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Showing posts from June 19, 2011

Honshu and Okinawa

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I am back. I spent 10 days in Japan, 5 days for work on the main island of Honshu and 5 days of solo adventure in Okinawa. Travel is so invigorating dispite the uncomfortableness. Jetlag, anxiety, crowds, and other discomforts aside, it is mind-expanding and rewarding. Work went well. I flew a new airline (Skymark) from Tokyo to Naha. I am always wary of strange discount airlines and all the traps they set. However, I had a great expereince with "Sky". I was actually shocked. Super easy checkin at the airport, no extra fees even with extra luggage. The primary mission in Okinawa was to visit the Peace Park and the Suicide cliffs of Okinawa. At the end of WW2 the inhabitants were encouraged to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Americans and get tortured and eaten. They jumped off the cliffs at the souther end of the main island. If you have seen theoriginal color footage taken at the time. I am sure you were moved with mothers holding their babies jumping to th...
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I am not in Kansas anymore. I know, the saying is more than old. The folks in Kansas have a great base. It is something I revere as part of my aspirations of farm life. I am off to Europe again Saturday. I arrive in Prague, Czech Republic Sunday. We have a intense agenda. The Pareto Rule applies. "Get 'r done" in a Global City DJ and I are looking at buying property in Costa Rica. It is difficult to schedule the visit/purchase because of work/project compulsion. And of course, spending much time there is a bit of a time-management conundrum as well. Actually, my vision is really developing a respite for friends and family from around the world. I can see a very nice visitor register (on paper) emerging, which of course is priceless. The guy on the scooter... I had to take a pic. It was awkward taking the pic. I am glad I did. It was just too weird. What emotion does that image evoke? I get a few. Interestingly enough when we were on the Interstate in Kansas w...
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I ran into this bug this morning in the parking lot in Duluth. I was thinking I had to go to central America to see a land insect this size. That's my shoe there. I almost tripped over this guy. Yes, he was alive. I kicked him to make sure.
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I hiked about 10 miles on the Appalachian Trail (AT) yesterday. It took a while to get to my start place on fire roads. It was maybe 13 miles off the pavement. It was a nice ride through the woods. It was a little like driving the jeep around the property in Berkshire. It was similar, but the jeep is a lot more fun around the farm. The hike of course was great. I went to the top of Springer Mountain again, but from the other way, not from the approach trail. I met a few folks. Some were finishing up an 8 day trek from North Carolina. It is a culture that's for sure. At the summit we were in the clouds and it was misting and a bit rainy. It certainly felt like I was in the clouds. My new hiking shoes worked very well. The GPS on my phone did the trick is showing where I was. The ceiling was a bit low this morning on a trip up to Gainesville, GA. in N53057. I am getting better with ATC and the Atlanta airspace. Learning is what it is all about.