Monthly Archives: May 2020

I Miss Hiking

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“A walk in nature walks the soul back home.”-Mary Davis

“Walking is a man’s best medicine.”-Hippocrates

I miss hiking. Something that I have been doing pretty consistently my entire adult life has taken a back seat to Covid-19 and recovering from my heart attack. What do I miss most? Here is my top ten list:

  1. Being outside.
  2. Being outside with my fellow hikers.
  3. The feel of the earth under my feet as I am walking through the woods.
  4. The breeze rustling the trees and cooling me off.
  5. Taking pictures of the myriad of things that I see on my hikes.
  6. Being able to think without being bothered by anyone.
  7. The isolation. Being able not to think about anything,
  8. Exploring new hikes.
  9. Hiking familiar trails and seeing new things.
  10. Posting my hikes on my blog.
  11. (Bonus) Disconnecting from everything electronic (except my camera).

So, for now, I ride my studio cycle to help with the recovery as well as get in shape for the eventual time that I can get back out into the woods.

HAPPY HIKING!!!

Rule #1-Stay In Your Comfort Zone

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“WTF? I blew myself up!”-Me

One of the most valuable lessons that I have learned as I have navigated through this life is that you don’t mess with what you don’t know. Why? Because you stand a good chance of looking like an idiot, or you just might get hurt really bad.

When it comes to home repairs, I have made it my business to stay away from two things-electricity and any form of gas. Both have the potential to well, kill you quickly and efficiently.

Several weeks ago I noticed that I keep hearing a strange “booming” noise coming from our basement. Our water heater, which was now over twenty years old, appeared to be the culprit of this strange noise. This was confirmed one morning when we didn’t have any hot water. So down I went with my daughter, who was holding the flashlight, into the darkness to light the pilot light.

Of course, this went against every survival instinct I have but after watching several youtube videos, I felt confident that I could do this and survive. So as my daughter held the light so I could see, I laid down on the floor next to the heater and with my extra long lighter, and also with my face about three inches away from the opening, I started to try and light the pilot light. After several failed attempts, I decided to let it sit for a few minutes since I was only getting a very weak flame and I could smell gas. 

To make a long story a great deal shorter, I apparently didn’t wait long enough. As I made another attempt to light it, I heard the familiar boom and felt the heat of a giant fireball as it scorched my beard and my face.

As I stood up, the look of shock, surprise, and horror on my daughter’s face was obvious. It told me one thing-I had screwed up. I could smell and taste the burnt hair of my beard, eyelashes, and eyebrows and after examining it in the bathroom mirror, I confirmed the obvious. My beard was screwed. Luckily my daughter was able to do some repairs because I absolutely refused to fully shave it off. It was bad enough that I had to trim it.

Needless to say, that lovely smell persisted for weeks, especially when I washed it. I can now laugh at what happened, especially since my daughter did almost immediately after it happened. It has also reinforced my belief that you shouldn’t mess with what you don’t know. I am now a believer, without a doubt.

The pictures above are just after I failed in my attempt to light my hot water heater.

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I think my daughter did a fabulous job of repairing the damage.

Any comments? Suggestions?

The Strangest Dream…

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“Dreams, if they’re any good, are always a little bit crazy. ”
― Ray Charles

“Promise me you’ll never stop dreaming.”
― Melina Marchetta

One thing that being cooped up in the house is that it has given me ample time to live in my head. To not only think about the last five months but what I can expect in the future. Since I have not written pretty much anything since being hospitalized in late December/early January, I’m going to spend some time just writing about the crazy shit that has been residing in my head. Feel free to comment!

When I could sleep, the dreams came like clockwork. However, sleep did not come easy during the nine days that I was in the hospital. Blood being drawn every two hours, the coughing and crying of the patient next to me who appeared to be waiting for death and the visits from a multitude of doctors made a heavy and necessary restful sleep almost impossible. But I always knew that at some point during the day or night I had slept because I could remember the dreams.

They were always the same. I would start a hike at South Mountain Pass that would take me to Anthony’s Nose. Although the hike is about four miles round trip and easier than most, I could feel a sense of dread as I made my way up the trail. Each step, laboriously taken to avoid wet rocks and branches, became more and more difficult as I made my way up the trail. The sun disappeared behind the clouds and the vegetation on the ground and the trees themselves had changed. At the parking area, I was surrounded by lush green leaves and beautiful flowers. Now, all of the vegetation was dead and the sense of dread was much worse. Each time that I had the dream, I would walk a little further and after being enveloped in darkness, I would wake up.

After leaving the hospital, the dream never returned.

I have thought about it over the course of the last few months and I can’t figure out any answers as to the meaning of the dream. Any thoughts?