What To Do With Winter Days

On those days when we are home and in the same room with a television, we have resolved to expose ourselves to a minimum of NEWS and instead occasional sporting events. We also love to watch movies and documentaries. Pedaling our bicycles on quiet roads and trails, baking sourdough bread and drying fruit (from the big valley below us) has risen to the top of our list of favorite activities. Oops, I almost forgot...huddling into our TheraSauna is a special way to start the day. Lisa is talking about giving the garden a rest this year and not commiting to a schedule of Yoga teaching. We are both hoping to accomplish more in the area of reading and writing in the coming year. Lisa has practiced much discipline with her writings these last couple of years and I have fit in quite a few read-books...forty this year, twenty-five last year. We haven't forgot the fact that we are living on a feverish planet and that we are surviving a rude and violent threat to humanitarian politics. we promote kindness and joy to nearly everyone we interact with. Maintaining the love in our hearts and keeping our daily 'sense of humor'are high on our list of resolutions for 2026!

New Year...New Sprouts

Good news first! We are going to become Grandparents, most likely in the month of May (maybe a Gemini baby). We have retired from the business that we owned and operated for 31 years...BBQMS is no longer. This is not our first retirement. Lisa retired from the USDA (Forest Service) in 2014 after thirty years of servitude...hard physical labor while looking out for the safety and well-being of visitors to the Lassen and Plumas National Forests. We also retired from our bicycle touring business, Outback With Bodfish in '95 after fifteen years of guiding bicycle-mounted folks onto the backroads and trails throughout remote areas of California. I like to say this new year begins an era of 'All Play and No Work'. We are free to wander and explore as a family of three.. our dog Nori always loves a good adventure. Needless to say, many of our future van (Seymour) trips will be along a wide corridor between Northern California and Park City, Utah.

Are We At A Breaking Point?

The year 2026 is only two weeks old and chaos has taken hold in Minnesota, Venezuela, Washington, D.C., Iran, Ukraine and Nigeria. Donald John Trump has contributed to the craziness on all fronts. I have always believed that his goal has been to create as much chaos as possible. Why else appoint the least qualified people in the country to every one his judicial, administrative and legislative positions. It's what Putin has always hoped for...proof that the American Way of Life is headed for collapse. Why is DJT so determined to please Putin? It has been speculated upon numerous times over the last ten years...the possibility that Putin has "The Goods" on Donald.

Journey to Michigan...Gather Home

West Yellowstone, Wyoming was where we found a strong cup of coffee after waking in the frozen van (17 degrees) next to Mesa Falls near the western edge of Yellowstone National Park. It was the first week of October and there was a line of motorcars four football fields long to enter the gates of the park. The overlooks and information pullouts were jammed with tourists throughout. We couldn't wait to arrive at the north exit near Gardiner, Montana. A few miles below Gardiner, we stopped at a rural road bridge across the Yellowstone River for a dog walk and swim. The privacy level was high, only one fly-fisher, so we stripped down and plunged in. The Yellowstone flows to the Missouri River in NW North Dakota so, we followed it's descent in Seymour for the next couple of days. We then followed the Missouri River through North Dakota to Sacakawea Park in Stanton, ND for another quiet night of camping in the van.

Reaquainting With Seven Sisters

As of October 2, 2025 our Escrow was finalized, the building formerly known as Bodfish Bicycles and Quiet Mountain Sports is now called Gather Home. Which is, ironically, exactly what we did. I grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan and I have seven sisters (including inlaws) whom I seldom see. They all live in Michigan and we're hoping that they will all welcome a visit. We had our Transit van, named Seymour, loaded and ready for adventure. Our van camping expedition lasted for the entire month of October. Our first night was in Goose Lake State Park just over the state line in Northeastern California. Southern Oregon was quiet, desolate and beautiful as we drove Hwy 140 east to Jackpot, Nev. From there the hwy led North back into Oregon where we took a gravel road out across The Alvord Desert which led us toward Jordan Valley and the border of Idaho. A long day of driving, for sure. We headed into the hills east of Jordan Valley toward the mines of Silver City. Dust and dusk were conspiring to send me off on a double track lane for a place to "boondock". Incredibly, only a half mile up this seldom used path we came upon a flat overlook above the small town of Jordan Valley. Our second night out and luck was with us already.

Sitting In An Empty Shop

In a chair in the middle of our empty bicycle shop...after fifteen minutes of feeling my separation from my previous 31 years as bike shop owner, I realize...the most important thing is that I had the best customers in the world. People interested in outdoor quiet mountain sports. People devoted to exercise. People interested in sharing their stories about mingling with nature. People steeped in the positives of everyday adventures. People who wanted to help me get the word out...Life Is Good! What other business can attract these kind of people? We had our 'down and out' characters but we almost always made their day better...with free flat repair or rusty chain improvements. We were 'there' for people, we listened, we empathized and we offered help.