Andy Oakley

My first flying lesson was a great success. Off for a bike ride now but I’ll put up a trip report later today. Meanwhile, first flying lesson pictures here.

Good morning, Saturday. Time to go flying.

I’ve finally booked my 1-hour flying lesson that Katie gave me for my birthday last year. Saturday morning at 10am, I’ll be leaving Boeing Field by plane. Can’t wait.

Wikipedia continues to amaze me with its pace of updates and breadth of content. In the news today, John G Roberts Jr is the nominee for the open position on the Supreme Court and Wikipedia has a wealth of up to date knowledge. Impartiality not guaranteed, however, especially where politics is concerned.

The time has come to update my resume (no big changes on the horizon, however) and it’s a bit embarrasing to have to use the Wayback Machine�to refer back to my site in May 2001 to find the only remaining copy of my CV. Maybe I should try to keep this one more up to date.

Apparently there’s something to do with Harry Potter happening today and we have to go to the bookstore at 8am. It looks like I’m a bit behind having only just met Victor Krum.

Update: Book stores open at 9am on Saturdays.

Katie has just finished reading the ‘Life of Pi’ and we’re at an impasse around its symbolism and underlying meaning. Google provides little in the way of assistance; my suspicion being that folks are discouraged from stating their own interpretation given the slating the book received by the world of professional reviewers. I enjoyed the text when I first read it and�will probably�re-read it fairly soon, hopefully with my take on it to follow.

For some time now, Anne has been reminding me to watch Alone in the Wilderness. I recorded it on KCTS last night and have just been captivated while watching it. It’s a truly remarkable tale of a man, Dick Proenneke, who sets out to spend a year in Alaska taking just a few bare essentials and a movie camera. Quoth the web site:

To live in a pristine land unchanged by man… to roam a wilderness through which few other humans have passed… to choose an idyllic site, cut trees and build a log cabin… to be a self-sufficient craftsman, making what is needed from materials available… to be not at odds with the world, but content with one’s own thoughts and company… Thousands have had such dreams, but Dick Proenneke lived them. He found a place, built a cabin, and stayed to become part of the country. This video "Alone in the Wilderness" is a simple account of the day-to-day explorations and activities he carried out alone, and the constant chain of nature’s events that kept him company.

Taking just a few tool heads (no handles – plenty of wood about), he steadily builds out a comfortable cabin to live in. On a big 15′ by 20′ foundation, walls of spruce logs and some very creative carpentry form a very impressive homestead. Catching fish, hiking through the snow and a life of total solitude paints a truly remarkable of one man’s expedition into the back of beyond. Captivating viewing, but exercise caution if you get ‘ideas’ watching television like this.

Ugh. It really didn’t take long for the ‘back from vacation’ feeling to fade to nothing more than a fleeting memory. Still, a week of vacation without travelling anywhere (a first!) is highly recommended.

Coming back to a mailbox with over 6000 new unread items from a four day week, it was clearly time to unjoin some distribution lists. A week without mail was bliss. I think I’ll try peaceful ignorance over sheer volume for a while.

With a few minutes to kill and wifi provided by the marvellous El Diablo, some referrer goodness from the last or so:

• #5 result�for jetlag on Google.co.th
• First site to describe graphomania
• #10 result for Madagascar on Google.co.il

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