Post Number 30

Made it to the end of the 30 blogs in 30 days challenge without missing a single day. Participating in this challenge was an interesting experience. There were several days that the challenge was coming up with something to write about and it probably shows in the quality of the posts. I have to admit more than a few were pretty lame.All in all I'm glad I took part in this challenge.
Tomorrow is my birthday. I'm going to give myself the gift of not blogging.

Strange Special Days

On Thursday our Governor, Mary Fallin  signed a bill establishing an official "Second Amendment Day" for Oklahoma. Strange special days seems like a good subject for a list.

Third Wednesday in January; Weedless Wednesday
This one just sounds strange. It has nothing to do with gardening, it is part of National Non-Smoking Week.

February 4; Create a Vacuum Day
No very well known, maybe because it sucks. (sorry)

March 29; Oilfield Prayer Day
Not just a plain old prayer day but an oilfield prayer day. Another Mary Fallin day.

April 4; Tell a lie Day
I've known about this one all my life, honest.

May 9; Lost Sock Memorial Day
I think it is the surviving members of sock pairs that need our support.

June 28; Second Amendment Day
How do you celebrate Second Amendment Day? Perhaps by removing the Confederate flag from the back window of your pick-up so everyone can see your rifle or shotgun decorated in patriotic colors proudly displayed in your easy rider rifle rack.

July 17; Yellow Pig Day
This is a special day for mathematicians to celebrate the number 17 and yellow pigs.  No need to say any more.

August 12; Middle Child Day
The mathematicians from yellow pig day would have called this median child day.

September 19; International Talk Like a Pirate Day
Fight global warming by celebrating this day. If that doesn't make any sense, ask a Pastafarian.

October 13; International Skeptics Day
Maybe it is maybe it isn't.

November 21; False Confession Day
I admit it, I was on the grassy knoll.

December 23; Festivus
TV cult made up holiday.

Really Bad Movies

I have to admit that some of these are so bad that they have circled around to good. some, not all.

1. Battlefield Earth

2. The Adventures of Pluto Nash

3. The Blue Lagoon

4. Plan 9 From Outer Space

5. Killer Clowns From Outer Space

6. The Stupids

7. Cloverfield

8. Roadhouse

9. Leonard Part 6

10. Battlefield Earth (I know I listed it twice - it is just that bad)

Favorite Movie Quotes

1. "Are you Crazy? The fall will probably kill you."
Butch Casidy and the Sundance Kid

2. "You're gonna need a bigger boat."
Jaws

3."What we've got here is failure to communicate"
Cool Hand Luke

4. "I'm 6'5", 220, and there's two of me"
The Social Network

5. "Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!"
The Day the Earth Stood Still

6."Help! Help! I'm being repressed!"
Monty Python and the Holy Grail

7. "Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the war room!"
Dr. Strangelove

8."You're going to look pretty silly with that knife sticking out of your ass"
High Plains Drifter

9. "Plastics"
The Graduate

10. "We struck down evil with the mighty sword of teamwork and the hammer of not bickering."
Mystery Men

Favorite Song Quotes

1. Coins and crosses never know their fruitless worth.
 Yes, And you and I

2. Is that a real poncho, I mean is that a Mexican poncho or is that a Sears poncho
Frank Zappa, Camarillo Brillo

3. Feed your Head
Jefferson Airplane, White Rabbit

4. Everything comes and goes, Pleasure moves on too early and trouble leaves too slow
Jonie Mitchell, Down to You

5. I am the eggman, they are the eggman, I am the walrus, goo goo g' joob
Do I even need to say

6. What's the point to callin shots? This cue ain't straight in line, cueball's made of styrofoam and no one's got the time.
Grateful Dead, Mississippi Half-Step

7. If you choose not to decide you still have made a choice
Rush, Freewill

8. Cold hearted orb that rules the night. Removes the colors from our sight. Red is grey and yellow white. but we decide which is right and which is an illusion.
Moody Blues, The Day Begins

9. Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world but the heart has its beaches its homeland and thoughts of its own
Grateful Dead, Eyes of the World

10. O Freunde, nicht diese Töne! Sondern lasst uns angenehmere anstimmen und freudenvollere!
Beethoven, Ode to Joy

Really Bad Jokes

1. A horse walks into a bar. The bartender asks, "Why the long face?"

2. Two atoms are walking down the street bump into each other. One says "Hey! You knocked off one of my electrons" The other replies "Are you Sure?" The first answers "I'm positive".

3. A Buddhist walks into a pizza parlor, asks the cashier, "Make me one with everything".

4. A baby seal walks into a bar. The bartender asks him what he wants. The seal replies "Anything but a Canadian Club".

5. How many programmers does it take to change a light bulb? None, because they can't do it. It is a hardware problem.

6. How many therapists does it take to change a light bulb? Only one, but it has to want to be changed.

7. The square root of -1 say to pi "Be rational" to which pi replies "Get real".

8. How many Mac users does it take to change a light bulb? One, but the replacement is only available from the apple store and he'll brag about how easy it was to change.

9. What do you use to repair a broken tomato? Tomato paste.

10. Definition of a light year. A year with fewer calories.

Zhao Zhou Tea

Finished another term at Buddha Mind tonight. On the last night of the term we have a tea ceremony. These are Chinese tea ceremonies not Japanese tea ceremonies. A Chinese tea ceremony is less formal. Out tea ceremonies at the monastery are often called Zhao Zhou Tea.  Zhao Zhou was a Zen master in China 1,400 years ago. When a visitor would come to his temple, he would ask if they had been there before. If they answered no, he would offer them tea. If they answered yes, he would offer them tea. A monk at the temple asked the master why he would offer new visitors tea, and offer returning visitors tea. The master answered the monk by offering him tea.

Be Here Now Teabagging

At the beginning of the Tea Party movement, the members first used the term "tea bagger" until they found out there was another meaning for tea bagging that they did not find very appropriate for their movement. The more liberal members of the media found their ignorance humorous. and took advantage of the situation.
I have seen a similar situation with "Be here now".
First, a little hippie history. Dr. Richard Alpert was a professor at Harvard until he was dismissed the same year as his close friend Dr.Timothy Leary. Alpert collaborated with Leary and Ralf Metzner on the book "The Psychedelic Experience: A Manual Based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead". The book was intended to be used as an instruction manual for the use of hallucinogenic drugs. Somewhere along they way, Dr. Alpert was transformed into Ram Dass. His first book under that name was "Remember, Be Here Now". The book "Be Here Now" is often described as a counterculture bible and Alper/Ram Dass was as big a hero with the LSD crowd as Timothy Leary. The phrase "Be Here Now" is not much different in meaning as the phrase "Turn on, tune in, drop out".
I have seen "Be Here Now" being used by people who pretend to be knowledgeable in their teaching, but most likely would be as embarrassed  as the tea baggers if they knew the cultural references of their words.

Zen and the Art of Bicycle Maintenance

I just finished putting new handle bar tape on the rear bars on our tandem. Putting on new tape is one of the jobs that if you ride long enough you have done enough times to know how to do it but it is done infrequently enough that you never really get good at it. It is a simple job that has the right amount of challenge to require your full attention without being frustrating. The job is done by feel as much as by sight, as you stretch the tape to get the correct tension and eyeball the overlap. By focusing on the task at hand, the monkey mind, the wondering thoughts, can be tamed.

Wonderful indeed it is to subdue the mind, so difficult to subdue, ever swift, and seizing whatever it desires. A tamed mind brings happiness.

Dhammapada

eBay Count Down

Currently I have the winning bid an eBay auction for a Primal Wear jersey. So far nobody has bid since my bid with less than 10 minutes to go.

Six minutes to go. somebody just raised the bid but my max bid is still holding out. 

Three minutes. Still have the high bid. will it last till the end or will one of those last minute snipers grab it?

One minute, thirty seconds, Oh no! Out bid with twelve seconds left. The funny thing is the other bidder probably thinks that his last second strategy is why he won. What he doesn't know is I decide what I am will to pay for an item an set my maximum bid accordingly. He could have made his bid hours ago and I would not have raised mine. I'll just try again if I see another one that grabs my attention.

Survived the Redbud

The first major cycling event of the season has been completed without any problems or mishaps (for us). We did the 33 mile ride which seem to have the most riders. There were also riders doing the longer 50 mile and the shorter 10 mile rides. I don't know what the official count of the number of riders were, but compared to other big cycling events that I have been to, I would guess there were over two thousand riders. The event was well organized and adequately staffed for the large number of riders. The amount of traffic control was amazing. Every major and most not so major intersection had a police officer stopping traffic for the riders.

Top 10 Music List

Instead of just a top ten favorite songs or albums list I thought I would try something a little different.

1. Best guitar riff (electric)
The Star Spangled Banner, Jimi Hendrix,  from Woodstock.

2. Best guitar riff (acoustical)
Tilt Billings and the Student Prince, Loe Kottke, Ice Water

3. Best rock'n out piano riff.
Burn Down the Mission, Elton John, 11/17/70

4. Best sensuous piano riff.
The Same Situation, Joni Mitchell, Court and Spark

5. Best protest song lyrics
Ohio, Crosby Stills Nash and Young, written by Neil Young

6. Best lyrics that only make sense if you don't think about them.
Highway 61 Revisited, Bob Dylan,

7. Best poetic lyrics
Heavy Horses, Jethro Tull (Ian Anderson)

8. Best lyrics that seem spiritual
And You and I, Yes, Close to the Edge

9. Best social commentary lyrics that still apply even though they are over 35 years old.
I'm the Slime, Frank Zappa, Over-Nite Sensation

10. Best musical cameo appearance.
John Belushi as samurai tenor sax on Purple Lagoon.

Long Weekend

I am using a vacation day tomorrow so I'm getting a three day weekend. I am taking Friday off because of a "use it or lose it" policy, not some special activity. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining about not working tomorrow. A day not at work is better than a day at work. It would be nice if I could save it for when it was really needed for an emergency or something special, but that is not an option.

Bento Box

Just finished packing my bento box lunch for tomorrow. My bento has two tiers. The top is 530 ml and has a gasket seal on the lid. The lower is 470 ml and the lid is snug but not water tight. I am not much of a cook, but am getting a system worked out so it doesn't take much time the night before to prepare. Most of the ingredients are prepared beforehand. I start with filling about 2/3 of the top with rice. A few days worth of rice will keep in the refrigerator. I have tried different things in the remaining 1/3. So far the best has been some seaweed salad. The bottom tier has been used for fruit and veggies. I have been using two small silicone muffin cups for the fruit. Today I filled one with grapes and one with mandarin sections I have used an assortment of baby carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, sliced cucumbers, and celery to fill the remaining space.

Over the Hill

Blog post number 16.
1. I am now over the hump.
2. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
3. I hope I don't run out of steam.
4. Before too long I'll pull the plug on this challenge.
5. This should be a piece of cake, but it's not.
6. I hope I can cut the mustard.
7. I'll finish this challenge come hell or high water.
8. I may not be too good at blogging, but practice makes perfect.
9. This is getting long in the tooth.
10. Stick a fork in it, I'm done with this post.

Redbud

Today Debbie picked up our packets for the Redbud this coming Saturday. We are registered for the 33 mile ride. Debbie has done this ride a few times over the last few years, this will be my first for this ride. This morning the weather channel was forecasting scattered thunder storms for Saturday. Now, just a few hours later they are predicting partly cloudy with a high of 89 and 20% chance of precipitation. I am sure it will change daily.

Genghis Grill

Today I had lunch at the Genghis Grill in Moore. I don't think I have eaten at any place quite like that before today. you might describe it as buffet/stir fry. Each dinner is given an empty bowl when they are seated. You fill the bowl your choice meat, seasonings, and veggies, choose your sauce and what starch you want your concoction over. That is given to the cook, you are given a number in return and the cooked result is brought to your table. There was a good selection of the ingredients, spices, and sauces to choose from. If the result is not to your liking, it may be your own fault.

Draper Lake

I rode a lap around Draper Lake today for the first time this season. Draper Lake is one of my favorite riding areas. The route that I ride is only a little longer than the south side Oklahoma River Trail, but it is way hillier. I start and finish at the same place however there seem to be more uphill riding than downhill.
Todays ride was interesting for a couple of reasons. First, The water level looked very low. It was so low that areas of the roadway on the east side of the dam was getting covered with blowing sand from a sandbar exposed by the low water level.
The second thing was somewhat related to the fist was a grass fire. I had almost finished the ride, only a couple miles left when I came to an area where the fire department was finishing up putting out a grass fire. The was a police car parked across the roadway blocking traffic. I thought I may have to turn around and go all the way back around the lake in order to get back to my car. Fortunately the policeman waived me through and I was able to complete my ride. 

Now and then

While preparing for my after work ride today I was thinking about how my riding stuff was mostly evolved versions of the same riding stuff that I used back in the '60s. One item that I never used back then, that I now never ride without is a helmet.
Back then helmet suitable for cycling just did not exist. The closest thing to a "helmet" for cycling was know as a leather hairnet. They offered limited, if any, impact protection. Today there is no good reason to ride without a helmet. They are light, comfortable, and the ventilation has advanced to the point were your head will be cooler with a helmet that without one. If you get run over by a bus, a helmet probably won't be much help. Fortunately not many cyclist get run over by buses, but most will have one of those low speed crashes. It may be from getting a wheel caught in a pavement crack, a patch of gravel, or, the ever popular - getting your shoe caught on the pedal when coming to a stop. The point is, it is easy to fall and hit your head. A helmet can prevent head injuries. We are learning more and more on the long term damage that can be caused by even minor head injuries.

Finally, A nice day

The planets aligned today and I was finally able to get out and ride after work. The sun was out, the temperature was in the 70's, the wind was rough, but you can't have everything. The wind was 24 gusting to over 30. There were a few sections where I using my lowest gears riding into the wind. My bike has a triple crank set, so the low gears are really low.
Another plus for today was the new riding shorts that I had ordered arrived today. One of the indicators of the quality of riding shorts are the number of panels used in the construction. Shorts with more panels are supposed to be more comfortable. My old shorts have six, the new have 8. To tell the truth, I could not detect any improvement. Maybe my opinion will change when I wear them on a longer ride, but right now I think the quality of the chamois may be more important than the number of panels.  The chamois is the pad in the seat of cycling shorts. Back before synthetic materials were used, the shorts were wool and the chamois was actually made from chamois. Modern materials are now used, but the basic design of cycling clothing has changed very little in decades.

OneThird

1/3. The value of 1/3 is an anachronism. An analog throw back that doesn't fit in this digital age. 1/3 can not be represented as a exactly as a decimal fraction, only as a close, unsatisfying approximation. Now, there are some things that can use 1/3 exactly, a pizza, the hands on a clock dividing and hour. In other words, circles. Measuring circles involves pi, an irrational exercise at best. At least 1/3 doesn't require a massive number of cpu cycles to calculate the value to more and more decimal places in a vain attempt to get closer to the correct answer.

It has been said, "There are 10 types of people, those who understand binary, and those who don't".

Top 10 Subtitled Movies

Bonnie's last couple posts got me thinking about movies, and more specifically, movies with subtitles. I think that subtitles force you to pay closer attention to the movie. Several of these movies have been dubbed into English, but if you have a choice give the subtitled version a try.

1.Cyrano de Bergerac
2. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring
3. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
4. My Neighbor Toto
5. 3-Iron
6. Das Boot
7. Jet Li's Fearless
8. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
9. Time
10. The girl Who Played With Fire

Week Two

Here we are at the start of the second week of the 30 blogs/30 days challenge. I have managed to survive the first week of the challenge, but just barely. I have to admit some days I was having a hard time coming up with a subject and some of my posts were pretty lame. We'll have to see how this week goes. If this post is an example of what to expect, I wouldn't hold my breath.

So, what are my non-blog goals for the week? I have been trying to build up my riding miles with out much success. Only one ride this last week. I have been using the stationary bike on the days I don't ride, but that is just not the same as actually riding. A bicycle is alive, moving underneath you, the subtle sound of the tires changing as the road surface changes, the effort of grinding into a strong headwind knowing that will be a tailwind cruise on the return trip. Compared to really riding, a stationary bike is dead.

The Red Bud is in less than a week away. That is the first big ride of the year in the metro area. It can be challenging for several reasons. Being early in the riding season it is hard to have worked up to doing long rides. The weather can be iffy in early April. The route can be tough. The short route (33 miles) starts off easy, but the return is mostly uphill, and usually into the wind. In spite of that I'm looking forward to participating (if the weather is not too bad).

On month from today I'll be leaving for Toms River, New Jersey to attend a wedding. If I was planning a trip I don't think toms river  would come up in the "where should we go" conversation. That does not make going there a bad thing. Last summer we went to Bellingham Washington for a graduation. Belingham was also a place we would never of thought to go if it wasn't for the graduation.

Bellingham was an amazing place. Sitting on the Pacific coast, closer to Vancouver than Seattle, the weather was a pleasant change from the Oklahoma heat.

Heading south along the coast out of Bellingham is the historic Chuckanut Drive. Completed in 1896, this road allowed the first land access to Belingham Bay.

To the east of Bellingham is the Mount Baker Highway. This drive crosses rolling farmland, national forest, and ends at the Mt. Baker ski area.

I am now looking forward to discovering the surprises that Toms River has to offer.

Workday at Buddha Mind

For several months now I have been spending many Saturdays working on walking paths on the property surrounding Buddha Mind Monastery. Before the start of this project most of the property was so overgrown with thick brush that it was almost impenetrable. Now we have more than a mile of walking paths in various stages of completion. This project has used everything from bulldozers to racks and shovels. Today we had about thirty service learning students from OCU helping out.

Surrealistic Pillow

Small changes over time go unnoticed, like the proverbial frog in water over a low heat slowly coming to a boil. Pillows follow this principal. Gradually deteriorating over a period of time long enough to allow you to get accustomed to their decreasing thickness. It finally gets to the point that even folded in half, the pillow just doesn't make the grade anymore. You break down and buy new pillows. Ahh, that first night with the new pillow. If pillows never when bad, you would never know the simple pleasure of a new pillow. The pleasure comes from the diminished qualities of the old pillow as much as the luxurious fluffiness of the new.

Oklahoma River Trails

The Oklahoma River trail has become one of my favorite places to ride. I started riding the river trails last summer after the Lake Hefner trails got just too crowded. In addition to the crowds, the Hefner trail also has several road crossings. The river trails have none of these problems, there are no road crossings and far fewer people. I normally start from the S.W. 15th and Meridian parking area on the south side of the river. Riding from the parking area to the east end of the trail, then to the west end, then back to the parking area is an even fourteen miles. That is a good distance for an evening workday ride for me. When I want more miles sometimes I will combine both the north and south trails crossing over the river at Portland  and at Robinson. The river is one of the most scenic rides in the metro area. There is a unique combination of rowers on the water, blooming red buds lining the trail and the Oklahoma City skyline in the distance.

Wednesday

Wednesdays are my long days. In this case that is a good thing. As with most mornings, I am up and headed out to work around 5:00 a.m. and start work by 5:30. I don't start so early because of my dedication, but because that allows me to leave work at 2:00. Having this much flexibility in my work schedule is one good benefit of my job. The activity that makes Wednesday my long day is the evening sutra study class at Buddha Mind Monastery. Sutras are Buddhist scripture, so you could call sutra study class the Buddhist version of bible study class. That one comparison may be some what correct, but there is little else that is similar. The first hour of the class is a formal Zen meditation session. The sitting portion of the meditation will last for about forty minutes, which can be tough if you haven't been practicing. It is recommended that students take the beginning and advanced meditation classes before attending the sutra study class. This not only gives you a foundation of basic Buddhist teachings helping you to understand the more advanced concepts, but also gives you a chance to work up to the longer meditation sessions. The second hour is a more traditional (for westerners) combination of lecture and question and answer. This term we are studying the "Sutra of Forty-two Chapters".

The history of this sutra is interesting. In 62 c.e. Emperor Ming of the Later Han Dynasty dreamed that a golden man flew into his palace. The emperor's advisor told him That the golden man was the sage Buddha. In 64 c.e. The emperor sent a delegation to India to seek the Buddhadharma. In 67 c.e. two Buddhist masters arrived in China. The emperor built the first Buddhist monastery in China for them. At the monastery they translated the Sutra of Forty-two Chapters, the first sutra to be translated into Chinese.

Net Book

My net book is my favorite tech toy. I am using my net book to compose this blog post which allows me to work sitting on the couch instead of being tied to my desk ten feet away on the other side of the room. While net books are relatively low powered, I do not find that much of problem in day to day use.  In addition to the routine internet applications, email, facebook, blogger, I have extended the usefulness of my net book with some well known and not so well known applications.

1. Kindle for PCs. This free application from Amazon was one of the factors in my decision to purchase a net book.

2. Adobe Digital Editions. This is a free application that is great for reading and managing pdf collections.

3.  Wootalyzer. This is a utility for monitoring woot-offs.

4. Microsoft Silverlight. This was needed to stream netflix videos.

5. Garmin Mapsource. Mapping software for use in conjunction with a GPS.

6. OBDwiz. This is used with a USB - OBD2 scan tool to turn your computer into an automotive diagnostic device.

In addition to the software the hardware adds to the usefulness. The hard drive is large enough to keep a backup copy of my photos and music. The built in card reader simplifies camera downloads. The small size, light weight, and long battery life make the net book an indispensable traveling accessory.

30 Blogs 30 Days Challenge

Day 1; Now what?

A couple of weeks ago I received an invitation from my daughter Bonnie to join in a 30 blogs, 30 days challenge. That will be more blog posts in one month than my current all time number of posts. In preparation I made a list of possible topics. Unfortunately it is a short list. I do hope that it will give me enough material to prime the pump and complete this challenge. Over the next few weeks, I plan on trying some new things (of course with my limited blogging experience, that is not saying much). Some of the things I want to try include using video, more photos, and mobile blogging with a new android blogger app.

So here goes nothing....

New direction

I have decided to take this blog in a new direction. Buddhism is a major part of my life and will continue an important subject of this blog. My original intent was to use this blog as a tool to help me explore my Buddhist journey. I believe my original focus may have been too narrowly defined. Expanding into other day to day activities will allow this blog to be more of a journal of my life and give me the opportunity to try different styles of blogging.

Chan 3 Retreat

I attended the three day retreat at Chung Tai Zen Center of Houston. This was my third trip to Houston for a major event at the Zen Center. Pulling into the parking lot after the long drive and stressful navigation of the Houston traffic and toll roads, was like arriving at a welcoming oasis. Participating in a multi day retreat is not a trivial undertaking and I had some nervousness at the start. This was quickly dispelled once the retreat was underway. Even though I had only been there twice before I could remember seeing many of the fellow participants from the earlier trips. I may not have known their names or even have spoken to them, the familiar faces gave me a feeling that I was not alone, but of being with my Dharma brothers and sisters.