3/31/24

In Italy “zucchini ” is a general term for squash. All the plant is eaten… the fruit is cooked in various ways, the flowers lightly battered and fried, and the stems hollowed out for children to use as straws to sip on watered down wine or cappucino. 

I’ve never been much at playing the role of a couch potato and find that I am more related to a squash…

I decided to ride again… surprise surprise…

Last Fall, just after Thanksgiving, I was broadsided by an SUV on my way to work.  The sun blinded an  oncoming vehicle and on her birthday, a sweet, young, 22 year old totaled my car. Angel at the last moment placed a wide hand over the right side on my face and spared my eyes from hundreds of shards of glass that penetrated my scalp and right arm . Damage occurred, hearing loss from air bag explosions , a broken finger and two hours of glass removal from my head by a clinic MD. Luckily the other driver was OK.

I got a new car…not the way I wanted to.

I was leery  about riding again but my hearing is fine except for loss of high tones. I cannot block ambient noise so I avoid malls, restaurants, theaters and conversations with more than 2 people in a room. I was never very social to start with so no great loss on my part. 

In Harari’s second book, “Homo Deus”, he has a section concerning attempts by science to make humans (rich humans) near immortal. One interesting point he brings out is the fear these immortals will have at being involved in an accident or being exposed to possible life threatening  trauma. From this fear they live in cotton padded cocoons to minimize dangers , an even worse idea to me than  being a couch potato.

The wreck certainly brought my mortality into focus but after great thought and  sore couch buns I decided I can’t live in fear of death.

I always admired Freud and his theories even though much has fallen out of favor with modern Psychiatry. I still believe in the concept of the ID, EGO, and Superego but wonder about a couple more additional stages. I don’t think the early stages disappear but rather blend and mix with compromise… creating a “self” . We all still retain the child’s  ID at heart.

I think I’ve entered a fourth stage…I named it Wizego…old enough to be a little wise…tempering and adjusting my previous three selfs. 

This ride I plan to let Wizego be in charge. I’ll ride slower, bask in the natural surroundings of the Northwest and Pacific coast and not bother to bring out the White Rabbit from Seattle to San Diego…( well…. not often anyway).

My mother in her last 6 months of life entered the last stage of Life…“Tirego”. 

She told me she had lived a full life, was tired, and it was time to let go. I have a ways to go before I get there, maybe Wizego will last 15-20 years, who knows, but as I ponder my future I may as well do some of it on a bike raising money for a good cause and relishing what Mother Nature has to share.

 This Zucchini still has unused parts …and a ways to go…

Angel and Flossie were not terribly thrilled that they had to start training again…I just gave them both a hairy eyeball and said “life’s tough…get on with it…”