Temporal Gulch

"Life's journey is not about arriving at the gate well preserved, it's about skidding in sideways, all used up and worn out and yelling, 'Damn! What a ride!!!!"

I have to admit to feeling some remorseful longing lately for the good old days when I had two, if not pretty, at least un-scarred knees. And, truth be told, no stretch marks. And no c-section scar. I've sort of had this general sense that I'm only 31 and already my body's looking rather worse for the wear. So, when I saw this quote a little earlier this week, it sort of screamed out at me. As in, yes I have a nice set of nasty scars on my knees, that look awful with skirts, but at least I got them doing something I love--riding my bike to work. And yes my stretch marks and c-section scar are not lovely either, but my son definitely is and he is totally worth every mark his existence has left. And also, the lines around my eyes and mouth are from laughing hard and often, so who am I to complain? Honestly, what's the alternative 50 years down the road? The cosmetic-surgery nightmare that is Joan Rivers or a dried up old hag who has no stories to tell because she never had any fun, or adventures, or pain. Yikes! I think I'll take my beat-up self, use it up, wear it out, and be happy......
In pursuit of wearing ourselves and our truck out, today when we went on an adventure on an off road trail near Patagonia. The area was called Temporal Gulch (photos here). Neither Moses nor I, nor Garion for that matter, had ever been to the Patagonia area before, despite have lived in Tucson for over a decade (4.5 years for Garion). It was amazingly beautiful. The area is full of gorgeous old oak and juniper trees, with a few pines at higher elevations, and our trail took us back and forth several times over a shallow creek (I think Sonoita Creek). We had a great time exploring and we definitely plan to head back for camping and more extended adventuring.

Favorite Green Blogs

I do a bit more Internet surfing that is probably healthy for someone whose supposed to be working, and, ah-hem, not surfing....but whatever. I've really been enjoying some excellent "green" blogs lately and am finding all sorts of sources for inspiration. Here are my top five favorites (some day I'll create a blog roll, but for now this will have to do) :

No Impact Man--An author and his family, living in New York City, attempt to re-arrange their lives to have zero environmental impact. About a month ago, they turned off their electricity--such courage!
Green as a Thistle--Everyday the author makes one green change, the challenge is to keep it up for a year. Everyday I read it I think, what in the world is left? Quite the cliff hanger.
Crunchy Chicken--Good blog, great name!
Little Blog in the Big Woods--This man has lived off the grid for 30 years. He also makes giving up your refrigerator sound like a good idea (but I'm too chicken to do it). He reminds me of Moses's dad in some ways.
Causabon's Book--This woman is one tough, smart cookie. I find her to be constantly intellectually and morally challenging.
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And just for good measure, some of my favorite bicycle blogs:
Kent's Bike Blog--This man just finished up touring Washington state and Portland. He's got great comments about bicycle commuting, touring, and communities.
Zero Per Gallon--I totally understand how he feels about goats.
Rocbike.com-- This blog offers up a daily digest of bicycle related links among another things.
The Practical Pedal--This is a new magazine and blog about, you guessed it, practical cycling. They had some great articles in the first issue. Check out the dutch cargo bikes!

Remember Me?

Last week we traveled to California, and by traveled I mean we slogged through the whole freakin' state... nearly. Moses's brother, Cedar, got married on Aug. 4th and we decided that as long as we were traveling to California, we might as well visit everyone there that we're related to. The wedding was at Pebble Beach in a beautiful house overlooking the ocean. After that, we headed up to Redding to visit my dad and check out his new digs. He has a pool and Garion made good use of it. After that, we headed to Shasta Lake where Moses's oldest brother, Eddie, and Eddie's wife Cyndie have a gorgeous home on 5 acres about 2 miles from the lake. We toured Shasta caverns one day and then spend the next on Eddie and Cyndie's boat. Garion got to drive the boat and remarked to be later, "Mom! I didn't even have a boat driving license!" Don't tell the authorities, please. Next we mosied our way down I-5 to the LA area, where we visited Moses' Aunt Sharon and Uncle Joe. They took us to the LA Zoo. Garion declined the offer of living in his very own zoo exhibit, but did except the free t-shirt that comes with Aunt Sharon and Uncle Joe's membership. We had a great time but are ready to be homebodies for awhile. You can view the photos of our trip here.

Book Review: I Heart Snape

Caution: Minor Spoilers Ahead
Oh man. I stayed up an hour and a half past my bedtime last night to finish the last Harry Potter. And I have to say, I knew it! I knew Snape couldn't be evil. Although I have of course worried an fretted over Harry, Ron, and Hermione, I think Snape turned out to be the most interesting character of the series and certainly the most heroic. Harry got to be brave with the love and support of friends, but after Dumbledore died, Snape must have been the loneliest person in the world. Everyone he was helping hated him. And he protected Harry, as he said he would, until the last possible moment. Because he loved Lily! Ah, man that was good! And I loved the bit when Harry considers how much Hogwarts meant to him, and Voldemort, and Snape, the abandoned boys. Sigh. I don't even feel like reading my next book (which is a book club selection) because I'm still so wrapped up in the Harry Potter saga.

Rain

Garion started a new daycare about six weeks ago. I had heard wonderful things about the new daycare from some families who had sent kids there. I knew that I wanted to send Garion to the school, and was thrilled when they had an opening for him, but I was sure that we would have a long, tough transition to the new place, new teachers, and new friends.
On the first day, Garion shocked me by being not only not apprehensive about the new school but downright enthusiastic. Since then, I've been really pleased with the quality of the teachers and the program and I am so grateful for the opportunity for Garion to have this kind of experience.
This was reinforced yesterday when I picked Garion up. It was raining outside and Garion and two of his classmates were sitting up on top of a counter (by the guinea pigs) under the window, shoes off, and watching the rain. I can't remember the last time I was three four-year-olds in calmly sitting in one spot, never mind doing something as utterly peaceful as watching rain. I love that kind of relaxed, open atmosphere at this new school. It was a tough decision to switch schools but I'm glad we did.

Nice!

On my way home today, I ended up in a pack of about 10 or so bikes traveling along the Third St. bike route--it was just like the Tour de France. Except minus the fruity spandex clothing and plus some backpacks and a dude with a cell phone. I was in a peloton! It was so exciting.
The problem with my peloton was that it was kind of a slow peloton and I was trapped on the inside by two lollygaggers in front of me and a couple of riders on the outside. I listened a bit while Lollygagger A and Lollygagger B discussed the merits of the bike route, and how now that they rode their bikes there were more conscious of bikes when drive. I told myself the slow pace was fine, I didn't mind the easy ride home, it'd be very pleasant.
Except that after a while I felt a surge in my legs, a desire to feel the wind in my bike helmet: I felt the need for speed. The two riders on the outside turned off and I saw the chance to make my move. I looked left--no traffic. I centered my will, moved to out to the left of the two Lollygaggers, and turned the power on, baby.
As I was whipped past the Lollygaggers, with my trailer, going up hill (slightly), I heard Lollygagger A remark:

"NICE!"

Was it for me? I don't really know, but I'd like to think Lollygagger A knows awesome biking prowess when he sees it.

Book Review: Jesus, a Novel by Paul Wangerin

This book is basically what it says it is, the story of Jesus in a novelized form. You know the characters and the story, so I'll skip the summary. I think the point was humanize some of the central figures of the New Testament to make them easier to relate to, but to be honest, the book fell flat. Mary was portrayed as the stereotypical Jewish mother and Simon Peter was made into a big oafish clown. I found the book really difficult to finish, and I think partly because I already knew the end. We talked about this in book club, and one of the members said she thinks the lack of tension was really the fault of the author; there are a lot of stories whose end we already know, but who manage to make you hang on the edge of your seat regardless. Overall, I'd say this book was just blah, and I wouldn't recommend it.
For those of you (yeah I know this phrase is a little presumptuous because I think I have all of about three readers, one of whom I'm married to) who are wondering why my book club would pick this book, a word of explanation: I'm actually in two book clubs, one at work (which would not have picked this book) and another with my uncle, grandmother, and some friends in which we read books about Catholicism or faith in general. Although some of the Catholic books are total duds, kind of like this one, I'm immensely enjoying the opportunity to talk about issues of faith with a group of smart, thinking grown-ups. (In contrast to my smart, thinking child who asks me questions about God like, "could God eat a whole house?" or "how many eyeballs does God have? Does he have infinity eyeballs?")