TRAFFIC MADNESS

Yesterday I made the one hour trip from Oakland to Eugene to take care of some business at my credit union.   Usually the traffic on this portion of I-5 is not that bad depending on weather and time of season, but not the case yesterday.   For the most part I drive in the slow lane between 65 to 70 mph and pass trucks when necessary that are driving 60 to 65 mph.    Yesterday many trucks were passing me in excess of 75 mph and many passenger vehicles were going in excess of 80 mph.   The farther north I got the worst the traffic got.  North of Creswell both lanes going north were bumper to bumper with tail lights coming on that signal the start of rear end collisions.   Luckily exit 186, south of Goshen  was within sight and for my own sanity I took it over to old highway 99 and got on Dillard Road into the hills of south Eugene with not a car in sight until the city limits.   The drive back home was not much better and I pulled into Cottage Grove for a break then took old highway 99 south of Cottage Grove to the Douglas County line where it merges onto I-5.   Finally made it home feeling like a survivor.   Never saw any State police and wonder if there is any enforcement of the speed limits anymore or is it just a free for all these days?   

THE SEA KAYAKING EXPERIENCE

In the spring of 1988, while working for the Forest Service in Gold Beach I asked for two weeks off  in August to go on a sea kayaking trip in Barkley Sound on the westside of Vancouver Island in British Columbia.    In May I ended up transferring to Cottage Grove and they honored my request for those two weeks off in August.  

The trip cost me $600 for a week of sea kayaking with all equipment and food furnished, including a guide and her helper.  They did everything from getting the equipment and food organized, providing transportation from Port Alberni to Barkley Sound, plus they did all the cooking.   I had to drive myself to Port Alberni by crossing from Vancouver to Nanaimo on the BC Ferry.   There may have been 15 of us in the group, including myself and a married couple from the U.S. and all the others were Canadians, mostly from Vancouver.   The oldest man was 60 and a retired forester from the BC Forest Service.  There was some teachers, health care workers and a few retired people.  

The kayaks were made for two people and the person in the rear had control of the foot peddles that operated the rudder.   We were asked to pick partners for these two person kayaks.  Before I had a chance to look around for a partner, a woman asked me to share a kayak with her.   Being polite, I committed my self and she agreed to let me take control of the steering rudders.   I don't remember her name, but remember she was a social worker from Vancouver and a recovering alcoholic.   On our first night out everybody set up their tents and my partner told me we could share the same tent.   I got the feeling she wanted to share more than the tent and kayak together.   At the time I was still legally married to my fist wife, but we were separated and I was hoping to get back together.  It never happened and probably for the best, plus I was not attracted to this woman for any intimate exchanges.  I was happy to have my own tent.   After a few days I noticed the retired 60 year old forester was sharing a tent with an older woman, who was a retired teacher.    Who else was sharing tents I don't remember.   

Some of the highlights of the trip were camping out on some islands, bottom fishing and having the guides clean our fish and cook them.   After dinner every night we sat around the campfire getting to know each other better.   Being an early riser it was a treat to have coffee made as the lady guide was up early with her helper preparing breakfast.    

At the end of the week we returned to Port Alberni where I took the ferry back to the main land along with my kayaking partner.  She invited me to spend the night at her apartment in Vancouver which I did without any mishaps.  The next day I drove back home to Cottage Grove.    

IT'S HOT!!!

The last few days have been record breaking heat with temperatures as high as 110 at my place.   By afternoons all I can do to survive is retreat in doors in hopes the air conditioner does not breakdown or the power goes out.    The power did go out Sunday night from 9  to 11pm.  Not knowing how long it would be out, I got my generator going to keep the refrigerator on.    Trying to catch any sleep with a generator running on the front porch is a challenge.   Just about the time I felt sleep taking hold to the hum of the generator the bed side lamp came on.  I got up to shut the generator off and returned to bed until the rising sun got me up with the overwhelming need for coffee to jump start the old body into action.   The first chore of the early morning when the outside temperature is in the sixties is to water plants.   One of the benefits of living in the hills with no nearby neighbors is no need to completely dress, so out the door with just my underwear on.    No fear of anybody turning me in for being indecent.   The only food that appeals to me is cold pasta salad, cold beams or just a bowel of cereal.   Just think on the positive side of life, I'm 18 degrees cooler than Death Valley, where they had a recent high of 128.