Bring the Tropics Home...

I love the summer.

I love the heat and the colors and the sounds. I love going barefoot and shirtless. I love working outside and cooking outside and playing outside. Most of all, I love the smells.

The smells of summer seem to reach deep into my brain. I smell jasmine and I remember summertime, 1970. Songs come floating on the wind, from almost four decades ago. I can see the fort in the backyard and the kids from down the street.

When I smell plumeria, I'm back in the airport on Maui. I'll never forget my wife's reaction when we walked through the open-air airport and smelled the flowers - the smell is everywhere, and every time I smell it I go back.

When I smell Coppertone suntan lotion, I go back to the beach. When I smell watermelon, it's the Fourth of July again. Other seasons have their smells: There's cut-grass and wildflowers in the spring. Winter has evergreens and apple-cinnamon. Autumn is damp leaves and pumpkin pie. But, for me, none of these reach as deep as the smells of summer.

This is why I pick up plants every chance I get. My porch is full with tropical plants. Just last week I bought a miniature yellow hibiscus to go with the two pink ones sitting out there. The jasmine is blooming and I can smell it whenever I go out. I love the greens and pinks and yellows and whites. My plants bring the tropics to my porch, which is where I love to be.

Summer has sounds, also, especially music. They aren't as strong as the smells, but they are close. I hear Seals & Crofts, The Eagles, CSN and Three Dog Night. Songs from these artists take me back to when summer was freedom - out of school, too young to work...just a couple of chores and hours at the pool.

Honestly, I'm happy year-round. I have a loving family who I enjoy spending time with. I have a great job and I have interests to occupy me. We are clothed and fed and reasonably comfortable. Every season has its beauty. But if I had to choose, I'd say I'm a summer-kindof guy.

The end of a journey...

Life is all about journeys. Some of them are long and arduous, some are brief, some are focused and some are some are meandering. We've been told and told, "It's not the destination, it's the journey." There is a lot of truth to this, though there is a lot to be said for the destination as well. The destination is where we sit and look back on the trip, pick through the memories and catalog our souvenirs. The destination can mark the end of a long path. It can also mark the beginning of a new one.

But the journey is what is most memorable. It is during the journey that we grow and learn. During the journey we have many choices in which way to go, how to get where we are headed (I started to say "where we are going", but they aren't always the same thing). Often we are not afforded the chance to undo or redo parts of the journey - that's okay. It's the journey that makes us who we are.

Enough philosophizing...Today is something of a destination for me. Yesterday I completed the requirements for my Bachelor of Science degree in Software Engineering. It was quite a journey. It was almost solid - nearly every day for 2 years. I'm glad to be at the destination, but I'm especially thankful for the journey. I met some very smart people who pushed me at times, and dragged me along at others. I've come out of it with potential life-long friends. I had instructors that challenged me and others that encouraged me greatly. In the end, it was a good experience for me.

I'm thankful to my family for putting up with me - all my late nights and daily work. My stress over projects that weren't going well. My school commitments that forced them to be flexible in my family time. I couldn't have done it without all their love and support.

So now it's on to a new journey. I'm not sure where it will lead; not even sure what it will look like. But I know for certain that we'll enjoy the trip.

Springtime...

Okay, so it's not quite here yet. But it's coming. It was in the mid-eighties today. It's a little early to smell the grass, and there aren't any wild flowers out yet. But the trees in the neighborhood have started coming back. Soon it will be time to start thinking about a garden and what I want to do with the flowerbeds. It's going to get cold again, in the next week or so they say. But Spring is close.

We are planning to clean this weekend. My wife is ready to clean out, and I'm kindof looking forward to it myself. We do this periodically throughout the year (major cleaning, I mean - we do normal cleaning fairly regularly). But we seem to be better at it in the Spring. Or maybe it's just not such a drag in the Spring. I'm not sure, but it doesn't seem to be so bad when the weather turns nicer.

Spring training is getting underway also. It won't be long before the kids start getting ready for little league baseball. I wonder if little league is like it was when I was a kid. I remember having tryouts. It wasn't actually a tryout. It was more an attempt at leveling the teams. Then practice would start. I hated practice. Lots of running. My five minutes' worth of batting practice. Then shagging fly balls in the outfield. But then came Opening Day, and it was all worth it. Clean uniforms, anticipation, and the pure promise of a new season. On opening day, the season was born - a rebirth that is like many things in Spring.

I can't wait for April showers. And I love the May Flowers that come with it. I love the smell of the grass and the beautiful 75 degree days. I'm ready to go for a walk by the lake with my wife.

Spring has always been my favorite time of year. I love the warmth of summer, and I can get into a good winter storm - once per year or so, thank you. Fall is a nice break from the hot summers (I like them, but they get old sometimes). But Spring is always full of promise. This year, just like every other, I'm ready to enjoy it...right after I finish cleaning.

For my darling wife...

It's not exactly the one you asked for, but it's a close as I could get.

Love you..

My Escape...

When I was young, I had a strategy for getting through hard times. I would plan my escape. This was back in something like 7th grade. I spent hours checking airfares to all the places I wouldn't mind escaping to. I'd find hotels that I thought maybe I'd stay at. And because I was somewhat realistic (can't you tell?), I also checked fares on Greyhound. I had something close to 80 bucks saved. I was ready - if Life pushed just a little too far, I was off.

That kind of thought gave me a lot of strength to get though difficult times. It's easier to endure something when you know there *is* an alternative, even if you know you’ll never take it.

People think this way all the time. If work gets too bad, they know they can find a new job. If life at home is rough, they can find a hobby to occupy them. If worse comes to worse, a pair of headphones and a loud iPod make a handy escape.

Sometimes, however, these don't go far enough. Sometimes a real escape is called for. Now, I don't mean to sound like life is closing in on me and that I have to find a way out of the one I have. It's not and I don't. But there are days...

Once in a while I find myself looking for a place to run. Not looking *to* run - just planning. Like back in seventh grade. The pressures are different today than they were back then. And in a lot of ways, they are easier to deal with – not everything feels like the end of the world the way it did back then. And knowing there are options still helps to take the edge off.

I’ve always been something of a daydreamer. I know there are people who "escape" to extremes. They escape into alcohol or drugs, or they run away to Tahiti (or used to anyway), or they just never grow up. I prefer my own version – to sit for a minute and think of the beach, and my wife and I splashing in the waves, or looking for shells. And I smile, and then I come back to the now, until the next trip..

Want what you have...

This is the secret to happiness. Of course, knowing it and living it are two different things.

I've never spent much of my life looking back. Sure, there are some things I'd do differently, but I don't dwell on them. And anyway they are mostly non-specific things, like I wish I'd done better in school...stuff like that.

I've also been able to do some things that I wouldn't change for anything. I've been to exciting places - Hawaii, the USVI, Germany and Mexico. I'd like to take my wife back to some of the places I got to go before I knew her. On the other hand, comparing trips I made with her and trips I made without her, the times with her are the most memorable. Not that I didn't enjoy trips with my family, but with those my memories are more about me. Trips with my wife have left me with memories about us.

One thing about trips I've taken with my wife: we've had some exceptional times in some relatively ordinary places. I remember driving along the Gulf Coast from New Orleans into Mississippi. We didn't really do much except drive and look at the houses along the beach. I won't ever forget it though.

We were able to turn a work trip to Florida into a vacation / wedding / honeymoon. We flew into Tampa, then drove to Ft. Lauderdale. I worked a few days in each place, then we got married (Tuesday, after work). We took the rest of the week for a honeymoon. We drove to the Keys. I have fond memories of an ordinary gas station / convenience store just across the bridge on Key Largo. It started pouring just as we got out of the car. I remember the little stand that sold Cuban sandwiches (and only Cuban sandwiches) out in front of the Publix grocery. We stayed in some truly memorable hotels.

Our wedding day was unlike anyone else's that we know. I worked that day. At lunch I took her to have her nails done. After work I went and picked up a bouquet for her (ordered it myself and I have to say, I was impressed). Then we drove together to Hillsboro Beach and got married on the beach - barefoot. Afterward we stopped at Outback Steakhouse on the way back to the hotel. (We had a tough time finding a place to eat, and almost settled on something like Burger King.) We celebrated with half a bottle of wine, and fell asleep early. We were both exhausted. And I wouldn't change a thing.

We have had similar times at other places (though we only got married the one time). One weekend we headed for a Trading Days sort of thing in a small town in central Texas, and ended up 8 hours later on the beach in Matagorda. We spent the night in Port LaVaca, had Church's Chicken for dinner, and got up the next morning and headed south to Port Aransas. Early that afternoon, we decided we'd better head home. In the end, we just drove a big circle. These are the memories I'm happiest about.

But I'm getting off track. My point is that happiness is in our hands. I could have the attitude that it takes a million dollar boat, a Learjet and a private island, and then I'd be happy. These things aren't likely. Or I could be happy with things that are a little more in my reach. Even if the million dollar boat was a possibility, given enough hard work, sacrifice and luck, I'd still have to spend all the time and energy necessary to obtain it. That doesn't seem very productive to me. I'm not saying I shouldn't aspire to greater things - I do. And I have my own Bucket List, parts of which are not really attainable. But my happiness doesn't depend on these.

Of course, there are some for whom the challenge is the reward. There are folks who find happiness not in owning something, but in obtaining it. Overcoming the challenges and the barriers does certainly provide satisfaction. And to those people, I raise my glass. Because for them, the challenge is the desire, and it's within their reach.

When we can learn to want the things we have, we'll have the things we want. And once in a while, something will come along and surprise us.

My Plan

So, I'm in the market for a boat...

Well, maybe not, but I'd like to be. I get these crazy notions from time to time. This time, it's to find an old boat sitting in the back of a boatyard somewhere; something that needs a lot of work. My plan is to make an offer and take it off the hands of its grateful owner - I'd say three or four hundred dollars is about where my budget lies.

This may sound like insanity. But apparently there are lots of people who have taken this approach. I am sure I'm underestimating the cost in both time and money to make the boat usable. Oh, and the cost in my wife's patience. I'll be redeemed when we sail off into the sunset together. But I'm getting a little ahead of myself...

Part of the problem is that I don't live near the coast. I do live close enough to a lake, but how far can you go in a lake? Besides, a boat big enough to sail around the world is a little too big for my lake, I'm sure. So I'm torn: find a smaller boat to work on; find a bigger boat and plan to either sell it or transport it; or wait? (I know, I could just move to the coast - believe me, I'm tempted.)

When I dream about this boat, I look forward to the time when I can leave some of this life behind. I like my job and I don't mind going to work, but I'll be happy when my only task for the day is to make it a hundred miles. There's a fair amount of stress in my life - I think most of the things that stress me won't really apply on the water. I wouldn't say there's much in my life to leave behind, but there are some things I won't miss.

ha! I'm getting ahead of myself again. I think that this looking ahead has given me a rosy outlook on what might be required. Then again, I'm pretty sure that nothing gets accomplished by people that sit and think of all the reasons why they can't.

I realize that the percentage of people that move aboard a sailboat and spend their days sailing wherever they want to go is small. But quite a few people do do it. So why not us? We're pretty smart. We're resourceful. We're motivated. My guess is that resourcefulness and motivation are the biggest things. Anyone can find money, somehow. It's kinda hard to figure out how to be self-sufficient.

Anyway, the more I think about this, the more I like it. Maybe tomorrow I'll start cruising the marinas.

Inauguration Day

Today was a weird day. It felt like a holiday. I tried to watch the inauguration festivities at work, online. Everyone else had the same idea, apparently - there wasn't enough bandwidth to go around. But what I saw was pretty impressive.

I guess I don't remember Bush's inaugurations. I mean, vaguely I do, but not the details. And I don't remember the coverage that today's events have gotten. All day long on some channels. And msnbc and cnn, along with my local news channels, had on-demand video all day. Not that I could watch it all...

I did get to see the swearing-in. I saw part of Obama's speech. I saw thousands of happy people. I think that this celebration is reflective of the country's attitude. There seems to be an optimism that hasn't been obvious for a while.

I didn't get to see the parade, but I did see that the Obamas walked more of the parade route than was expected (much to the dismay of the Secret Service, I'm sure). Then I watched part of the Neighborhood Ball this evening. I saw the first dance as the First Family. I remember when I was younger, the thing was to hold up lighters - everyone here held up digital cameras.

My point is this: throughout today's events, the Obamas showed themselves again and again to be real people. I'm not sure yet how that will come through in his leadership or his legacy - it will be interesting to see. But I think that for the first time in decades, we have a president that is "of the people."

I'm not generally vocal about my political or ideological views, and I don't mean this to be a political commentary. It is more about the accessibility of the inauguration and the President, and by extension, the Government. This is what struck me today, in all of this ceremony.

I've been to Washington DC a couple of times. It's a great city. The history and the tradition are tremendously interesting. There is a lot of beauty in the monuments and the parks - even the Capitol and Supreme Court and the Library of Congress and the Old Post Office are beautiful in their way.

But for most people, seeing Washington DC is not the same as seeing the government.

There has been a lot of interest in vacations with a purpose. People are interested in eco-vacations which strive to have minimal impact on the environment. Other people are taking working vacations, volunteering in scientific research projects, providing medical or teaching services, or building houses, schools and churches in poor communities.

An accessible government could lead to educational vacations for hundreds of thousands of Americans. For the sake of our country, I hope so.

Traveling at home...

I love Google Earth.

This is one of the coolest applications on the web. I can sit in my chair and go anywhere I want. I can spend as much or as little time as I want. I don't have to worry about taxis or bus fare. I can even put little push pins on places I really like, so I can go back anytime.

A couple of days ago, I discovered Street View on Google maps. This is even cooler. I'd heard of Street View a long time ago, and there were something like 3 or 5 beta locations. I never could find one though, and I forgot about it. Then last week I was looking at something and zoomed in a little too close. wow. I've been exploring ever since.

I went to the Keys and wandered up and down Duval Street in Key West. I went out to LA and went sightseeing - Mann's Chinese Theater was pretty cool. I went to Bourbon Street in the French Quarter (looks about the same as it always did). One day I'll take my family and see these places for real, but for now...

Then I went and explored my own neighborhood. I see that my wife was not home when they took the pictures on our street. My neighbor had his windows open. The guy down the street hadn't mowed his yard in a while. I can't imagine what would be all that interesting about my neighborhood, but there it is in all its glory.

We still can't teleport like they did on Star Trek and we don't have the Jetsons' conveniences. But the technology on the web is amazing and it's growing all the time. I still can't zoom in as close as I want with Google Earth. Google Maps Street View only works for looking at stuff from the street. I can't use it to stand at the edge of the ocean or to hang out on the banks of a river. And there are places that aren't included - I couldn't find any place in Hawaii that would let me get down to street level. I'll keep checking though.

Vagabonding

I don't really get the whole blog thing, but I have a lot to say (even if it's mostly to myself) and so maybe I'll give this a try. Y'all can read it or not.

I've always been a little restless, most of my life. I am always looking forward to the next trip. My wife and I have been able to travel a bit and one day it's what we'll do. I sit and I dream about moving to Florida. Or Hawaii. Or aboard a sloop headed south. Or anywhere else with sun and sand and surf.

Several years ago I ran across a poem that has stuck with me. Don Blanding, the poet laureate of Hawaii, has written some poetry, done a bit of drawing and painting, and created some dinnerware (it's true). Anyway, he wrote this poem that reminds me of me. You can read about Don at http://www.don-blanding.com/index.htm.

The Double Life

How very simple life would be

If only there were two of me

A Restless Me to drift and roam

A Quiet Me to stay at home.

A Searching One to find his fill

Of varied skies and newfound thrill

While sane and homely things are done

By the domestic Other One.

And that's just where the trouble lies;

There is a Restless Me that cries

For chancy risks and changing scene,

For arctic blue and tropic green,

For deserts with their mystic spell,

For lusty fun and raising Hell.

But shackled to that Restless Me

My Other Self rebelliously

Resists the frantic urge to move.

It seeks the old familiar groove

That habits make. It finds content

With hearth and home -- dear prisonment,

With candlelight and well-loved books

And treasured loot in dusty nooks,

With puttering and garden things

And dreaming while a cricket sings

And all the while the Restless One

Insists on more exciting fun,

It wants to go with every tide,

No matter where...just for the ride.

Like yowling cats the two selves brawl

Until I have no peace at all.

One eye turns to the forward track,

The other eye looks sadly back.

I'm getting wall-eyed from the strain,

(It's tough to have an idle brain)

But One says "Stay" and One says "Go"

And One says "Yes," and One says "No,"

And One Self wants a home and wife

And One Self craves the drifter's life.

The Restless Fellow always wins

I wish my folks had made me twins.