Did You Ever Just Want To Pack Up Your Bicycle And Go?

Not actually the right season for such a move but oh, so tempting. We've done this a half dozen times, for months at a time. We didn't have smart phones or laptops with us and we only knew what was going on in the "news world" by glancing at the headlines as seen through the scratched plexiglass of newspaper stands. It really didn't matter what was going on in the world of politics or pandemics or Panda naming. No newscasts from magazines, radio or television. No Facebook or Instagram and no special apps for searching. We weren't searching. We were spontaneously pedaling and rolling, looking for the next campsite and skinny-dipping hole. We did enjoy using our camera to document the experience but, we never saw the pictures until we had them developed through the home drugstore....after our journey was completed. Times have changed, and in a very big hurry. We communed with nature. We marveled at the purity of forests, rivers and wild animal behaviors. We meditated while watching sunrises and cloud movements. We thought a lot about the "bigger world" and how we were just mobile little specs on our two wheels. We didn't have any big ideas that our opinions mattered and needed to be entered on an electronic gadget. We actually never searched for a recharge from a 110 outlet or mother computer. We did need petrol or propane for our little backpacking stove and we frequented grocery stores and fruit stands. Hard to imagine doing this now...life has become so complicated. However, I do believe it can still be done. I'd have to arrange for someone to pay my bills...because, no one can live life without bills. Now I see what I am doing...I am lusting for a simpler life and my experience has shown that it comes with mounting a bicycle and riding off into the sunset.

Drive Less, Breathe Deeper, Ride A Bicycle!

I've been a "driving fool" these last several months. I'm still driving far less miles than the average "Out West" American but about ten times as far as I'm used to driving. After a couple dozen four hour (each way) journeys to Sacramento for health scans and doctor visits, I must say I'm getting pretty good at timing and 'going with the flow' of crazy Californian motorists. In a quest to keep each other healthy and extend our lives several more months we drive through unprecidented forest fire smoke, extreme heat and a spat of unpredictable freeway shootings. It really doesn't make much sense, on the surface. After a couple of successful surgeries and excellent follow-up care, I have to say it's worth it. For sure it's the price we pay for living in the California Outback (Where the water is pure and the cycling is excellent.) Now I own two "Bread Box/ Toaster" vehicles and both beg for attention and workouts "To lube the seals", our mechanic advises. Looking forward to the day when we can be far less 'virus paranoid'. We love wandering the desert and we've really missed hearing the Pacific Ocean crash in to the continent on the Left Coast. Our bicycles and our Labrador travel in comfort with us to unbelievably remote locations throughout the West. We are not all that fond of being around other humans but, I have to say, Those humans who work at the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento are a Godsend. Thank you so very much for accepting us into your workplace.