500 Postings!

 This is a milestone of some sort. I started blogging in Corvallis in July, 2007 and so that's almost 5 years of our lives recorded here along with some of the most beautiful country anywhere. I'm amazed that the task held me to it this long but I think, after watching Green Fire! tonight, a film about the life of Aldo Leopold I understand the need to demonstrate land ethics to those who might not be as lucky as I am. For instance, the photo above I took late this afternoon. In the soft patterning of color and jumble of form it stimulates a feeling almost like adoration for Riparia and it's plants, seasons, continuity...

 Same with this photo from Comanche Creek (upstream a short distance from Riparia) taken yesterday during a creek clean up. I have loving eyes for this environment and the creek responds with its beauty (not that I didn't get a blackberry snag or two plucking for plastic bags though.)

 Yesterday afternoon I was very pleased that Michael had over 40 people attend his talk on How to Run a Diesel Vehicle on Used Cooking Oil. It caused me to appreciate him all over again. He picked up that knowledge from scratch and initiated and accomplished our Veggie Voyagers saga (see 2007-mid-2008 here if you don't know what I'm talking about.) All with his own initiative and determination.

 And this Lady Gaga is Ed McLaughlin, founder of Chico Velo, who broke his neck biking in Dec. 2007 while we were looping the U.S. and were in Texas. Every year now his friends put on the Tour de Ed, "Honoring Ed McLaughlin, who knows every day is part of the big Stage Race of Life. Ride to Work. To school. To the store. It's what Ed would do."

We did the sissy loop around lower Bidwell Park but still got the teeshirt. How wonderful it is to be able to ride a bicycle and have lived healthy on this incredible planet for 500 postings on the blogosphere!