Behold the Riders! (A Conditioned Response to the California Amgen Tour)

February 19th, 2009, Visalia, CA

2:45 pm, 48 degrees

Advanced students of psychology labored sullenly with an impossible amount of work, smart enough to know that what they didn't finish would be their homework.

"We don't have time for bike races.  What if you all flunk the AP test in May? What am I going to tell your parents after they've wasted $85 on the test fees?"

Thirty-two sets of eyes bent down to the busy work, many of them subvocalizing curses, all directed toward their teacher (me).

I checked the clock out of the corner of my eye, not the only one in the room doing so.  Twenty minutes to go.  Lance Armstrong (then clean we thought, strong and heroic) would pass swift as a stealth fighter, right beyond our classroom door.

Ten minutes later I interrupted them.

"Does the air seem cold in here?  I think the heater's broken down again.  Probably warmer if we went out in the sunshine. Anybody have a problem with going out to the curb?

There was a weak but wary cheer--Psych teachers are notorious for staging some mind trick to emphasize a lesson.  Cautious glances prevailed as we walked. The whole school it seemed, had silently assembled on the sidewalk just twenty yards away from my classroom.

Someone said, "No way, Lance?"

Others didn't know who he was or what sport he represented.  Many knew what to expect, had cell phones ready, with arms already stretched high to catch the moment, that magical second when the pack rounded the corner of Acequia and Center, the northeast corner of humble Redwood High.

A  girl asked, "The guy who wrote a book about coming back after beating cancer... Seriously?"  

Skepticism crept into their comments.

We waited until I began to have doubts as well.

Then powerful as a straining heart and about to burst, the front runners came on surging, pumping, and furiously seeking advantage where they could, all the while miraculously avoiding collisions.

In a breathless instant they were gone, fleeting as youth itself.

Students followed me, uncharacteristically silent, on our way back to the classroom.  Once assembled and backpacks collected, I announced that all of today's work was to be turned in now, credit to be awarded on effort but not necessarily on completion.  No homework tonight (generating a few sighs of relief), and tomorrow we would review the section on sports psychology. Be ready to share any personal experiences.

(In other words, "See Ya")

May 15th, south of Pico Creek Bridge, 
3:14 pm, 96 degrees

Standing in wheat-like nettles, avoiding poison oak that threatened from all sides, I held my low-tech, cheap but reliable camera high, ready to capture the moment.

My wife and friends behind me were relaxing in the shade of the two Monterey Cyprus pines across from the San Simeon Lodge.  I encouraged them to follow me to "The Best Race Shot of the Amgen tour of California".  No takers.  Well, a prophet is never recognized in his home town.

And perhaps because I had minored in psychology--but more probably because I can sometimes be a jerk--I mounted a stump and yelled fervently, "The riders!"  Seven people around me instantly clicked their superior cameras, and seeing nothing in their viewfinders, swung back at me with stink-eyes.  I shrugged my irresponsible shoulders.

More cruisers, with increasingly vivid red and blue lights.

Four minutes later...

"Look!  The riders!"

Seven camera laden individuals raised their instruments hesitantly hoping to take that penultimate photo, but seeing nothing lowered them and glanced in my direction while muttering under their breaths.

Clearly, all had lost faith in their self-appointed prophet.

Before long a low bass rumbled from somewhere, seemingly from everywhere, but I suspected the car of  bored teenagers I had seen trapped in San Simeon by the traffic block.

Now to play the gambit, 
timing essential in a conditioned response:

"Behold the riders!" 

Nobody raised their cameras--except me...



Across the bridge they rose,

floating upon a heat mirage:
multitudes of vengeful angels
speeding toward their prey.

 

A blissful moment that could only be better if accompanied by Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries," flashbulb memories for a generation privileged to watch first runs of Apocalypse Now."

My camera click once, twice, tree times, photos far superior to those of my distracted companions, way more likely to be featured in "Professional Bicycle-Watching Non-Athletic Nerds Quarterly".

I felt sorry for my slow camera companions.  It was over.

They should have paid less attention to me and more to the ideas of Pavlov, classical conditioning and subsequent breakthroughs in behavioral modification--especially the concept of extinction.

Well, no friends made today.  Too bad, so sad.  
I trudged home, hugging my camera with its prize winning photos.  
I was thirsty. 

Wait, did I just hear a bell?

Letters Gone Bad: A Sinking Feeling

Overused letters, I'm so tired of them!  
Particularly "D" and "W".

Now, "D" stands for DROUGHT, got that. 
And "W" stands for WELLS ...like the ones that everyone tells us will soon go dry if this temporary climate anomaly continues.

So I shower shorter (the "C" word, CONSERVE) and try not to worry about the



 unrinsed soap in my arm pits.

I also try to ignore people telling me I ought to be drinking bottled water. Yes, I've heard that sodium levels have reached 800 milligrams in San Simeon, a person's total salt allowance if you drink your prescribed four glasses of water.  Not good for we high-blood pressured elderlies.

Well, I came up with a solution for this hazardous health issue.
Drink less water--or stop altogether! 
After all, many liquids are much more fun...

But lately I've noticed that my drinks, whether soft or hard, taste vaguely like broken sewer pipes smell.

So, I did an experiment. I threw out all the stored ice cubes in my fridge--on the off chance that they were tainting my beverages-- and dumped them all into a sink.
Woke up this morning, tried to figure out why my sink looks like this: 

Ugly stuff but no problem, right?
Minerals are good for you, salt is essential.

Still, I might henceforth avoid anything "on the rocks".
And that's a hardship for someone who still enjoys collecting them.

A & B

Does anyone out there remember vynel? 45 rpms baby. The hit was called the A side. The B side was usually some loser track that some producercoaxed out of a rock group that just wanted to be done with the their A side hopefully top ten song. Usually a loser track, sometimes not, depending on the poupularity of the group or the retrospecgtive analysis of music historians. But what about rocks? Tonight I worked on a beatuiful moonstone, knowing full well that the b side lacked the qualit y of the a side, smooth, rounded now cracks or caves. The cracks are endimic,c ant be helped. grind too hard and the hole rock is destroyed. Do I keep working on the b side until the rock becomes skinny and diminished, knowing that it wil never equal the a side. Or just let it bee jock b. Will sowjpvever buts or inherits it understand that obviously the a side goes out, not to be reversed? And what about people? I have a definite b side, and I think an A side. Wil people remember me for the good side or the bad? Hpeufully both and realize I did the best within the limits of my formation and gentics.

chapter one

"He holds him with a skinny hand
 There was a ship..."

Charging up the central corrider, Houlihan with more speed than could be expected of a man his age.

The Master Chief passed crew members without a nod, quite unusual crew members said in retrospect, from a man who always stopped to check on crew members he knew or a polite nod at those he didn't.

Not today.  Noncoms (and even officers)  jumped aside as he passed, relieved not to be his target destination.  Few of them had seen the e-vids of an organism known on their home planet known as a bull much less the boxing movie known as raging bull now desolate but home planet, earth, but all were prudent

Not that he was hard man to work under. He managed to be gruff but universally revered. Even when a subordinate totally screwed up, he would deliver his criticisms, not skimping on the seriousness of the error, but always with a twinkle in his eye, an other aspects of body language that said, "I know you can do better than this."  And most everyone did.

But now he was muttering under his breath, also anomalous, something about Alpha-Beta-Tois, a hideous amalgamation of greek and French that had become the unfortunate for name for the frontier planet, loacated a parsed etc, where they were currently grav-anchored. name, parsec.

Others believed he something more akin to "Al-buh-tross" which made little sense in the aftermath.

He pushed aside the slow automatic door to the bridge, where his personal friend Craig T. Knowlan sat in the captain's seat.
"Cr..." then realizing his mistake but unable to take it back he continued "aption".
Sadly this uncharacteristic apse came together for all ears as "Crapton".

Captain Knolen's face went rigid along with everyone else in the command center, all finding something else fascinating on their displays, their uniforms, or their cuticles.


Captain Nolan nodded toward the door leading to his quarters.  When it shut everyone gasped, wheezed or quitly jiggled with subdued laughter.  Many had been on the verge of explosion, but master chief Houlihan deserved that kind of respect.

Inside the captains quarters Within a nanosecond of the door shutting
"Craig, something's just night right here!"

Before a quarter of an hour passed, every one of the 23 souls he was charged with training and protecting would suffer a hideous death.


"And now there came both mist and snow"
Strella
somethings going on here
hates name, starts worksheet
looks up,
everyone looking at her, her best friend avoids eye contact
except for school mean girl who delivers the line.
 "And now the storm-blast came"
back to H?
disaster

"The bride had paced into the hall"
then strellas disaster



then Jace introduction
"I looked upon the rotting sea"



Equally devastating to his psyche was that he would violate the three priorities he expected of himself and others:

stay calm
respect rank
be precise







He broke the first rule after pushing aside the slow automatic door to the bridge, where his personal friend Craig T. Knowlan sat in the captain's seat.
"Cr..." realizing his mistake but unable to take it back he continued "aption".
His uncharacteristic lapse came together for all ears as "Crapton".











Include big bang forces being held then let go
The rock shows both views  BBC and galaxy...one where stones found

Don't forget history 
One before moving higher intelligence coincidentally created must be provision. Galaxy stone
Post emp humanity
End of first book..
And the wall began to glow...


M
He could rip you a new one and hand you the old one on a platter when you screwed up.  But always there was an indifference that let you know that over the y ears he had seen it all.

So the wise ones stood straight, confessed it all, and often witness that momentary twinkle in this eyes, that said, "You're better than this."  And damned if you didn't start beliving it after he said it.  Scoes, efficiency drills

Right now neither eye twinkeld.
He has heading up the main tube from engine room to bridge like a locomotive.  The winkle was  replaced bya teeljaw attitude.
Not a time tfor cachat or Hey or morning...this 5x10 by n3qarly 5 6could mow you over.

And he was muttering under his breath
and mumbling under breath the worst sign which meant ithat he was not only instituionally angry by personally so.  Nothing good would of getting causht in crossfiare of that  chiefs emtotins.

one recruit hearhim in his mumbling dangerousway, Ill be void fu cked before keep quiet about this  and went to meet Nathan Abrams, a long time friend who had makde godfather of this kids.
bidge coffereance room
waiaite d until nld.  ou assholetommy, why didnt yu tell how bad it wass up here...weve done two rebuils, studied every linkage.

the minute we to obit of thiscursed planet we got bad liuck.
I do and you do and dont you tell me you made a command decision cimply bcause you felt lucky?

Dursed like in that old lColerage book, remember?

What else would it be since you ugly mug overloked mwhen Sluzanne decide to marry me rather than yu.

Rock of the Ancient Mariner, forward, chapter 1?

He stomped to the fore deck with every inch of a master seargents authority.  Officers and noncoms stepped out his way.
Not just because of his girth, squarish, short loaded with muscle an attitude.  Respect: he had saved innumerable vessels with his engineering brilliance and though he was on of the oldest, he was regarded with awe and every crewmate felt safer knowing he was incharge of propulsion.

chieh master seargeany highest
af
nv master chief
ch200 people ief okay
hair incident
marine corp

clint eastwood, played mster seargeant.

hat off remove cover
carry respect as an officer
khakis like ofrficer
dont call mee sir i work for a living

npncom
had y\to enlist
work for every advance, stripe




goog morning sir vs master chief
button missed on shirt
throw a salute

scariest person senior chief
nothing
seen or heard
always some one with bigger rank that you needed to suck up to.

they met
non come tying shoes,
limited space say kahikis
sorry sir
did you just call me sir
no sir yes maste chief
Let me tell you something recruit
ys sir
I work for a living.
Therefore you wil cal me master chief.  do you understand this recruit.
yes s-maste seargeant.
say again?
master seargeant.
good
and remember the little rabbit around the big (give techincal, secs realated ddescription)

Observed by captain.
harsh reprimand considering he only saw officer slacks and prob ably never ieven came near a ms, let alone spoke to one weaqring similar gear, head down and unable to see that special button on your shoulder.to our left eyeballing us.
I behaved exactly as ptehier expecas

No, sir.  Did you see those two skytechs pretending to inventory tools twent meeterTRIONS REQUIRE AS A MASTER SERAGEANT. tO DO OTHER WISE MIGHT RESK THE EXPECATIONS OF OF SUPERIOURS AND THE RESPECT OF SUBORDINATES.
CAPTAIN GLANCED AT TWO MEN WORING AGAINST THE WALL.
hOU NEVER MISS A THING DO YOU MS.
nO, SIR. AND THATS WHAT KEEPS THOSE UNGAINLY BIRRDS FROM GOING PLANETSIDE, NOT A SIGNGLE SIYSTEM MUST GO UNCHECKED, EVERY SUBCOMPONENT CHECKED AND CERTIFIED.
THATS WHAT KEEPS THOSE UNGAINLY BIRDS FROM GOING PLANET SIDE.
aND WE COMMANDER SKY JOKIES DO APPRECIATE THIS AND THOUGH WE LACK YOU ENGINEERING INSIGTS, WE DO OCCSIONALLY NOTICE SMALL IRREGULATRITIES.
ms PAUSDES, PERPLEXED, USCH AS WHAT SMALL EBACK YOU SLIPPPED IN YOUR BACK POCKET BEFORE YOU HANDED  THAT RECRUIT HIS ASS ON A PLATTER.
ms LOOKDS DOWN.  jUST AN EBOOK SIR, ONE MY GRNADMOTHER READ ME.
mIGHTG i EWNQUIRE AS TO THE TITTLE, ms.
SQUARES SHOULDERS, SMILES, AND PULLS OUT THE THATTERED EBOOK., THE COMPLETE WOWRKDS OF sAMUAQL TAYLOR cOLERIDGE.
cOLLERIDGE, mASTER, SEARGEATNT, tHE rHYME OF THE aNCIENT mARINER WAS ONE OF HIS BEST.
hIS 

bEST, SIR.
pERHAPS AND SOME LESS DIRE MOMENT WE COULD SHARE A DRINK AND OUR MEMORIES OF (USE QUOTE).

cHapter where capt reminiseces on hiring him...someone who mnever missies a thing, who wlhen something wasnt quite right, intuitive, not just techinial.  So he had arranged to have him relieased and sent here.  there was something not quite rigfht about this quadrant.

void fucked
void jump
void head
void tard
(void being description also void jumper, new propulsion system that made light bending speeds possible.

 chapter order
1. explosion something not right, not spec
2. Strella somehing wasnt right
3. Jaces reaction
4. Jace's father, story of reprimand, regret about outcome of alpha-T.  Old mans discharge. Awareness that Jace was late, sorrow about wife.
3. jaces reaction
5?  secene where strella comes home distraught, he is unfeeling and working on quadarant map. drawing xs across plentetoids that stood in the way of his plans.
6? Void rescue time, recovery, talked books--felt he owed him that,
discuss situation with albatross--chiefs response that though there appeared to be a cause effect, even a mere pulse technician would make that jump, life and these ships are too complicated, not a yes no binary system--yes he void fucked his whole crew and that's why he had to pay for it.
7. chapter or chapters on wisdom learned  fear of dark,look close, never miss anything

father or chief takes fatal space walk?
motivation of each
things rising eta in so many minutes, any kind of weapons would take us down  bbe gun
void jump requiresw that they jettis main drive system because of weight.
fagther locks door to drive pod.
the father turn to be noble...need to establish motive for going out.
8. Antherbase commader chapter

father first officer in first scene?

void stone...what it ells them, jace reads after being void fucked

Jc not jace old man name.\

mother's death related to commanders plans.

void jumping facilitated by creating spaceways, void sstones stry to warn them from folly.  
how does it connect with attack so that "not this time" works for person who knocks the other out.

something special about planet about to be destroyed (jace reads map, strella recognizes it from father's maps)

eating phos, phos eater jace finds the old man prospecting on night he abondons popular girs party.
went there hooping  to see strella only.  the dark is ccary.

8. scene talking t friend about party, not seeing all of him on vid, considered fool because he declines.

shuttle has just enough fuel to reach condemned planet.

something incredible there thaat must be saved, but what?

sees old guy working on machinery, winks and pulls out his galaxy rock.
jace pats his pocket. old man winks.
(implies previous exchortation to keep it with him for good luck)

final exam as teacher

The circle is broken

start with beach boy test
 lead to Enders
the student who spoke out
an uncomfortable but now in retrospect rewarding spanking

The one who spoke out about my celll phone edict
you gave it to us
you cant effectively use it
now you blame us because we use in ways far beyond what you imagined?
finally got the student response I wanted.

Every generation loses touch with its progeny because of different experiences.
Not every one has found themselves estranged because the new one can do
something we cant...

Use the tools we created in new ways...
adapted so quickly to the new world, which changes at a more rapid rate
than ever.

Final day of teaching was a success, despite tears.

Every word he spoke was w

There is no force darker, more demonic
Than the heart that has relinquished hope.

without sacrifice,
love is an empty promise

is null, null set?

verily verily I sat unto you
(I'm tellin' ya straight up)

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Do me a solid and back atchya.

The difference between
truth and lies
the vanquished and the fallen
is conviction


Morning Walk

Deep thunk, falling waves
A purple etched horizon
Better than coffee.