The beauty of the Cape

Cape Cod

Here lies the peaceful Cape

Gulls cry in the salty air

Light dances silver on restless waves

Time slows to the rhythm of the tides

A beauty both wild and gentle

Endles as the horizon

A silent dawn spills gold over the bay

Sturdy dunes protect secluded bays from the mighty Atlantic ocean

Rising whales create rare transient mountains in the sea

A lighthouse keeps its patient watch

Brave fishermen venture out into the ocean

Tourists bask on sandy beaches

Yachtsmen fill their sails with Atlantic gusts

Cottages weathered by wind and salt stand proud

Cedar shake roofs are a welcome perch for resting gulls

The skies of the Cape are wide enough to carry your biggest dreams

How to spoil a walk

….. With balls

The ball is so small, the hole is so far

You swing so hard that you see a star

It hooks, it slices, dives in sand—

Not quite the shot that you had planned

Yet still you smile, though skills are rough

But chasing balls is half the stuff

A perfect drive? A dream you so often recall

But golf is just walking, spoiled with a ball

The earth is getting fatter

I saw a meteor shower last night

bright fireballs tumbling low in the sky

it was an awesome sight to behold

the Perseus meteor shower is an annual event

remnants of and old comet hurling chunks of rocks at the earth

like kids throwing pebbles into a lake

scientists say we get 17,000 meteorites a year

that’s a lot of space dust added to all the rocks we already have on earth

the earth is steadily getting fatter day by day

time to put our planet on a diet and exercise plan

otherwise we will spin out of control

a program of rock carrying rocket launches is needed

hurling some of our rocks back into space

like the lake throwing pebbles back towards those kids

its the only way to achieve net zero in stabilizing the mass of our planet

Cycling with a data screen

I rode my bike today

A 35 mile ride alongside fields of corn in the eastern shore

I rode with four other experienced local riders in a pace line

With a slight tailwind we rolled along at 20mph on a beautiful Friday morning

Occasionally we sprinted at 25mph

Its very rewarding to train in a group and chat along the way

Camaraderie is priceless and it makes for a fun workout

Upon returning home I hit the “end of ride” button on the bike computer

It responded by telling me it was a high intensity workout and that I should recover over 36 hours

I cleaned up my bike and hung it on the wall like a piece of art

Its carbon fiber frame is ultra light and very strong

Sensors monitor my speed, heart rate, cadence and power

The bike computer automatically uploaded the ride into an App called Strava

Soon I was pouring over the recorded ride data

Comparing my speed, heart rate and power exertion to similar training rides

My times on specific segments showed I was trending faster

A deeper analysis from AI in the App gave me more detailed fitness analysis

My phone has become my personal trainer

It even congratulates me when I train hard

My thoughts wandered back to my first bike back in the 60’s

A heavy steel frame with no bike computer

The only data collection was the time on my watch

Training intensity was measured by the post ride aches in my legs

I had no trainer back then, real or virtual, but I still enjoyed riding

Today my ride analysis even tells me how much carbon I saved the planet by cycling

I often ponder if my riding is more enjoyable because of the added data

A few days ago I found the answer to this question

My bike computer shut down at the start of a ride because I forgot to charge it

I had to ride 35 miles blind with no data screen

Guessing my speed and selecting my gears by feel rather than data

I had no idea if I was exceeding my maximum allowed heart rate

It was basically like a pilot flying without any instruments

I felt robbed of data when I got home

Until I realized that my Apple Watch had silently captured my ride

Surprise surprise when I uploaded the data from my watch

I had ridden faster than usual and my heart rate was not excessive

Maybe I should take more breaks from riding with a data screen

let there be light

he woke up early

she was still sleeping

the room was completely dark

he tried to go back to sleep

but his mind was racing

dark thoughts filled his head

they refused to go away

eventually dawn came

he went outside as the sun rose

he only saw long dark shadows

the bright sunlight was too much for him

he preferred a darkened room inside

she woke up happy and smiling

she detected his fake happiness despite the long kiss

vowing to rescue him from the dark side

she made breakfast as cool jazz music played

he hid under the covers a while longer

she dragged the covers off and hugged him

pulling him into the light for breakfast

he complained that the toast was burned

she knew he was only looking at a few dark spots

they had breakfast in silence

they both knew this was not sustainable

she told him they were at a crossroads

he took a shower with his eyes closed tight

got dressed with his eyes squinting

reluctantly venturing outside to join her on the patio in full sun

hiding his pain behind thick dark sunglasses

its time to come over to the light side she proclaimed

leave the dark side behind

he surrendered saying tell me what to do

just sit in the chair and relax she replied

she tied him tightly to the chair with soft rope

his eyes were tightly closed

say hello to Mr Sun she whispered as she took off his shades

he slowly opened his eyes and squinted

the sky was deep blue with fluffy white clouds

the grass was emerald green

bright vibrant flowers hugged the edge of the lawn

he pulled lightly on his restraints

slowly he became accustomed to the bright light

he stopped looking for shadows

she untied him and they embraced

her kiss filled his body with bright light

no more darkness in his thoughts

they spent the entire day outside in the bright light

a bike ride along the river bank

laying in a meadow

smooching in the afternoon sun

he felt warm and invigorated

they ate dinner outside in the late evening

he became anxious at sunset

afraid of the dark

she put on all the lights in the house

soon it was bedtime

he was anxious about sleeping

the darkness might reinvade his mind

she gave him a shot of whiskey as they retired

he closed is eyes and awaited the dark demons to attack

they never arrived

his dreams were full of bright lights

no more dark thoughts