The Penultimate Battery Changers

My friend Shelly has a wonderful way of "suggesting" a specific course of action without actually committing herself to any part of the work. When we visited the white cliffs the other day, she said, "We'll take my rig, but we need to change the battery first. And by we, I mean you." 

"But I've never changed a battery," I protested. 

She popped the hood of her truck and said, "It's easy. Just remove these screws, lift the old battery out, put the new battery in, and then replace the screws. No problem." Then she turned and simply went back inside the house. That's what we call faith.   

Thankfully, I was not alone. I brought my friend Stephen to share my struggle with that old corroded battery. For a moment, we could only manage to look at each other helplessly. Then we argued over which one of us was the least likely to change a car battery. One of us said, "I'm the last one you'd ever expect to do this." 

The other said, "No, I'm the last." 

"Fine," the first answered, "Then I'm the penultimate person." Then we had to argue over who got to be the ultimate (the last) and the penultimate (the second to the last). Meanwhile, the battery sat unchanged inside the car. 

Using words like penultimate made me feel suyepi (white). The only reason I know that word is because of my experience with the Spanish language. I suspect the same is true of Stephen. 

Finally, I said, "How many gringos does it take to change a car battery?" And we laughed. 

In the end, we discovered that Shelly was right all along. Changing the batter really was quite easy, but just before she tested the new battery, I had a horrible thought. "What if we put the positive and negative connections in the wrong place?" I had a nightmarish vision of the car bursting into flames. But she turned the key and the engine roared to life. What a relief! 

We're both word nerds at heart, Stephen and I. We deal in words like penultimate, not in wrenches, metal bolts, or car batteries. Even so, it was very kind of Shelly to provide a well-rounded education in auto-mechanics.  

Later that day, Shelly took us to an abandoned mine shaft where we found a wrecked car from the 1930s. I thought about labeling these pictures with a joke about Stephen inspecting the damage after Shelly's car burst into flames. 

My Groovy Hippie Video

Video from the IEL Fashion Show. 

Groovy!

My Crazy Family

My brother and his family came back to the States for the first time in several years. 

During their visit, we had a barbecue and a couple dinners at my sister's house. Most of the time, I left my camera sitting on the table, and I really only took a handful of pictures. Of course, I've been so busy, that I never downloaded the pictures until long after my brother went back to Europe.   

So, I finally downloaded the pictures yesterday, and I discovered that everyone took a crazy self-portrait. It's funny too, because they all succeeded in doing this without my knowledge.  

Now I'm wondering what kind of conversations they had when I wasn't listening. They must have thought it was terribly funny, and they probably even laughed when they pictured my reaction. And of course it is funny, especially since I am the blogger of the family, and they must have known that their crazy mug shots would be posted on the world wide web for all to see. 

;)

To my family, I say when you see this, remember that I love you. These pictures really did make me smile. It was wonderful to see you and to be together again as a family. 

Chill Spot

My friends in the nature connection movement, folks like Jon Young and Tim Corcoran, encourage people to find a "sit spot" someplace in the natural world. Coyote's Guide to Connecting With Nature explains the practice in some detail, saying in part: "Find one place in your natural world that you visit all the time and get to know it as your best friend. Let this be a place where you learn to sit still - alone, often, and quietly - before you playfully explore beyond. This will become your place of intimate connection with nature."   

Even before I knew Jon or Tim, I understood the value of knowing a place as if it were a dear friend or a close family member. Almost by definition, indigenous cultures have established generational relationships to ancestral lands reaching back thousands of years. We remember the rivers and the mountains, the animals and the roots - and they remember us. Every year we travel to the same places again and again, always deepening our relationship to the spirits of this place.

As a culture, we have been sitting here for 10,000 years, and as individuals, finding a sit spot is a beautiful and deeply renewing practice.

*

Not long ago, I attended a workshop with Jon Young, Randall Eaton, and Tim Corcoran. They were encouraging the participants to visit their sit spots and to connect with nature in a meaningful way. A young man in the group said that he doesn't always sit; sometimes he goes just to connect. For this reason he prefers to call that place his "chill spot." Some folks laughed, but we all appreciate the way he re-scripted this enduring spiritual practice into a more contemporary, youth-savvy language.

Afterwards, I joked with Jon and said that I don't even have to visit nature to find my own personal chill spot. He gave me a questioning look, but then I laughed and explained that Chill Spot is a business that just opened down the street from my work. They serve sandwiches and frozen yogurt. I promised to take Jon to the Chill Spot on the way to the airport, but we got back later than expected. We'll have to visit next time he comes to Spokane. For now, he'll just have to appreciate this photograph that my wife and I took when we had lunch today. As we visited the Chill Spot, we thought of Jon.

*

All joking aside, Chill Spot may not actually connect folks to nature like a personal sit spot in the woods, but its business model takes a fresh, community-centered approach. The owner is almost always on site taking orders, manning the cash register, or serving food. When he's not helping customers, he's smiling, visiting, or making friends with the people who walk through his door. One night, he even sat down with my group and gave us a mini-exhibition of his daughter's art work. This is the kind of business I love to support. The food is great, but the atmosphere just makes me happy. Chill Spot is not some kind of distant corporate entity, but rather a locally owned place that adds value and connection to the Spokane community.

In the end, connection is all that matters, whether we're connecting to nature or to one another. In either situation, we need a time and place that allows us to escape our busy schedules and just chill.

*

Young, J., Haas, E., & McGown, E. (2010). Coyote's Guide to Connecting to Nature. Shelton, WA: Owlink Media Corporation.

Fashion Show

The Institute for Extended Learning sponsors a yearly fashion show to highlight the proper way to dress during a job interview. But first, the faculty members take the stage in outfits that demonstrate how NOT to dress in a professional setting: sweats, pajamas, sports jerseys, black leather, etc. 

A few weeks ago, I was recruited to model my own "inappropriate" outfit.

When I took the runway this afternoon, I wore a black t-shirt and saggy jeans. I also wore my hair down, complete with a cigarette hanging from a bandanna headband. The announcer jokingly told the audience that I looked like I had just come in from work release at Geiger Correctional Facility. My colleagues got a good laugh at my expense, but I suppose it's all for a good cause.

Some asked if we can now put "super model" on our resumes.

Taking the runway was a nerve racking experience. When I agreed to model, I had no idea that 250 people would pack the house. Everyone cheered, so that made my task a little easier than expected.

After the faculty model the inappropriate interview attire, the students model the correct outfits. It's a great way for students to practice professionalism and to build their confidence.  

At the end of the event, the students receive a professional outfit that has been donated by the community. The IEL Fashion Show is a fun, educational event that also creates tremendous value for our students and the community. It makes me proud to work for such a great organization.

The Barry

The Pose, originally uploaded by sulustumoses.

As sort of a random fact, TR didn't realize that I create all my own self-portraits. I work really hard to get that "look" just right. He promptly labeled my pose 'the Barry," which I then had to show the others.

In this photograph I am showing Robert and Tim how to do "the Barry."