RUNNING SOLO
I normally only run alone, which I suppose is perhaps a metaphor for the life I live as a bachelor. But this afternoon I went for a good run with my roommate (well, one of them). Such a beautiful day to run, too. Temperature was about 16° C. and as can be plainly seen, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was a good hard run, and made a bit more interesting with the complement of conversation. Normally, I get lost in some sort of cerebral height, only to get knocked down by traffic.
ALCHEMY AND GOLF
View image It's been literally years since I last went golfing. But I had the opportunity to hit the course again in Vernon over the weekend. Despite a fair bit of apprehension, I had a good time out there, though I could really use some quality time at a driving range before I would be willing to pick up another club in the light of day. The course was thankfully by far the shortest I have ever played, where each hole was somewhere between 60 and 110 yards long or so. The course was built on the side of a small mountain, you could say, so it's quite a hike, but has very scenic views... I was out there celebrating the wedding of a good friend of mine, in what was my big vacation of the summer. Vernon was truly gorgeous, and I regret not having gone out there earlier. The weather was thankfully perfect, and the wedding went off a hitch (thought there were of course a few minor glitches). The only problem with that weekend is that it was way too short for what is an exceptionally long drive (we spent about 20 hours on the road for the four day weekend). But I have to say, it was even better than I thought it might be running into a lot of friends that I hadn't seen for years. I attacked that weekend. So many friends that I will not see again... It's one of those times that generates more flux than usual. I am in a position where once again I need to make many long term structural changes, at the same time that many other people do. This, though painful, is perhaps for the best, as it is far too easy to try to seize the familiar. I just celebrated my 24th year, and married off my good friend. Though I attempted vainly, it is difficult to suppress the natural thoughts that bubble to the surface. Namely, what am I doing, exactly? That's a question that's difficult to answer. Years of teenage angst give way to confusion and wandering. It seems that I am not alone in this either, as I watch films like Garden State... I guess I am looking for my "personal legend", as Paulo Coelho might call it.
SOLZHENITSYN AND MIROSLAV VOLF
August has turned out to be Slavic literature month as I run the Miroslav Volf's "The End of Memory" and Tolstoy's masterpiece on the adulterous woman "Anna Karenina". More to follow as I run through them.
BROODJE HARING AND PANPIPES
View image I spent the most recent weekend at the Heritage days in Edmonton, which is an annual event up here. They take one of the larger city parks, shut it down, and then host dozens of different ethnic and cultural groups. Each will generally have kind of an informational area, some presentations (often dancing), and then the food tents. It's a great opportunity to wander through and have foods or hear music that you really would never hear in the course of a normal year. I took advantage of the opportunity to try some Russian Kvas, some Turkish coffee, and many many more very odd foods. Broodje Haring for the non-Dutch among you is a bun with salted herring and a lot of onions. It sounds a little weird, perhaps, but tastes delicious. I was quite disappointed that the Peruvian tent ran out of Inca Cola. In the picture above, they are playing panpipes, and other traditional South American instruments. Pretty neat really, I almost bought one of their CD's, but they're $20 a piece, and I didn't have that much cash on me. In any case, it's an all around pleasant way to spent a weekend and one of the better festivals in town for me. This coming weekend is the Edmonton Folk Festival, which I am tempted to go to, but these things aren't cheap, and I think Folk Fest is about $35 a day. Still, I am a pretty big fan of folk music, so maybe I'll still make it there. I am reading Tête-à-Tête right now about Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. It's a fascinating book, as I had no idea about any of the personal circumstances surrounding the writing of some of his more famous works, like Being and Nothingness and Ethics. Perhaps more on that once I have finished reading it.
DRAGONBOATING
Heading home Originally uploaded by firefightersdaughter For the first time in my life, I went dragon boating this evening. Kind of a neat experience, especially given that it's been a number of years since I have been out in a boat on open water. Felt great to get out there again, and I found it challenging. As you might imagine, it takes a great deal of stamina and focus to be decent at it. After a good hour or so of fairly strenuous paddling, I was starting to wear out, and I am far from out of shape lately. Which is good news, I think, but for a few months, it's an awesome way to cross train. Plus, there is a nice sense of camaraderie out there. I am actually quite excited that Geometry Wars II is coming out in just two more days. It's somewhat sad, yes, but that game is quite a blast, and is great for quick one-off session. It's fairly intense, but can be quite short if you're not good at it. People standing behind me often remark it's near seizure inducing. True, but it looks absolutely fantastic. I highly recommend it if you want a basic arcade shooter that is reminiscent of 80's arcade games with an updated feel.
INDY CAR WEEKEND
Indy Car Weekend Originally uploaded by lithiumfrost It was a good weekend at the Edmonton Indy. I have never actually been to a major series car race before, so this was quite the event. For one, there were tens of thousands of people in the grandstands alone. For another, it was televised world wide on ESPN, and of course there is a lot of money that goes into making one of these events. For my part, I was volunteering there all weekend, so I had credentials to access nearly every area available. That and I didn't have to pay for that, which would have easily cost well over $200 CAD. I put my Tilley and my sunglasses to good use this weekend too, as it was hot and sunny for pretty much the entire event. Oh, and earplugs are essential. I was one row off from the track (and safety barriers...), and so it was unbelievably loud. The earplugs kept that manageable, but I had a dull headache by the time the race was over. Still, they're incredible to watch. Edmonton Indy has a fairly technical two mile track with 14 turns, and these things accelerate and brake more than is possible for pretty much any other car on earth. I had a great time, but I was kind of relieved when it was over. It is tiring being out in the sun like that and wandering over the grounds every day. Felt almost like I were at work, really. I got some good pictures, saw in person people like Helio Castroneves (he handed me a hat that now I wish I took off with ... ;-) j/k ), and enjoyed some pretty good food. I'll definitely go back and do something like that again, I think.
BEAVER IN THE RAIN
Beaver in the Rain Originally uploaded by lithiumfrost It has been a fairly relaxing weekend, which is what I was looking for after finally going to convocation last weekend. I now have my degree in hand, though I really have no idea what to do with it exactly. Still, I have to admit that I steal glances at it more normal to remind myself that I really do finally have it after all this time. I am fairly certain it won't be the last degree I earn, but it was the first. Now I am just sitting up on my laurels trying to decide what on Earth I am going to do. To celebrate my convocation, some of my family came up from Michigan to spend the long weekend with me. It was a delightful time, but the weekend was about as wet as the beaver above, which we saw in Elk Island National Park. The best news on the weather front was that it didn't rain until about 15 minutes after my ceremony had finished. We made it to the bookstore to turn in the gown completely dry. The walk back was considerably more... damp. In a totally different line of thought, the iPhone 3G is coming out on July 11, and I really want one. It looks absolutely incredible. From the details I have gleaned thus far, they have fixed all of the problems that I had with the original version and dropped the price to boot. I haven't seen what kind of price tag that Rogers is going to stick on it, but I am sure it will be spendy. Still, my iPod just broke, and it is very tempting to just switch up to this. Certainly going to take my time to think about it - student loan repayments are the other gift of convocation, and they certainly don't wait.
CHANGE OF PACE: SUMMER
It is amazing how much my schedule has changed over the last month as I get used to being in a totally different neighborhood on the other side of the river. I do enjoy it, and running throughout the neighborhood is starting to give me an appreciation for where everything can be found. For the most part, I think, the move has been a welcome one. If nothing else, I am positively excited about having an air conditioning unit for those hotter days in July. Previously, my apartment resembled nothing so much as an oven, getting at least 10° C above the outdoor ambient temperature. What's more, I now have a truly fantastic view to peak at when I wake up in the morning, with a rather splendid veranda just downstairs to boot.
SERENITY AND THE ABYSS
Staring out in the Pacific today, looking at the innumerable waves crashing up on the shore, it is hard to imagine a more accessible representation of oblivion. Stretching out thousands of miles a merciless and pitiless sea wages an eons old war upon the shores that encroach upon its domain. It's tranquil appearance belying a malice and hostility to life that is found merely in its vastness. For upon those waves, in those chilling depths, no sustenance may be found. This is man's greatest fear, one might suppose. For in the sea, one looks upon his eternity. A place where memories dissolve. The slow loss of oneself into the chaos that surrounds him. Is this not what death looks like? And for all of that, it is profoundly peaceful. Sitting on granite that the sign says is around a 190 million years old, and it will lose its war. Even now, salt, ice, and water assault its very existence on that shore; it will fail. How true the Psalmist proclaims the fragility of our finitude. We are as the grass and in that we have but a season (Psalm 37:2). Paul's answer to us is that we must grasp what is infinite (2 Corinthians 4). But Paul offers a hope that seems beyond grasp at times, looking out into darkness. I walked through red cedars today over a 1000 years old while my uncle fought for his life in a sterile hospital gurney.
NEWS UPDATE
It's been far too long since I last posted here, due in large part to technical problems. I do not run this server myself, a fact that I am somewhat relieved about, but of course this also means that I have no input into the maintenance or upgrade schedules. Much to my chagrin, they decided that the time had come to do a major server overhaul, and move the entire machine over to Debian Etch, install a new version of perl, etc. Once they had finished the overhaul, I was unable to get quite a few of the normal applications that I had installed to run. In any case, I now have this working sufficiently again, and now have upgraded the Movable Type installation as well. I have been busy preparing to move, graduate from the University, and finish my class. March has been somewhat productive as a result, though busy. I would like to think at least that I have accomplished quite a bit, but that may just be overly optimistic thinking. I did finally make it down to Southern Alberta to visit family over the Easter long weekend, which was quite relaxing. It's a shame that those weekends never last quite long enough, and they come so rarely. Once I finish the move over to my new residence this week, I should be able to tackle a few long running projects I have been meaning to get to for some time. Already, I have had the time to read a good way through EP Sanders' book on first century Judaism, and I am nearly finished with Colin Gunton's theological overview. It is refreshing to have the time and the opportunity to have a bit of self directed study without the pressure of certain arbitrary deadlines. Either way, summer brings with it a host of opportunities that I find to be ripe for the seizing.