Simplify

Sometimes I just have to get out walk in the woods. It was the first weekend of November that I decided to stop at a forest preserve and just take a walk. Henry David Thoreau says in his book Walden, "Simplify, simplify, simplify!" I try to carry this simple concept with me, although, even though he warns of this, I just seem to complicate and fill my life and time. So, a walk in the woods is good for me to reconnect to Earth and myself. Thoreau also writes in Walden, "

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach." So, there I was in the forest, listening for what it had to teach. These images are what I found.

Once Upon a Time...

With the change in the weather outside, I couldn't help but think back to this summer. Theses are pictures of the cruise we went on with Angie's family. The picture above is our approach to Haiti. It was a warm, windy morning and there was still a haze in the hills as we got near. Even this far out, we were passing little boats each carrying two fishermen. They had to be two to three miles out and still heading away from the island when we passed them at about 6 a.m.

This picture on the left shows the communication tower of the ship. There was something neat about seeing this, especially at night. The technology that allows clear navigation of the seas is very interesting. They had a viewing window above the captain's bridge and all the different radar/sonar screens, controls, and navagation computers made the bridge look more like the bridge of the USS Enterprise. I kept looking for Spock and Captain Kirk.






To the right is the running track that was on the top level. With Kaleigh on board, we didn't get to run or work out as much as we would have liked, but the couple times we got to use the track was definitely a fun experience. Running forward, in the direction the ship was going, was just like running into the wind, but running to the back was amazingly easy and when I tried a running jump, it felt like I was really making an amazingly long jump. I'm sure I wasn't, but it felt like it. It was neat to look out and see endless ocean while running. It made me feel quite small.








Below, I included a couple of my "artsy-fartsy" pictures. I realize that I am no photographer, but it was fun to play with our new camera.























How could I not conclude without a sunrise picture? This was early morning on Father's Day. We were greatly anticipating seeing and getting on the ship. Since we were up early (having never slept in anything except her crib or pack and play, Kaleigh did not sleep but maybe two hours on a bed lined with pillows and mom or dad on either side), we decided to take a walk to the ocean. We were in Coco Beach (no Jeanie sightings).

Today, November 18, with the high of 38 degrees, I look at this picture and remember the cool, damp, soft sand under my feet; the warm breeze off the ocean; and the excitement of the trip ahead. I certainly do miss warmth and scenery, but would not trade the anticipation and fun of the seasons of central Illinois.

Squeezed out

Sometimes I just feel like we are squeezed out by ourselves. When I took this picture this August standing in Millenium Park, Chicago, I was taken in by the beauty of the city. Today, when I look at this picture I feel crowded. I feel like the green space is a novelty to be simply looked at as if to say, "Look at the grass and bushes! Daddy, do you remember the days of trees, grass and bushes?" Why do we seem to see progress as more space being filled. Technically, I am talking physical space like parking lots and buildings, but I also mean our lives. Our lives are as crowded as this picture. Look, there is lots of activity, just like our lives, but there is also the "calm" right in front. We just tend to look right past it. We look down the road. Is there peace down there? Is there more "progress?" Maybe we should stay right where we are in the green of our lives.

Off to Minnesota: Day three

Here are some images from day three.

Petersburg, Iowa

Site of the first consecrated church in Iowa.

Old truck near

Elkport, Iowa

Abandoned Standard Station

Farmersburg, Iowa

A barn from
the lost town

of Elkport

Mr. S and Mr. G

choking down
terrible food at
the Cafe/Bar in
Marquette

TNT: Windy Wednesday

Tonight was the first speedwork practice of the season. In good measure, there was a good headwind on one side of the track. That always makes for a good workout! Holly, the Peoria team honoree, was at the practice. Coach Tom gave us a ladder workout with three-200's, two-400's, one- 800 then back down again. It was a good workout. Thanks again to those who have supported me this season. It's not to late to donate, check out my webpage at:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/il/chcdist08/tnttomgross

Thanks!

Off to Minnesota: Day Two

I stretched and moaned my way out of bed. The pain of the previous day was gone and simple soreness was left in my muscles. After a "breakfast" at the Super 8, we took off for Dyersville, Iowa. The first thing we noticed was NO WIND!!! It was the most pleasant day of the trip regarding weather.

The morning took us through Bennett and up the Hoover Highway to Lowden. We had a great breakfast in Lowden at the Arrow Cafe. The waitresses were very nice and curious about our trip. They said that many bikers come by the cafe. Our breakfast of eggs, sausage, toast and coffee really hit the spot!

After passing through the tiny town of Massillion and the Wapsipinicon River, we rode in to Oxford Junction. We took several pictures here and came across a very unhappy store clerk. Our first unfriendly encounter. We think it had something to do with the heavy metal music playing and all of the patrons including the clerk being over 65 years of age. It was an odd match. But after some air in the tires and a Snickers bar, we were off.

We were looking forward to passing Wyoming, Iowa; because a nice man at the Arrow Cafe had mentioned that the landscape flattens out after Wyoming. This became the mantra of the day especially after we passed Wyoming; the landscape did not flatten out. In fact, there were more hills and they were longer and steeper. So, as we would be climbing a large hill, one of us would yell, "It flattens out after Wyoming!" The man had clearly never been past Wyoming or at least he had never been past Wyoming on a bike.

We had lunch in Cascade which clearly had money in town based on the houses on the south side, the nice parks and amazing school for such a small town. Then we pushed on to Dyersville. I was looking forward to our stay in Dyersville, because it meant a visit to the "Field of Dreams."

It was a five mile ride out to the field. It is nothing fancy, just the house and the field. The corn was just emerging so no ghosts from baseball's past were present. But it is amazing that this Hollywood symbol of America's Pasttime is still so frequently visited. In the guest book, there were at least 75 names for that day from all over the world. There were visitors from Japan, California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Wisconsin and Alabama. It is my opinion that there is very little that symbolizes America better than the game of baseball. The setting of the Field of Dreams epitomizes the Americana of baseball. It is set in the heartland of America. It is tucked away between rolling hills, and on this particular day the sun was shining with a small breeze. It is our game, and it is in our setting.

After showers, dinner, a short walk and a call to our wives to tell them everything is good, we had a good night's sleep in Dyersville.

TNT Training June 7

Today was hot, humid and rainy. This was my first week running with the team on a Saturday. I got a late start this year because of my bike trip (see other postings for that experience). We waited about 15 minutes for the rain downpour to let up before we started. I ran six miles on the Bishop Ave. (hill) route. I ran just under a 10 minute pace. Not a great pace, but not bad for my first training run.
I was pleased that my legs could carry me six miles. They were really feeling the fatigue from the bike trip.
Thanks to all of you who have contributed to Team in Training!

Team in Training

Now that my bike trip is finished, my training turns to running. This year I will be running in the Chicago Distance Classic Half-Marathon. Training for the last two marathons has taken a bit of a toll on the body, so a half-marathon is in the cards.
I will update training experiences in the blog, but if anyone would like to contribute to my run, visit my website at: http://pages.teamintraining.org/il/chcdist08/tnttomgross

The money goes to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. They support patients who have blood cancers and they support research to find a cure for blood cancers. Thanks for your interest.

Off to Minnesota: Day One

Sometime early last school year as we began our team teaching experience in American Studies, Rich Schurter and I decided that we would ride North on our bikes to Stillwater, Minnesota. Our goals were somewhat unclear, even to this day, but I think we were looking for something in America. What shapes us? What makes us unique? How do "we" change as we get further away from "home?" What is the voice of this land?

It would be the first road trip for me on a bike, and our path would complete a trip Rich started several years ago. We spent the entire year talking and planning. I bought my first road bike in January. Finally, school was out on Friday, May 29, and on Saturday, May 30 we were off. Rich's wife, Vicki, drove us to Kewanee, Illinois for us to start the first stretch to Muscatine, Iowa. The sunny and warm day was perfect except for one thing...wind. The wind was coming out of the west and we were on a westward path 90% of the day. The sustained winds were relentless and really beat us up.

Regardless of the wind, we did find enjoyment and some good laughs. Just south of Cambridge we rode past a "nice" junk shop that had a sign outside naming the establishment as "Fine Junque." I am sure any other day it would have been worth a stop.

The novice rider came out in me when we were leaving the BP station in Cambridge. We stopped in the street to wait for traffic to clear and I couldn't get my shoes out of the pedal clips and down I went, right in the middle of the street. I fell again later in the day, but that was the extent of falling for me on this trip. I was uninjured, but my pride took a bit of a hit.

As we traveled west, we met some very nice people. One in particular was a woman in the Casey's in Reynolds. It was a warm day and she came out to get our bottles to fill with ice and water. She said, "I take care of my bikers." Also, in Sherrard they gave us water and mentioned that it was good "well water." It did taste good! In Muscatine, a nice man at the Salvation Army Thrift store gave us perfect directions to our hotel. All of these people, and others, went out of their way and this day left both of us rejuvinated in the belief that there are good people out there. It is so easy to get caught up in the snap judgements and selfishness of ourselves and others that we begin to lose focus of our relationship with others. The technology that has made communication with others "easy," leave us to interpret or rather misinterpret meaning behind the communication. We forget that we are amongst human beings who live for response, feedback, acceptance. Today, we saw the smiles; we experienced the kind actions; we caught the subtle sarcasm and humor; we rode away into the west with a sense of small town America.

I know physically and mentally, as we pulled in to the Super 8 in Muscatine, I was telling myself that I did not have too many days in me facing the wind. If tomorrow was like today, it would be a much shorter trip than we had planned. We cleaned up, got a good dinner at Applebees and got some sleep. Hopefully, tomorrow, my muscles and mind would be rested.

Giving it a try

This is my first blog. I hope I remember to update it, and I hope it is interesting.