I rode my Harley yesterday :)

Now those have got to be five of my favorite words in the whole, wide, world!

They are a damn sight better than "Sat inside and did nothing."

Of course, I've been there, too.  Just happen to like life a little better than that right now.

I'm fighting the battle with the TV, and I am happy to report that I am winning!!!  Yay for me!  Don't get me wrong, the baseball playoffs have begun and football season is in full swing.  But... I'm rejecting non-interesting TV fare (an improvement over watching whatever was on for hours at a time...)  Case in point: Saturday morning. I was up, puttering around, trying to shake the cobwebs loose.  I had taught a class Friday night in San Bernardino (more on my evening schedule later...) and was just getting my Saturday morning bearings.  I made myself some breakfast and was surfing the channels to see what games were on. At just about that time (9AM), I noticed that there was not a breath of wind and bright sunshine outside the door...

That made for an easy decision, as was the destination.  I decided I'd head out to the Amboy Crater.  I'd like to tell you lots of pertinent facts about the crater, but all I remember is that it was a result of a meteorite contact into the ground.  When I got to the meteor, I had been thinking all morning - shock and surprise, right!??!  I decided that the crater would be the perfect location to record a video for my students; so I did.  It took me 7 takes and one perfect take in which I failed to turn on the camera!  Oh, well.  The result wasn't perfect, but it was heartfelt and personal and that's more important to me...

The ride was relatively short, but it was breathtaking and scenic.  I can see why Wonder Valley got it's name... when you crest the ridge coming from Amboy, the view is sweeping and majestic...  The ride was brief (about 140 miles) and right in my wheelhouse for speed... I let about a dozen cars pass me by so I could maintain a nice 55 MPH pace with no one riding my bumper pressing to make time...

Once back at the house, I made a plan to ride again on Sunday - which I did.  None of the games being played (NCAA/NFL/MLB) were compelling enough to deter me from (as my brother Danny likes to say) getting my knees in the breeze.  Sunday morning was a short ride to work, where I intended to spend 2-3 hours getting some grading done...  Instead, I got a phone call from one of my students who was in a spot of panic.  She wanted to know if I could talk to her grandfather... I said, "I'm at the school, bring him around!"  We spent about an hour talking about her courses and her schedule, then I spent another hour on grading. Finally, I left the school with the intention of looping through Joshua Tree National Park on my way home...

Great plan, but one catch - the North Entrance - the one I'd loop out of the park on, was closed due to a slide.  Probably the same one that deposited 4-6 inches of mud on my patio 3 weeks ago... Oh, well.  I rode into the park and turned around just shy of Hidden Valley.  The view on that end of the park is dominated by the incredible Wonderland of Rocks, so that didn't suck.  I got home, watched some football, and graded some more papers.  Life is good.

On that note, I'm going to head to the land of Nod.  Good night all.  The Crown Royal and Ginger Ale is kicking in right about now.  I'm beating this cold one way or another!  (Oh, forgot to mention how sick I got this week... one of the joys of teaching!)

Hoping to have some news on the dating front next time I write... Stay tuned, ya'll.

And.... I'm back!

Can't necessarily say I am better, because what is 'better' anyway? Better than what?  I'm the same person I've always been - probably always will be - but, now I have a job.  Why is it that working makes us feel so much better about ourselves?

In my case, I am really fortunate, because I love my new job.  Not every day, not every minute, but I do love what I do and the main thing is I get to help people.  That is really cool.  And these are people just like me pretty much.  They fit in, but not like the proverbial round peg in the round hole... No, we find ways to fit in to society, not by bending to their rules and expectations, but by carving out our own niche.  My 'sabbatical' last year was the second such break from full time employment I've taken since I was 18 and in the Air Force. That's not 'normal' and people have subtle ways of reminding us 'different' folk that we are just a tad outside the mainstream...

No matter. I'm happy. I'm healthy.  I'd like to be a little thinner, but meh.  I'll have to ask my friend Billy how he dropped 20 pounds over the summer.  All that manual labor at the camps, no doubt.

Well, I have to go.  I have college students waiting for me to dispense pearls of wisdom.  I suppose I've got a few :)

Later, ya'll.