I always have intentions of blogging everyday, but every year I forget how unbelievably difficult it is to find internet access or a decent signal on my aircard. The system is so overloaded with the influx of 20,000 cyclists and their electronica – we get text messages from one another the next day.
The drive up was uneventful, considering the bus, the passengers, and the mission. We met 5 team members in 3 places near Davenport. So we were finally assembled as a team of 16 and headed across the state to Glenwood, the starting town.
The ride up gets interesting
The first morning is always so exciting — we’re like racehorses waiting for the gates to open. Everyone is in clean, new Team Fly jerseys, our bikes are cleaned and tuned and we get up at sunrise ready to roll.
most of the team starting out
The weather forecast has been for mid to high 80’s, which sounds lovely until you factor in the heat index (which, by the way friends, Rush Limbaugh says is a left wing conspiracy). We’ve had such high humidity a couple of days have been ridiculously uncomfortable. It has finally (on day 6) leveled off a bit, but it’s still toasty.
musician in a tree doing yoga?hanging around the campsite in the eveningSlacklining for cyclistsChef Dustin and our salmon feasttypical campsite shottemporary tattoossometimes it happenssome small town in Iowanot sureall of Iowa has this good of receptionBobbing for beer - not as easy as it lookstequila, especially expensive tequila, helps with the heatsweet Samanother typical campsite shotlots and lots of this
I know this blog is heavy on the pics and light on the words, but I’ll go back and fill in. Hopefully the pics tell a lot of the story. I’ll try to have more pictures on my Facebook page and on the Team Fly Facebook page.
For now, I’ll end this blog at about the halfway point of the ride and do a followup post when I can get internet again.
We are having a blast, as we always do on this magnificent bike ride. We are enjoying each other and all of our new friends in spite of the atrocious heat.
Ragbrai is such a part of our family’s vocabulary I can’t remember ever not knowing it. This bike ride across Iowa has been rolling every year since 1973; our family’s first year to do it was 1990.
Ben was 5 and already on his 2 wheeler. Sam was 3 and on training wheels. The girls were 16 months old. We were living in Minnesota at the time, and Iowa was just a hop-skip south. My dad had done Ragbrai and urged us on so off we went.
It was a train wreck to say the least. Jesse was on his bike with Sam and Ben in a little cart behind him, trailering Ben’s baby bike. Every few miles, Jesse would get Ben out of the cart, let him ride a mile or two, put him back in the cart with Sam, and they’d go on again. I had the two girls in the cart behind me, with their toys and sippee cups and pillows.
It was hot and crowded and we couldn’t get enough. The rest, as they say, is history. Our family calls this week the Best Week of the Year. We may not get all the kids together at Christmas, but we can always count on Ragbrai.
This year, as it has been the last few years, Ben and girlfriend Kirsten will drive from Colorado and meet us in the End Town (Davenport this year) on the Eastern edge of the state, where they will get in the bus with us and drive across to the Western edge (Glenwood).
from the back looking forwardfrom the front looking toward the back
We will pack the bus and leave from Murfreesboro at 6:00 on Wednesday. It’s about 18 hours (by Team Fly bus) to Davenport, then another several hours across. We’ll be in place Saturday evening for our team kickoff meeting and Sunday am start! Tradition has the group of 20,000 riders dipping their wheels in the Missouri River Sunday morning, then after the 500 or so miles across the state, 7 days later dipping them in the Mississippi.
peleton up top
These are all old pictures. I’ll do my best to blog across the state, but internet is just too overwhelmed, even with my aircard.
Team Fly 2009
If ever in your daydreaming you think about doing something crazy and impulsive and out of the ordinary….Ragbrai is your ride. Always the last full week in July, always 7 days, always west to east. You don’t have to ride every mile – that’s what the bus is for.
These have truly been 4 of the most interesting days I have ever experienced.
Amy and I are on a plane headed east, home, away from Sin City and the conference known as TAM. This year’s theme was Tam 9 from Outer Space, and when I get home, I intend to watch the movie Plan 9 from Outer Space, since there were a great many references made to it during the 4 days of the meeting.
TAM stands for The Amazing Meeting, and it is put on annually by the James Randi Educational Foundation. Here’s James Randi:
He’s THIS adorable
He is a magician and illusionist who has spend his lifetime exposing scams, hoaxes, and supernatural phenomena. His foundation is a non-profit whose mission is to: “promote critical thinking by reaching out to the public and media with reliable information about paranormal and supernatural ideas so widespread in our society today.” This annual meeting is a gathering of scientists, and experts in their fields, who seek to replace bad science, misinformation, incorrect conventional wisdom, and public misperception. This foundation has had a standing offer for years of $1,000,000 to anyone who can offer any proof of ANY supernatural event or ability, including any religion, magician, mind-reader, or psychic. It hasn’t yet been won.
A discussion of the weekend is not complete without first explaining the word Skepticism. I’m sure we all know what the definition of the word is. We say we are skeptical of something when we mean that we doubt or are uncertain or not convinced. We may say we are skeptical of another’s conclusion. Skepticism on the part of those individuals who refer to themselves as Skeptics, is an attitude, or an approach to life. It is a method used to ascertain the validity of certain arguments. It is a relentless process applied to every aspect of our lives, using the scientific method of hypothesis and disproof to reach conclusions. It involves critical thinking, tools of science, evidence, and an investigative spirit.
There are times when we are presented with information that a certain product or treatment or procedure will work this or that wonder. Skepticism is what keeps our money in our pockets and out of the hands of the folks making these claims. Skepticism is what keeps us healthy. Skepticism allows us to see the world as it really is, not as we wish it was, so that we can more effectively deal with our limits and our abilities.
The conference was a mix, as are most conventions like this, of workshops, socializing, whole group gatherings, and did I mention socializing?
I don’t know the most effective manner of presenting on this blog exactly what TAM was. In my mind it’s all a spastic jumble of wonderful speakers, engaging debate, delightful new friendships, and stimulating challenges. The meeting began on a Thursday morning, and ended on a Sunday night, and Amy and I attempted to attend every single moment of content that we could.
This is a link to a friend’s blog who “live-blogged” the event. He did a fabulous job of trying to catch the highlights of each speaker (with a little help from a couple of fellow bloggers). I won’t begin to try to describe everything, but his site is worth a visit to get a real flavor of the sequence of the meeting.
Hemant’s blog
Instead, I’ll highlight in more random fashion what Amy and I were most affected by, beginning with the opportunity to see and hear 2 of my favorite scientist (3 by Amy’s count): Richard Dawkins, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and Bill Nye (yes, the Science Guy). They, of course, were the big dogs at this event. The room of 1600 attendees was riveted each time one of these gentlemen was on the stage.
Richard Dawkins was the keynote speaker on Saturday night, and what a joy to hear him speak. He has been called strident and militant, but I have never heard a more soothing, gentle, patient voice speak with awe about the wonder of science. He previewed for us his upcoming book for children: The Magic of Reality. In it he discusses different kinds of magic – the fairy tale version, intentionally created in stories and legend, the illusionary magic of tricks, and the poetic magic of reality, which is all the more wonderful because it is real and can be understood. The book addressed civilization’s stories of creation, earthquakes, floods, and then gives a scientific explanation of how those things actually happened. The illustrator is Dave McKean and his work is gorgeous.
There were book signings by all the speakers, and of course Amy and I both got our books signed by Dawkins – my picture is a little shabby, but here it is.
crappy, but recognizable
I can add that in a workshop on Thursday, Amy and I were contentedly listening to a panel of scientists talk about defending evolution in school when I glanced around and there, behind me, was the man himself. I was so shocked I had a weird emotional moment – I couldn’t catch my breath and even started to cry (all subtle – I am a southern girl) – I couldn’t even tell Amy what was happening for a moment or two. When I recovered, I got out my phone and had Amy take this shot:
that’s my shoulder and blouse on the right
In delightful opposition to Dawkins’ sophisticated and eloquent persona, was Dr. Neil Tyson’s warm, humorous, engaging presentation. Dr. Tyson is an astrophysicist with the Hayden Planetarium, and both gave the keynote on Friday, and participated in a panel discussion about space exploration.
sexy as hell
Tyson is cooler than cool. He made astronomy sexy and interesting and accessible. There are scads of clips of him on Youtube doing different presentations and lectures – here’s one of my favorite:
Then there was Amy’s favorite: Bill Nye. She grew up watching him do science experiments on public television, and he’s one of her heroes. He wore his recognizable bow tie and looks exactly like he has for all the years we’re seen him on TV. He was captivating, and spoke of “being a speck, on a speck, in a speck, in a universe of specklessness”. Because there was a theme of Outer Space, almost everyone’s lecture referred to the magificence and magnitude of the galaxies in the universe.
The Science GuyAnother fluke seating!
There were several other folks I had looked forward to hearing, and they all surpassed my expectations. Carol Tavris, who wrote “Mistakes Were Made, But Not By Me” was the most gracious and articulate speaker I’ve ever heard. Dr Eugenie Scott, an anthropologist, Dr Lawrence Krauss, a theoretical physicist, and Dr. Harriet Hall, a former flight surgeon and pilot in the USAF were among my favorites. I also enjoyed, but had heard before, Dr. PZ Myers, probably the most popular science blogger on the internet.
You know how when you attend a convention sometimes you’ll hit a sinker in the middle of a lecture or workshop? That never happened. Every panel, every speaker, every workshop, every presentation was as interesting as the one before it:
WORKSHOPS
Defending Evolution in the Classroom and beyond
Recurring Themes in Medical Mythology
How to Effectively Create a Campaign of Grassroots Skepticism
Raising Skeptics
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
Our Future in Space
Ethics of Paranormal Investigations
Placebo Medicine
Now for a little about the socializing…
It IS Vegas.
Penn Jillette’s Rock and Roll Bacon and Donut Party. Yes. A whole multiverse of win. Jillette offered this party to the TAM attendees in honor of James Randi. There really was bacon. 1200 Krispy Kreme Donuts. And Rock and Roll, with Jillette’s No God Band. Amy and I had the best time dancing and drinking and rocking with our new friends at TAM.
(pics are on Amy’s camera – more to come)
Skeptics in the Hot Tub. An informal event that took place every night in the hot tub. Each day’s speakers and topics were discussed further, with sometimes animated dissent, until the casino finally kicked us out at closing time.
The Del Mar Bar. Kind of a philosopher’s hangout. We were told that the casino loses money on skeptics because we don’t gamble (because we understand statistics), so we tried our very best to make up for that here. This was where the party went after the hot tub closed.
This post has gone on far too long….unlike TAM which ended too soon. We had such a great experience, and Amy and I fully expect to attend again next year, and bring more of the fam along when we do! We came away humbled, with new knowledge and information, new friendships, and a drive to see the world, its inhabitants, and all that may be beyond what we already know, in all of its beauty, as it really is.
The fun thing to do is to write about everything that’s happening here!
Amy and I have scooted out of town for a quick few days to Las Vegas to the 9th gathering of the Amazing Meeting. What a perfect adjective!
TAM is an annual celebration of science, skepticism, and critical thinking (right off the website). It is our first time to attend, so I’ll be adding our perceptions and experiences as they happen.
Today is mostly workshops. The run 2-at-a-time all day, so Amy and I are going to split up, then text like maniacs to decide which one go to! Our first two this morning are Defending Evolution in the Classroom (me) and Examining UFO’s and How to Make Your Own Without photoshop (Amy). That’s followed by Investigating Monster Mysteries (Amy) and Recurring Themes in Medical Mythology (me).
It’s my hope to blog tonight about all of today’s events, but we also have tickets to the 12:10 showing of Deathly Hallows, so I don’t even know if I’ll be conscious by then!
The conference is being held at the South Point Casino, and we’re staying on the 22nd floor – we have a view of the pool which we intend to critically investigate later today. On the casino floor is that very Vegas dingdingdingding that you hear for days even after you’ve left. We don’t think we’re going to gamble – maybe penny slots – but we like to watch other people lose money.
So I’ve written before about how all of my heroes are academics: guess whose oxygen I will be breathing at this meeting? If atheism had a deity, it would be Richard Dawkins, and he’s here! I’ve got all of his books but one, but I didn’t see that one in the exhibit hall; Amy and I both brought our copy of God Delusion for autographs. Go ahead, call us fangirls, we know who we are.
THE Richard Dawkins
But there are two more speakers I’m as excited to hear as Dawkins. One is the founder of TAM and the James Randi Education Foundation: James Randi.
THE James Randi
And finally, here, in Vegas for me to meet and see and listen to: Neil DeGrasse Tyson!!!!!!!
THE Neil DeGrasse Tyson
He’s an astrophysicist and director of the Hayden Planterium, and he’s one of the best speakers I’ve ever heard (youtube him). He’s funny and engaging and so so smart. He’s played himself on Big Bang Theory, and he’s been on Daily Show and Colbert a few times. He’s speaking on the timely topic of Our Future in Space.
Amy’s geeked about seeing Bill Nye, the Science Guy. He’s on a couple of panels and is doing a presentation too.
I’m going to wait to write about the party at Penn Jillette’s house. Just really don’t know what to expect with that, but can’t wait to go!
I know, not much review, but we just got here last night! We hung in the bar a bit with some friends I had met in Des Moines. We called it an early night because of the time change and tonight’s late date with the movie theatre inside this hotel!
In the “look on the bright side” column of the past two weeks, from my dad’s initial heart attack until now, there are many thing for which I am grateful.
➔ Of course, foremost is my dad’s successful surgery and his beginning rehabilitation, which includes my gratitude to the professional staff who is his medical team, whose praises I cannot laud enough.
➔ The amount of time I’ve gotten to spend with my mother and brother, which even though it was in waiting rooms, hospital rooms, and cars, were still precious quality moments with two of my fave people.
➔ My family were all off on their adventures and hearing from them was a highlight of my day, especially when things were difficult here, as I found I was hungry for a happy, normal voice.
➔ My dear clients in Murfreesboro who have been patient, tolerant, and understanding in my sudden 2 weeks of unavailability.
➔ The law school program I’ve chosen which has allowed me to attend lectures in the middle of the night, chat with my classmates instantly, and even take my 3-hour essay midterm at the local library.
➔ Time I’ve spent in the hometown of my youth which has allowed me to reconnect with a couple of old familiar faces. It’s amazing how much everyone else has changed since high school.
➔ Because I’ve been done so much of my studying online instead of with my textbooks at home, I’ve had some extended cyber-conversations with several friends, most of whom are using the medium for asking how dad’s doing, and mom, and me. One particular conversation went in a little different direction, and it is the body of that conversation I want to post about today.
My friend lives in Nashville, and recently the notorious Westboro Baptist Church bunch came rolling into town to protest yet another military funeral. My friend’s group participated in a counter-protest, and it was an experience that had an impact on her. She talked about seeing the group, about seeing that they had their children with them, about how they looked as normal as anyone else — the usual responses you read about during one of the WBC counter-protests.
Westboro Baptist Church "members"
Let me back up a bit and explain a little phenomenon that occurs almost without fail any time I have a conversation with a believer about my journey out of faith. There are invariably 4 topics that arise, if not in that initial convo, then shortly thereafter: 1) What about the afterlife? 2) What if you are wrong? 3) How can you be moral without God? and 4) If evolution is true, why are there still apes? [That one troubles me beyond words; we should not be asking this question in the US in the 21st century] This post is about question #3.
This conversation with my friend is the third such conversation I have had about WBC. Each of the friends with whom I’ve had this chat is a believer, each knows that I am not. I am touched that each one of these people reached out to me to tell me about their experiences; I think that the underlying motivation is to share with me what they perceive as our common acceptance that there are religions that are not good and healthy and kind and compassionate. Not all of my Christian friends are so willing to engage in a conversation about anything regarding faith, and I am grateful that these friends have chosen to do this.
Try to put aside for a moment what you know I am going to write about the First Amendment. I think what WBC is repulsive, hateful, arrogant, and inflammatory. Exactly the type of speech that the 1st Amendment protects. Another post for another time.
Try to put aside for a moment what you know I am going to write about the basis for this church’s position. If you have researched them at all, you know that they match a biblical mandate to every action they take. Another post for another time.
The issue that is holding my attention here is the individual response my friends are describing to me. I hear the passion in their voices when they tell me how they feel about their experience. I hear them talk about the families and friends of the deceased (in the Nashville case it was a soldier), and their compassion and understanding of their pain, and their desire to keep that pain from being magnified by WBC’s malicious actions.
In other words, they are having a humanist response.
Their motivation to act is built on sympathy, compassion, and concern; none of my friends had any connection to the soldier’s family or friends. They describe to me what it must feel like for that family and those friends to have received the news of their loved one’s death, the trauma and shock they must be experiencing, the grief and loss that is relentless in those first few days and weeks, and then to have to consider the possibility that this organization may publicly celebrate that very pain. One friend even said that she couldn’t NOT participate in trying to protect this grieving group of people from more pain.
The Good Without God question is not only a valid one, it is incredibly important. I have believing friends who can’t even begin to address whether or not the faith has any evidence or is rational or reasonable because this issue is so overriding. There is such a default mentality that without supreme guidance, we could not govern our impulses – without external rules we have no restrictions against stealing or killing or destruction. I would suggest that that is not the case.
This is a topic of discussion within the atheist community, and there are several great books out now on the subject: The Moral Landscape by Sam Harris, The God Virus by Darrel Ray, Godless by Dan Barker, and The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins. These I have read; there are others, but I don’t want to recommend a book I haven’t read. These folks address the issue from a sociological, anthropological, and psychological standpoint. I wish I had read these books as a believer; I think they give insight on the subject of morality well worth exploring whatever your life’s philosophy.
Like every concerned parent of my generation, when I began to have children I read a few parenting books, from across the spectrum of opinion. I was confident I didn’t want to use the Because I Said So approach and leave my children vulnerable when they weren’t around me. It took me their lifetimes to determine that my goal was to guide them toward a self-discipline based on reason, compassion, and empathy. They have learned that lesson in spite of me, and have become kind, loving, generous, moral people. I’ve seen each of them give of themselves to others when even I thought they should conserve. I’ve seen them reach out to someone in pain or need, and I’ve seen them share in another’s joy just for the sake of that person’s joy.
This post was not to have been one of Those Posts. My kids are great, but my larger point is this: an individual, internalized, intentional, reasonable, compassion-based, empathy-driven morality is not only possible, it transcends whatever external rules and laws are implemented by religion or government.
Have the conversation. Think about it, read about it, talk about it. Let me know what you think.
Day 11. Dad comes home tomorrow. That’s day 6 post-op. From having his skin cut open, his sternum cracked and his ribs spread, his lungs deactivated temporarily, a vein removed from his leg and quinsected for parts, that vein attached to heart vessels and attached again to heart muscle. I am more than astounded. And this procedure is common enough for him to have received an invitation to be a part of the “zipper club” in this area.
No doubt Dad still has a long recovery. Fortunately for him, he was active before his heart attack, and he was neither a smoker nor overweight. He’ll have to begin with a tiny little walking program and progress on to longer and longer distances. For the last 18 months he had done 30 minutes on the treadmill every night, so he has a goal of returning to his former level. He also has travel plans on his schedule; he had to cancel June’s and most of July’s activities (mom and dad are RVers – serious-9-months-and-thousands-of-miles-a-year-RVers).
I am so proud of how hard he’s trying (keep in mind it IS only day 11 since the heart attack), and I’m so proud of mom for holding up and managing and handling the drama and the effort. Eric and I have been here and have taken our turns with whatever needs done, but the two of them have been troopers.
Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta has been wonderful, their church has been lovely to respect dad’s request for no company in the hospital, and their friends and neighbors have been delightful in providing me with southern comfort foods. My online school program has allowed me the mobility I’ve needed to be here (oh, yes, studied in the hospital and waiting rooms, even took my midterm today at the local library). Brother has shuffled his trial schedule and has been available every day for support.
What’s troubling me?
In a word: nutrition.
Yesterday, mom, dad, and I attended the cardiac rehab class at the hospital. We got information on what it would be like for dad once he got home, the accommodations we need to make for his recovery, what his physical activity regimen would be, and the program of food choices he would need to make at home. The class teacher showed up little vials of the fat content of various food, with dramatic oohs and aahs from the attendees. Ribeye steak – full of fat – BAD. Baked potato – almost none – good. Bagels – almost none – good. Pretzels – none – good. Cheese – lots of fat – bad. Nuts – lots of fat – bad. Olives – lots of fat – bad.
I didn’t go to medical school. I’m not a nutritionist. I have only my own research and understanding of metabolic science to go on. And I will not try to override anything dad’s medical team is telling him about his rehab plan. I went grocery shopping today in anticipation of his coming home, and I tried to buy those things which bisect my choices for his health with his team’s choices. Lean meats. Vegetables. Fruits. All those grains? Can’t do it. I know mom (a diabetic) will buy those when I’m gone, and I won’t comment on it.
Here’s the deal. If you’ve read the blog at all, you know the banner I wave is one of evidence-based living, scientific research, and reason and ration. When I underwent my own health-recovery journey 10 years ago, I fervently tried to get an understanding of the metabolic process, nutrients in foods we eat, the factors influencing weight and health. I tried to bypass interpretations of the science as much as I could, even reading the abstracts myself. I don’t have a science degree, so I would do the best I could, then I’d refer to professional interpretation (read: medical experts, not diet-book writers).
Along with virtually every scientist in the world, I understand and accept the theory of evolution. I understand the micro-changes that have allowed us to get to this point in evolutionary history. When you study that process, over the course of millions of years, and you see where agriculture came onto the scene, so to speak, and the results of introducing grain into our diet. For millions of years, we thrived on meat-eating, almost primarily. It is what gave us our big, beautiful brains, we know what protein does in our system, we know that fat, even saturated fat, is metabolically inert and doesn’t create an insulin response, we know what grains and sugar do to that insulin response, and we know the cascade effect of that chronic insulin response.
I know how I’m going to eat for the rest of my life, unless evidence and science show me differently. I know how I would eat if I were recovering from a heart attack and heart surgery. However, for my precious diabetic mother, and my precious fragile father, I can only relate my understanding of the process, what that eating style has done to my body and my lifestyle, and what I would do. I won’t advise them to do the same. I’m in law school, not medical school.
Don’t mean to be a Debbie-downer. I’m elated that Dad has had the great fortune he has had with his recovery so far. I will support and cheer and encourage as much as I possibly can.
Caribbean Cruise, 2009same cruise - mom, dad, amy, and me
Thank you for all the well-wishes and kind words and deeds, and as always, thanks for reading!
What a grand 6 days. Yes, I know the festival is only 4, but as a volunteer we go in 2 days early, so that adds an extra 2 days of fun. And sun. And sweat. And portapotties.
So here’s the deal. When you volunteer to work at Bonnaroo, you commit to working roughly three 6-hour shifts. In return, you get a free general admission ticket, early entrance and camping in the highly exclusive volunteer campground, 3 meal tokens plus a little box lunch during your shift. At $275 a ticket, you can do the math on the hourly rate. The jobs are various – picking up trash, working the toll booth, parking golf carts, manning information booths. I’ll tell you about mine in a bit.
First I want to write about the festival. This was Bonnaroo’s 10th year. I remember when my oldest, as a teenager, asked me if he could go the first year. I didn’t let him – he was 15 and I didn’t think he was ready for that. I’d probably still say the same thing. I had that reaffirmed this year: my camping neighbors just happened to be moms of teenagers, one of whose daughter attended. I just don’t think Bonnaroo works as well for high-schoolers. They are still in the phase where they are terribly concerned about their appearance and peer conformity and not so much about the creativity of the music and the joy of the shared experience. This doesn’t apply to everyone in high school, I realize, but to a great many it does.
So the lineup, as always, was fab. There are 173 acts total. There’s one main stage – if you google aerial pics of Bonnaroo, it’s easy to spot. Then there are secondary stages, cleverly named Which Stage, This Tent, That Tent, among others. It’s a real trick trying to get to every act you want to see, and only 4 days to do it. Although Centeroo is open 24 hours, the acts mostly run from noon to about 2 am.
There are the standard festival vendors – deep fried crap on sticks, greasy pizza, funnel cake, and the hippie fare too – falafel, vegetarian rice dishes, pasta. No event is complete without the overpriced beer, but there’s also a Brooer’s Fest Tent where you can get specialty beers for about the same $6 as the Millers and Buds.
The biggest challenge this year wasn’t even the heat, which was oppressive. It was the dust. 80,000 pairs of feet over the same 700 acres can destroy grass in a hurry, especially when it’s been dry to begin with. Golf cart drivers wore bandanas, and in the end, just about everyone had to cover nose and mouth to get around. We’ve had wet Bonnaroos where it was as muddy as this year’s was dusty, so take your pic.
Tent camping explains itself, along with the portapotties that go with it. Pooping at Bonnaroo was a topic of conversation at every campsite. There’s no trick to it – just get over it. I wish I had had 1000 GoGirls, my handy-dandy girl tool that allows me to pee standing up – I could have sold them all. The tents become unbearably hot by about 8 in the morning, so plan on moving outside to finish your sleeping in.
One of the joys of the community camping is the sharing of food and drink. I go the easy route with cheese, nuts, olives, jerky, fruit – not gonna cook at Bonnaroo. Plus, those are easy things to share with your campmates. It helps if you have everything prepared – chopped and put into serving-sized bags – you want to limit the time spent digging around in the cooler, melting your ice. But I know folks who eat gourmet at Bonnaroo – I’m too hot and too lazy.
This year’s top shows: Mumford. Buffalo Springfield. Eminem. Amos Lee. Khalifa. (This is my very scientific survey consisting of my opinion and that of my campmates.) Honestly, the dust kept me from shows in the worst areas of it. The pasture in front of the main stage has retained its cool, green grass. That has a lot of appeal in 97 degree heat.
Now for my volunteer shift. The first one was a 12-hour long haul 10pm til 10am in the VIP tent camping check-in. That was fun because I’d never been in VIP and it was interesting to see (and I used their flush-toilets several times). My second shift was the doozy. It was Saturday 10-4 in…wait for it….Total Access. Oh yes. You and up to 7 of your closest friends can participate too, IF you come up with a measly $25,000. That gets you VIP limo ride from the Nville airport, delivery to the door of your rockstar motorhome inside the secret, hidden, shaded campground that is Total Access, food from the 5-star, airconditioned, white linen restaurant in your campground, access to every show backstage, golf cart rides to ANYWHERE at Roo, all the food you can eat and liquor you can drink. Blew what little of what was left of my mind on day 4. Seriously. Google it.
I’ve taken pics of Bonnaroo before, and didn’t do a very good job of it this year, but there’s scads of pics of the festival on the interwebs. It was a helluva festival – always is. It’s pretty high on the grunge factor, but worth it when you’re lying there on a quilt, listening to the jam with your friends.
Bonnaroo 2012. I’m there. Now to find that $25,000…..
So my program is divided into Modules: 11 days per module, 30 modules a year. I am now on Module 14. Next week is midterm. Half. Way. Through. The first year.
Here are my thoughts at the .5 point (or the .125 point for the whole program – let’s don’t use that number).
–Still love it. I love the challenge, I love the learning, I love the system, I love the history.
–It’s harder than I thought. It’s not that it’s too difficult to understand; it’s that there are so many exceptions to the exceptions to the exceptions that I have to have memorized in order to cross the barrier that is the Bar Exam. The writing is so fine and exact – every word means something. I have always been able to express myself through the written word, but it’s precisely because I have at my disposal an ABUNDANCE of words and expressions and grammatical gyrations. In legal writing it is the opposite – the fewer words the better (counter-intuitive I know).
–The biggest challenge is not the time management; it’s the information management. You know all those volumes of law books you always see on TV and lawyer commercials? Those are cases – rulings from which other rulings are made. They’re relevant. In real life, as a practicing attorney, you would access those cases and research what is applicable to your case. In law school life, you have to know enough of that information to pass the Test. Which information? Ahh…good question. Good luck with that.
–I LOVE my classmates. We are a gnarly bunch. We are mostly over 40, we have families and jobs and mortgages. We live all over the world. We are overachievers, smart, driven, and confident. We are solely a cyberspace community, although I have a potential real-life, in-person study weekend coming up in June. We use Skype, Facebook, cellphones, texting, email. These are my people.
–I’m halfway through my first year. The first year of 4. In this program I have to pass what is called the Baby Bar, in California. That is scheduled for June of 2012. I’m already stressed over it. Nothing like a little year-long, chronic pressure. I’m of the belief that a little stress is good – it’s what keeps up from being eaten by predators. Long-term, chronic stress? Not so much. But I’m managing, and it just adds more of a challenge to the whole affair.
That’s my update. I have to mention that I’ve gotten my first phone call for legal advice. I had to chuckle, and I said what I could, which mostly consisted of me saying that I wasn’t qualified to say or do anything, but it was still a milestone, and it gave me a little internal rush.
Just a pic of the fam
On an unrelated note, check out the blogs of my fabulous fam: Amy and Glenda are in Thailand, and are keeping a travel blog: http://www.twinsinthailand.wordpress.com, and Jesse and Sam are on a TransAmerica bike ride and are at http://www.crazyguyonabike.com, search Jesse Jordan.
Next blog, with any luck, will be my recap of Bonnaroo. I’m volunteering, and I’m going in on Tuesday. Iron and Wine. All I’m sayin.
In a stunning departure from radicalism, I have chosen today to write about…writing. And not even my own writing. Other writers’ writing.
In a funny coincidence, I’ve been asked 3 times this week which blogs I read. I’m happy to lay it out here, complete with links. I’m not going to link all the websites I visit – it has to be a personal blog site.
So, starting with family…
This is the link to my son Sam (www.samejordan.wordpress.com). Until he adds a new post, this will take you to his Mother’s Day gift to me. This boy has always been able to express himself with words, and I’ve been nagging (just no other word will do) him for years to start a blog. In an understatement, he’s an adventuresome soul, and this blog mainly details his adventures, starting with his description of “living in a van down by the river”.
Sam and his travel banjo - his Tranjo
Next is the twins’ travel blog (www.twinsinthailand.wordpress.com). They’ve just begun this blog to chronicle their trip adventure in Thailand over the next 6 weeks. They’re doing it old school, with no ipods/laptops/phones (only cameras), so their posting will be sporadic at best, but they’re taking notes and will do updates as they find computer access.
Pre-adventure: looking and smelling clean
Next is Big Jesse’s blog. (www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/teamfly). It’s hosted by crazyguyonabike.com, but that link should take you directly to the blog. He’s blogged before about his bike ride adventures when he and Sam rode 600 miles in Austria and Germany. This link takes you to Jesse and Sam’s adventures on his TranAmerica bike ride beginning exactly tomorrow.
Jesse and Loretta with Glenda - he'll explain the name
That’s it for family, now on to friends.
My friend Nena writes a blog about her fabulous life, focusing lately on her boot camp experience in her fitness journey (www.creatingarunner.blogspot.com). She’s funny. You’ll love her.
My friend Ted writes a blog about….well, everything. He self-described as a “snarky know-it-all”. How can you not love that? (www.runolfr.blogspot.com).
My friend Ben has begun a blog about his upcoming travel across the country, and if you visit his site, be sure to go back to the beginning (it’s a brand new blog) to read his personal story. (www.bjcarrier.wordpress.com).
My friend Karissa writes about raising little heathens. I have the joy and pleasure of having she and hubby Joey in my life, and I get to watch the delightful process of their raising freethinking, openminded little boys. (www.therationalzealot.wordpress.com).
My friend Amy writes about her interesting life in her Predicaments, Pursuits, and Ponderings blog. Lately she’s written about her drive for a sustainable lifestyle, including her own adventure with organic gardening and homebrewing. She and hubby Cary also include the adventures of Sarge and Barley. Go read it. (www.predicamentspursuitsandponderings.blogspot.com)
I have both a cousin and friend who write interesting blogs about their lives and families, but they’ve been dormant for quite a while, so I’m going to give the space they need before I send you there. It happens to all of us who write — life takes over and robs you of precious writing time and inspiration. I love you Susan and Amy – come back. I need you.
Finally, these blogs, while I’ve met the authors and consider them friends, go beyond just a small group of reader-friends, and into the realm of megabloggerdom.
My friend Jesse writes, with his beautiful sister, “Possibly the world’s #1 brother-sister blog about rationality, science, and philosophy.” I steal from Jesse pretty regularly; he’s smarter than we are. (www.measureofdoubt.com).
My friend JT writes about, as his blog says, Fighting Religion Tooth and Claw. When you begin to think I’m too arrogant or radical or in-your-face with my activism, read JT’s words. I’m a gentle, passive lamb. He’s inspired, he’s passionate, he’s sexy (www.wwjtd.net).
My friend Greta writes a sex blog. She’s also an atheist activist, but she’s the only one I could say writes a sex blog, and I had to do that. If you go there right now, you’ll see she combines the two in an interesting article about secularism and sex. (www.gretachristina.typepad.com). Greta is a rock star, and I’m not the only one who consistently thinks: “I wish I’d written that!”
Greta, in steampunk, shooting me with a blowdryer
My friend PZ Myers is THE big dog. He’s a brilliant and articulate biology professor with a sketchy affinity for cephalopods. Believers, suit up before you click. (www.scienceblogs/pharyngula).
PZ looking especially distinguished in his squid-balloon hat
All of the above are currently engaged in a fund-raising campaign for Camp Quest (www.campquest.org), and if I were any kind of techie at all, I’d be able to put the fund-raising widget on this site. As it is, as you cruise their blogs, make a choice (slowly and carefully) about donating to this fabulous freethought summer camp. Slowly and carefully as in the PZ-vs-everyone else sense.
There you go. I’ll write a post soon about other sites I visit daily for news and information. I have a particular affinity for blogs, so if you write one, and I don’t know about it – Tell me!! If I included you in this list, and you didn’t want me to – Tell me! I’ll correct that in a flash!
Coming soon: Law school update. Ironman training update. More attitude about nutrition. It’s all good.
Happy. Healthy. Heathen. 