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Although I don't watch much soccer throughout the year, I do enjoy watching the World Cup matches. Seeing a small nation like Cape Verde take Argentina into extra time and give them a rough ride is one of the treats of the classic event. The USA had a good run, but fell short to Belgium in the knockout round, a game marred by the red card controversy. Many people wondered if Canada, Mexico, and the United States could pull off a three-host tournament, but so far, things have gone smoothly. There will always be complaints when games with high stakes are played, but these games have gone well and the TV viewership has been very high. I'm looking forward to watching more of the matches as the best teams in the world focus on making it to the final on July 19.
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After a couple of years, it seems like an I-phone starts to have problems. Glitches in apps. Silence mode turning itself on. Protective case falling apart. It's time to get a new phone, and that is what I did this week. It's interesting that when you enter the store, you are greeted with "You can upgrade your phone for free today." OK. I need a new one, so I sit down and listen to the long list of options and add-ons, declining most. Even with that, it still takes two hours of patience before I walk out with a "free" phone and several hundred dollars less in my bank account. Then the next few days are spent sorting through notices of items that need to be synced or updated. It seems like the transition should be smoother, easier, and quicker.
One of the great joys of living in the Twin Cities is the extensive system of bike paths. So many are Rails-to-Trails which means they are relatively flat and travel for miles through the city, the suburbs, and out into the country. Today, we rode one of those trails, called the Dakota Trail, from Wazata west past Lake Minnetonka and beyond. Weather was perfect and the scenery beautiful. Another nice thing about the Rails-to-Trails paths is that they cross a few roads, but are mostly separate from traffic, making for a relaxed ride.
Reading The Overstory by Richard Powers has been on my to do list for a couple of years and I finally accomplished that this week. It was worth the wait. It is an excellent look at the natural world and Powers does an amazing job of weaving the stories of nine characters together to form an incredible picture of the world of trees and nature. He manages to examine trees from every angle imaginable and he exposes readers to ideas and emotions about trees and their complicated existence. It is a fascinating read.
It was a gorgeous morning in Minnesota and I spent it canoeing on the Cannon River with my friend Bruce. For four hours we paddled on excellent water and saw dozens of bald eagles, kildeers, a pair of geese with their goslings, and a host of other birds out enjoying the day. It is amazing that so close to a major metropolitan area we can get away and enjoy the silence and beauty of a place like the Cannon River. Lucky.  Several years ago, my good friend Joe Sears and I climbed two frozen waterfalls near Livingston, Montana. The day was beautiful. The ice was in good condition. The climbing was going well until Joe had a problem. Read about it in my essay just published in The Dolomite Review from Michigan. Click here to read An Arena of Ice.
There is a famous Taiko drumming group in St. Paul called Enso Daiko. We had heard them about five years ago in a show in Red Wing. I loved the drumming, the flair and timing of the drummers moving about the stage. It was an incredible show and I learned that they offer an introductory workshop. I thought about it off and on, but didn't attend one until today. Wow. It was a great experience. A dozen novice drummers got a chance to bang on the huge drums and make them boom. During the two-hour workshop, we learned how to hold the sticks, how to position ourselves to hit the drums, and how to put together one small song on the drums. Below is a photo of the studio and the large drums we played. What an interesting and exciting time.  I came across a reference to a book called The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd. The book is about many experiences Shepherd had while hiking and climbing in the Cairngorm Mountains in Scotland. She wrote the book in the 1940s, well ahead of the many books about nature and outdoor adventures that followed; however, the book was not published until 1977. It is not a long book, but it is very insightful into how it feels to be in the mountains, experiencing all the that mountains offer to those who get out and enjoy them. The book is a fine read, but when I place it in perspective that she did the hiking and writing in the 1940s, it truly seems amazing.
I recently received a notice that I am a member of a class action law suit against a company that illegally downloaded books from a publisher and used them to train their AI. One of my books was included in that event. I filed a claim. I doubt there is much or any money involved, but I do believe that copyrights should be respected. I don't believe an AI company has the right to simply steal works and use them for their own profit. It will be interesting to see how AI develops and what effect it has on authors, artists, photographers, and others who create materials and sell them.
I've always enjoyed watching ice hockey. It is a fast-paced game requiring speed, strength, and skill. Like many, I remember watching the Olympics in Lake Placid in 1980 and the game that became called The Miracle on Ice. It was fun to watch all the skiing and sliding sports at the recent Olympics in Milan and Cortina, but it was especially pleasing to see both the US Men and Women win gold medals in hockey. Their games throughout the tournament were amazing and the results very impressive. Fun to watch.
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Photo by John Jancik
AuthorDr. Steve Gardiner is the author of nine books and over 1,000 articles. |