5/31/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Finally finished some of my repair projects like patching the ripped knees of my wind pants. I just love these pants and haven't found anything to replace them. I bought them for my Appalachian Trail thruhike in 1998 and they're still going strong. Ended up making some 'peace sign' patches to cover the rips I got when I fell in Rome last fall.


More crazy weather today with lots of clouds, sunshine, heat and gusting winds. I think Mother Nature has A.D.D.! But that didn't stop me from biking to the Rime Buddhist Center for yoga class. Got sprinkled on, but mostly it was just hot and humid on the ride downtown. I've enjoyed the classes Britten teaches. Most of us are all beginners and she does a great job describing exactly what we're doing. I've got a 'yoga for cyclist' video from YogaToday.com that I want to use while riding across Canada. At least that's the plan. Britten wished me well on my travels and reminded me to do the 'boat pose' often [she was joking and serious at the same time].

Britten, doing the tree pose

It was really starting to feel like a scorcher as I rode home. I had thought to ride out to the Dishman's for dinner, about two hours away, but decided I didn't really want to do the two hour ride back in the dark. So, took the car and made a quick stop at Backwoods to buy a sunglasses case that has enough room inside for my folding headphones too. Tonight at Geri & Mike's seemed a bit more laid back. I got a chance to visit with them for good while before Mike went to pick up Ron just outside of Bonner Springs.

Ron had his best day of fund-raising on his Road to the Cure walk across the USA. Today, walking between Kansas City Kansas and Bonner Springs he collected $300 from well-wishers, more than double any other day on the trip. He was very pumped up by the response. I hope he continues to do well as he walks west. You can help by going to his donation site at FirstGiving.com

I think when I said goodbye to Geri & Mike that it's finally hitting me that I won't seem my family and friends for a very long time, more than 16 months. And a lot can change in that time. And at the rate things change these days, that much time is eons. I might not even recognize American by then. Funny how instead of thinking of my future time in Canada, or even Mongolia, I'm thinking of the time even farther than that, when I return home. "Home" takes on a whole new meaning when you travel far and long like some people.

Less then a week, only six days to go...

5/30/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

The weather can't seem to make up it's mind. Even though the weather forecast has a big yellow sun on it for today, it's raining outside. But at least that means I might stay indoors long enough to finish some of the things I absolutely need to get done this week before I leave.

Another night of very little sleep. I think my mind is in overdrive trying to think of everything for these two next adventures. Can't really figure out anything that will stop that, or even slow it down. It takes all my self-discipline not to keep jumping out of bed every time I think of something to write down or just another little thing to do while I'm awake.

Yesterday, some of my ESL (English as a Second Language) classmates have been updating the rest of the group by email. Donna leaves in two weeks for her school in Brazil. Sarah and Ben are still looking for teaching jobs but are pretty busy getting ready for their wedding right now. And Cybelle got a great job in Moscow teaching Business English starting in September. I sure hope we can all keep in touch and give each other help and support during our first year teaching.

My new best friends in the whole wide world is Bruno and the gang at Phil Wood & Co. Talked to Bruno who is the service manager and they are basically going to rebuild the entire hub, replacing almost everything that can be replaced. Estimated cost: only $50. That's like getting a brand new hub (retail $385). And this is a 7-year old hub with 20,000-miles on it. He said it would be done this afternoon and shipped before the end of the day. And he said it would be here in plenty of time for my Canada trip. Yippie!

Tonight after walking some 25 miles, Ron 'Happy Go Lucky' Kessler called to let me know where he was walking through town. Ron started his cross-country walk on March 1st on the East Coast and you could now say he's reached the halfway point to the West Coast. His goal today was just to reach the Kansas state line. so I picked him up in the neighborhood of 7th & Central Ave in KCK. You couldn't miss him in his pink, yes PINK, wig. He's raising awareness and money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation to honor a friend with terminal breast cancer.

With his GO PINK wig!

I know Ron because he is an Aappalachian Trail thruhiker. He said Kansas City was the first place he was actually interviewed by three of the local TV stations as he walked from Independence into downtown: KMBC KSHB He has a website that collects donations (click here to donate) but he says he get's more response just from the good folks he meets along the way like at restaurants and little market/gas stations.. "One guy even gave me a $100." Ron says. So far he's raised about $5000. His online journal is at Road to the Cure.

My good friends Geri & Mike Dishman, parents of AT thruhiker Katie, jumped at the chance to give Ron a place to stay and rest on his walk. "Everyone helped our daughter on the AT, so we want to pass on some of that trail magic." After a much needed shower, we all sat down to a wonderful dinner. Ron plans on walking tomorrow through to Bonner Springs, then take Sunday off, and then push on to Lawrence on Monday.

Ron with Katie, Jimmy in the back, Geri, & Mike

Tomorrow looks to be busy with projects, bike riding, yoga and dinner again (BBQ!!!) with Ron at the Dishman's.

Only one week left! Vancouver here I come.

5/29/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Ended staying up till really late 'inventing' again. Trying to design case to hold my headphones since I couldn't really find anything that would work that wasn't heavy. We'll see if I can finish it today.

The sky doesn't know if it wants to be sunny or overcast today. I hope it makes up its mind soon. But since it wasn't wet, I took the chance to set up the tent for a test run. I bought the REI Quarter Dome UL tent for the New Zealand trip back in 2006 and haven't even had it out of the bag since then. It shouldn't be in too bad of shape since we didn't really use the tents much in NZ that trip. Looked good but I did find a few holes in the waterproof tent bag so I'm glad I took the trouble to check out the tent. Shouldn't be too hard to fix the holes.


And ordered an iPod Nano today from Apple. The refurbished units are on sale, $50/25% off, so that's a very good deal. It should be here early next week. And to go with it, bought a Griffin Tune Juice2 to recharge it using batteries charged by my solar panel but before I open it, I'm going to get out my MintyBoost and see if it works with this 3rd generation iPod Nano. If so, I might take the other back. Either one will double as a battery holder. A boy and his toys!

Did a bit more shopping before riding down to the Apple store on the Plaza. I've been having a specific problem with one of my new programs, Typecast. Unfortunately it was a lot more complicated than the guys at the Genius Bar could figure out. Their recommendation was to do an 'archive and install' which should reload the operating system. That should fix it, they said. But it's a lot of work because I need to back up a lot of stuff up, and some programs might need to be manually reloaded after the install. So, that's what I'm doing tonight, backing everything up.

Believe it or not, one of the 'to do' things on my shopping list was to buy underwear. I've been told by returning Peace Corps volunteers that the underwear available in Mongolia doesn't have much going for it. So, just to be on the safe side, I shall have new underwear for the journey. [smile]

Well, talked to Ron again who is walking through Kansas City on his cross-country walk for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. He's going to try and reach the Missouri-Kansas state line tomorrow which is about 27 miles of walking for him. I'm going to pick him up and we'll both head over to the Dishman's for enchiladas. Mmm! I'll post more about his Road to the Cure tomorrow.

According to their website, FedEx said they delivered my wheel to Phil Wood & Co. yesterday but by this evening I hadn't heard anything, so I called them instead. The service manager had just left so I have to call back in the morning. These little delays are chipping away at my nerves. I hope after talking to them tomorrow I can get assurances that the wheel hub will be repaired and be here by Thursday next week at the latest. Keep your fingers crossed.

And finished the night working on a book cover for my 'Wandering' book of quotes, to protect it a bit inside the backpack. Made a 'cord keeper' out of some hobby pop-sickle sticks. And got a good way through making the case for the folding headphones. The plan is still to finish most if not all of my projects by Sunday so I can relax the rest of the week. We'll see how that goes.

Eight Days! There's not enough time!

5/28/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Just couldn't sleep the other night. I was up till almost 3AM and still wide awake. So, I wrote a bit of this blog then. [smile] It's hard to put into words how the mind is working at this 'just before' adventure time. But Ben, a Peace Corps Mongolia volunteer heading out this week, wrote a great essay called Oil and Water on their website Long Songs. "Ditto" to everything he said.

Worked with my brother Tom on Tuesday doing a remodeling job in Overland Park. I think that will be the last time I get a chance to work for him before I leave. I learned a lot. And who knows, he might need me again when I get back from Mongolia. So, if anyone needs any remodeling done in KC, Tom does a great job, works harder than anyone and doesn't charge enough for everything he does.

And not sure why, but the Apple wireless keyboard I've been using with my laptop suddenly died. I can't seem to get it work but I might try and see if it works with the neighbors MacBook. I was going to buy a new wired keyboard anyway, along with a new wired mouse for Mongolia, so I guess now is OK too.

And the biggest suprise of the day was getting an email from Suzanne, aka 'Veto'. Veto and I hiked almost 800-miles of the Appalachian Trail (1998) together ten years ago. After the hike I got a chance to visit her up in her native Canada, in Collingwood. We sort of lost track of each other until I was in Malaga (2005) when she wrote to tell me she was married and had just had her first child, a girl. Funny, but we lost track of each other again until last night. Suzanne said she had a dream about me and sent me an email. She now has two children! If we end up going even close to Collingwood on our bike trip across Canada, it would be great to see her, meet her husband and the kids too. I love getting unexpected mail.

And the bike wheel arrived at Phil Wood & Co. today in San Jose, CA. Now just waiting to hear if the hub is repairable and how much it's going to cost me. So, I should have it back in time for my departure next week.

Went by the Rime Buddhist Center for tonight's meditation. Afterward, I thought I could help out with registration for the 'Basics of Buddhism' course, but it turned out to be next week. It is a 12-week course and is always very full, but it seems each time it's offered, the student numbers are increasing a lot. Afterward got to spend some time with Marisa, one of my good friends at the Rime Center. After doing some work in the gift shop, we decided to get a bite to eat at nearby Manny's Mexican Restaurant. Definitely going to miss my friends from the center.

Lama Chuck leading our meditation at the Rime Center

Not really a very productive day, but I did get a short bike ride in and a 30-minute run. But at least it looks like the rainy weather might be finally gone by tomorrow for the near future. I hope to have all my projects done by this weekend, so I can spend my last week visiting and relaxing. At least that's the plan.

Yikes, only 9 days till I hit the road!

Project: Laptop Case

For my travels, I might decide I wanted to take my laptop along so I could keep my blog updated with my daily journal entries and upload pictures to my photo site. If so, I needed some sort of case to protect my laptop. But store-bought cases either were large bulky Humvee-like things or small foam sleeves that really wouldn't protect against anything. What to do? Make my own of course.

Not bad if I do say so myself

You know those plastic signs they use now for garage sales and political campaign signs. They are thin, sturdy, lightweight and if sealed right, waterproof. I happened to find a couple of campaign signs out for the trash (don't worry, I didn't vote for the guy) that were big enough and only 1/8" thick, but even that small amount gives a lot of protection because of how the plastic form is designed.

Already to get started

For most people, that's all you need except for some sort of cement and maybe some tape. But I wanted a nice case, so I decided to line it with brown paper from a grocery sack. Then to make the 'package' even more anonymous, I covered the outside with some sort of paper. I wanted to use a tyvek envelope but decided I liked the paper better.

1. I decided to make the long seam in the middle of one of the sides instead of at one of the corners, to increase strength and improve waterproofness. And since the laptop will ride vertical in my backpack, I also decided to put a double later of plastic in the bottom for added protection. So, lay your laptop on the sign (with the plastic channels parallel to the case long corners) and mark the outline.

Mark the outline of the laptop

2. The secret to bending this type of plastic is how you cut it. Even though these signs are sturdy, they cut like butter, so be very careful not to cut too deep. You only want to cut through the top layer. For the corners, make a cut through two side-by-side channels, then cut the divider between the channels. See diagram.

The outline cut and the channels made

3. For cuts that run perpendicular, it's much more difficult to clear the space. Make your cuts carefully through only one layer of plastic. Then slowly bend the plastic at the cuts and slip your knife in to cut all the channel dividers. I use a rough piece of sand paper to try and remove the excess plastic in these cuts otherwise the plastic won't bend.

Some parts are more difficult than others to cut

4. I used a silicone to glue paper from a brown grocery bag on the inside of the case.

The paper makes a soft interior

5. Then it was time to glue up the case. Using more silicone, I first glued the main seam. I reinforced this joint with packing tape on the outside. Also finished gluing the paper liner over this seam.

6. After gluing a second piece of plastic on the bottom along with a piece of brown paper liner, I then used epoxy to glue the entire bottom into place.

7. Using a knife or sandpaper, smooth out the edges around the bottom once the sealer has completely dried. I then reinforced this with more clear packing tape. Fold over the top and you might have to trip more plastic there too.

Glued & taped

8. And then to make it more anonymous, I a cut up brown grocery bag to wrap it. Basically, I glued the paper over the case like I was wrapping it to mail. The only difference is that I put a bit more paper to lengthen the flap.

Doesn't look like an expensive box, does it!

The velcro holds the flap closed for travel

9. Now it's time for the finishing touches: I added velcro to the flap, the kind with an adhesive back. Then put my address on the front (who knows, maybe if I loose it someone will mail it to me). An added benefit of the paper cover is I can write notes to myself if I need to. [smile]

Ready for the road...

Memorial Day - Kansas City

Memorial Day is when we honor the men and women of the military who gave the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country. It was first enacted to honor the Union soldiers who died during the Civil War, but later after World War I, it included all casualties of any war or military action.

But I think it should include anyone who sacrifices much in the service of their fellow man. Because, no matter your politics, our brothers and sisters who die in battle are doing it for us. For example, that would be true of the police and the firefighters too. But why must it be only for those who perished during that service. I think we should honor those who dedicate any amount of time helping others, often without thanks or appreciation.

I honor those of the military, the police and the firefighters, but also those teachers who despite low pay and lack of support from much of society still showed up every day to teach our children to be the future adults we hope they could be, or the understaffed nurses that take care of us at our worst of times. But lets not stop there, lets include everyone who worked to help others. I honor the farmers that put food our tables and the factory workers who put clothes on our backs. And I also want to remember all those who volunteered both here in our own cities and neighborhoods and also such far flung places around the globe with the single thought of helping those in need. There are so many people who work to make our life simpler, helping make life more enjoyable to each of us, who give us the chance to live a life in freedom and happiness. But once they're gone, are they ever remembered for what they have done.

For my Memorial day I honor 'everyone' who served. I thank you and strive to do likewise for others too.

More thunderstorms last night and the clouds didn't seem to want to leave this morning. Let's keep our fingers crossed we have a repeat of yesterday with a sunny and warm afternoon. But looking at the local weather, it doesn't look like I'll be doing any biking today.

Finally got to finish some of those projects like the laptop case. These days I now carry a small book with a running list with me of the things I still need to do. Let's just hope I cross off more than I add at this point.

I decided to take the bulk of the candy and chocolate that I got at my birthday-going away party to the gang at Minsky's. They tell me this is the slowest day of the year for the restaurant but I'm glad they're there for customers like me. It's such a nice place to relax, sit back, have a bite to eat, and the staff are some of the nicest people you would ever meet.

The sun did eventually make a partial appearance, so I traded the car for the single-speed and headed over to sell my iPod Video to Zeb at Minsky's. I hadn't really used it much since I returned from Europe last year. Overall I just didn't need all that it offered. I can't decide if I should get an iPod Nano now or get an iPod Shuffle for the bike trip and maybe if the new iPod Nano comes out in September, get one of those for Mongolia. Zeb has very happy with his new 'toy'. [smile]

And this evening I talked with Ron Kessler, aka 'Lone Wolf', someone I knew from the Appalachian Trail who this year is walking across America to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation to honor a close friend who has cancer. He started at Cape Henlopen State Park, DE on March 1st and he should be walking through Kansas City on Friday, May 30th. He's walked 1450 miles so far. I'm going to pick him up and take him over to my good friends, Geri and Mike Dishman, who offered to be Ron's trail angels by giving him a place to stay. You can read more about his trip at Road To The Cure.

PS: They had snow in Ulaanbaatar today.
(remember, that's where I will be teaching in September)

11 days and counting!

5/25/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

We're sort of in the middle of a week of thunderstorms. At night it usually gets pretty heavy, and during the day it can be sunny and hot. But the storms just keep coming it seems. It doesn't surprise me when I hear there are more tornadoes every day. Tis life on the plains of the midwest.

So, while it rained this morning, I spent more time working on those thousand little projects that needed doing last week (or preferably last month) like fixing my winter pants. Kind of an important piece of clothing for Mongolia, don't ya' think! I still have to repair some zip-off pants and some windpants for the bike trip, along with hemming my rain pants. And I still haven't finished the laptop case. Maybe tomorrow.

By noon, the sun was out, so I decided to get out and bike a bit. At lunch I didn't order anything because I still think I was full from yesterdays party. I did finally get some sketching in. Then took off to the far side of town running errands while getting more miles in on the bike.

The weather today was blistering, a kind of baking type of day. It seems like it's always that way after a storm. I don't know if it's the moisture in the air or the lightning infused ozone, but the sun seems especially brutal at these times. There is a huge drop in temperature when you get in the shade. But in the sun, you were literally dripping wet with sweat.

And then I biked back to the opposite side of town to have dinner with Christy, one of the owners of the Acme Bicycle Company. I think my bike and bike people are one of the things I'll miss in Mongolia. I'm told it's not much of a bike-friendly nation. But we'll see. Maybe it just needs someone crazy like me there to show them how it's done. Christy was telling me all about yesterdays Alley Cat Races and the Rim Job, actually racing without tires. Wicked.

All in all, got in about 5 hours of bike riding in.

After watching the Matrix yet again, sat at the computer to catch up on my blog reading and answer emails. Got an email from Ben, who is leaving for the Peace Corps in Mongolia next week. It was great to connect with others who will be in Mongolia at the same time. I hope we can keep in touch and meet up once I get to UB. You can read more about Ben and Faye at their website Long Songs.

12 days till I leave, so close you can almost taste it!

5/24/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Another night of thunderstorms and a pretty gloomy morning to start the day. Spent most of the morning 'catching up' with all the little items that need to be done before I leave. One thing I really needed to do was get my health insurance for the Canada trip.

If you travel overseas, you should really ask your medical insurance provider what they cover once you leave the USA. In the past I've paid my own monthly premiums, but when that passed $400 a month, I began looking for alternatives. Last year I found a new company called World Nomads, endorsed by Solbeam, the perpetual traveler. It was pretty inexpensive, so I thought it was a good choice. Little did I know that I would make a claim when my camera was stolen in France. Along with major medical coverage, there is a theft rider included free. Once I made my claim, I was sent a check for the 'original' purchase price of the camera in a little over a week. Wow. No worries, no haggling over value, just a thank you and here's your check. I will be using World Nomads while biking across Canada, and also for my year in Mongolia.

Checked the tracking of my bike wheel sent to get repaired and FedEx tells me it has reached Salt Lake City, Utah. So, keep your fingers crossed that it will reach San Jose by the time Phil Wood & Co open their doors on Tuesday after the holiday weekend.

Went to yoga class today at the Rime Center. It's been six weeks since my last class because of the ESL certification class and because the teacher Britten was on vacation too. Definitely hard after so long off. But Britten is great, teaching us for free. I just wish more took advantage of her generosity. Now, if only I could get into a habit of doing it during the week, especially with the bike trip coming up.

Well, the clouds broke and the sun came out a shinin'. Which was a good thing too. My aunt Juanita and my uncle Bob threw me a 50th Birthday-Biking Across Canada-Teaching in Mongolia Party. My other aunts and uncles, most of the cousins and my grandmother were there. They decided on a Mexican theme so there were tons of spicy dishes to sample, Margaritas to drink and of course, the requisite piñata. There were plenty of signs, balloons, cake and even a sombrero. We all ate too much of course, but it sure was good to see everyone. There was the gag gift from Robin and my brother Chris gave me a wood carving inlaid with copper of one of the Buddhist auspicious symbols. He tells me he will have all eight done for me by the time I return from Mongolia.

My grandmother, 93 years young

13 days till I leave for Vancouver

5/23/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Well, more rain today. Go figure. Decided to give the apartment a good cleaning so I won't have to worry about it at the last minute. And sent an email to Mike in Australia updating him in the wheel 'problem' I'm dealing with. He commented that either I'm too strong or those steroids are taking effect - how else could I break a rear hub. [smile]

To get ready for Mongolia, I've been following a lot of personal blogs of current and future Peace Corps volunteers. So, every morning I check each blog to see if there are any new journal entries. Takes a lot of time and some days, there are no new entries. But today, one blogger, Travis (who leaves for the Peace Corps Mongolia next week) at Advance Humanity, wrote about Google Reader, which keeps track of all your blog subscriptions and can tell you if any have been updated. So, instead of checking twenty different bookmarks, I can just check in one place. Very cool.

My brother Tom didn't need me to work today after all. So, after cleaning the apartment up a bit, spent most of the day shopping, sort of. Didn't really buy what I needed but got a few things narrowed down. I did decide not to make the 'waterproof camera case' as I was running into sewing problems. I still think it should be possible but maybe next time. Instead I bought a very low-profile Wenger 'Sherpa' camera case. Wenger are the folks that make Swiss Army Knives. I will wrap the camera up in silnylon inside the case in the event of rain.

As always, stopped off at Minsky's for a bite to eat. Zeb, Kim and Rachel were waiting tables, and guess who should walk in but ex-waitresses Katy and April. All my favorite people there at the same time. The only one missing was Donna, but she refuses to get her picture taken anyway. [Just kidding Donna] A nice little reunion. You might think it odd, but I've been going there so long, I'm more like family than a customer. I consider them all good friends.

Rachel, Kim, April, Katy & Zeb: servers extraordinaire

Made a quick stop after lunch at Prydes Old Westport where I ran into Annie. Believe it or not, she's a friend I met on my cross-country bike trip back in 2001, but not here in Kansas City. Her family owned a small bar/restaurant in Matfield Green, Kansas. When we got to talking back then, we were both shocked that we lived blocks from each other back in KC. Seems I run into her every time just before I leave on another adventure. It was good to see her and Annie told me she had just gotten married. Congrats to her. I said that if I stayed in one place long enough, I might try that marriage stuff. [smile]

Had some journal/sketchbooks made at Kinkos, then decided I really needed to get out on the bike even though it still looked like it could rain some more. I'm tired of being inside both the apartment and the car. I live for fresh air. It didn't rain, so when I got back home from riding down to the Plaza, I decided to get a run in too.

I've been listening to a lot of music on the internet lately, which comes in a variety of formats. There's streaming audio from radio stations all over the USA and the world, internet only radio stations, and more recently audio showcases (my description). Some of you might have heard of Pandora, but another good one is Last.FM. They each have their good and bad points. Pandora is nice in that it keeps a running list of what you've listened to. Which is a great feature if your are recording. But Last.FM lets you listen to music by tags, plus you can look at a complete song history of an artist and listen to a lot of full tracks. Navigating the site can be a bit confusing at times, but well worth the work to uncover a musical gem or two.

15 days to go, can it be true!

5/22/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Woke up to thunderstorms raging outside my window. I guess that means no bike riding today. Oh well, that's probably good as I can spend the time on more of the little projects I need to take care of.

Got an email from Ueli Minder, the director of FPMT Mongolia today. Everyone at the center in Mongolia has been so helpful and patient with me. Ueli was answering questions I've had about my work visa application. Getting through all the government paperwork is so much different than just showing up as a tourist. But it all does make me a bit nervous. [laugh]

And last night, my good friend Marisa from the Rime Buddhist Center, dropped off my copy of Arukihenro, a documentary about the Shikoku Pilgrimage in Japan. I presented the film at the Center a few years ago for it's North American Premiere. The filmmaker, Tommi Mendel, even made a short introduction video addressing the people at the showing. It was a lot of fun for everyone. And it looks like the film is getting seen by a lot more people. It's a wonderful documentary.

So I decided to email Tommi, the film-maker and he replied right away. He says he's getting ready to start another film project soon. But Tommi also said "I have to tell you that I met my wife Atsuko in Ulan Baator exactly ten years ago - so this place means a lot for me and I'm very glad that you'll go there." What a coincidence.

With the thundershowers, I couldn't think of a better day to go to the movies. And the new Indiana Jones film was opening today. Made it to the 11:15am show and believe it or not, it was only $4. You can't beat that. A good movie, lots of action and typical Indy dialogs and effects. So, I'll give it a thumbs up.

Ran into Kaleb, my next door neighbor, who invited me over for an impromptu birthday party for his wife, Jill. She turns 25 today. Yippie! Now it's all down hill from now on. [smile] Met a lot of the their friends tonight too. A great bunch of folks. And a few live just down the street. Just when I meet some cool people, it's right before I leave on another trip.

Oh my, 16 days to go!

5/21/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

I worked a half-day for my brother doing a remodeling job in Overland Park this morning and he said he would probably need me on Friday too. Good, more money for the bike wheel repairs.

Bruno, a service technician at Phil Wood, emailed this morning that the hub problems I described can be serviced at the factory. That would save me a huge amount over getting a new rear wheel built. I think we've caught this in time to get it repaired with plenty of time before I leave for Vancouver. I forgot about Memorial Day coming up, so that is going to delay shipping I think. Let's just keep our fingers crossed that it gets there, repaired and sent back before I am supposed to fly out in 17 days.


And got two new issues of the Moonlight Chronicles, a self-published zine by hobo artist supreme, Dan Price. I have been a reader and fan of Dan's since issue #16 which I got by chance at a shoe store selling Simple Shoes for free back in 1995. His zine is part diary, part sketchbook, part philosophy, part something else I can't describe. He's written several books: Radical Simplicity and How to Make a Journal of Your Life. And is currently working on a book about how to draw.

Here's a sample page from issue #63

And got an email from Donna, one of my ESL (English as a Second Language) Certification classmates. She is leaving just before me to teach English in Brazil. We're both excited, scared, nervous but mostly just tired from all that needs to be done before a person leaves home for a year. I hope we can keep in touch, sharing our triumphs and tragedies in the classroom. [smile]

After a run, I decided to bike downtown to the Wednesday meditation at the Rime Buddhist Center. I love the simplicity of the tonights meditation. Not many people tonight but that was okay. There is something about the meditating in the gompa when the windows are open. The Center is near a highway overpass and your can hear all the traffic speeding off somewhere. But the sound doesn't really bother me, in fact, I think I like it just fine.

Lama Chuck and his wife Mary make everyone so welcome at the Center. Mary was talking most of the time before the meditation with a guy who turned out to be a Marine back home after two tours of duty in Iraq. It has been hard on him. He was at the center interested in mediation to bring him some peace of mind. I wish him all the best.

Yup, just 17 days to go!

5/20/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Spent most of the morning working on the bike down at ACME. This last week the bike hasn't been acting right at all. There is a loud metal crunching chain skip when I suddenly put pressure on the drivetrain, such as starting from a stop sign. Christy thought the problem was in the hub itself, so we took it apart (which is pretty easy on Phil Wood hubs, maybe too easy). After cleaning it up, a few of the pawls seemed to have burrs on the edges, one pawl didn't seem to raise up to engage and the teeth didn't look that great either. Those are the parts inside the freewheel mechanism that makes it coast when you are not pedaling, and spinning when you are. But I guess after 20,000-miles of loaded bike touring, you have to expect the moving parts to wear out.

The red arrow points to the pawls

We finished taking the hub apart, cleaned every piece, then after greasing it up a bit, put the whole thing back together. And believe it or not, that loud metal crunching chain skip got worse. Well, at least we think we know where the problem is. I contacted Phil Wood about replacing the pawls but I'm not even sure that will be enough to solve the problem. If that doesn't fix it, then the whole hub is toast. Just in case that is what happens, I contacted Peter White Cycles about pricing to get a new rear wheel (hub, spokes, rim) built in time for Canada. Peter built these current wheels I have and even after all that much travel, they are still true. He builds a great wheel. Unfortunately, prices these days are steep. I'm guessing a replacement rear wheel is going to be at least $400. I'll let ya' know.

Decided I really needed to get on other bike and clear my head a bit. Took a ride down towards the Plaza to get some lunch. Again, my other favorite waitress, Rachael, bought me lunch today. They take such good care of me at Minsky's. Started to read a new book called "The Art of Being Kind" by Stefen Einhorn. Another beautiful day to ride, blue sky with the sun shinning. Got all the way downtown to ACME again before heading back up the Main St hill to home.

On day two of running. [laugh] But I was so intent on getting this second run in that I completely forgot I was supposed to meet some coworkers from my Baptist Hospital days at a nearby brewery. I went anyway but at three hours late, I didn't expect anyone to be there. That really bums me out. Deb, sorry. I sure wish I could have seen everyone from the good-old-days.

Later I was going to get new running shoes but ended up renting Juno instead. I didn't see it in the theaters, but I should have. It was great.

I did get some good news today. One my Malaga-Spanish-language-school friends, Eva is on vacation in New York. Besides being on holiday, she's celebrating passing her exams to get into the Austrian diplomatic corps. That's great news.

Well, saw my brother Tom today and he asked if I wanted to work tomorrow (he has a remodeling business). Heck yes, because I could use a little bit more money to pay for that new bike wheel.

Only 18 more days left!

5/19/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Found a great little program last night that I've needed for while called Typecast. Recently I bought a book called Colloquial Mongolian and it came with several CDs. I loaded them into my iTunes but that just puts them in my 'Music'. For several years, I was using an iTunes script called Re-Add Selected Tracks as Podcast but ever since I got the new laptop with Leopard OS, it just doesn't work any more.

When I study a language, be it Spanish, French, or Mongolian, I want to listen to the language tracks but there is no way to make that easy in iTunes because everything is dumped into 'music'. So, both programs basically trick iTunes into thinking the tracks are a podcast. Since I couldn't get Doug's Script to work, I've been searching the forums and Google to see if anyone else has found a solution or a better idea.

Well, Daniel at Red-Sweater Software has. And it's supper easy to use too. Since I had imported the tracks already to a folder on the computer, all I needed to do was give a name to the podcast and then drag-and-drop the tracks into Typecast. "Presto chango!" and it worked. Cool. And it's free.


Worked on more projects this morning. Had to redo the helmet rain cover I worked on last night. But I think the changes I made will make it fit better over my solar charger tail light. Still have to finish my laptop case, hem my rain pants, repair my winter pants and make my waterproof camera holder for my backpack shoulder straps. And not much time to finish everything.

Last year on my last day in Spain, I accidently sat on my glasses, crushing the frames but miraculously the lenses seemed unharmed. But I didn't have a spare pair with me so I spent the next five months traveling through an out-of-focus Europe. Now, I thought it would be a very good idea to have a second emergency pair for Mongolia so took the crushed frame and lenses to Eye Masters to see about getting a new frame. But a quick look, the technician said he could fix the original pair. Five minutes later they were good as new. Wow, and no charge either.

Since my touring bike is out of commission till tomorrow, I rode a bit on my single-speed MTB around town. Donna, one of my favorite waitresses, treated me to lunch today. Then I took a ride along the Indian Creek Trail. And I finally got a run in, a very short run. [laugh] I really should buy a new pair of running shoes because my shoes are old and really falling apart.

Only 19 days to go!

5/18/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Another beautiful day here in KC. Lots of sunshine and tons of people out on riding their bikes, running or just having a lazy day at the park. But a part of me is still thinking of the hardships of those struggling in China due the earthquake and in Burma from the typhoon.

Spent the morning rebuilding the bike after some major problems with the chain-gears-derailleur. Ended up replacing both the rear (gear) cassette and the chain but still having the occasional skip, especially with sudden loading, like starting from a complete stop. I think the rear deraileur pulley cage is bent or out of alignment. Hopefully I can take it down to ACME on Tuesday and get it in the bike stand and see if we can fix this.

But in the process of doing all that work, decided to give the bike a good wipe-down. A few chips in the paint here an there, but overall, it's still a beautiful bike. Especially when you take all the panniers off.


You can see in the picture the handlebar rack I designed. I also have a home-made handlebar bag that attaches to specifically to it. As far as I know, no one has designed anything like it for mountain bikes with straight bars.


On a ride to test out that new chain and cassette, I dropped by the house of a good friend who I hadn't seen in a long time. I found Amy out front talking to some of the neighbors. Her son, Griffin, was just leaving. She tells me he just finished his freshman year at MU. Wow, it's been a while, I almost didn't recognize him. Amy tells me Claire, her daughter, will be a junior next year at MU too. Last time I saw Amy, she was a professor in the Physical Therapy program at Rockhurst University. But now she has moved up and is the Assistant Dean of the School of Graduate & Professional Studies at Rockhurst. Good for her! Hopefully we can get together one last time to catch up before I leave.

This was kind of a day of rest, with a few little projects to finish like soldering a stereo phono plug extension for Mongolia. Later I watched the most recent episode of Battlestar Galactica. I'm kind of hooked on that show and this is the final season. And very late, had a long chat with Mike in Australia via internet phone (using Zoiper). Sounds as if both of us just wants to get this Canada trip started. [smile]

Just 20 days to go!

5/17/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

Got up at 6 'way too early' AM to get an early spot at the bike swap meet at ACME Bicycle Company this morning. Like garage sales I'd expect, I hadn't even unloaded my box of goodies before several people descended on it to see if I had any good stuff. Made $20 instantly. Yippie. I ended up making about $70 total and resisted the temptation to wander around just in case I bought something I totally didn't need.

Waiting for customers

It was a great day with sunshine and temperatures in the mid-80's. But I think I wasn't used to it because I didn't feel very well after sitting under that sun for three or four hours. But I had things to do, so ended up using the car more today than I'd like.

Met Chris and Lisa down at the Rime Buddhist Center where we helped carry in a large dining room table that someone had donated. It actually went real easy even though we had to carry it up a huge flight of concrete stairs. It was good to see Chris again. Neither one of us has been at the Center much these days but when they need someone, we always are there to help. I'm glad I got a chance ot see him before I left.

After lunch at Minsky's I drove back home so I could trade the car for the bike. Today was also the Tour De Cowtown at ACME and I wanted to get there for at least the beginning of the festivities. It's more of a fun event, with food and drink, an alley cat race, and a band. Lots of younger guys with an abundance of single-speed and fixed gear bikes. Nancy was grill master while Sarah and Christi tried to think of everything to make sure the event went well. I'm definitely going to miss the girls at ACME.


Spent the last three nights watching Tin Man that I rented from the wonderful gang at SRO Video. This new film is slightly modern rendition of the Wizard of Oz seen on the SciFi Channel. Not bad, different, but long. You should check it out.

5/16/08 Kansas City, MO - USA

I'm sure a lot of you are wondering "Just when is Jim leaving for Canada?" Well, I fly to Vancouver on Saturday, June 7th and should arrive just after lunch. I'll be meeting Mike (from Perth, Australia) and his brother George (from Sacramento) at the Pacific Spirit Hostel. And then if all goes well, we should head out first thing Sunday morning to begin our adventure across Canada.

But, then I'm sure a few of your are scratching your heads saying "But what about Mongolia?" Yes, I am also packing for Mongolia too. Kind of stressful if you really want to know. The plan is to finish the bike trip, hopefully reaching Halifax, about August 23rd. After flying back home to KC, I will only have a week before I fly out to Mongolia (via Chicago and Seoul Korea). I am to begin teaching on Monday, September 8th.

So, I really have to have most everything done for both trips before I leave in three weeks. Yikes! So much to do, so many things to buy and order, so many people to say goodbye to, so many favorite restaurants to sample one more time, and so little time. [smile]

I thought I would begin a daily update for you (and me too) of what I'm doing to get ready and what still needs to be done, and maybe just a note about other stuff happening. For example:

Yesterday I got my drivers license renewed. Actually it doesn't expire till February, but since I won't be here, I didn't want it to expire requiring me to retake the driving tests again once I return. The problem is that at the DMV, the computer system won't let you renew too early. After consultation with the head supervisor, the clerk was able to 'trick' the system into letting me renew. But I had to sign a sworn statement saying that I would be out of the country and unable to renew in February.

One of my better drivers license pictures

Other things I've had to do is get more shots. Luckily for me, I had quite a few immunizations 20 years ago when I went to Kenya and those are still good. At the KC Health Dept, I was able to get another typhoid shot and a new tetanus shot called T-Dap which is a once-lifetime shot replacing the 10-year tetanus shots. I'm glad it was only two shots because it cost $120. Ouch, in more ways than one!

The other thing that I've been doing since December, is follow blogs/journals of others either in Mongolia or, more recently, those heading out to the Land of Ghengis Khan like me. I wish I could write half as well as these good folks. Here are a few links in case you would like to judge for yourself.

Advance Humanity by Travis
And So It Begins... by Trinh
Leslie & Nathan in Mongolia
Long Songs by Faye & Ben

Well, that's all for today. Enough I think. [smile]

Solar Charger Helmet Tail Light

Yes, a 'solar charger helmet tail light'. That's a mouthful. In my world, every item I have to carry has to have one great function or even better, multiple functions. Basically the second option gives you more bang for your buck.

So, here's the idea: I have a 2-AAA tail light that I can mount to the back of my bike helmet. I also have a solar panel that will charge 2-AAA batteries. But why have two devices that hold the 2-AAA batteries? Could it be possible to combine the devices, getting rid of the second battery holder? Why not! When the sun is out and the solar panel is able to charge the batteries, the tail light would not be used or even needed in daylight. And at night, when the tail light gives me some safety on the road, the solar panel wouldn't be able to provide any power anyway because it is dark.

In the simplest scenario, I would just wire the solar panel to the tail light. But without any charging regulation, the batteries could overcharge, damaging them. I could add a switch or a charging regulation circuit but where. A simple idea would be just to put a disconnect plug inline between the light and the panel. If I don't use the light, there is no need to plug the solar panel back in. And, with a plug, I can now swap other devices to connect to the solar panel.

For example I could make a separate battery holder for charging AA batteries. Or, for my bike tour across Canada, I ended up making a single-AAA battery holder so I can charge the battery I use in my new 'TechnoPipe'. Or I could at an extension cable so I could maybe charge other devices located elsewhere, like on a backpack strap, or inside a backpack, or maybe in my pocket.

For this project, I'm using a PowerFilm Solar panel; extremely small and lightweight (but a bit pricey). I've glued the panel to a backing to give it a little more durability. I added blade-type wire connectors on the back of the panel so I can use this for future projects without a chance of damage trying to un-solder other connections. I can use the battery holder for another project but left the diode connected to prevent battery discharge.

AAA solar charger kit

I've made a cover out of nylon and vinyl, using ribbon to seal the edges. This is not waterproof (I have a helmet rain cover so I don't have to remove the solar panel in case it starts to get wet). I have added velcro, which also can be used to store excess power cable. By convention, I connected the red (+) lead from the solar panel to the the center pin of the power cable.

solar panel top

solar panel bottom

Since the tail light is so small and compact, there is absolutely no way to install panel mounted DC plug. The other option is to add an inline plug. I took the tail light apart so I could safely drill a hole for the power cable. I soldered the power cable to the battery connections on the circuit, with the center pin power cable wire going to the positive (+) terminal. This should work when reassembled because when the batteries are charging, the tail light will be off. When the tail light is on, no power will be provided by the solar panel because it is dark.

wire placement

All this sounds so easy. The most difficult portion is finding the power plugs, especially the female inline jack. There are at least a dozen 'standard' male DC power plugs, but not all those sizes have the corresponding female jack available. After repeated trips to several electronics suppliers, I settled on 5.5mm OD x 2.1mm ID (but even with this there are two lengths available).

Now, it's all done and it's time to mount the whole system. With so many helmet designs out there, it would be impossible to come up with a system that would work with them all, but using shock cord might work for most. For my helmet, I threaded the shock cord through the mounting slot for the chin straps, and then tied them off in the back of the helmet near the tail light. Using the velcro flap, I attached the solar panel to the front of the helmet and then fed the shock cord through the solar panel loops to hold down the back end.

helmet with solar charger tail light

Like I said earlier, with the DC plug connections, I can swap out other devices. This will help me more if I take the solar panel backpacking.

with 2-AA battery holder using another inline jack

with 1-AAA battery holder using a panel mount jack

Ultimately I want my solar panel to charge my MintyBoost, which then can recharge multiple devices like my iPod. With that in mind, I have a few future projects to work on.

Future Projects:
MintyReBoost: MintyBoost using 2-AAA's with charging plug input
MintyReBoost II: MintyReBoost with a battery capacity indicator
MintyCameraBoost: MintyReBoost able to charge camera battery

"Fragrant Palm Leaves"

Journals 1962-1966
Thich Nhat Hanh

Synopsis: A rare combination of mystic, scholar, poet, and activist, Thich Nhat Hanh has lived in exile from his native Vietnam since 1966. Though he is best known for his ever popular Buddhist teachings, Fragrant Palm Leaves shows not only an exquisite portrait of the Zen master as a young man, but the emergence of a great poet and literary voice of Vietnam. From his years as a student and teaching assistant at Princeton and Columbia to his efforts to negotiate peace and a better life for the Vietnamese, Fragrant Palm Leaves offers an elegant and profound window into the formation of the heart and mind of one of the world's most beloved spiritual teachers.

Meaningful Quotes:

I still respond to the call of the cosmos, although the way I do has changed. The call is as clear and compelling as it was those many years ago. When I hear it now; I pause; and with all my body, with every atom of my being, every vein, gland, and nerve, I listen with awe and passion.

...we respect Christ as a great teacher but don't look on him as a God. The same is true of Buddha. We respect him as a great teacher, but we don't worship him as a god.

It's funny how much our surroundings influence our emotions. Our joys and sorrows, likes and dislikes are colored by our environment so much that often we just let our surroundings dictate our course. We go along with 'public' feelings until we no longer even know our own true aspirations. We become a stranger to ourselves, molded entirely by society.

Some life dilemmas cannot be solved by study or rational thought. We just live with them, struggle with them, and become one with them. Such dilemmas are not in the realm of the intellect. They come from our feelings and our will; and they penetrate our subconscious and our body, down to the marrow of our bones. I became a battlefield. I couldn't know until the storm was over if I would survive, not in the sense of my physical life, but in the deeper sense of my core self.

How could we continue to live if we were changeless? To live, we must die every instant. We must perish again and again in the storms that make life possible.

History teaches that we die if we oppose the system. Yet many individuals continue to challenge the darkness, despite the danger in doing so.

When we attain a new understanding of reality, it is impossible to accept things as we know to be false. Our actions will be based on our own understanding, and we will follow only those rules we have tested through our own direct experience. We will discard false rules and conventions of the current social order.

Most important is knowing how to ride the waves of impermanence, smiling as one who knows he has never been born and will never die.

Every success contains some difficulties, and every failure contributes to increased wisdom or future success.

For someone who has seen into the nature of things, knowledge gives rise to action. For those who have truly seen, there is no philosophy of action needed.

Life waits patiently for true heroes.

Buddhahood doesn't come from long hours of sitting.

...all places on earth are, more or less, the same. It is our state of mind that ultimately determines things.

People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown; they prefer suffering that is familiar.

Freedom without responsibility is destructable to oneself and others.

"Fragrant Palm Leaves" is available at Powells and Amazon

Other Books by Thich Nhat Hanh:
The Miracle of Mindfulness
Living Buddha, Living Christ
Teachings on Love
True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart
Being Peace
No Death, No Fear: Comforting Wisdom for Life
Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames
Taming the Tiger Within
A Taste of Earth
Be Free Where You Are
Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers
The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching
Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha
The Stone Boy and Other Stories
The Sun My Heart: From Mindfulness to Insight Contemplation
Love in Action: Writings on Nonviolent Social Change
Peace is Every Step
Touching Peace: Practicing the Art of Mindful Living