Day Twelve: The Pleasures of Not Riding

Day Twelve: The Pleasures of Not Riding

Miles: Zero

Climb: A few feet--on foot.

Ave. spd.: 1.5 mph, approx.

About fully loaded cycle touring here is an element of hitting oneself  in the head with a hammer: It feels so good when it stops. I lay in the tent until the slothful hour of 7AM but finally mustered the enthusiasm for coffee.  Ah, we be caffinated again. A lounged in my trike seat and let the morning come on, sipped and read. Which reminds me: A good reading list is essential and of the the great compensations of long nights in the tent and rest days.  So here’s mine. Excellent all, and you must all read them.

American Heiress by Jeffery Toobin:  This is the fully detailed story of the Patty Hearst saga.  What a story! I rememberd vaguely parts of the tale from my childhood, but this fills in all the details.  Amazing stuff and a fascinating look back at the early 70’s.

Tribe by Sebastian Junger:  This may be one of the most important books for all of us at this point in history.  It’s short, super readable, and carries insights into how we were as people and how we need to be again.  Read it

Educated by Tara Westover:  Yikes. What a memoir.  She grew up in a crazy Mormon home in back country Idaho with an “End Times!” kind of father, quite nuts.  She didn’t go to school until she was 15, eventually getting a PhD. A page turner, people. Get it.

So I read, I wrote, I did some rest day service and cleaned up the little arroyo that was my camp.  Some jackass of the first order smashed some brightly colored pottery all over the side of the wash.  So I did some duty, and picked up some dog duty, too, while I was at it. Gotta shed some Light on the Forces of Darkness.

Now, gotta go call Jodi and do some more reading.  It’s off to Bouse--rhymes with “house” tomorrow.