The Sicilian.  What glimpse is more beautiful than the one that shows us true love (Happy 11th!).

Over the last couple years Heidi and I have shared a lot of jokes, music suggestions and the occasional geek out around camera gear.  Recently, I mentioned a couple projects that I had in mind and one that was in full swing, Rivulet Industries partnership with Donate Life Today.  As if scripted, Heidi fell in love with the plans Rivulet had put in motion and the opportunity to possibly team up in the future.  On several occasions we had bantered back and forth about blog posts to help highlight and share the great events that are going on in and around our lives.  Well today, Rivulet was prominently featured on Grit & Glimmer.  Sure, I knew that Heidi had a post in the works but I don’t think I processed the meaning behind it for me.  In a way it was solidification of a quiet friendship that had grown.  A large part of the emotion is the simple fact that she listened and chose to help support the same cause that  has moved me for the better part of three years.

I would be remiss if I failed to mention that this has tons to do with Heidi… The Woman.  The respect I have for her, her progression with her site, her relationship with Sal, and the work she does that extends through and beyond G&G.  And yes, the friend she has become.

Heidi Swift, Thank You.

Did I mention she is a regular contributor to the Oregonian and Wend?

Blog: Grit and Glimmer
Twitter: @Heidiswift

Photos gratuitously ripped from Heidi’s flickr

Fifty years ago Long-boarding was sidewalk surfing, a faster, farther variation of skateboarding, and now it’s not. Its evolved into something esoteric and fast like a medieval duel in the future. A future where post-apocalyptic nerd warriors in faded but colorful leathers, duct tape, aerodynamic helmets and two kinds of sneakers, race speedboards 45 miles an hour down jet-black roads in the magnificent golden hills outside town. Just for some glory and cash.

/ / Daniel Wakefield Pasley

Matthew & Daniel will be showcased at the Lizard Lounge in PDX through October.

An aspect of the day Carey leaves out was how hot it was.  Yes, One Hundred Fifty miles.  Yes, 3 mountain passes with thousands of feet of climbing but it was “warm” that day in SW Idaho and that was as hard for me as anything to overcome.  I mentioned how gracious these folks were and it was never more apparent than the 110 mile marker when the Seattle contingent, Greg (above), Hahn, and Aaron took turns looking after me as the hurt locker tickled me all the up the last bit of rollers.  We all regrouped while waiting and “supporting” Cole as he limped his rig in with an iffy tire that he had been battle since the 70 mile marker.  All of us were in question of where the support vehicle was or more appropriately realizing where it wasn’t.  Earlier in the day Hahn had coined the term “Vanxiety” (I think I am remembering that correctly).  Vanxiety was the degree of panic that you go through when you were not sure where the support van was.  The various degrees obviously depended on your current condition, miles left, and gradient you are rolling.  Luckily one of the fellas with more cognitive capacity than myself realized we could refill our bottles at the campground we were approaching.  This might have been our savior as the vanxiety meter was pegged in the red.

After a sweeping long decent and ~140 miles of riding in our rears we passed the Horseshoe Damn picnic area and headed into the wind for our last 10 miles.  This was possibly the ten funniest and most painful miles I have ever ridden. Daniel Wakefield Pasley and I headed off in search of Boise with absolute delusions in our heads.  Needless to say, it was ten miles of our “best” comic routines.  Comedy was the one savior from the agony that was incredibly strong head winds and this amazingly bumpy green trail that made our saddles feel like ass hatchets (thanks LPC).

It was a long hard day in the saddle.  We experienced a wrath of flats, an unfortunate crash, and each of us suffered from the heat and effort that the long day doled out.  As we sat at various tables for dinner that evening, catching up on real life, not one of us would have written the script any different than it had played out.

In short, it all makes you want to pull off the road, find a shade tree, close your eyes, and have a good cry.

(Photos: Carey S-H)

consecutive hours in the car lends the opportunity to find aspects of our friend’s lives / minds that we may never have learned without that strategically placed road trip…

Lincoln, NE from RAPHA on Vimeo.

Not sure how many of you know but I spent my 3rd grade year in a small town in Nebraska.  Besides leaving my friends in Montana my time in Nebraska was fun, relatively uneventful, but fun.  I thought my teacher, Mrs. Peterson, was pretty, I could see my sister (we had an open classroom school) in her 6th grade class which was incredibly comforting.    I was kicking some serious butt in my AAU midget wrestling weight class, the kid across the alley from us had a new “gaming” system.   Ahhhh, hours of Pong.  I was generally living the dream…

For my Mom and Dad it was not so enjoyable.  To make this long story short; after a night of heavy drinking my father dawned his newly acquired “Happiness is Alliance Nebraska in my rear view mirror” t-shirt and we jumped in the U-Haul and made a B Line “Home”.  Our future was uncertain, what was certain was our happiness was deeply rooted in Montana. I have been back to Nebraska several times and even did a stint in Omaha back in my trading days.  All of which were prior to the now infamous, Manifest Destiny.  I now find myself wanting to return to Nebraska, to do this ride.  AE and I talked about it soon after he finished and then again when he returned to Jet City.  It was hard, windy, and dirty.  Combine that with will and determination, sprinkle in a great group of guys and they may have proven my father and his t-shirt wrong. At least for 150 painful miles.
This Rapha Continental video is hands down my favorite to date.

The Monkey and I went to the Ballard Crit this weekend.  Good. Fun. Racing.  We got to meet the entire Erbeck brood.  They aren’t adorable or anything.

I wonder who saw the new movie with Zach Galifianakis?

I am in awe… a beautiful and brave adventure. I need to pull my socks up and follow my dreams to capture something of this nature.

Thanks for forwarding Aaron

I wonder if True will tear into his ‘real’ cake. Better yet, I wonder if his dad will make him bacon for breakfast?

Morning Moon

The reactor’s down
I guess for Labour Day, today
It’s the first day I ain’t seen
A great plume of steam from across the lake
From across the lake
Hey, that’s a morning moon, yeah.

I’m not making strain
Said, “Someone’s paying
When something’s too cheap
Somebody’s paying something”
You said, “Some one’s paying something.”
Under a morning moon, yeah
Say those little things that don’t make anyone feel better, yeah

It didn’t take too much to upset her
Nothing that could clear the room
To say one little thing that could make me feel better
Under this morning moon, yeah

The sun’s a lightbulb and the moon is a mirror
There are times when you can see both the bulb and the mirror
See the bulb and the mirror
And that’s the morning moon, yeah
Say those little things that don’t make anyone feel better

It doesn’t take too much to upset her
Nothing that could clear the room
Just saying one little thing trying to make you feel better
Under this morning moon, yeah
Under this morning moon

Morning moon, yeah
Trying to make you feel better
Nothing too far from the truth

For Daniel.

I went for a ride this last Sunday with Aaron E. (see previous Rapha Continental post). Needless to say, the ride was excellent and we spent much of the time getting to know each other a bit better. Reality is, I am pretty sure that I got more out of it than Aaron. Simply due to the fact that I was fortunate enough to learn about his job and the company that he works for, Simulab what a facinating company and rewarding place to work. Click on the image to check more out on Simulab. Ground breaking stuff.

From Simulab’s site:
Simulab is a market leader in the development of realistic, portable, and affordable medical simulators and surgical simulators for a wide array of educational and medical training needs.

TraumaMan SystemWith research and development efforts focused on anatomical realism and product innovation, Simulab has contributed significant advances to the field of medical simulation. The TraumaMan® System, an advanced trauma surgery trainer, has virtually replaced the use of human cadavers and live animals for the leading surgical education society’s Advanced Trauma Surgical Skills Practicum, and both the CentraLineMan System and the FemoraLineMan System, central venous simulators, offer replaceable tissues that are unmatched in realism and respond to ultrasound imaging for needle guidance. Simulab’s capabilities simulating soft tissue and hard tissue also expand to customized solutions for clinicians, medical educators, and medical device companies worldwide. These custom products include a variety of tissue simulations, bone models, and display solutions.

CVC TrainersSimulab collaborates with leading educators worldwide and bringing our specialized knowledge of materials and manufacturing processes to the medical model and simulation industry. Simulab is located in Seattle, Washington, USA, just minutes from the highly acclaimed University of Washington School of Medicine. Simulab has four U.S. patents granted and twelve pending for anatomical technology, videoendoscopic technology and various methods.

And you can RENT TraumaMan! I smell a bar-b-que with a special guest. I wonder if I would pass out when I cut into TraumaMan?

My buddy Shaun shared this with me.  He owns a sweet Bella of his own. let’s hope he doesn’t “invest” in an elephant.

I wonder if Elisha has ever ridden an elephant?