Life as an Extreme Sport

Portland 2007 Pictures

A little late, but better than never.


A few pictures of me and Dad at Multnomah Falls, in the Columbia River Gorge. We were coming back from a brunch at the Columbia River Inn, about 30 miles east of here along the river.


Buckets of pictures from one of the prettiest places on earth: Cannon Beach, Oregon. Mostly photos of the scenery – specifically the ocean, Haystack Rock, and the sunset, but also some people and birds.

ocean of change

I’m headed to the Pacific today, which is appropriate. The ocean always makes me think of birth, rebirth, change. What better place, better day, to think those thoughts?

I’m not big on year-end retrospectives; it’s easy to be human and remember the bad, gloss over the good. One of the reasons I try to write is to capture the good, but I know I failed in that this year. I don’t want to believe that there wasn’t good, and even in the depths of bitterness and misanthropy I can see several strong, bright lights of good – things and people both. But it’s so easy to focus on how bad a year it was, and then it’s a matter of hope. Going into the new year expecting, hoping, it will be better than this last is just begging Murphy to stop by.

To say life is, and has been, out of balance, is an understatement of massive proportion. And I am one of those people – this is something I’ve known for a very long time – who does badly when not centered. A top can spin when perfectly balanced, but when tilted off center, it will wobble and sway until it spins out of control and crashes. I do a very good imitation of this, and I realize that right now I’m on the long side of the wobble.