Back in ninth grade Earth Science we learned about barometers in the weather section of the course. An instrument to measure atmospheric pressure and helpful in predicting weather. When the pressure drops it means stormy weather is approaching and when it rises it means that fair weather will reign. So, finally my trusty barometer is back in the “Change” part of the dial where it usually resides. During the height of the recent storm it was way down and pointing to the “M” in “Stormy”. Just thought you needed to be let in on that.

We are on an earth topic today I guess. I start these posts most of the time not knowing where they will go or end up. But way back around 1961 when I was a student in that Earth Science class I remember the course had three distinct sections. The semester started with Geology, moved to Meteorology and finally wound up in Astronomy. In that way it moved from something we were used to to something more unknown. This was the beginning of the space race with Russia launching Sputnik in 1958 I think. When we were kids everyone knew that the moon was made of green cheese. Generally we had no idea of much beyond our atmosphere here on earth.

Not long ago I was looking at the materials of a recent Earth Science course taught by a friend and noticed that the order of the sections had been reversed indicating some shift I think. Now they start with Astronomy, go to Meteorology and end with the apparently lesser known Geology. Interesting I think. Have we in the last fifty years gotten away from our roots so. Now are we more at home with digitized photos from outer space telescopes then we are with the rocks and soil in our yards. Just an observation.

There was something that I wanted to copy and paste for you from today’s blog post of Richard Rohr’s:

“The word “human” comes from the Latin humus, which means earth. Being human means acknowledging that we’re made from the earth and will return to the earth. For a few years we dance around on the stage of life and have the chance to reflect a little bit of God’s glory. We are earth that has come to consciousness. If we discover this power in ourselves and know that we are God’s creatures, that we come from God and return to God, that’s enough. As a human, I’m just a tiny moment of consciousness, a small part of creation, a particle that reflects only a fragment of God’s glory. And yet that’s enough.”

Very earthy, right? That’s what we are up to today. We generally got it under our fingernails around here. Off we go, love, Felipe.

What is the most powerful thing I can do at the moment? Well for me that would be writing to you, of course. And that is what is going to happen. Have no idea what I am going to write about but that never stopped me before.

Which reminds me that we are coming up on a thousand posts here at the old blog. How are we going to celebrate that? I need to think on that and fortunately we are a few weeks away so there is time. 985 posts, just looked it up.

OK, how about a story right now. This may fit in nicely. I wrote this up earlier today on a comment on FaceBook. It is memory of just an hour spent at the local Dairy Queen when we had a DQ on our little island. It was probably a fall day, the season we are most prone to wind storms and the resulting power outages. I was there having lunch and the place was crowded at usual. It was then owned by a great couple and was in some ways the center of the community. Joan, the wife was there on duty when the lights went off and she had some funky temporary lighting rigged up and proceeded to star in a fashion show with all the odds and ends in the lost and found box. Hilarious, right? I don’t know, maybe you had to be there but what a great way to respond to what the day throws at you.

And this was also on FaceBook, a quote from one of our presidents, from an era before heroes became out of vogue:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

― Theodore Roosevelt

Well, there it is, maybe we can all could respond to a moment today to be a hero is some way, shape or form. Jump into the arena and do the do the fashion show, big loves, Felipe.

For the last three years I haven’t gotten a deer in the freezer. Today regaining my credibility by scoring a nice buck. Thank you to Dana for helping me with the field dressing.

The salmon season is closed in our area till Janurary. This will make up for that. There is something about being involved with the process of food production whether it is hunting, fishing, gardening or raising critters.

Yea, got the firewood in, got the corn in, got the deer in. OK winter show me what you got. Keeping it going at Phil’s Camino, love, Felipe.

The wind storm has come and gone with just rain as an aftermath. Not much of a storm here at the ranch anyway. Western Washington folks bought every flashlight and generator available west of the Mississippi. OK, so we are ready for the next ten year storm, good.

Me, I spent a few days getting ready for something that didn’t occur, OK fine. Then this morning I had a dull moment and I thought that I would replace the under the sink water filter. Piece of cake according to the directions, quarter turn on the old one, quarter turn on the new one, no tools required, don’t have to turn off the water. It didn’t really say that it is possible to flood a quarter of the kitchen. OK, got that cleaned up. But irony right?

Anyway, sort of a lesson there somewhere. Catherine here at 1010 to pick me up for 1030 Mass and then there is a Seahawks game at 1330. Got oxtail soup for Wiley and Hanna coming over. Maybe need some more beer and pretzels.

Gotta go, not to much on the deep spiritual stuff today but reality breaks into life, right? Miss you, even if I don’t know you, love, Felipe.

Yup, that’s what it looks like. There is scuttlebutt around the neighborhood that the storm may be less of a deal. Man, I can go along with that. Maybe the whole thing is a drill. Got everything ready for winter in general. So, it’s a good thing. Yea, and that soup is a masterpiece if I do say so myself.

Catherine and I are going to late Mass tomorrow. I am going to hunt at daybreak and see what I can find. I have to cash in on one of these deer that fattened up on my sweet corn the last two months.

Well, that’s what it looks like around here. Just a little wet around the edges, love, Felipe.

We are off here shortly traveling in the midist of this bad storm. It is still going on and will last through tomorrow with the worst yet to come. Have generator and chain saw running.

This is all very distracting to me trying to write this post. OK, back again and I am back at the ranch. No damage here, just a lot of debris blowing around.

But just hear from Annie that Phil’s Camino won the Audience Choice Award. Yea, love it, thank you Tacoma!

OK, I bushed. One more thing to do and that is start a pot of oxtail soup, our favorite wintertime meal. Need to have it ready for the Seahawks game against Atlanta on Sunday. Yup, that’s the way it is. Lovin you, Felipe.

Remember yesterday was my 80th chemo treatment at Swedish Cancer Institute. Dr Gold calls me the Ironman. Anyway, I was hoping for a little celebratory piece of carrot cake somewhere along the line. Well, bless their hearts but Caminohead buddies Catherine and Dana showed up with a piece big enough to share, yea delivered. Thanks you guys.

And then there are two storms coming that are going to hit the region peaking tonight and Saturday night. I have a long list of things to accomplish today so this is going to be short and sweet. Also Dave from the Orange County Santiago church is rolling through. Better get here earlier than later.

That’s what it looks like here. Hope that you are getting through your list today. Love, Felipe.

Savoring the last few days before the monsoon season descends on our beautiful island. We had tapas outside last evening maybe for the last time with George who showed up out of the blue to walk Phil’s Camino. He was such a treat. If your stuck in paradise it is important to have interesting folks along.

Today back at the old cancer treatment center with my bevy of beautiful nurses. It’s my eightieth treatment today but I don’t think anyone baked me a cake. A carrot cake with real creamcheese frosting would be cool just in case anyone is contemplating that, never know.

Thinking about all the great conversations that happened over the last weekend in Tacoma and Hot Springs. We challenge each other, we inspire each other. Yea, and we have fun too.

My Rebecca is off to Tacoma to do the question and answer for the second and final showing Phil!s Camino there. She has never done one before although she has watched a bunch. People love her in the film and it should go well.

I think I am baching it tonight. It is going to be refried spaghetti and playoff baseball for me. It is getting darker dang early these days so need something stimulating in the evenings.

Just a little newsy post today, nothing of major importance. Some days are like that. Thanks for keeping up with me here. Love, Felipe.

This is Steve and Dana Watkins that rolled through my life Sunday at the Hot Springs Film Festival. They drove many miles from Tennessee to be there for the screening of Phil!s Camino. This is the Steve Watkins, the journalist, of Camino/FaceBook fame. They are off to Spain to walk together this time in a few weeks. And there will be another wonderful blow by blow account on FaceBook for you. But the story now is that it was such a lovely visit to be with them for that short afternoon on Sunday.

I am so moved by all the effort people put in to be there with us at the festival. Thank you all. Then there were the three Texan brothers that had caught Phil!s Camino in the afternoon and we would be up with together gabbing “around the campfire” that night. They hadn’t planned on all that but each had a Phil!s Camino T-shirt to remember us by when it was over. I hope they read this blog and comment here once in a while in the future. A most interesting trio.

Seems funny but I go to these festivals and actually see very few films. I seem to fill my time with conversing with folks that have shown up in person. Not saying that there aren’t good things to see but I never seem to quite get there on time. Oh well.

But maybe the high point of the trip was the very last thing there in Hot Springs. The lovely Lisa, a festival volunteer for twenty five years, drove us to the airport in Little Rock about an hour away. She was on her way to work there and we were invited along. As we drove into a most magnificent sunrise, maybe the best I have ever seen, we slowly learned her story. It seems her beautiful nineteen year old son Caton is in the middle of his own major battle with his cancer. Lisa must maintain her job to keep up the insurance for having her son in the hospital for the last half a year. And amazingly a network was set up with mostly festival volunteers to have someone at Caton side all the time, never alone. A tear rolls down my cheek. Caton, I just want to confer on you the honor of being one of our Cancer Commandos. These are the strong folks that whatever the the circumstance seem to cause trouble by having that talent to inspire others. Keep in touch brother.

Well, have I crammed enough in here this morning? Maybe one more thing. There is the Quote of the Week from Terry’s Sabbath Moment blog that I just have to steal (thanks Terry):

Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime; therefore we must be saved by hope. Nothing true or beautiful makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore we must be saved by faith. Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore, we are saved by love. Reinhold Niebuhr

Thanks Hot Springs, thanks all you that came, thanks Annie for being with me, thanks to you all out there for reading about it, love, Felipe.x

This is a great old festival here in Hot Springs. Well, just how old is it Felipe? Well, this is their twenty fifth anniversary this year. Pretty amazing.

We had a screening and Q and A this afternoon. That went super well. I got to talk with a bunch of the folks after that also. Then Maryjane and Joe, Roni, Annie and I spent the afternoon walking around the historic bathhouses and Annie scalding her little toes sticking them in the hot water coming out of the hillside. Hot water seems to bubble up all over the place.

We all talked Camino and Camino and Camino. We are so enamored with the topic. Is there life after the Camino? I have spent the last two years contemplating what it means that one’s Camino starts at Santiago. Is it all training this walk in Spain. Training for what?

Somehow at the dinner table I got on the topic of the old Zen saying that “First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain and then there is.” I think this was in a Cat Stevens song at some point in the day. Maybe it was somebody else. I need to mention that it is four in the morning here and I can’t sleep so I am up writing to you.

But it occurred to me that maybe this the key to my question. Before the Camino I have a mountain, a reality, my personal reality part of our collective reality. Then on the trail I am separated from my normal life, my reality, my mountain and I learn to like that. Someone has said that the Camino is a
drug. Was that what they were talking about? Then I come back because I ran out of time and/or money. And then what? And the mountain reappears. My reality is still there. And the only way to deal with it and keep my Camino dream is to have a changed perception. To find a way to look at the mountain in a new way, a way that works now. Funny that I am using the word way so much. The Camino is a way. I am seeing that it is a way of physical movement but also a way of perceiving, a way of dealing.

Ah, 1% on my battery. Later, love, Felipe.