Canadian Thanksgiving

Haida totems

Canada's Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on October 12, which is a bonus if you're working for a Canadian company in the US - you get two holidays. Or else you get one very boring work day in October, while your Canadian bosses take the day off.

Last Saturday I took a bus excursion to the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver BC, arranged by Whatcom Community College's community education program. The $90 course fee covered fare on a Belair charter bus and admission to the museum, including a guided tour. At first I thought the price was a bit steep, but then considering that if I went on my own I'd pay transportation and hotel for an overnight stay instead of a one-day trip, I decided it would be a good deal for a last-chance trip before the rains come.

When I saw the line-up of south-bound Canadians at the border in the morning, I was a little worried about getting stuck for hours on the return trip, but the crossing was easy and fast going both ways. At both US and Canadian border stations, passengers get off the bus to have passports or enhanced driver's licenses checked in the office, while inspectors inspect the bus. Since the tour leaders at WCC had checked our identification before we boarded, there was no delay at the crossing.

A contemporary mural influenced by manga and native art

Haida totem

The Museum of Anthropology has a collection of European ceramics in addition to First Nations art and artifacts, and also small exhibits of works from Pacific Rim and African tribes. I especially like the expressive and humorous Haida pieces, although the Haida were slave-owners and traders, which is not so admirable. Many of the carvings are not very old, since even cedar doesn't last long in the wet forests. One piece made in 1907, is a series of large serving bowls joined together like thigh-height train cars on wooden wheels, used to serve food at potlatch ceremonies.

After a guided tour, we had lunch at the museum cafe, then two or three hours to explore the museum and get out for a walk around the university campus. Food at the museum was about as good as what I used to serve at the Bellingham Airport cafe, and the servers were quick and pleasant. I had brought along a stash of Canadian currency, plus some coins left over from my tip jar at the airport, but the cashier wouldn't accept my Canadian pennies, even in the tip jar. I left a loonie and some silver, but I guess I'll have to save up my pennies to sell on the commodities market.

Slaves supporting a bench

The University of British Columbia campus might possibly be even more beautiful than the University of Washington. There are some old, rough, gothiky stone buildings, and more modern, innovative architecture contrasting with a wilder setting, despite the nearness of the city of Vancouver. There are whimsical details like adult-sized swings hanging from tree branches, and concrete partitions made to look like stacked firewood. When the clouds lift, you have a stunning view of the North Cascades, along with a relief-panorama showing the names of all the largest peaks.

The North Cascades, beyond the Rose Garden on the UBC campus

Someone should make one of these for Birch Bay State Park.

. . . also, bicycling on campus

The bicycling component of my trip: I had thought I might be able to take the WTA bus to meet the charter bus on campus, but forgot that on Saturdays the first morning run isn't until 9am. Also, with the possibly of delay at the border returning home, I needed my bike for the return trip. So I ended up riding both ways - a slow, easy ride in the morning, to avoid getting all sweaty before boarding; then an easy ride home, because the ride on the warm tour bus made me very sleepy and I was looking forward to a nice nap after my big day-trip.

Old Bones

Last night I was out for another one of those excursions to town that required a bicycle for the trip back home after the bus stopped running. This one was a presentation by the Arthritis Foundation on "Living with Knee and Hip Pain" which was of interest to me because I've had joint pain in my left leg going back fifteen years (before I started bicycling). Actually, the bike ride may have been more valuable for this purpose than the lecture, which mostly covered generally-known information. The best-practice advice is: keep your weight down, exercise, eat healthy, stay active.

When I was in my forties the pain in my foot, knee, hip and back seemed to flare up with my menstrual cycle, and sometimes became pretty debilitating and frustrating. It's somewhat better now that I don't have PMS anymore, but still a chronic thing.

Recently I've been feeling a bit proud of myself because, even after fifteen years, I can still throw my leg over the seat of my bicycle, and most likely the reason I can, is that I just keep doing it several times a day, several days a week.

Which reminds me of a bit of technical advice I've learned over the years. Commuters often fall into a very set routine, down to always going in and out of doors walking on the same side of the bike (to avoid bashing the door), and always approaching a preferred parking spot from the same side. After a while I noticed that I was getting sharp, painful twinges in my right knee, and my left leg was much more limber than my right. When I checked what I was doing, I found that, besides habitually mounting from the right side of my bike, I was standing with my foot perpendicular to the bike and twisting my knee slightly as I kicked the other leg over. I retrained myself to take turns mounting from the left or right side so both hips get a regular stretch-out, and try to remember to either point my foot forward a bit, or to rise up on my toes and turn on the ball of my foot as I throw my leg over the saddle, to avoid twisting my knee.

It's normal to have one leg stronger or more flexible than the other, but I hope these habits will help balance things out, besides preventing injury from unconsciously doing the same painful thing over and over again.

One item of new information from the Arthritis Foundation lecture concerned glucosamine and chondroitin. According to the lecturer, new research shows that these supplements are not harmful, but don't work. This was reassuring to me because I'd tried them for about eighteen months several years ago. I had read up on glucosamine before trying it, and the information I found claimed that it stimulated an enzyme that promoted growth of new cartilage. Later I read another article claiming that glucosamine alone could cause new cartilage to grow on top of damaged, brittle cartilage, which would create a joint lining that would be even more prone to crumbling. This article recommended taking the chondroitin supplement in combination with glucosamine, which would stimulate another enzyme that would break down and carry away old cartilage to allow new growth on a strong base. It sounded reasonable at the time, so I tried it for a while but then stopped after losing my job, because I hadn't noticed any change and couldn't afford the $50 for two bottles of pills. Still, I've had fleeting fears since that I'd done something that might actually cause more damage. I was glad to learn that I was only wasting my money.

Ferndale Fog

Mornings are a bit foggy these days, but it usually burns off and turns sunny before noon, as it did on Sunday. Except when it rains all day, which it did today. The trees are just barely beginning to show a little fall color and the rain has brought new growth on lawns and fields.

Yesterday the fog was just starting to clear when I took off for a Sunday ride from Ferndale, but after I crossed over the hill crest at West Bakerview Road, I coasted down Northwest Ave. into a fog bank. Downtown Bellingham was socked in all day.

Luckily I was planning to test my hill-climbing on Samish Way up to Lake Padden Park. I did surprisingly well, after a twelve-mile warm up ride from Ferndale, and rode 35 miles total round-trip. It was worth the effort, too, because I found a perfect, sunny fall day at the top of the climb. There were kayakers, paddle-boarders, and even swimmers training for a triathlon out in the lake.

Obviously, someone else found the perfect reward for a hard ride, too.

What I Wore

I forgot to include some boring technical advice in my kayaking post: what clothing would work for a twelve-mile bike ride, followed by a kayak excursion, then a twelve-mile ride back home, with minimal luggage and wardrobe change requirements?

Instructions from the Boating Center said to be prepared for any kind of weather, meaning to bring a rain jacket and warm fleece layer; to avoid denim (cotton kills!), and to wear old shoes that could get wet. They suggested wearing a swimming suit under warmer outer layers, and said they would provide floatation jackets, a waterproof skirt fitted to the kayak, and wet suits if needed. I've always heard that the water in Puget Sound never gets warmer than 50-55F, even in summer, but I think Bellingham Bay is a bit warmer than that.

I decided to wear my Ibex wool knicker-length cycling pants and a long-sleeved UnderArmour shirt. I had taken the pants to a tailor shop to have the elastic let out, so they aren't so pinched-in at the waist and don't chafe, but the tight-fitting UnderArmour made me look a bit like I was carrying a spare bike-tire-tube around my middle, so I vainly chose to wear a looser-fitting synthetic shirt on top. I brought along a pair of old running shoes, and a rain jacket and fleece top in a pannier.

As things turned out, on Saturday afternoon temperatures were in the low 80's with no clouds in sight. Even out on the water the two shirts were a bit warm, and I left the jacket and fleece behind, but the wool pants were a good choice. I could have used a wide-brimmed hat and some hypoallergenic sun-block.

Sea Kayaking 100

The Community Boating Center, Fairhaven

My family wasn't very active or out-doorsy when I was growing up so despite having lived in the Pacific Northwest all my life, I have reached the age of fifty-five with little to no experience of essential activities like camping, hiking, fishing and kayaking. I even got hooked on bicycling late in life. Now I'm trying to make up for lost time.

So this Saturday's bike-ride, about 26 miles round-trip from Ferndale to Fairhaven, led to the Community Boat Center, for a three-hour Intro to Sea Kayaking class.

We were a group of about ten adults, mostly with very little (or no) kayaking experience. Two friendly and knowledgeable instructors, Jen and Mike, gave a brief but thorough demonstration and safety lecture, showing us the two-person boats and various accessories, explaining how to get in and out of the boats, paddle, steer and so forth.

The boat launch

After taking a few photos of the Boat Center, the launch area, and the boats, I put my camera away in a ziploc baggie to concentrate on kayaking.

We paddled underneath Taylor Dock and the boardwalk, zig-zagging around the pilings to practice steering. We stayed pretty close to shore as we passed Boulevard Park, landing on the little beach at the north end of the park. After a ten or twenty minute rest break we launched from the beach to head back, making about a two-mile round-trip. This time we got a little further from shore, crossed some boat wakes, and found some choppy water to play in near the dry docks and barges in the Fairhaven shipyards.

The End

It was a pretty brief trip, but my biceps were beginning to get a bit sore by the end. Still, I think kayaking might be a good cross-training antidote to some of the over-use strains or injury associated with bicycling. Sitting with my legs stuck out in front of me turned out be be surprisingly comfortable, considering how tight my hamstrings can be. Plus, I was sitting up with my back straight, mostly holding the paddle at chest-to-shoulder height, which seemed to help unkink my neck and upper spine, and the paddling movement loosened up my shoulders.

I had registered for this class in August, but had to cancel on short notice after I caught the flu. The folks at the Boating Center very kindly let me reschedule for September. Today was the last monthly class of the summer, though they may still have classes in the fall, as long as this perfect, idyllic weather lasts. There are some other events planned, like moonlight paddles, and I would love to do more kayaking as long as I can arrange access to boats, and buddies to paddle with. It's so hard to find people to play with when you're over fifty. Sigh.

Can't Stop Now

Maybe I won't quit yet, not while I have one little ax left to grind.

On Sunday morning, I encountered this monster in a 2-hour parking zone on Main Street, obstructing the bike lane very neatly to within two inches of the white line. At 6pm on Tuesday, when I took these photos, it was still there and attracting enough attention that by Wednesday morning it had been moved to a city parking lot behind the old police station. I'm not even sure what it is - a construction or farm tractor?

This treasure has been tempting me from a shop window downtown - a Peugeot. And if it works, it would be useful to have, too.

Several years ago I attended some community meetings about emergency preparedness, where fire department officials presented information about how to prepare for disaster scenarios like floods, earthquakes, severe rain, wind or snow storms, even volcanic emergencies - all possible in this area. They advised having a survival kit, including first aid supplies, flash lights, emergency food and water stores, blankets, etc.

Somewhere I read that in cases of severe storms that caused electrical outages, after 24-36 hours without power, people would begin calling or visiting emergency rooms complaining of severe headaches, fatigue, drowsiness and fuzzy thinking. After ruling out gas or toxic fumes, or maybe hypothermia, the cause usually turned out to be: caffeine withdrawal.

So my disaster survival kit has to include an emergency supply of coffee, and the means to brew it. I went out and bought a small gas camp stove; I already had an old stove top percolator, a pour-through drip coffee filter, and a stove top espresso pot. But I buy whole bean coffee, and wouldn't be able to use my electric coffee grinder in an emergency. I would be reduced to crouching on the back step, crushing coffee beans with a brick. So I pre-ground some beans to stash in the freezer, and now I will only have to squat outside over my camp stove to brew coffee. But that much of civilization will survive.

Actually, I think that's about all that's left of my survival supplies. I probably should fix that.

Winter is Coming

Tonight we are having a torrential rain storm. Tomorrow might be sunny again.

I have been thinking about retiring this blog with the end of the summer. When I began four years ago, bicycling was an integral and necessary part of my life, that I fortunately came to love. I never really swore off ever owning a car again, commuting by bicycle was a way of getting by while working jobs that didn't pay a livable income, until something better came along. Then a year ago I was bailed out by inherited money and now I don't really feel I have so much to say to people who are still scraping by, waiting for the recovery. I mean, I don't want to suggest that the way up from poverty is to be sure to stay on good terms with your rich relations.

I do want to suggest leading a modest, responsible life and learning to find magic and meaning in the every day, ordinary things you find close to home. Like free-range peacocks, baseball games, ice cream at the beach, and riding hard through summer rain storms.