Sweetheart: So good to have her home again.

Dog: Energetic and this morning a little too boisterous in protecting is rawhide treat. He barked at the cats who were all safely upstairs. It was only 5am and the sweetheart was still in bed trying to sleep. Now the dog is sleeping soundly on his chair and peace is restored.

Cats: All the cats are old but do not show their age.

Homestead: Got the stove working properly again. Carbon build up on the thermal coupler. The Northern Red-shafted Flicker (Colaptes auratus) are back and they drive the dog crazy with their tapping on the walls of the house. It is a moral dilemma as what to do about them. They are destructive yet it is we who have invaded their habitat and it is we who actually put out feeders that seem to attract them. Talk about being the cause of your own suffering. We continue to struggle with what to do about a tractor. The snow season is on us and we can not plow the drive.

Work: My responsibilities are expanding as the department is growing. We now have one off site facility and are looking at constructing a second. Staffing, equipping and training are going to be a big focus. Over the last several weeks we have been going through a corporate wide disaster planning and business continuance process review. It is no fun dreaming up possible disaster scenarios and planning responses. Necessary but no fun.

Practice: My zazen supports me. My back pain has returned. I am convinced that it is stress related. In the morning - no pain at all. As the day progresses my back becomes tighter and tighter. By the time I get home from work, I have a difficult time sitting for 25 minutes because of the pain yet as soon as I stand up and move around the pain is gone. When I’m on retreat there is no back pain. This pain is not some structural defect in my spine but a muscular tension caused by my mental states and probably a relaxed attitude to my posture.

Adventure: Getting ready to make brunch. Poached eggs with roasted roots. Yummy. Sunday Brunch is my thing. This morning we are going out snowshoeing with our friend Pat. This will be the first time this season we have gone out. Today should be good snowshoeing over on the mountain. The forecast for today is: “SNOW LIKELY. SNOW LEVEL 2000 FEET. CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION 80 PERCENT”. The forecast for tomorrow is rain with highs in the low 50’s. Tomorrow will not be a good day for snowshoeing.

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