Reading

I'm not a prolific reader compared to other cats out there...hell, I barely read books these days. But I do knock off a few each year and I definitely have my favorites to which I return from time to time.

A few days ago I got the urge to revisit an author. Ernest Hemingway has the distinction (to me) of being probably the only author whose work I was ever assigned to read in class that I actually still feel compelled to read every year or so (Twain should also count...but I read him long before it was ever assigned).

I've read most of his things and relate to characters in several books. Writing of trout fishing in Spain sparked my interest in the country (and I actually DID fish a river in Austria that he had written briefly about). But it's his short stories...man...good stuff.

So that's what I'm digesting these days. Revisiting the complete canon and trying to pick out something new that I can apply to my life right now.

To the Tunes of...

This past weekend was a good one for musical entertainment. Friday night I accompanied a friend and a couple of uber-excited high school kids to a Skatalites show in Ventura.

Okay actually my friend was the uber-excited one. I was stoked to tag along and hear some new music. And the In & Out Burger en route was good, too.

Really glad that I went as the music was top notch. My first time hearing the band (I think my first time hearing ska at ALL...so sorry "going to college in the 90s"...I was on a somewhat regrettable music bender at that time).

Saturday night I went to a Peter Gabriel concert at the Santa Barbara bowl.

Oh. My.

To say that the experience was incredible would be more than an understatement...perhaps by a few orders of magnitude. I've listened, practically fed on, Peter Gabriel songs for the past 16 years and they've always had their places in steady rotation on my "favorites" playlist.

Gabriel was playing with an orchestra rather than his "usual" band and I thought that I wouldn't feel the same connection to the music. I can't even say "in spite of that"...because the experience was so great, the music so deep, the visuals and performances so engaging...can't imagine it being any better.

Running Away

My legs are sore this morning.

Last night I ran in a 5K race. "Race" isn't necessarily an appropriate descriptor for me as my goal is usually just to finish with a somewhat respectable time. I typically average a sub-8 minute mile and my goal for the season is to hit a 7 minute pace (my best time last season was a 7:11).

This isn't remarkable in the world of runners...and I see all ages and shapes of people pass me on the course. But it's significant to me in that I was (a few years ago) quite out of shape and wouldn't have imagined that I would actually LIKE to get out and run. In the past few years I've run in several races - ranging from 5K to half-marathons (including a fairly gnarly 13K trail run at altitude).

I write this now because my legs are sore and I've been lacking motivation (for the past few months) to really get out there and run on a regular basis...and I have all but stopped cycling. Granted, I've been swimming a lot...but I need to start pushing it a little. Put them all together and I've got a triathlon.

A Friend's Passing

Yesterday we had a memorial service for Brandon - a friend I met about 4 or so years ago when he was homeless in Santa Barbara. Brandon had some serious issues but, through the years, made some great decisions and ended up getting sober, finding work, reconnecting with his family and falling in love. I hadn't seen him since I moved back to town last summer but we were planning to connect about the time when I got the call that he died.

Even when he was spun out in a bad space Brandon exuded care and interest in others. He was funny, intelligent and incredibly caring. Listening to everyone's stories of him made me realize how much of an impact someone can have...even if that person is a societal "castoff".

We've had friends from the streets die before. This is a tough one...been wrestling with the feeling that it seems that a sense of hope died along with him.

Still - I am so glad that he died when he was on top...surrounded by friends and loved ones and in the best space of his life.

Rest well, Brandon...

It's the Day Before the End of the World and I Met a Girl

Okay...so really I met her a long time ago and only recently reconnected. As our life circumstances are somewhat different than before we went on a few dates.

She left today to begin a new adventure and explore her own path. Excited for what lies ahead for her...but sad to see her go.

Re-entering this world of friendship/dating has been tricky and it's been somewhat difficult to navigate. Some hits...some misses.

This was one of the good ones.

I think this thing still works

So. I'm going to try an experiment and actually post things to this space. Maybe even more than once per year. I read my brother's blog regularly and am inspired...so why the hell not?

Starting off with a picture...we'll see what happens next.

Last night I dreamt that I had super powers…specifically that I could fly. I decided to tell all of my friends about it. The result was that I was rejected…not as a freak but, rather, that people felt that I thought that I was better than they were. They felt the need to show me the things that THEY were good at (but I didn’t feel it was necessary…I had just wanted them to know everything about me). This part is a bit fuzzy…there were knives…and someone was bragging to me that THEY were special because the knives didn’t cut them. The thing is – the knives didn’t cut me, either. And I wanted to warn them that they shouldn’t rely on the phenomenon. But I felt hesitant about telling them. And, in reality, I was relieved that the knives DIDN’T cut me. At the same time I was upset that they might think I felt superior because I had a capacity that they didn’t have…and I felt gratified that I was still capable of doing EVERYTHING that they could.

Thinking about the meaning…any suggestions?