Bandi's Mountain Sunset / Night Run

 

Song:  Memories In The Dark

Artists:  Michael Hoppe and Tim Wheater

It was another nice day...

with the temperature in the low 70s F as a high.

When Bandi and I triked up the mountain...

it was in the 60s F...

and by the time we had gotten back home...

it was in the low 50s F.

At first...

I hadn't seen any clouds...

but as I scanned the horizon to the West...

I had seen some in the distance...

and so...

I decided to take Bandi on a sunset run...

and then come back in the dark.

It was a very pleasant run for Bandi.

She was very excited the whole way.

She wanted to run fast...

but I held her back some.

We started up the road while there was still plenty of sun.

I gave Bandi periodic breaks...

but she only took short ones...

and she then impatiently wanted to run some more.

I had seen what appeared to be...

an eagle's nest high up in this tree.

We have Golden Eagles in the mountains.

Bandi and I rested for half an hour or so...

as we waited for the sun to set.

Bandi just relaxed as we waited...

but she alerted anytime she heard anything.

I waited until the colors began to fade before leaving.

I then turned on all of my trike's lights for the trip home.

For long night runs...

I also take along my headlamp just in case my trike's headlight suddenly dies on me.

I had that happen once (the battery died)...

and so...

I never want to be left in the dark on a long and winding mountain road again.

I pulled off the road and gave Bandi a break here.

There was still some sunset afterglow in the distance.

We then headed down the ridge some...

and then began the climb up our ridge.

At the apex of our ridge line...

I took another photo of the fading sunset in the distance.

We then headed down our ridge line towards home.

One last stop for Bandi...

but she only wanted to rest for half a minute or so...

and off we went again.

A picture just before we left our last rest stop.

We arrived home...

and Bandi ran upstairs ahead of me...

right to "our" bed.

After I took off my riding gear...

Bandi made several water runs to her water container in the washroom...

and then lay down on the floor next to my computer.

She loves the cool tiles...

just underneath the open windows.

Bandi is in much better running shape now.

She hardly gets tired...

and she wants to always run fast.

But...

she is fast asleep on the floor now.

Bandi loves getting tired out on a good run...

and I am feeling quite good myself.

-----------

I am thinking of taking Bandi on another country drive next week...

as wildflowers will soon be in bloom.

I will have to research places that are famous for wildflower viewing...

without necessitating a long hike to see them.

I've had my fill of long hikes when I was in the Army  :)

Cripple Creek's Newest Restaurant / A Word On Life

Song:  Us and Them / Any Color You Like / Brain Damage / Eclipse

Group:  Pink Floyd

I found a new restaurant in Cripple Creek

which had only recently opened.

And as the town itself is only about 10 - 15 minutes away...

I just had to try it.

I have been in the mood for Italian food for several days now.

This herd of cows naturally move about the open grasslands of my community at will...

and will sometimes stop traffic as they cross roads.

It is a perfect symbiotic relationship...

as the cows get nutritious food...

 the community gets the grass shorn...

and the surface soil gets broken up and fertilized at the same time.

I arrived at the restaurant within 15 minutes from home...

and the atmosphere was nice (Nonna's Italiano).

The starter bread was delicious...

especially with their creamy butter...

and fermented and aged garlic in olive oil.

I loved the subtle red tint to the blown lamp glass.

I made sure to go at an off hour to ensure I easily got a seat.

I had ordered chicken parmigiana...

...and an Italian doughnut creme brûlée ala mode for dessert.

This dessert was excellent.

The creme in the middle of the soft doughnut was rich and creamy...

and the melted and caramelized sugar on top...

with the caramel drizzle, was superb...

as was the ice cream (a very rich vanilla bean).

----------

I only wish they had a more extensive menu.

I can understand limiting the menu to simplify and concentrate on specialty dishes...

 as this is located in a smaller casino in town...

but they should realize that locals would also be providing 

them a larger customer base if they always had something 

for which to return to many times over.

They didn't have my favorite Italian dish...

seafood fettuccini...

but at least I already have a favorite Italian restaurant in old town Colorado Springs

to fulfill that craving.

But...

I also now have a quick to get to Italian restaurant for a limited 

number of dishes to try...

and so, I will return sometime in the future.

-----------

I just love exploring new restaurants.

Cripple Creek has many more restaurants to try...

and so many more in other nearby towns.

And, as I travel throughout the State of Colorado...

on each and every journey...

I will pick out a new one to try in the farther reaches of the State.

I will also soon be traveling to different locations throughout the world...

to see the most beautiful sights...

and to eat the most delicious food.

As I will more fully explain in the future...

I will be entering the grandest stage of life...

dedicated bucket list fulfillment.  

Besides visiting the most beautiful places in the State of Colorado...

and other places on the continent...

 I have a few places I eventually wish to visit...

with the first being going back to Japan to visit places I have yet to see

(possibly at a later point in time...

I would like to E-bike one of the ancient monks' walking routes on Honshu or Shikoku...

or maybe even attempt a perimeter ride around Honshu)...

Aurora Village in Lapland of Finland to see the Northern Lights...

and to do a few other things.

I also wish to see the Fiords and waterfalls of Norway...

the landscapes, glaciers and ice caves of Iceland...

to see the most beautiful places in Switzerland and the British Isles...

viewing the Andes from Patagonia as well as from Chile...

and going to a Southern Pacific destination such as Bali or Bora Bora...

and I am sure I will find more places as time goes on.

 Of course...

I also want to take an Alaskan Cruise and rail package...

as well as perhaps taking a sleeper cabin rail package across America and/or Canada...

although, I have already traveled across both by motorcycle...

as well as having had traveled around the perimeter of America by motorcycle

(it was a 10,000 mile - one month journey)...

so, maybe I will see Europe by sleeper train instead.

Although making these trips will take many years to complete...

 going back to Japan for a couple of weeks will be the first of many...

and it will start in the beginning of next year...

while many of the longer local trips in the State will begin this Autumn.

Many of my earlier sacrifices in life...

and so...

the dividends of which...

are coming into fruition beginning in August.

I simply cannot express enough how living the life of an ant...

is so much more preferable to stumbling through life as a grasshopper.

By making your sacrifices early in life...

 means that you will always have something for which to look forwards.

----------

Life is a marathon.

Should you expend your resources early (Financial / Time chiefly)...

you will spend the rest of the race in pain and dread.

By intelligently managing your resources...

you may finish strong...

and so...

always look forwards to the finish line.

-------

I write not to brag...

but to convince.

There are many people in life

who are on different areas of its spectrum.

Some will inevitably take the path of laziness...

and immediate gratification.

They choose the path of immediate comfort over that of sacrifice for better later.

Self mastery is so essential to leading a good life.

It all starts in times of youth

(although at anytime a person could change...

but it must be established as a new habit...

for it is our habits in life that determine our final destination).

Clean up after yourselves right away...

in everything.

This is not only a matter of personal responsibility and discipline...

but one of defeating the dragon of sloth.

Not doing so is the seed of procrastination and laziness.

---------

Again...

I am not speaking from upon high.

Yes...

in general...

I live by deferred gratification...

but there have been instances in life where I had deviated...

but not usually for long.

As a habit...

I live for the future...

so by always having something in which to look forwards...

all of life is wonderful...

instead of living life chasing the temporary highs of immediate gratification...

which then robs one of one's future...

and is the path to a life of mediocrity.

--------

Hardly anything frustrates me more than when I try to explain this way of living life...

and the person who I am trying to convince...

then gets mad at me...

claiming that they needn't follow what I say just because it was me who had said it.

Well...

that is not the argument.

It was never about doing what I say...

it was never about following me...

but of doing that which is rationally sound.

Of course...

they knew that...

but any excuse to not have to deviate from their life of sloth...

for them...

will do.

Some people in my life...

have made choices in life which had brought me much grief...

but, then again...

that grief is usually short lived...

because...

in general...

I fairly quickly stop worrying about things not in my control.

All I can do is to make a rational argument against it...

and offer alternatives...

possible win-win scenarios...

and yet...

so many still continue on their paths.

And it then comes down to...

simply living my life as best to my ability...

with a light and free heart...

for from then on...

I will not suffer guilt for not having truly tried.

It will soon be my time to finally spread my wings...

and to soar among the clouds with the freedom of an eagle.

----------

I have seen far too many people

destroy their lives because they could not control their own impulses and drives

(and, yes...so many had died very early because of it).

First thing...

do nothing deleterious to the body.

I do not...

drink...

smoke...

do any illicit drugs...

or even the so many of the drugs the medical establishment

seems so adamant to get you on for life.

Live life simply and happily by 

living the basic four of good mental and physical health:

Eat a Nutritious and Delicious Diet...

as a habit.

(yes...I will get cravings for pizza...or burgers...and indulge myself...

but only as treats...not as a steady diet).

Exercise

Both aerobically and anaerobically.

(endurance and high resistance weight training).

Deep Restorative Sleep

Dark, Cool, and Quiet.

(my blackout blinds arrive next month).

Have Creative Passions in Life...

and Dream Your Dream.

These connect you to yourself...

and to others...

even if only in the future.

By stimulating the creative...

it boosts the natural hormones and neurotransmitters which enrich life...

keeps one young and vigorous in body and mind...

and is the chief method of defeating the fear of death.

By dreaming your dream for the future...

a successful path then lies before you.

This is called looking into the future...

and by doing so...

all anxieties melt away...

including worrying about what others may think about you...

for to not do so...

is to mentally enslave yourself to their whims and manipulations.

Once you realize this path in life...

nothing will matter more to you than walking the path of your dreams.

By staying the course of this path...

it will automatically keep you off destructive ones.

(I will visit upon these concepts every so often...

as they are not only so important...but...

nothing frustrates me more than willful stupidity...

of people putting meaningless concerns over these...

especially when their petty concerns are ultimately destructive to their lives).

---------

Do not call yourself a good person...

unless you are good to yourself as well.

You must always strive to walk the path of good physical and mental health.

It is all as simple as the above...

not part of them...

ALL of them.

Having a dream to walk towards...

gives you something for which is worth sacrificing...

and so...

you readily do so.

-----------

Now...

some questions to answer:

Am I the pinnacle of health?

No.

I have suffered fairly recent health setbacks.

But...

because I have lived by the basic four all of my adult life...

and I have done nothing deleterious to my health by habit...

I could weather the storms and sail on.

I command a seaworthy and sturdy ship...

albeit with careful navigation to avoid the rocky coastlines and sandy shoals

which could hole my hull or strand me.

Do I fear death?

I fear not having lived a full and wonderful life before I ultimately die

(and so...my bucket list).

Again...

I don't worry about things out of my control.

But...

I do all the things which are in my control...

and of which will make my life worth living...

and worth having lived.

 

A properly planned out and fully lived life is akin to that of a chef and his planned feast.

In childhood...

you explore your most desired foods...

and you dream of them.

As an older teen...

you plan out your recipes...

and buy all of the necessary ingredients.

As a working man...

you cook your feast...

being sure that you time everything to coincide with the serving...

careful to not overcook or to undercook anything

(burn yourself out...or keep moving from job to job...never building for your retirement).

Although the heat builds in the kitchen...

and the anxiety builds in not being able to meet the result rising to a grand feast...

you soldier on...

you stay the course...

and instead, focus on the deliciousness of the meal itself...

always keeping the final result clear in your mind.

As you had steadfastly kept the course...

you are then retired.

You are enjoying the grand feast for which you had sacrificed and planned well.

You savor the grand feast and devour it with a ravenous appetite.

As you age and near death...

you sip the sweet wine you had prepared.

As you sit by the fire with your loved ones who having also greatly enjoyed your feast...

you relive the sumptuous moments of that feast...

as you finally get comfortably and irresistibly drowsy...

wanting nothing more than to slip into your final sleep...

fully sated and deeply serene and happy.

Am I a man of extremes?

Yes.

I am extremely happy.

I am extremely grateful for all I have...

and for all of the great simple pleasures in life.

When I love...

I love with all of my heart...

as do dogs...

or children

(never let your inner child die).

I am intense...

in both of my basic operating modes...

my extreme happiness mode...

and my extreme and delicious melancholy or serenity mode.

Why feel anything with less than your full heart?

I feel colors and music very intensely...

I deeply feel the tactile stimuli of a gentle wind upon my face...

and I feel and love the intense silence of a serene moment.

I love the depth and breadth of the inner world of my mind...

the deep connection I have with the subconscious...

of my inner facets which automatically emerge...

and keep me company...

and make me laugh in times which would otherwise bore me...

and which entertain and evoke creativity in me through the movies

and orchestras of the mind.

However...

I seem to be immune to depression or to any lengthy times of dark thoughts.

To suffer these is actually completely irrational if you think about it

(for those in a developed nation)...

for that is a state of a loss of hope.

We...

in the US...

have the power to effect the destiny of our desires...

as determined...

ultimately...

by our dreams for a better life...

a desired life as constructed with the desired future always in our minds...

and as achieved through the steady march upon that illuminated path.

We each are the chefs of our own grand feasts.

If all you want is fast food...

to live a life of mediocrity...

it is your life...

just don't blame others for your decisions.

But...

know that you may change your path in life at any time.

The cure?

Solitude...

especially in a serene environment...

such as during a beautiful and soul filling sunset...

or that of a high altitude mountain top.

The mind hates boredom...

and so...

it will conjure dreams of fancy to fill the void.

That is the beginning of knowing what really makes you happy.

All you then need do is pursue it.

I think most people do not know what truly makes them happy.

It takes but one dream to change your life.

You must dare to dream.

Disconnect yourself from others...

and all forms of distractions.

Enter your dream world...

and you will never want to leave it...

for that will become your future so long as you steadily walk that path.

It is the only hope...

the only motivation...

 you will ever need.

While you do need enough money to be comfortably retired without undue worry...

you do not need to be wealthy to fully enjoy life.

Make your sacrifices early...

know that your dream may be long in coming...

and that you must forego immediate pleasure to reach your ultimate goal...

and that you must live within your means to effect a comfortable retirement...

but know that you may live life in the great wealth of happiness to be had 

in all of the great simple pleasures of which abound in life...

and of which are free for the taking...

until your dream of your grand feast becomes a reality.

To dare to dream and continually walk that path...

is to dare to exit your rabbit hole...

and to sprout your wings to fly as an eagle.

Life is far too short...

and far too wonderful...

 to live life any other way.

-------------

And some pics of this night's serene sunset...

Bandi loving the third deck during sunset.