily as a mental exercise anyway.
My youngest daughter and her husband ended up after a whole day of walking yesterday in a position west and a little bit south of where they were the night before. According to the Google map, they must have walked even further to the south to get around Silverwood Lake. I guess they could have taken a boat across. I can't wait to read about it in their journal (http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=9044) when this day's entry is posted. I can only imagine what they think about going away from their much further north destination. It is really dramatic when you see all of their Spot locations on the same Google map: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=114519601591229133288.00046988bde89eb7ea868&ll=33.408517,-116.559448&spn=2.842849,3.878174&z=8. I believe they are walking on some ridge line in the San Gabriel Mountains and will until they are picked up for a day's RR&S by my oldest daughter and her husband who live in Pasadena. (Rest, Recuperation, and Stuffing.)
I've completed Unit 1 of my 16 lesson Conversational Spanish. Since it doesn't have any written accompaniment, I won't attempt to write the words that I may have learned although rightly or wrongly I was visualizing them as I was saying them.
Well, I'm headed back to the written and mental list of things I must get done before I have guests, and an even longer list before I can leave on my motorcycle ride.
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