Orbital path....

It has seemed to me that the living of one's life is like a long period comet. As children we enjoy our perihelion. We shine splendidly with our glory in full view, but as we pass the sun, as we must, our glory fades. We return into the cold and darkness that awaits. The sun seems to retreat further and further from our view. And we plunge outward ever farther from its warmth. Those with us on our journey show the signs of this advance. We are slower to see it in ourselves, but it is inevitable and just as obvious.

Today I am trying to get back into my weight loss mode. I did 27 miles on Blue and ate very lightly. Tomorrow, I'll do a morning run while Bev and Meena do a walk, then we meet with David and Max for a lunch. Paul is home from his surgery. He must have been on pain meds because he seemed a little fuzzy in his texts tonight. I hope he heeds my warning about doing too much. He will have more pain tomorrow and a bit more day after tomorrow before it begins to get better.

Time is dragging here tonight. Probably because census is low. Not many things to watch of take care of. I'm a little tired tonight as I usually am after my hectic week off. Soon it will be home and rest to get up and do this all over again. Endless repetition.

Avondale burning....

About 1pm today we became aware of a fire at the old Avondale Mills building. Its been deserted for some time. Salvage crews have been working to extract some value from the heart pine construction and old machinery. Apparently lightning struck it setting off a blaze that couldn't be contained. All that old dry wood, cotton lint, and grease made for a combustible mix. But it is sad to see it lost. My Dad started there in 1955 as a floor sweeper. He worked with Avondale till his death in 1984. So many people in this community drew their livelihood from that company. Sad.

Feeling frustrated....

Yesterday I was feeling very frustrated by everything. I was totally out of sorts, frustrated by the least things, and cynical toward life. Thank goodness I recognized this for what it was and broke out of that downward spiral. I can blame it on being tired after a week-long effort finished with less than perfect sleep, but that would be too easy. It is more likely that the things I see coming ramped up my internal resistance to change and my confidence became a little shaky with respect to my ability to handle it. So tonight it is reigned in and I am feeling much better. A good night.

Easter Photos 2011

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=ChrisSimon342&target=ALBUM&id=5599207185230570417&authkey=Gv1sRgCNi3w-qE78ulQA&feat=email

The passage of time...

I was searching for something among my CD's to entertain the boys Saturday and found a recording of Nikki and Sara from 1986 and possibly a little earlier. Seeing Nikki dancing around the living room at about 18 months old was sweet. Seeing Sara as she lay there in her cradle on the first day home from the hospital made me want to pick her up. In the next clip, there was my Mom with Sara taking her first steps. 1987 - 1933 gives 54 years old. She was the same age I am now. And I was 31. Now that little one is 26. Life passes by quietly like the flow of a river. We need landmarks to be mindful of how quickly it passes. It can't be changed. We can learn how to enjoy the trip. That's the best we can do.

Here comes the Safari

It seems like a long time coming. After missing last year's Safari, we'll get to attend this one. We are down to the last few days before time to go. There are a few preparations left. It looks like the weather will be cooperative. With the shift lever failing on the tandem like it did, I'll have the chance to get it repaired. Perhaps I should have even replaced the front derailleur hanger so I could put the original one back on. Didn't think of it. I think Bev is ready for it. We did a 24 mile ride this morning on the single bikes. She did fine but I doubt it would be fun beyond 2 days for her. Some family members are mad at us right now. That's something we didn't need. I expect taking this trip won't do much to improve that either. Perhaps I shouldn't worry about it anymore.

Hiking in the Smokeys

After a 10 year hiatus, we got the same group back together to hike in the Smokeys. Gary would not arrive until Wednesday night but Kirk, Alan, and I did two other days of hiking loops back into Elkmont campground. There was a surprising number of people there considering the recent rain and cold temperatures. I think it would have been nice to have had the camper along for the cold nights. But right now I'm glad I didn't take it. On the short trip up to Logan's Landing where we camped the weekend with the boys, the brake calipers failed and I would have certainly been in trouble for driving so far then depending on failed brakes in those mountains there.

We arrived to snow on Tuesday. After a short process of tent setting, we launched out on a 6 mile hike. That put us back in camp in time for a supper of Mountain House foods. It took some effort to get a fire made. We didn't exactly have the kind of wood you like for camp fires. Despite the chill, my North Face Cat's Meow bag and Thermarest mattress really did the job. Next morning we were up for breakfast and then a 10 mile hike back into Elkmont. With our other car half way to Cade's Cove, it took a while to retrieve it that evening. Alan's brother Gary joined us about supper time. We ate hot dogs and baked potatoes. Next morning we packed up our camp and headed up to Newfoundland Gap to hike over to Mount LeConte lodge.