a good man

charlie lanker summer 2007, on the front porch of the house he built in 1947.  in those days before you married you had to build a place for the two of you to live.  so, grandpa built this house and married esther rhinehart by the fireplace.  

charlie was born on march 9, 1913, in the kitchen of the farmhouse over his left shoulder.  he likes to joke "i didn't get very far, did i?"  but he did get far.  for more than 80 years he grew the corn that fed america, and lately, the world.  he loved my grandma a lot.  he was not the same after she died in 1998.  it stretches my mind to think of the two of them stealthily climbing out a window and running under the moonlight during harvest season.  or watching lightning bugs from the porch late into the night.  i like this photo of grandpa because it portrays his dignity, poise, and determination.

 

charlie's famous wink.   grandpa's sister "aunt ruth" used to wink like this too.  who did they learn it from?  and who did THEY learn it from?  it could be that this wink came over from germany with the hessians, before the ohio valley was settled.  

here we are, charlie and mark, in summer of 2008.  i've seen alot of changes in him over the last year.  sometimes he makes me laugh, other times i feel very sad.  what i've learned this year is that its good to share the laughter and the tears.  charlie says to me, and i'll tell you, that when you are young and your lungs are good, and your body is strong, GO AND DO what you want to do, what matters to you, do something you will remember when you are 95.

the world is vast.

"the world is vast, and wide open"

i don't know why i'm thinking of it just now.  maybe because my mom and dad are in dubai.  we can go so far.  far from everything we know, covering immense spaces of not emptiness, but fullness, completely unwitnessed by human beings.  the old saying "if a tree falls in the forest..."  of course it exists!!!  i think that god is watching it, reveling in these experiments called land and sea.  there was a time when i thought all of this staggering splendor was just a chance happening, the ripples in the water just occurred that way, and there is no meaning behind it.  that world was grim.  in my best moments i conceive that there is more to this show than meets the eye, and probably more than i can ever fathom.  some people will say "you believe what makes you happy" and maybe that's true.  but i prefer living in a bright world, deep and enchanted.  [this is the north pacific ocean, off alaska]. 

fires to kindle

if you want to build a fire in the snow, start by finding a water barrier such as tarp.  otherwise, the heat will melt the snow and you will soon be in a puddle of water.

there are many good ways to arrange the fuel.  i prefer the cabin method for larger pieces, then paper or wood shavings inside.  the idea is to get the fuel up off the ground, and leave room for air to filter in between the branches.

in books, people describe ways to start fires with just sticks, or sticks and rocks, or bits of flint.  until i figure that out, i'll just keep a 50 gram lighter with me all the time.

like a fire, the body needs fuel, and like the body, the mind does too.

one of my close friends from virginia, randall chan, told me this, and i'll never forget it:

"the mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled!"

how to make orange juice

I just realized something.  the reason i so rarely blog isn't because i can't think of anything to write or i don't have any photos.  its because i wait for something "absolutely brilliant" to come along and hit me over the head with a shovel.  then i thought, what's wrong with my ordinary thoughts, the stuff that makes up 98% of life?  why does it have to be earth-shattering before i post on my blog?  well i think there are reasons why and lets talk about that sometime, but for now, i'm calling my own bluff.  i'm posting a simple picture that i simply like because it is full of colors and it was a great experience that i think you would enjoy.  

this is how you make orange juice.  its pretty much what you would guess!  here is my particular method which i found to be very effective.  it resulted in a delicious juice which i am drinking right now:

1) obtain ripe oranges.  i used florida navals and tangerines which scott and i bought from a roadside stand.  it is best if the fruit is soft, even on the verge of over-ripe.

2) cut an orange through its equator (the only plane that will not bisect the stem)

3) place the round part in the palm of your hand and squeeze hard.  harder.  ok.  let the juice run into a wide mouth container which has a lid you can seal.

4) once you have squeezed the liquid from the orange, hold the cut edges of the peel against each other and carefully cut the ragged pulp that is exposed away from the peel.  this will greatly improve the flavor and texture.

5) repeat steps 3 + 4 as many times as you like, or until the container is 3/4 full.

6) seal the container, and shake vigorously.  this will tear and mix the pulp, crushing fibers of orangy flesh against the walls of the container.

7) place in the refrigerator or other cool place.

8) pour the juice into a glass (on that is made of glass).  this step is important.

9) enjoy!

it was my dear friend a.s. from virginia who gave me a journal prior to a journey and reminded me not so save the pages for lofty thoughts... but fill it up with whatever fills up my head, no matter how earthy.  anyways this orange juice is incredible.  you should come on over an have a glass.

beauty of a different kind

anyone who knows me knows i love the ocean, the beach, the warm sand between toes, the numbing, repetitive rush of waves, the undulation of sea foam, the lying on a sheet under the stars on a deserted beach at midnight.  or surfing by the light of a full moon.  ok, i've got to stop before i start crying i miss the beach so much!  but what i started to say was, as breathtaking as the warm coast is... there is something equally grand about a fresh blanket of snow and a rich blue sky overhead.  have you ever noticed that shadows in the snow are never grey, always blue?  when taking this picture i was standing at one of my favorite places in the world.  many of you have been to that spot.  some of you have even juggled hot coals there.

some unidentified small animal aparently climbed out of the lake, up to the fire-ring, and then changed his mind and went back to the lake.

if you could perceive even half of the beauty that exists within one mile of you right now... i think your brain would explode.  if you have no idea what i mean watch amelie

the pathway

deep blue someday

this is how i feel about 2008.