going away for an extended weekend - so might not have much to say for next few days - take care all!

a student i teach in my intro to microcomputer applications was talking about an assignment in another class - i mentioned - partly just to be the devil's advocate, that he could use MS Word to do his assignment - he said he did and showed me it - it was great - someone taking what i am teaching them and applying it to issues outside of my class - so far, this has been my most rewarding moment as a teacher, especially since i don't think the student in question had much computer experience before the class...

lately i've been sooo into alison krauss and union station. i must admit, i've always had a bias against anything that seemed like country music. so i listened to music from all over the world, brazil, madagascar, india, pakistan and found the beauty present in each culture's expression, but somehow could not see it in my own...well, as thomas merton said, well, i forget what he said, but it was something to the effect that even the dullest person will figure out the obvious eventually....so listening to great musicians influenced by the bluegrass tradition - edgar meyer, bela fleck, kind of allowed me to ease into it - then i discovered alison krauss - the playing, the songs, the singing are all magnificent - very expressive and not at all what i would associate with the stereotypical image i had of what "country" or "bluegrass" music was....

i'm not in quite enough pain - think i'll take a quick spin around the neighborhood on my bike...

to stay inside on a day like today would be a sin...

..and my momma didn't raise any sinners (at least not ones who would sin this egregiously). so i popped some michael hedges on the cd player and drove to my favorite bike path except this time went the other way. a friend of mine warned me of a tricky hill going this direction, but i decided to give it a shot; i was wearing a backpack w/my sandals, so i could always bail and walk if it got too bad. anyhow, the only hill i came across was not bad at all (granted i did not go the full distance, but she said it was early on) - the only tricky part being for a short stretch, you are not on a separate bike path, but on a bike lane on a road. fortunately, these are the proverbial "road less travelled" and with my improved breaking technique weren't a problem. i have gone up against, much worse hills (unfortunately, i usually lose, the most memorable when i left a good portion of my left buttock on the asphalt doing a baseball slide to avoid a wooden bridge strategically placed at the end of a hill). so anyhow, i really felt draggin' on the way out and started to wonder - is it lack of protein, am i having bearing problems, was it the backpack or what? when i turned and headed home, i was back to my usual chris witty-esque form. (she's my hero, if you can't tell - i would say heroine, but that might be misunderstood). i had been going slightly uphill and against the wind on the way out - not terribly noticeable, but enough to make a difference

so afterwards, i headed to downtown oberlin and the campus of oberlin college - that hotbed of progressivism and liberalism smack dab in the heartland. it is great to actually go places where there are a good number of vegetarian options. after deciding on a bagel w/cream cheese and a side of tempeh (which the waitress, presumably a college student, delivered with a jaunty "voila monsieur", in the manner only which an oberlin college co-ed could), i enjoyed a nice breakfast reading my magazine. the restrooms in this restaurant - apparently to avoid any accusations of being gender-centric - are designated by icons which indicate "with a urinal" and "without a urinal" - so again, oberlin, being on the cutting edge, will only classify people by their urinating position preference - standing or seated.


off then to the oberlin museum of art (free!). really cool - my faves "young woman seated" by matisse, "portrait of ada-purple series" by ??? and a silkscreen of mao by warhol. the ceiling in the museum was magnificent - it needs restored, but you can still see the beautiful paintings.


went then to hang out in the square. a lot of budding artists drawing etc. i lay in savasana for a while, swimming in the peace. did a few other asanas (hey, this is oberlin, no one would look twice at someone doing yoga in the park) listened to what was either workman tearing down a scaffolding or a budding trumpet player paying homage to lester bowie.


oh yes, i almost forgot. and to cap it off a blimp flew overhead hyping the imminent tour of everyone's favorite septagenarians, the rolling stones, which i had heard threats of - apparently it's official



all the while, i had to snicker at my unfortunate friends still caught up in the rat race. perhaps they have the last laugh on pay day, but gd it, there are some things that money just can't buy!

while skating today, a couple of women were walking around the track. they were approx. my age. when i passed them, the one said "wow, you're an inspiration" - which i guess could either mean that:

a. my grace, power and speed were poetic and awe inspiring much in the same manner as a michael jordan dunk, or a tiger woods tee-shot

b. i'm not bad for a guy my age

c. it's amazing that a guy as old as me can skate at all!!!



applying zellers' law (which states that one is allowed to take a remark in the best possible light), i am assuming she meant "a" - if you feel otherwise please keep it to yourself

ok - my machine at home is open for business again - only minimal issues - have to reinstall a lot of programs, lost a few files (both prob. caused by my actions) - fortunately did NOT lose what i was working on for my summer project

my machine at home is dead in the water - halfway thru an xp pro upgrade - argh!!!!

blog-itis??

blospot seems to be having some issues today - can't access many of my faves....

it is impossible to feel sad listening to stevie wonder...



in other music related news - FOOTPRINTS LIVE - by Wayne Shorter is out today...picked it up on the way to work. it's essentially the same performance i saw at the ccc jazz fest a few weeks back - same band, mostly same tunes, etc... the cd confirms my impression of the concert - the freshest, most progressive, innovative jazz to be played in ages. Mr. Shorter is on my short list for the title of greatest living musician - him, sonny rollins, ornette - who else?

quote from cd sleeve: beyond the sky we fly, perchance to see some greatness there: eternal wonder! that which is born of courage here. - Wayne Shorter

i am drinking a coors light watching survivor. a coors light commercial comes on. i am not having as much fun as the folks in the commercial. tell me, gentle reader, what am i doing wrong?

shucks, my legs hurt. don't know if it's the chilly weather, arthritis or relative lack of activity. i am looking fwd to yoga class tonight - missed my class last tues. cause of a final and no class last week for mom's day. don't know if it will help the leg pain, but still will be fun...

right now, jean luc ponty is dominating my cd player. i tend to go in streaks, listening to an artist or two over and over for a few week period before moving on to someone else.

i start graduate school tomorrow. i was a bit apprehensive - another item on my busy plate, but i'm starting to look forward to it. i'm sure the intellectual stimulation will be good and it will be fun meeting new folks - it may be just what i need. i'm sure it will not be all fun, but i'm starting to look forward to it instead of seeing it as a drag.

just got back from skating. i didn't really feeling like going, but given this was the first opportunity i had in a while (busy schedule, crappy weather), i almost felt obligated. when i feel this way re:skating or yoga, if i force myself to at least go out and give it a shot, after a bit, if i get into it, great, and if not, i give my self permission to quit. either way some activity is better than none. as is often the case, today, after a few shaky laps, i got into it.

not sure why i wasn't rip roarin' to go. often, after not skating for a while, i really am itching to go - but not today. sometimes inactivity just breeds more inactivity. also, today was chilly. now, i've skated in far worse conditions (20 degrees, windy in january), but that's january and it's supposed to be cold. somehow, 40-50 degrees in may felt MUCH colder - at least to my mind, if not my body. i warmed up after a few laps. usually, when i'm not into it, i just focus on skating very smoothly and see where that takes me.

i'm glad i have several courses i can use, depending on how much of a work out i want. i have a track around a soccer field 2 min. from my house when i want a less intesive workout. i skated there today. i also have the parking lot at school for light to medium workouts when i'm on campus. my neighborhood streets are also for short-medium skates - slightly hill. for longer, more intense skates, i have a few bike trails fairly close. so i have a few choices depending on how hard i want to work and how much time i can spend.