Life On A B-I7

This is a private note that has been shared.

So a big accomplishment this week (it feels like a big accomplishment) I created a chart of Brahma Muhurta times for Redmond Oregon for each day thru June 1st. Let me back up a step. I’ve found that keeping two Journals is the best solution for me. The first is What I call my “Task” journal. This is more or less a list of daily chores, goals, (some aspirations) and things I consider important to track on a daily basis. The second journal is my “Writing” journal. This one contains my daily “Journal” entries and “Mindfulness Exercise” entries. I discovered recently that the best time of the day for mindfulness practice, study, and meditation is Brahma Muhurta time. Also referred to in Buddhism as “The Creator’s Time.” This is the 48 minute period (one Muhurta) that begins one hour 36 minutes (two Muhurta’s) before sunrise. Since sunrise occurs at a different time each morning, this requires a bit of calculation in advance. After calculating these times for the next 6 weeks or so, I wrote them down in my “Task” Journal. (I set up these pages in advance since this is a pretty standard lay-out.) The goal/desire here is (as much as possible) to perform my morning writing and mindfulness during Brahma Muhurta time. I’m doing pretty well, I hit that window about half the time this last week.

I played pickleball this week a few times. Next week I’m going to test for IPTPA Level 3.0 skill certification. I had an acupuncture treatment and I attended my strength training class. I did not get on the bike enough this last week to be thoroughly ready for my tour starting on June 1st. I’m still optimistic that I will be ready with six weeks to go. I admit that if I don’t get into shape, the first 400 miles or so are going to be a bitch.

My travel watercolor set arrived from Tobio’s this week. I plan to take it with me on tour for a little R&R when I’m off the bike. That should be a good time to try to learn a bit of painting. Wish me luck!

I’m pleased to see that my water consumption is up and staying up. Since I started tracking my consumption (in my Task Journal) I’m averaging more than 32 ounces of water intake a day. That’s terrific. Before I started focusing on that I was getting maybe 8 ounces a day. Everything I’ve read tells me that 64 ounces should be my target, so that’s what I’m shooting for.

I finished reading “Raising Hare” by Chloe Dalton and “The Practice of Attention” by Cody Cook-Parrott. You can read about them by going to the “Contents” page and clicking on the “Reading” category.

I tried out Rock Tape for my knee pain. It’s fantastic stuff. It allows me to stay in the game. There is something wrong with my knee. Don’t know what it is because I don’t want to know right now. When I finish my tour if it is still bothering me, I’ll get it evaluated. We are not talking replacement I’m quite sure, but there could be minor surgery in my future to scape some bits and pieces out of harm’s way.

I’d like to go to Paris someday. Along with the museums, fantastic cuisine, and amazing architecture, I’d like to visit a piano jazz bar or two. You’ve probably guessed already I’ve been watching Rick Steves this week. (Watching too much Rick Steves is better than watching too much news.) I should probably learn to speak a little French before I take that one on.

We had a neighbor over last night for dinner, a single guy, former biology professor. A bit of a talker but still a nice guy. I got a big kick out of him when I pulled out the Redi-Whip for desert (biology professors can be fussy about the ingredients in food — go figure). He almost fell out of his chair, but he did eat it and admitted it was a nice topping for the fruit cobbler that Polly made. I made chicken noodle casserole and also baked beans in my Dutch Ovens. I’ve decided now when cooking outdoors, using Dutch Ovens is the only way to go from now on. Using Dutch Ovens gives you so many more choices than simply grilling. It’s a thing. I like doing it. After dinner, I got a nasty surprise. While sitting by the fire I took a sip of my High West Double Rye. Much to my horror, someone had frozen apple juice my whiskey ice cube tray. We have spoken about this and naturally this sacred elixir will never again be blasphemed by thoughtless pollution. At least until next time.

There is one final development to share this week. This has been in the works for a long time but I can’t put off the confession any longer. I’m admitting to all the world that Mr. Tux has me trained. It proves that he is smarter than I am, I’m okay with that. Our agreement that he wake me up three times a night to cater to him has been formalized and is now cast in stone. The first time for a snack, usually around midnight, The second time for a drink of water (more on that below) around 1:30 am. And the third time for a walk outside, usually around 3:30 am. I let him out and then have to let him back in after about 15 minutes, he doesn’t go far. As far as the drinking part goes, he wakes me up for water because he has trained me that he prefers to drink out of a running faucet rather than a dish. I’m whipped. The way he wakes me up is by scratching on the side of the bed that I sleep on. That seems pretty intuitive. This morning while Polly and I were having morning coffee in bed, he started scratching on her side of the bed. I told Polly “that’s your side of the bed, you have to get up!” She laughed and said “He’s your cat, you get up!” It seems all creatures in the house have me trained…