Archive for July 2012
Olympic Appreciation
After the first weekend of Olympic competition, and my extensive hours of viewing, I have these thoughts:
There are plenty of days when I wish we relied a bit less on technology, but as an avid sports spectator, I am forever grateful for the innovation of super slow motion.
At the same time, I find it can really distort our judgement of performance. It makes actions which are at the limits of physically possible, appear reasonable. It makes hundredths of a second seem like a large interval for victory.
The one thing that super slow motion does not need to be used for, is coverage of parents trying to watch (or not watch) their children’s performance. The tension the parents reveal is painful to witness.
I think the strongest trait that comes through in Olympic competition is not the athlete’s physical prowess, even though it is of the highest caliber, but their mental toughness. In every single event, there is a level of intensity that presents itself, that would crush most of us mortals. Every time the athletes succeed, it is a demonstration of the best combination of mind/body accomplishment. When it is a team success, I think it is even more impressive. It becomes a demonstration of mind/body prowess, and the best of human cooperation.
Seeing the best people, perform to their best abilities, is a gift to behold, and in no small way gives a glimpse of the untapped human potential available within all of us.
Not Enough
Yesterday, I was thinking I had too much on my plate. Today, my perspective is that there is just not enough time. How am I going to watch all the Olympic action that is happening simultaneously? And get the vacuuming done, and the dusting, and the laundry, and my breakfast prepared? One way, is to bail on writing today’s blog post. Here, look at this pretty wildflower.
Too Much
Some days, there is nothing happening. Not today. As a fan of Olympic competition, I am like a kid in a candy store. At the moment I am writing this, I have cycling road race, or women’s football both available for viewing. While trying to write, I find myself captivated, unable to tear myself away to the kitchen to get breakfast.
I have employees working today, and feel some responsibility to make an appearance at the day job, but I also need to tend to some yard work that demands attention this morning, before an afternoon showing of our house. For that matter, there is some vacuuming that deserves to be done. First, I will need to install the new hose I just bought to replace the original one that has a rip in it.
All the while, my bicycle is calling to me. I stopped by the shop last night, and they said it would be ready to pick up, first thing today. It will be really hard to get my bike back, all fixed up and ready to go, and not be able to take it out for a test spin.
There’s probably more, but I don’t want to think of it. I’ve already got too much on my plate, clamoring for attention. I gotta go!
Silence
.
.
not merely the silence
..it’s the duration
.that ups the intensity
till it might as well
weigh an entire ton
and more importantly
..in a curious way
…also be perceived
..as menacingly loud
.
.
Lucky Shot
Here we have an example of a happy accident. I honestly didn’t see the friend in the distance, when I snapped this shot. I rushed it a bit, trying to capture the closer deer before an approaching car chased it away, and as a result, missed the focus. Luckily, the camera latched on to the background, which included the head that I didn’t even notice, peeking at me from below the hill.
Right Bike
I am not buying a new bike. I’ve come close a few times over the last few years, but haven’t taken that last step.
Last June, as the date of my annual bike trip approached, I knew that I had not prepared my 18-year-old Trek 520 touring cycle to the degree I prefer. It wasn’t in optimum condition, but I figured I could make do. I was right. I made do.
In the middle of that week of the trip, I visited the mechanic and asked for his opinion of my chain. I knew it was worn, and due for replacement, I just didn’t know how worn. There is a gauge that very quickly demonstrates the level of wear. If you wait too long, the stretching of the chain will wear the cogs of the gears enough that you need to replace the cassette of gears along with the chain. I waited too long.
At that point, since the mechanic didn’t have the replacement cassette I would need, he suggested just riding the rest of the trip and having the work done later. It took me until last weekend, a month after getting home, to finally commit to taking care of it. I considered ordering the parts and doing the work myself, but I was interested in consulting with someone about the task.
I was wondering if it deserved an upgrade in quality of parts. I was also wondering if other parts should be getting simultaneous attention. That brought me to the question of whether the bike itself was worth the additional investment I was considering spending, or if I should get back to thinking about a new bike as replacement.
I took it to my local shop and was lucky to receive the attention of the owner, the very person with whom I was hoping to talk. Taking into account how many miles I estimated to have put on the bike in the years I have owned it, as well as the type, and frequency, of riding I do, he offered the opinion that the bike was well-worth the investment to get it back into top condition.
It already has a replacement set of wheels from original, with upgraded quality hubs. They will overhaul the wheel bearings, true the wheels, replace chain and cassette, change some cables and housings, and calibrate everything. I won’t even get my hands dirty. It will cost a small fraction of the price of a new bike, and it will feel like brand new to me.
I am very happy to get this done. He even gave me a tour of the new purchase options that were the next step up from mine for road riding, which was very generous, since he knew I had no intention of buying. (To my good friend, Murph: Yours was right in the ballpark, if I had gone that route! [Thanks, again, for the offer]) I am satisfied that my old touring machine is still a good match for me. His opinion was that a switch in bikes might buy me about 2 or 3 mph on my average speed, which I would gladly welcome, but for my riding, it’s really not a factor. I’m fine, right where I’m at.
My friends will just have to keep working hard on their new bikes, or they might find that I am actually able to pass them.
Leaf Like
.
Apparently these bug’s parents never taught them to eat the crust. However, it looks like they got the lesson about sharing. They are working from both sides of the leaf at the same time! Go team!
“Hey, careful! That’s my foot you’re munching on!”
I Forgot
And what about thinking before acting? Again, on a similar theme to yesterday’s post, yet with a bit of a twist… This one comes from the, “I knew better, but absolutely failed to heed that knowledge,” file.
I was rushing to finish a task. I know better than to do that carelessly.
I recklessly held up two expensive machined parts to be joined by bolts. I got all six bolts started, but the two pieces did not fit flush. In haste, I chose to use the bolts to pull the two parts together. I know better than to rely on this method.
I tightened the bolts snug enough to realize that there was something prohibiting the two parts from sliding together. It was late, already long past time to go home. I gave up and called it a day, choosing to take care of it the following day.
The next morning, what I had done still hadn’t occurred to me, when I prepared to take the bolts out and check the fit of the two parts. I put the wrench to the first bolt and knew immediately the problem I had created. My first thought was, “I know better than to have done this!”
By putting the extra pressure on the bolts by trying to force-fit the two parts, I had galled the threads and cold-welded steel to steel. Six times. All six bolts, to varying depths.
This is well-past the, “If I knew then, what I know now” issue. I already knew everything I needed to know about how to avoid this possibility. This one was the result of another insidious problem: “I forgot.”
Cue Steve Martin:
…Two simple words. Two simple words in the English language: “I forgot!” How many times do we let ourselves get into terrible situations because we don’t say “I forgot”? Let’s say you’re on trial for armed robbery. You say to the judge, “I forgot armed robbery was illegal.”…
You think?
Something keeps pushing me into naval-gazing mode lately. Multiple things. The insights I am gaining are probably good, in the long run, but aren’t immediately bolstering my self-confidence or generating rewarding feelings of well-being.
I’m wondering if I would have developed different behaviors, were I to have recognized in my youth, what I am discovering now. Of course, that is a universal thought: “If I knew then, what I know now”…
I have been given the opportunity to be confined in a place where I daily hear someone speak their mind, demonstrating their thought patterns and social interactions. Some of what I hear offends me, but the rest is just irritating and tiresome. It dawned on me recently… that person often reflects some of my own behaviors. Maybe that is why I find the person so annoying. And it explains why some people find my social patterns annoying!
I’ve failed to maintain the majority of relationships in my life. I wonder if, had I developed different control over expressing my opinions, it would have made any difference in that outcome.
The person that I hear talking, says things that seem to come out of nowhere, and reflect a neglect of the impact on the entire audience in ear-shot. It is something that I have grown sensitive to. But I also recognize the behavior as one I have been guilty of myself. Part of it is simply the result of speaking before thinking. Sometimes, this is followed by attempts to justify what has been said, but this rarely helps, and usually hurts. Hints of my own behavior in there, again.
I’m inclined to want to tell the person about what it sounds like to listen to the things being said, however, I am not feeling very skilled on how to do that. I am hoping this experience will allow me to better hear how the words coming out of my head sound to others, and better yet, learn to practice the art of actually thinking before speaking.
You think?
Relative Something 