Author Archives: Steve Mays
Stuck in the woods
I briefly considered keeping the pickup truck in a storage unit but it was too tight a fit so I decided to keep it at home. We have about three acres so plenty of room and lots of trucks live outside. Today, while experimenting with just where to park it, I managed to get down in the woods and couldn’t get back up.
The grade isn’t that steep but the ground was soft and slick from last night’s snow. And I didn’t know how to engage 4WD. Not at all like the Land Rover. Lock-out hubs on the front wheels, unfamiliar shifter, my utter cluelessness.
But this will give me an opportunity to use the fancy “snatch rope” (I love that term) I purchased for the Rover. Once rescued, I’ll wait for dryer weather and firmer footing (and a lesson in 4WD’ing) before driving down in the woods again.
UPDATE (11/16/18): Mechanic George had the truck out of the woods in about 90 seconds after engaging the lock-out hubs on the front wheels and putting the transfer gear in four-wheel low. I’ll have to practice this a bit before the next snow.
800 Days
Yesterday was the 800th consecutive day on the cushion. I started meditating ten years ago but didn’t begin keeping a log of my daily practice until 2014. I’ve only missed two days in those four years. In all my reading about meditation there is general agreement it should be a daily practice. I sit for 30-45 minutes.
Little Black Holes
“Every time someone in a group of people deploys a screen, the whole group is affected. Each disengaged person in a crowd is like a little black hole, a dead zone for social energy, radiating a noticeable field of apathy towards the rest of the room and what’s happening there.”
— The Simple Joy of “No Phones Allowed”
The Truck’s first snow
Not much of a snow (so far) but a chance to try out the defroster. Took about 10 minutes to warm up enough to keep the windscreen clear and the wipers did their job. Not sure I’d want to go far in a real blizzard but that’s unlikely. Four-wheel drive seemed to work fine coming up our hill. Let’s hope the pickup does as well.