I was up at two this morning, and couldn’t get back to sleep. I sat for an hour, illuminated by the street lights bleeding in through the blinds, and enjoyed the whirring of the various fans and motors wafting in through the window. I got a bit more sleep before dawn, but I feel especially translucent today. I don’t know if I exist.

I’ve agreed in theory to participating in a short course Triathlon in 2010. Unlike its big brother, the Ironman, the short course (1.5km swim/40km cycle/10k run) is a challenging without requiring a sacrifice of all of one’s free time for training. This looks like it’ll be a blast, and as I’ve never done a multi-sport event before, a new experience.

• I enjoyed Get Smart and Hellboy II. I did not enjoy Wanted.
• I bench pressed 86% of my body weight this morning.
• The plantar fasciitis in my right foot, nearly 10 years dormant, is acting up again.
• I really, really like the new iPhone 2.0 software update. It’s very future-y.

It’s so very easy to let the tendrils of possible futures and pasts to make a mess of the present.

In previous years I didn’t have a great way of handling this other than getting depressed and waiting it out. Zazen has helped my focus enough so I can, with a bit of effort, bring myself back to the present. The act of going through my normal routine is all it takes to untie the knot.

“Is there a large block of cheese in your bag?” the TSA agent asked me. “No, it’s a fruitcake,” I said, to a bit of sniggering from the other passengers. The agent shook her head and said “that’s the second fruitcake today” as she let me through the checkpoint.

I boarded the small prop plane which would take me from Colorado Springs to Denver (approximate air time, 16 minutes) where I would have a 1 hour layover until departing for Boston. The computers in Utah that oversee the complex dance of arrivals and departures had other ideas, and insisted that our small plane was too heavy to safely take off with more than 2 passengers. We waited on the tarmac until a team of programmers hit the computer with a clue-bat. Finally we took off, and soon I walked off the plane in Denver with approximately 7 minutes until my scheduled departure of 4:55.

I had to get from gate 95 to gate 26. The red line traces my bolt through the terminal.

I don’t know exactly how far it was, but between the suboptimal shoes and the luggage (avec fruitcake) strap over my chest, I arrived at the gate severely winded exactly at 4:55. The plane had already left. Fortunately I was able to be rebooked on an earlier flight, which had been delayed a few hours. After a very long and strange day, I arrived in Boston only 20 minutes later than I was expecting to.

I’m glad to be home.

Home for a day or two before heading out to a family gathering in Colorado. I can’t say that I’m looking forward to flying, but I travel without much baggage these days, and without a sense of urgency. I’ll get there when I get there.

I’ve been spending some time with Zen Master Dogen this week, getting to know him a little better. His work is deep and profound, is the ground on which my order of Zen is built. Much of it requires a more intimate understanding of Zen than I have right now, but even though I don’t always understand, his words are beautiful in themselves and nourishing in the way being in a beautiful place is nourishing. Writing in the 1200s, his words still retain so much vibrance.

What different types of beings see is different; and we should reflect on this fact. Is it that here are various ways of seeing one object? Or is it that we have mistaken various images for one object? We should concentrate every effort on understanding this question, and then concentrate still more.

— Dogen, Mountains and Rivers Sutra

I’m on vacation this week in the Catskills (in a familiar place). There’s wifi here now, which is a mixed blessing. Previously this guest house was a remote place where the world had a difficult time intruding. Now there’s urgent email and google. Still, when on vacation one can take the opportunity to look at technology with fresh eyes.

The Catskills are in their full Summer glory right now. A wave of thunderstorms passed by earlier this week, but now it is endless green and breezy and cloud-specked sky. It’s an ideal setting to catch up with friends and recharge.

• I am a little overwhelmed by an onslaught of tiny-but-important details. I am seeking steadier footing.
• I saw a deer dying on the road a few days ago. Two people were standing over it to make sure it didn’t get hit again. Its blood was so very red.
• I bench pressed 74% of my body weight on Wednesday. I should be able to bench press 100% by the end of summer.
• My food blog is being featured in July’s issue of VegNews magazine.
• I am going on vacation on Saturday. I’m not sure if I’ll have internet access while I’m gone. Among the things I’m bringing are my video camera, a guitar, a tambourine, eight pounds of tofu, and a jar of nutritional yeast.

We’re past the Summer Solstice, but the days are still long, and a thunderstorm has left behind some cool, breezy weather to accompany the lingering light.

I had some work to finish up this morning, but happily managed to spend the afternoon away from the UNIX terminal. Lots of dishes were done, laundry was washed and folded, and tidiness restored.

Time does fly – I’ve been playing guitar for over two years now. Like most things, I’ve improved with practice, and have progress to at least competent. In a move that still befuddles my inner 10-year-old, I’ve added a regimen of scale and arpeggio drills to my practice sessions, because just strummin’ isn’t pushing my chops hard enough right now. I’m still committed to making music every step of the way, and it feels very good to be at this stage, developing in subtlety and proficiency. I can still remember when I was incredibly clumsy, barely able to fret even the simplest chords. And there is so much further to go.

I ran across the magical Wordle, which creates world clouds when you input some text. It’s a great way to visualize things to see what’s important. Or just fun.

Here’s a cloud made from the entire text of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice: