gathers no moss: another week - September 4, 2010

My mom and dad have been asking me, "what's the deal, why haven't we heard from you?" Mostly it's because I haven't gotten into any crazy adventures lately and my camera broke. I got a new camera and took some pictures on a bike ride yesterday. It was a fine day, which is somewhat rare. It's not really very cold here but it's often damp, and often windy. I've never lived in a place where wind has such an effect on your daily activities. Today it was howling on the mountain and in town. Riding your bike is impossible in such a wind, and even walking around outside isn't exactly desirable.

Six more weeks to go, and I'm not going to lie -- I'm a little homesick. I miss not having to prove myself at work all of the time. I also miss my cat, my speedy car, and the Colorado sunshine. Hopefully there will be a little bit of fall left when I return.

I bought a cord of wood and have been burning it steadily to heat the front room. I've been jogging around the rugby grounds and also riding my bike. I'm going to enter this skiing/cycling/running race in a month and I want to do it without too much pain. It's a little hard to get into a routine with my schedule. I work at 3pm some days, then 12 midnight some days. Tonight I'm supposed to be there at 3am on account of the wind. It's a drag. There's supposed to be more wind and snow on the way so I am bringing a book and a change of clothes. We may be stuck up there for awhile. It's a pretty serious journey back and forth to the mountain in bad weather, and sometimes we get marooned.

Yesterday I rode my bike to the nearby gorge, which is a scenic spot not too far away. I stopped and bought a Coke and a packet of chips at a tavern there. The proprietor was obviously North American from his accent. I asked where he was from and he said he was an Australian citizen. Then he admitted that he grew up in California. He then described, somewhat proudly, that he hadn't been back to the USA more than 10 days in 30 years. It was like he had something against the place and he was proving that he was sticking to his convictions by renouncing his citizenship. Whatever floats your boat, I thought.

It's funny being an American abroad. I think people are shocked when they meet a real American and he doesn't talk like a Texan or look like someone on MTV. In my travels in the world I have encountered some challenges from people who want to know why America does this or that, or why we invade this country or that. I think sometimes people are dismayed by the onslaught of American culture that is impossible to avoid, from TV to music to clothing to language.

But on the other hand, I still sense wonder about America, that it's such a diverse, freewheeling place where there is such a variety of peoples and beliefs, and someone can be anyone they want to be. Maybe I'm naively patriotic but I think America, or at least the idea of America, is something that a lot of people are really awed by, warts and all. Funny, though, that everybody is looking in but we don't really look out very much.

Some pics from my bike ride:

Taking it easy