Chased by the Brush-Prairie-Beagle Sunday

I joined my friends (Portland Wheelmen) Sunday morning for a 30 mile bike ride in Washington. It was a perfect day the weather was amazing and after the rainy fall we are having here in the Northwest it was a welcome treat to be out on our bikes enjoying the warm sunshine, crisp fall air and vibrant blue ski. I enjoyed a view of Mt. St. Helens on most of my ride. The group dropped me after 7 miles not sure what was wrong with my groove but I was lagging behind at 18-19 mph and the first group was cruising at 20-21 mph. I got caught at a red light and they were out of sight within minutes. Not to worry I had the sunshine, my bike, a map of the route (thanks to Ann) and my goofy thoughts to keep me entertained. Not to mention a flock of Canadian geese circling up ahead. There was a field of them to numerous to count I peddled by in aw as the field looked alive with this movement almost unrecognizable. As I slowed and looked out over this sight I was startled back to reality as a fat beagle ran out along side of me ready to rip my leg off. He kept my pace for a few seconds as I yelled “bad dog, go home, no, no.” Obviously these people don’t know what a leash law is. I winded the little shit after a few hundred feet and I laughed out loud as I imagined the homeowners looking out the picture window of their farm house laughing hysterically at me. Why, because I’d do the same thing, I’d laugh too. I continue down the road with my thoughts. Today’s ride was perfect, I’m giving it a 10!

So what did you do this evening?

No matter what you were doing this evening it wasn't as pretty as what I was doing.

Sauvie Island Kayaking

Kathy, Gordon, Josh & the Gang!!


Spooking but cool!

Yes, that is my little stow-away, Wacky-Jack in the kayak, he thinks he wants to kayak until he gets his boat in the water.

Port Townsend - Kayaking Symposium

I highly recommend the Port Townsend Kayaker Symposium to anyone who wants to get into kayaking. It is a great way to demo different kayaks and to get great training. You may even get lucky and have great weather! Loving my good times, loving my good friends!

Wendy Rolling Over (trying) :)

Judy & Jerry - You Rock!!!!!

Taking Flight

My good friend J~ and I took a drive to Crown Point one sunny beautiful evening. We were chatting about things we want to do. I rambled on about cycling in different country's, traveling the world, getting my masters degree and so forth, he also mentioned a variety of things he wanted to accomplish. One was to fly in a small plane. Well what are friends for but to take each other to the ends of the world and back. He was surprised when I loaded him up in my employers personal plane and away we went for a tour up the Columbia Gorge. I later found out he meant small plane like twin engine, 12 seater. Not a cute little Cessna, single engine. Oh well, we had a blast!

The Boyz

Tommy & Jack!

Reach The Beach 2007

Oregon offers a great ride each year

"Reach The Beach"

it is a fantastic way to get to the coast!

Canada Bike Tour - Summer of 2007

18 of us started out on a bike tour from Victoria BC to Courtney BC. We drove up to Port Angels left our cars and took the fairy over to Victoria. What a blast to travel by bike! It was odd to put everything you really need on a bike, not what you want but what you need. We visited Cowichan Bay, Nanaimo, Qualicum Beach, Denman Island and Courtney. What an amazing adventure! I'll do a bike tour each summer for the rest of my life.

You Own a Car, Not The Road

The Tao of Tea

Anyone who aspires to follow the Way of Tea, guard against jealousy. If you place yourself in the center, to envy others, to tempt others - you will lose the way. Know what you have to do, and as you immerse yourself daily in the way of tea, happiness will come. The more you look up to others, the clearer your own position will become. Remember the humble heart of the tea preparer in the teahouse, for they know the spiritual taste of tea. Know what you know and know what you don't know - only then will the limits of your strength become evident. The Way is never exclusive. It is open to all to follow. (Taken from Tao of Tea)

I experienced something new this weekend… Tea, not just a hot cup of colored water with a light flavor but real tea. Tea with a special friend, tea that warmed my heart and my soul. Tea the way it was suppose to be.

http://www.taooftea.com/index1.php3

Eyes On Nature

Vibrant reds and oranges of trees still glowing in their autumn dress great us all today, shouting out that last week’s winds and rain did not completely spin the wheel of time to winter. After a week of wet it’s easy to appreciate the respite from the rain and to enjoy October’s dramatic shifts in scene. The transition in visual landscape is also mirrored in the acoustic environment. The boisterous laughter of children playing long into the summer’s night is now contained within walls of wood and brick or muffled by the drip of rain. The rustle of steps through dry leaves and the crackle of autumn’s first wood fire yield to the silence of a winter snow. From bright and noisy to cool and subdued—both sound and light shift in hue and spectrum, yielding novelty to season-adjusted senses and allowing us to see and hear anew. Open your eyes wide and absorb the rays of October sunshine and the intensity of sight, then close your eyes and soak in the soothing sound of rain, the quiet of the forest, the serenity of silence. But most of all, enjoy!

Strange Piece of Paradise, by Terri Jentz

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this book to anyone; I think it appeals to a certain type of person. It was a Sunday morning in June I’d forgotten to turn off my alarm so at 6am it went off and I awoke to Sunday Morning Acoustic on KINK fm. They were interviewing Terri Jentz who was visiting Portland Oregon and would be doing a book signing at Powells Book Store in downtown. She told a little about her book and the tragedy that had taken place the summer of 1977 in Cline Falls, Oregon. I jumped out of bed and found the book at my local library and placed a hold on it through the Internet. Over the course of a month I read the pages, a store of a young cyclist embarking on a journey across the USA by bike, her attack just 7 days into the trip, her recover and her return to the American West.
I visited the Cline Falls State Park where she was attack back on June 22, 1977. It was exactly as she described. I looked at every detail and wondered how she managed to come back to this place. How she stood in the exact place where her life had almost been taken 30 years ago. I was only 5-years-old when Terri was run over by a truck in her tent in the middle of the night, when a man back his truck up and then attacked her with an ax. Terri was a strong smart adventurous young woman with a dream to cross the United States on her bicycle and be back at Yale in time for fall classes. It was a very surreal experience for me to be there. Maybe because I am a cyclist, maybe because I frequent that part of Oregon each year, maybe for a reason I am not suppose to know yet – this story speaks to me.

I Hate the Bassoon

My friend Sherrie asked me a question; it was a simple question nothing out of the ordinary… It was my answer that surprised my friend and even made me step back and think. (So, how do you like the basson?)
My daughter has played the violin for 8 years now. We’ve all come to love the violin, friends, family, all of us. The violin has become a part of our lives and is part of my daughter’s very soul. So this September I was a little taken back when she asked to take up the bassoon. I was surprised and really didn’t give it much thought. Before I knew it she brought home a bassoon from school, was signed up for weekly lessons, her scheduled arranged to allow for orchestra and band classes and a supply list was put on the kitchen counter.
I hate the Bassoon! (That was my answer to the question.)
Do you know what the bassoon is to me? It is a drive into Portland each week fighting 5:30 traffic, it is another $150 a month spent on lessons, supplies, it is more fuel costs out of an already tight budget, it is one more things for ME to do.
Do you know what the bassoon is to my daughter? It is a gift and talent she has, it is an avenue to embrace more music, more opportunities, more friends and events. It is one more thing to do that makes her feel special and one more talent God has given her. It makes her smile, it makes her happy, it fills our home with even more music than before.
I still hate the bassoon but a month later but I’ve come to love the joy it brings her.

Bend, Oregon in the Fall

There isn’t a more beautiful place then Bend Oregon in the Fall. The drive alone is great. As you head up Hwy 26 towards Mt. Hood the fall colors are so vibrant. Since it gets colder on the mountain at night it causes the fall colors to be more dramatic then what we experience in the Portland area.

I was introduced to a new area to mountain bike Phils Trail. I highly recommend you take a loop around it the next time you are lucky enough to visit the Bend area.

While descending down the hill and after I’d relaxed a little I took in the sights and thought how lucky I was to be there, how lucky I was to be enjoying this beautiful day, this beautiful area.

My weekend was full of little realizations of how blessed I am in life. It is funny how being out in nature can bring a deep sense of centeredness to the soul.