Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Spooky...Those Pre-election Blues, Again.
Where are we going with all this? Even Brazil is getting in on the act, electing a new fascist/nationalist president that wants to turn the Brazilian rainforest into cash. I just want to ride my bike! The mid-term elections will be over soon enough (6 days) but, what's not over in six days is this drought we are experiencing in NorCal. We were told that we'd have a wet warm Winter...I sure hope they are right. So much to worry about...and so little time.
Actually, what am I worried about? I've had a good run. Now is time to put on that elder smile and enjoy each sunrise. We hiked with our six month old pup to Beauty Lake in the Caribou Wilderness this last Sunday and found that nothing had changed...still a great place to recharge the batteries and wet the whistle...whatever that means. Our Black Labrador puppy loves trail hiking and lake-bagging. She needs a lot of attention and she is not so fond of riding behind the bicycle in her trailer....she has ceased howling all the way to work...but she tries to hide when I say, Load up, it's time to go to work. So, we ride a lot less and hike every chance we get. We have learned that we can 'crate her' for one hour in the afternoon without undue stress, so that we can ride together. Nothing better than a new puppy to bring you back to the 'here and now'.
So really, there's very little to worry about...as long as the sun keeps rising in the eastern sky and we are here to witness it.
Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Refusing To Believe The Science
I am absolutely amazed at how often normal Americans resist learning and information. I started thinking about this while motoring through Oregon last week.
Let's start with reports that smoking causes cancer, respiratory disease and heart problems....and damages the people near you. This is not new information, the American Cancer Society has been throwing these facts at us for fifty years. The majority of people driving around eastern Oregon are smokers...their truck windows are coated by a blue film on the inside.
Next, I'm standing in line at a grocery in Burns, Oregon while the store manager is training a new cashier. I'm holding a jar of organic peanut butter, a loaf of sourdough bread, celery, mustard and a baby loaf of white cheddar cheese (made in Oregon). "Oh, here's a guy that eats only healthy food." says the manager. I look at the cart behind me and the full bags in front of me...Cheetos, Diet Pepsi, Lucky Charms and Spam prevail...It's because I want to stay healthy, I reason, out loud... They all chortle loudly at the same moment.
Exercise is another issue the literature covers quite well. You don't have to train like an athlete, you just have to keep moving under your own power...a walk with the dog or the grandkids. Americans are unique in this, from what I've witnessed around the world, they jump in the car to drive two or three blocks to get the mail, pick up kids at school or to get a morning coffee.
Then there's the issue of 'climate change' and increasing CO2 levels and how these occurrences are changing the planet and our daily lives. Forget it.
Americans can't figure out how to eat, stay active, give up bad habits...we are never going to have any hope of digesting the information about climate change, it just isn't going to happen....we are TOAST.
Let's start with reports that smoking causes cancer, respiratory disease and heart problems....and damages the people near you. This is not new information, the American Cancer Society has been throwing these facts at us for fifty years. The majority of people driving around eastern Oregon are smokers...their truck windows are coated by a blue film on the inside.
Next, I'm standing in line at a grocery in Burns, Oregon while the store manager is training a new cashier. I'm holding a jar of organic peanut butter, a loaf of sourdough bread, celery, mustard and a baby loaf of white cheddar cheese (made in Oregon). "Oh, here's a guy that eats only healthy food." says the manager. I look at the cart behind me and the full bags in front of me...Cheetos, Diet Pepsi, Lucky Charms and Spam prevail...It's because I want to stay healthy, I reason, out loud... They all chortle loudly at the same moment.
Exercise is another issue the literature covers quite well. You don't have to train like an athlete, you just have to keep moving under your own power...a walk with the dog or the grandkids. Americans are unique in this, from what I've witnessed around the world, they jump in the car to drive two or three blocks to get the mail, pick up kids at school or to get a morning coffee.
Then there's the issue of 'climate change' and increasing CO2 levels and how these occurrences are changing the planet and our daily lives. Forget it.
Americans can't figure out how to eat, stay active, give up bad habits...we are never going to have any hope of digesting the information about climate change, it just isn't going to happen....we are TOAST.
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