13 July 2006

Relative humidity

The recent rains have added a layer of wet sogginess to everything. You know it is bad when the last rain was three days ago, but the yard is still a muddy swamp. Our dog needs a bath, but I refuse to do it until I'm sure he won't be muddy three seconds later.

I'm trying to reduce stress and get back in shape by biking on the trail near our house. Right now my personal trainer is with her grandparents (a nine-year-old who loves to bike is a *great* nag) and the downpours have slowed me down. But I'll be back on the bike this weekend.

Slogging through the air on a bike when it is this humid, it just feels like you are cutting through jello.

But it's worth it. On the days I bike, I have more energy. I'm reconnecting with nature, as the trail cuts through some of the prettier parts of the city. It gives me time to think, something I rarely have time to do anymore, with three kids who think chanting "Mom" will get them what they want sooner, and an office where the same type of thing happens all too frequently.

I've found interesting things, like the pet cemetery. And the memorial there for a human. A state trooper lost his life in a shootout near that spot, on Pearl Harbor Day.

I paused at that spot to check out the marker. Then I paused to think about that moment: While half a world away, one of the biggest tragedies in U.S. history was taking place, in that spot, a small tragedy that affected a small number of lives happened.

Another reminder to take the time to enjoy life while it happens.