April 29, 2020
April 25, 2020
April 17, 2020
Fascinating video about the flu virus
This is one of the best things I've watched in recent memory. It's like a detective novel!
April 3, 2020
Kokatat Knappster shorty top for kayakers
I want to give a shout-out to Kokatat for this excellent shorty top, the Knappster. I bought it on sale at the NOC GAF last fall.
It's Goretex and the fit and quality of construction are top notch.
GORE-TEX® Paclite® technology shorty paddling jacket.
A shorty top like this one is what kayakers wear to keep water from going down our backs, through the tunnel of our skirts into the boat. That can happen when we roll but also if we go through splashy water in rapids. A shorty also does provide some warmth for summer days on cold water like the nantahala or hiwassee. This one is the nicest I have ever owned, and I've had a bunch over 20 years!
The way it works, is the top has two layers over the midsection, like a drytop does. The skirt tunnel is sandwiched between the two layers when we dress in our gear. The arm cuffs and neck cuff are neoprene with a layer of sticky rubber/latex so they keep water out pretty well, not as well as latex gaskets like a drytop but they aren't uncomfortable like latex gaskets either. The neck has an adjustment to tighten it up, and the inner layer on the midsection has an adjustment to tighten it up, too. The Goretex material is breathable and lightweight, and has a lifetime warranty. https://store.noc.com/kokatat-knappster-semi-dry-top.html?id=30874937
March 31, 2020
During the virus adventure... what to do...
I decided to call it the virus adventure, a title that has some irony baked in it, as I am having to work from home and spend all of my time here minus a little outdoors hour here and there.
I enjoy being at home but there is something changed in the experience when staying home is required rather than chosen freely.
I've been going to a spot on the local river and paddling some. Flatwater. A couple friends in the vicinity but practicing more than required social distance. We know we must self-rescue. I did so the other day - took out a playboat and carped 2 roll attempts and wet exited. That translates to: I swam. I started walking my boat to a rock and my legs sunk knee deep into mud. I worried I would lose my shoes! I decided to float/swim instead of walk. More incentive to roll.
It's the EZG-50, a boat I would describe as extremely easy to roll, so I have no idea what is going on. Maybe it's the edge? Maybe it's my brain chewing on other worries, extended worries? I dunno.
Some of us went down the Mulberry Saturday. We used pickup trucks and did a double shuttle, what this means is the pickup trucks drove us in the back, two people per truckbed, sitting catty-corner so we never touched the same surface or each other. Again, self-rescue required but nobody swam. It will probably be the last trip I do on that run for a long time, because the logistics were tough to arrange and execute. The level was 2 ft on the bridges and 2.5 online; Training wheels wave was in as a glassy green wave for short boats; I surfed it over and over and didn't want to stop.
Some friends are doing a bicycle shuttle on the Mulberry so they can run solo. I have pondered this but I doubt I will do it. With the Cahaba nearby I can just attain flatwater for a fix.
At home, resigned to my fate, I dyed my hair purple. I used Overtone. I don't know if it will fade quickly or not. I last dyed my hair about 20 years ago. A friend from the fountain days commented on FB. Was a fun topic, a diversion needed.
What else to do? I can practice piano. I can practice guitar. I have a piano lesson via Zoom but I haven't set up the scenario to pull it off. I can get in arguments on facebook.
What I can't do is see my sister. We have cut off all visitation to her except her caregivers and the hospice nurses. I drop off supplies at the doorstep. She is unaware any of this virus pandemic is happening, and we intend to keep it that way. In her condition I am not sure she would understand what it meant, but still.
And all of this virus adventure happened right as my friend Eric and I discovered, and discussed, something we had both long suspected; our non-neurotypical natures. On the spectrum. As well as my finding a way to memorize the fretboard that, after over 30 years of playing guitar, appears to be working. So there are magical, amazing things happening, and after I make this giant leap in proficiency on my favorite instrument, combined with the relief of knowing I am not from another planet, the global pandemic will kill off the audience.
that was sarcasm
Meanwhile, many of my friends are fascinated by the "Tiger King" documentary on Netflix. I tried to watch it but I cannot stand to see animals treated like that. The show opens with a scene that includes a snow or clouded leopard in a cage, in a van. I knew then that I couldn't deal.
Questions remain. What regrets would I have if this is near the end of civilization as we knew it? Should I buy a dirt bike... if I did, would I wear all of that armor to go putter about on a trail? Should I go to Poland and get a tattoo by my favorite tattoo artist in the whole world? I don't have any tattoos btw. Should I buy the electronic drum set? Should I buy another boat? That last one is easy to answer.
I enjoy being at home but there is something changed in the experience when staying home is required rather than chosen freely.
I've been going to a spot on the local river and paddling some. Flatwater. A couple friends in the vicinity but practicing more than required social distance. We know we must self-rescue. I did so the other day - took out a playboat and carped 2 roll attempts and wet exited. That translates to: I swam. I started walking my boat to a rock and my legs sunk knee deep into mud. I worried I would lose my shoes! I decided to float/swim instead of walk. More incentive to roll.
It's the EZG-50, a boat I would describe as extremely easy to roll, so I have no idea what is going on. Maybe it's the edge? Maybe it's my brain chewing on other worries, extended worries? I dunno.
Some of us went down the Mulberry Saturday. We used pickup trucks and did a double shuttle, what this means is the pickup trucks drove us in the back, two people per truckbed, sitting catty-corner so we never touched the same surface or each other. Again, self-rescue required but nobody swam. It will probably be the last trip I do on that run for a long time, because the logistics were tough to arrange and execute. The level was 2 ft on the bridges and 2.5 online; Training wheels wave was in as a glassy green wave for short boats; I surfed it over and over and didn't want to stop.
Some friends are doing a bicycle shuttle on the Mulberry so they can run solo. I have pondered this but I doubt I will do it. With the Cahaba nearby I can just attain flatwater for a fix.
At home, resigned to my fate, I dyed my hair purple. I used Overtone. I don't know if it will fade quickly or not. I last dyed my hair about 20 years ago. A friend from the fountain days commented on FB. Was a fun topic, a diversion needed.
 |
What else to do? I can practice piano. I can practice guitar. I have a piano lesson via Zoom but I haven't set up the scenario to pull it off. I can get in arguments on facebook.
What I can't do is see my sister. We have cut off all visitation to her except her caregivers and the hospice nurses. I drop off supplies at the doorstep. She is unaware any of this virus pandemic is happening, and we intend to keep it that way. In her condition I am not sure she would understand what it meant, but still.
And all of this virus adventure happened right as my friend Eric and I discovered, and discussed, something we had both long suspected; our non-neurotypical natures. On the spectrum. As well as my finding a way to memorize the fretboard that, after over 30 years of playing guitar, appears to be working. So there are magical, amazing things happening, and after I make this giant leap in proficiency on my favorite instrument, combined with the relief of knowing I am not from another planet, the global pandemic will kill off the audience.
that was sarcasm
Meanwhile, many of my friends are fascinated by the "Tiger King" documentary on Netflix. I tried to watch it but I cannot stand to see animals treated like that. The show opens with a scene that includes a snow or clouded leopard in a cage, in a van. I knew then that I couldn't deal.
Questions remain. What regrets would I have if this is near the end of civilization as we knew it? Should I buy a dirt bike... if I did, would I wear all of that armor to go putter about on a trail? Should I go to Poland and get a tattoo by my favorite tattoo artist in the whole world? I don't have any tattoos btw. Should I buy the electronic drum set? Should I buy another boat? That last one is easy to answer.
March 26, 2020
March 22, 2020
Isn't everyone a little bit Autistic? is the question answered in this video...
"When you line up your pens and think oh aren't I a little bit autistic, or when you have a routine that you like to stick to and you don't like to change it, that's not really the same thing as a lifetime of rejection and feeling like you don't fit in. Not even a little bit."
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