Sauvie Island

On the advise of my neighbor, I ventured to Sauvie Island this morning. It was more of a scouting trip - I did not bring my bike along this time and wanted to drive the length of island for a future trip. I caught an amazing vista of Mt St. Helen. Hood is covered in snow and quite the site this time of year. The island is an outdoor lovers paradise and a great place to kayak or ride. On this new years eve I saw my first bald eagle in the wild and it filled me with hope for the new year. Best wishes for 2007 everybody.

Big in Japan

In flipping through the pages of my passport recently, I realized that it has beeen awhile since I have taken a trip out of the north american hemisphere. Examining the customs stamps and trying to make out the dates brought exciting thoughts to mind. I have spent the last year or so exploring the US -and she is vast and I would advise anyone to rent a car sometime and explore the west coast -because it a unique experience - but one of the compelling reasons for moving out here was easy access to the pac rim and asia. I've been to Thailand and India -but today found myself thinking about Japan. I want to go there soon to satisfy the explorer inside me and I can't think of a place I'm more eager to experience. I am fascinated with classical japanese history and there is nothing like stepping into a 2000 year old culture as an outsider for the first time. I want to do an apartment swap rather than staying at a hotel if possible to be closer to their everyday way of life. Hoping the stars align and this happens soon.

consider this

We are such stuff as dreams are made on.

The Lost Generation

I was having dinner with some friends last night and we got on the subject of what people were reading. Someone at the table mentioned Hemingway and we found ourselves on the topic of what was most compelling about his work. Was it the man or his craft ? I listened intently and chimed in that there may have been no distinction ; One complimented and defined the other in an inseparable way. He was the old man and the sea.
Hemingway was part of a movement called the lost generation and they were writers and artists that lived in Paris post WW I and were considered literary modernists who challenging traditional Victorian ideals and grew cynical of the death and destruction of the war. They didn't fit the mold and longed for something different. They also produced some of the greatest American literature ever written.
Fast forward and I am back at dinner--- As I pick up my glass, I look over at Ryan and ask him jokingly if he'd run off to report on the Spanish Civil War on a whim (like Hemingway) for an unlimited supply of tapas and he smiled and replied "I just might". I hope your move to Boston inspires you like Paris did Hemingway and keep moving - it will lead you somewhere.
In other news, I have been shopping for a new bike for some time now. I need a balance between street and mountain bike. There is practical riding (going to Trader Joe's for bread) and recreational and off-road riding and my current bike just doesn't cut it. I visited River City Bicycles because I wanted to test ride the 07 Cannondale bad boy and when I called this morning they said they had a few assembled. It is a kick ass bike and after taking her for a test ride down Water street I was convinced. It's under the Christmas tree right now. I feel guilty about the price however it is offset by endless bike trails and the promise of better health.

Back on the west coast

I went home to New York and it was the first extended break that I've had since being out here. I traveled with my dog and missed my first flight because I forgot to bring along the veterinarian's health certificate. I felt like a pet person 'rookie' or something. It was nice spending time with the family, seeing old friends, and especially spending the entire day with my father in the city the day before I left. He needed to goto the embassy for some reason or other and I went along for the ride. We spent the day in central park , caught an afternoon mass at St Patricks (my dad really got a kick out of that) and it was indeed Christmas at Rockefeller Center. The batteries in my camera were not charged so I picked up a disposable -- pictures to come.

So here we are - back in Portland and I went hiking this afternoon with Sim and Scrumpy and it was great being outside again. The air was crisp and fresh and an entirely different experience than being there in the summer months. The forest is a mix of evergreens (coniferous) and deciduous trees and today all the maples had shed their leaves. The canopy that the trees form over the trails seemed different and more light was streaming in through the towering evergreens. The walk through the forest inspired us to get a Christmas tree. I learned that 'freshly cut' in Oregon means that the douglas fir was probably cut down 1 or 2 days before. The scent of fresh pine in the house has scrumpy's attention and it is beginning to feel allot like Christmas. I promised the tree guy I would plug his Christmas tree stand -so anyone in SE Portland who wants a great christmas tree at a fair price go down Milwaukee past Bybee for about a half mile and he'll be on your left side with some hot cocoa.

I found this quote by Max Planck and it was originally translated from German and is probably close to 90 years old. It is just pure genius and who knows what was lost in translation. 'How far can we actually say that we are approaching the unified system? The answers to these questions must be of the greatest importance to every physicist who studies the progress of his science. When we are in a position to consider the broader question, much discussed today, as to what is the fundamental meaning of the so-called physical universe to us ? Is it merely a practical, though fundamentally arbitrary, creation of our imagination, or are we forced to the opposite conception that it reflects a real natural phenomena independent of us ? " It reminded me of this discussion I had around this time last year with someone at work.