Michael: 3 Wishes

Motley winged blackbird
Sings a crooked song as it
Rocks on the old branch.

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Kimme is packing up getting ready to head back to Panama after her month long stay in Los Angeles. Bless her, she asked me if there’s any last minute items she could pick up for me.

I declined but there are just a few small pack able affordable items that I wouldn’t mind if they made the trip with her.

Two of those items are food. I really miss blueberries. Kimme mentioned my sisters getting me some chocolate with either blueberry or raspberry bits, but I just miss the pure and simple whole blueberries we use to buy by the small crate from either Whole Foods or Trader Joes.

Whole Foods also makes a trail mix called Chocolate Stampede with extra large chocolate chips and a variety of salty nuts that is irresistible. Next trip home, that’s what I’m having after whatever race I do there. In fact scheduling a race will be about the only way to keep me from rushing straight from the airport and gulping a large container down of that heavenly mix (Can’t afford the weight gain or stomach issues right before and event.).

The last item I wouldn’t mind having transported here would be another pair of white bicycle bibs. Kimme says the ones I have are no longer as white as they should be. Hey, dingy doesn’t feel like a good look for a bicycle kit.
Otherwise, I’m pretty content as far as material goods go. And not always having what I crave within easy walking or driving distance is turning out to be, for the most part, a pretty healthy thing.

Michael: An Old Dog

Warm dry morning breeze
should be appreciated
before the rain comes.

Monday, July 4, 2016

For both Kimme and I part of the adventure of life is trying new to learn new things. Kimme’s trying to learn weeds and plants. She’s particularly interested in edible weeds and plants.

I like that. Hands on, right at your fingertips and functional. Eventually I’d like to join her in that area of botany, but for now I’d like to rekindle an old interest.

Before I left education I received an M.A. in Physical Education. When California was flush with cash, the Governor, Schwarzenegger at the time, was going to invest heavily in Elementary school  physical education and I was trying to be on the front lines of that movement. But as is the nature of state budgets, the funds dried up and it never got off the ground. Shortly thereafter I retired and in the intervening years, I haven’t really kept up with any of the developments in physical education.

But what could be more hands on and functional than your body? Even if I never set foot in the classroom again, I’m very interested in how this strange entity works. And if given the opportunity, I would love to coach or assist either adults or children improve their fitness.

Just like Kimme has her books that start off with the basics, I’ve got a basic anatomy book I’m trying to digest.

Can an old dog learn new tricks? I don’t know about that, but I do know I’ll feel pretty damned embarrassed if I can’t even learn some of the old tricks that I studied hard for and got a degree in.

Michael: Christmas in July

A bicycle ride
Is a labyrinth of pain,
Pleasure and focus.

Sunday, July 3, 2016

Kimme will be back from a month in the states on Wednesday, and yes of course, I’ve missed her and all that and we’ll sit down and have dinner and she’ll talk and tell me all about it…

But, hey, let’s cut to the chaste and start unpacking already so I can try out my new Christmas in July toys!

For the good little trail runner I’ve been this year I believe Santa will have packed a pair of Hoka ATR Challenger 11s, an Ultra Aspire Revolt pack, a Craft sleeveless tank and a pair of North Face shorts. I’m hoping I’ll like all those enough to use them in a trail race in August.

My sisters have also given Kimme some chocolate to pass along, which I’m particularly looking forward to now that I’ve stopped having chocolate every night.

And, naturally, now that I’m an adult there’ll be the mandatory couple of pairs of socks, though at least I picked these out myself. One thin pair of trail socks and one Ex-Officio insect repellent socks. I don’t want to be chiggered again.

That’ll be it from the states until the real true blue Christmas in December.
But I’m excited! Yes, Honey, about you being home. Now when do you think you’ll be up for a run?

Michael: If It's Broke Break It Again

Rain bounces a top
The corrugated tin roof
Like small firecrackers.

Saturday, July 2, 2016

Last week was the second time in a year and a half that lightning has taken out our internet modem. Odd thing is every time they fix it it ends up working better than before.

When we first moved here the lack of consistent internet service was our biggest disappointment. We’d go days without service and it was never reliable for long.

Then Boom! Lightning strikes. Our modem and splitter short out. They replace them and we had pretty consistent service. It would blink out every once in a while, particularly when lightning was nearby, but if we took the phone off the hook it almost always came back within a minute. Sure it was a bit of a hassle to have our computers go out on us unexpectedly and to get up and take the phone off the hook every now and then, but it was better than before.

Then last week BOOM! The splitter is blown apart and the modem is singed. Again they replace them along with giving us a new phone jack, and the net has been on perfect behavior.

Since it can’t get any better I’m going to have to really be on my guard from here on out as far as lightning goes and make sure I unplug the phone if I here a storm getting too close. No telling what the next strike or repair job will do, but it can’t make anything any better.

Michael: Indigenous Trails

Ascending into
The mountainside fog is like
Walking into sleep.

Friday, July 1, 2016

In the Santa Monica Mountains in Los Angeles most of the public trails are either old ranch roads or single track trails natives or early explorers created. Most of the trail system is now mapped out and much of it is marked. That’s not quite the way it works here in the highlands of Panama.

Yes, most of the trails come from similar roots as what I’m use to in L.A. but here the farm truck trails probably lead to working farms and the single track trails are still used by indigenous workers to get to the fields. They are not mapped out or marked at all.

Thankfully, that’s where Felipe of the Volcan Hiking club comes in. He’s a Garmin whiz and with his help I’ve been able to hike and run on some very beautiful and little known or used trails.

In L.A. I could go online, look at a map, strap on some trail shoes and be pretty confident that even if I got lost eventually I’d run into a sign or somebody and figure my way out. But doing that here on anything but the few well known tourists trails, with my lack of skills would be more terrifying than liberating.

Michael: Open Windows

Indigenous child
And I are both traveling
Here as outsiders.

Thursday, June 30, 2016

Ahh…leaving the windows open at night. That’s a pleasure I haven’t experienced here in over 6 months. And it’s not that it’s been too cold. It’s been too noisy.

At first it was the stray dogs wandering around the vacant home behind us. Some of them barked or would wander within warning range of our landlord‘s dog, Leah. In response Leah would bark and she has a very heavy bark. Odd thing was, there was this one little dog that she could care less about but that dog was the biggest problem. It would sit there for hours at night and bark. At times I wish I had been a dog psychologist because I could never figure out why it would wait until late at night to come to the same spot and bark.

But when people moved into the vacant home behind us, the strays left. Unfortunately, the neighbors themselves were a bit on the loud side, so the windows stayed closed.

They moved out at the beginning of the month but it wasn’t until last night I realized, hey I can open the bedroom windows up. Opening night and there was a dry lightning show. The occasional soft white light thrown up against the clouds was a long overdue pleasure.

Can’t say how long this will continue, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I won’t have cause to close the windows anytime soon.

Michael: Coincidence?

The nervous twitches
Of birds’ heads make a life of flight
Seem precarious.

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Kimme and I are now half way into our second year here. The plan was if we liked it we’d ship our goods from the states over at the end of the first year. We did.

This year we’re suppose to scout out properties to build a small flat/studio. We only want about 6,000 square feet to build a 1,000 square foot home. But our shipping costs was way over budget, and land is little more pricey than I was hoping. Plus, even with the land, we wouldn’t be able to build for another year and a half when I can tap into my 401k.

So I approached Kimme about the possibility of holding on to our small nest egg and just continuing to rent. Use some of the money to take small little vacations into other parts of Panama and nearby Costa Rica.

And what happens? Kimme forwards me an email from a real estate agent we haven’t talked to in over 6 months. She wants to know if we’re still looking because if we are…

I did respond yes, just because the timing of it seems so coincidental I don’t believe we should pass up looking.

And now I don’t know how to feel about even looking at the property. What if it’s perfect, but just slightly out of our price range? Or even worse,  we can swing it if we live like Tibetan monks for a year and a half?

We’ll look this once, but unless some other serendipitous event occurs, that’s going to be it for a year and half.