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5.13 First entry from the East Flagstaff Community Library, open every day (Sundays 1-5 pm). This attractive library has excellent internet support; speedtest.net measures between 5 and 10 Mbps, both download and upload speeds, compared with 1 Mbps at Safeway, McDonald's or Travelers Inn Motel on Route 66. The library is about eight minutes by foot from my apartment, only a little farther than Safeway but much, much nicer. I will refrain from getting an unnecessary internet connection at my apartment if I can take care of essentials at the library. Meanwhile there are wonderful mountains and forests beckoning for another summer season of hiking and camping. Mt Humphreys, highest in Arizona at 12,637 feet, points up against blue sky in plain view from my north bedroom window. There is still snow on the summit. I wonder about hiking up there from here. Time to get back in shape!
5.11 At 5 am local Flagstaff time, the first game of the Anand-Gelfand world championship chess match has started in Moscow and I have to pack up now and move out. Bummer! [Update 7 am: a draw was agreed on anyway before I had to pull the plug. What a miracle to see events happening on the other side of the world in real time. A match between official world champion Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen, currently rated number one in the FIDE ratings (ELO 2835), would be more exciting except that Carlsen chose not to participate in the challenger tournaments because of unacceptable conditions.]
5.10 Letter to family describing the apartment I have found.
5.06 --"Did they make something lonesome go through you?" (In the Home Stretch, poem by Robert Frost in Mountain Interval, page 18, when the furniture movers say "God!" and roll their eyes at the impossible proposal to leave the city to live on a farm. The dilemma facing me is whether to get an apartment in the older and more crowded neighborhoods with convenient access to services or else choose a more secluded, peaceful retreat near the surrounding forest. The properties near the forest require a one-year lease which would commit me to spend another freezing winter of ice and snow as in Pullman, Washington, but hopefully not so wet and gray. On the other hand, living near convenient city services might result in more noise from neighbors and traffic as in Waianae, Oahu, and discourage daily hiking in forest surroundings. What if I just stay on in a motel on Route 66 (Travelers Inn, Room 102) like Howard Hughes, but without his extravagant budget? I suppose that I could get along without a kitchen stove or a pantry; an electric hot pot and a can of beans might do, as far as utilities go, but cramped living quarters might provoke cabin fever. This would no doubt motivate getting out and doing more hiking, which would be a good thing, as long as the weather permits. In fact Flagstaff has an extensive trail hiking network including a winding path along Route 66 parallel to the railroad tracks, but it is not the same as natural forest.
5.02 Returned to Flagstaff, Arizona, after an absence of four years (except for a very brief visit two years ago). Much has changed. The Greyhound station was relocated from its former convenient downtown location to a flimsy shack beside the railroad tracks. Some Mountain Line (Lion, get it?) City Bus routes were changed, dropping some convenient stops on heavily trafficked old Route 66. A foreign used car lot was relocated leaving nothing but an expanse of empty pavement. The cozy interior of Biff's Bagel and Internet Cafe in the University neighborhood was gutted and replaced with small generic tables and chairs to accommodate more customers. The former namesake computer consoles with uncrowded full size keyboards were replaced by tiny generic netbooks hidden under the counter. At least the signature home-baked bagels survived unscathed with the pictures of dogs covering the walls. A second-story staircase at the back unit of Arrowhead Lodge where I once stayed was torn out leaving an empty hole in the upper deck. The former profusion of roses near the office vanished but for two new lonely startup plants. Odegaard's Sewing Center was relocated from downtown for better parking; the very last spool of Coats & Clark black nylon upholstery thread almost escaped my search because of a design change in the color and shape of the spool. I have not visited my old camps behind Mt. Elden yet; I hope that the forest has survived bulldozer and fire. Prices have crept up everywhere although food and gasoline remain less costly than in Hawaii. There is greater variety of food in the supermarkets, for example turnips and rutabagas at Fry's, Albertsons or Safeway in addition to the daikon radishes which Hawaiians unknowingly call turnips. To my satisfaction soft corn tortillas made without oil of any kind are available, entirely free of cholesterol and saturated fat. The weather here also changes hour by hour. Flagstaff, a growing city of 66,000, is decaying in the older neighborhoods while expanding at the edges.
To find an apartment I will be exploring some neighborhoods on foot in order to experience the local color firsthand in a way which cannot be done by internet search. In the meantime I will stay at one of the older motels along old Route 66 parallel to the railroad tracks even though a newer generation is spreading along Huntington Avenue south of the tracks.
4.29 The Jwleaf PAO Mnemonic System was uploaded today to Anki, a site for practicing memory training using electronic flash cards with optional images. The deck of one hundred flash cards can be downloaded freely by anyone who wants to study them or modify them to personal preference. After installing the Anki application program on your computer, run it and select File - Download - Shared Deck to view all of the memory packages available, listed in order of popularity by number of total downloads. By far the most popular deck with more than 154,000 downloads is a Japanese Kanji language set. Mandarin Chinese has a deck with almost 25,000 downloads and Spanish has one with about 15,000.
4.25 --"Oh, how I have wasted my time!" said little Gerda; "It is autumn. I must not rest any longer," and she rose up to go on. (The Snow Queen, by Hans Christian Andersen, when Gerda sees the rose hidden by the old woman to keep her from remembering her quest to find Kay kidnapped by the Snow Queen).
4.06 By not halting and by not straining. Now that the Acer netbook is finally up and running with all programs successfully installed, there is no need to spend as much time on it. I am glad to have it share this empty room with me like a pet, guarding its familiar place like a puppy on a pillow, quietly gnawing its bone of folded proteins, ready, willing and able to serve on call and needing nothing in the way of maintenance except some electricity, a cooling breeze and an occasional software update. Now I am free to resume my long distance quest. My abundant leisure is a privilege and an opportunity. Few people can experience empty rooms and empty days without clinging to something. This is not to imply that I have reached a perfect state of equanimity, only that my thoughts are directed at that goal. Balance between attack and defense is characteristic of grandmaster chess play; sometimes a winning move can be a simple waiting move when the opponent is obliged by the rules of the game to make some move where any move in any direction would allow penetration (this is called "zugzwang"). A favorable position between two unsupported kings facing each other is called "taking the opposition". It would be a waste of precious time for me to get mired in busy distractions (including playing chess, unfortunately) or laziness or despair like those unfortunate tropical roaches who share this space with me. They meander into the sticky black cavern of the Hoy Hoy Hotel attracted by the illusory bait there and never check out.
In this regard the very first sutta in the Samyutta Nikaya relates how the Buddha managed his quest. According to the sutta, one night in Jeta's grove he was visited by a certain devata of stunning beauty, illuminating the entire grove. The devata said to him respectfully, "How, dear sir, did you cross the flood?" The Buddha replied, "By not halting, friend, and by not straining I crossed the flood." --"But how is it, dear sir, that by not halting and by not straining you crossed the flood?" --"When I came to a standstill, friend, then I sank; but when I struggled, then I got swept away. It is in this way, friend, that by not halting and by not straining that I crossed the flood." This could very well be the description of how I successfully hiked three thousand miles from Mexico to Canada (CDT 1999, Seven Million Steps). To cover such an enormous distance in one season, it is necessary to keep moving almost all of the time. Sometimes I would take a short break after lunch but usually I would just keep on going like on a treadmill, averaging twenty mountain miles a day. Slow and steady wins the race. It did not require a lot of effort after my body got into shape. Afoot and light-hearted (as Walt Whitman put it), I traveled with a minimal load. I did not worry about my progress or struggle to make deadlines, except that I knew in general that if I did not cover enough distance every day my food supply would run out before reaching the next town. This was a strong incentive to keep going but not a source of anxiety. My longest stretch was thirteen days. As each long summer day would start drawing to a close I would begin looking around for a place to camp in stealth mode (low profile without fire or tent, with only a tarp in case of rain). Almost any secluded level spot under a tree would do. Sometimes I would even hike (on roads) in the cool of the night by moonlight or starlight. It was easy (my memory has smoothed over the rough spots). I felt buoyed by a feeling that I was always making progress. I wish that spiritual practice could be as easy. The secret is to develop a daily routine that carries one along by not halting and by not straining.
Recent News 2012
Home Page (jwleaf.org)
5.13 First entry from the East Flagstaff Community Library, open every day (Sundays 1-5 pm). This attractive library has excellent internet support; speedtest.net measures between 5 and 10 Mbps, both download and upload speeds, compared with 1 Mbps at Safeway, McDonald's or Travelers Inn Motel on Route 66. The library is about eight minutes by foot from my apartment, only a little farther than Safeway but much, much nicer. I will refrain from getting an unnecessary internet connection at my apartment if I can take care of essentials at the library. Meanwhile there are wonderful mountains and forests beckoning for another summer season of hiking and camping. Mt Humphreys, highest in Arizona at 12,637 feet, points up against blue sky in plain view from my north bedroom window. There is still snow on the summit. I wonder about hiking up there from here. Time to get back in shape!
5.11 At 5 am local Flagstaff time, the first game of the Anand-Gelfand world championship chess match has started in Moscow and I have to pack up now and move out. Bummer! [Update 7 am: a draw was agreed on anyway before I had to pull the plug. What a miracle to see events happening on the other side of the world in real time. A match between official world champion Viswanathan Anand and Magnus Carlsen, currently rated number one in the FIDE ratings (ELO 2835), would be more exciting except that Carlsen chose not to participate in the challenger tournaments because of unacceptable conditions.]
5.10 Letter to family describing the apartment I have found.
5.06 --"Did they make something lonesome go through you?" (In the Home Stretch, poem by Robert Frost in Mountain Interval, page 18, when the furniture movers say "God!" and roll their eyes at the impossible proposal to leave the city to live on a farm. The dilemma facing me is whether to get an apartment in the older and more crowded neighborhoods with convenient access to services or else choose a more secluded, peaceful retreat near the surrounding forest. The properties near the forest require a one-year lease which would commit me to spend another freezing winter of ice and snow as in Pullman, Washington, but hopefully not so wet and gray. On the other hand, living near convenient city services might result in more noise from neighbors and traffic as in Waianae, Oahu, and discourage daily hiking in forest surroundings. What if I just stay on in a motel on Route 66 (Travelers Inn, Room 102) like Howard Hughes, but without his extravagant budget? I suppose that I could get along without a kitchen stove or a pantry; an electric hot pot and a can of beans might do, as far as utilities go, but cramped living quarters might provoke cabin fever. This would no doubt motivate getting out and doing more hiking, which would be a good thing, as long as the weather permits. In fact Flagstaff has an extensive trail hiking network including a winding path along Route 66 parallel to the railroad tracks, but it is not the same as natural forest.
5.02 Returned to Flagstaff, Arizona, after an absence of four years (except for a very brief visit two years ago). Much has changed. The Greyhound station was relocated from its former convenient downtown location to a flimsy shack beside the railroad tracks. Some Mountain Line (Lion, get it?) City Bus routes were changed, dropping some convenient stops on heavily trafficked old Route 66. A foreign used car lot was relocated leaving nothing but an expanse of empty pavement. The cozy interior of Biff's Bagel and Internet Cafe in the University neighborhood was gutted and replaced with small generic tables and chairs to accommodate more customers. The former namesake computer consoles with uncrowded full size keyboards were replaced by tiny generic netbooks hidden under the counter. At least the signature home-baked bagels survived unscathed with the pictures of dogs covering the walls. A second-story staircase at the back unit of Arrowhead Lodge where I once stayed was torn out leaving an empty hole in the upper deck. The former profusion of roses near the office vanished but for two new lonely startup plants. Odegaard's Sewing Center was relocated from downtown for better parking; the very last spool of Coats & Clark black nylon upholstery thread almost escaped my search because of a design change in the color and shape of the spool. I have not visited my old camps behind Mt. Elden yet; I hope that the forest has survived bulldozer and fire. Prices have crept up everywhere although food and gasoline remain less costly than in Hawaii. There is greater variety of food in the supermarkets, for example turnips and rutabagas at Fry's, Albertsons or Safeway in addition to the daikon radishes which Hawaiians unknowingly call turnips. To my satisfaction soft corn tortillas made without oil of any kind are available, entirely free of cholesterol and saturated fat. The weather here also changes hour by hour. Flagstaff, a growing city of 66,000, is decaying in the older neighborhoods while expanding at the edges.
To find an apartment I will be exploring some neighborhoods on foot in order to experience the local color firsthand in a way which cannot be done by internet search. In the meantime I will stay at one of the older motels along old Route 66 parallel to the railroad tracks even though a newer generation is spreading along Huntington Avenue south of the tracks.
4.29 The Jwleaf PAO Mnemonic System was uploaded today to Anki, a site for practicing memory training using electronic flash cards with optional images. The deck of one hundred flash cards can be downloaded freely by anyone who wants to study them or modify them to personal preference. After installing the Anki application program on your computer, run it and select File - Download - Shared Deck to view all of the memory packages available, listed in order of popularity by number of total downloads. By far the most popular deck with more than 154,000 downloads is a Japanese Kanji language set. Mandarin Chinese has a deck with almost 25,000 downloads and Spanish has one with about 15,000.
4.25 --"Oh, how I have wasted my time!" said little Gerda; "It is autumn. I must not rest any longer," and she rose up to go on. (The Snow Queen, by Hans Christian Andersen, when Gerda sees the rose hidden by the old woman to keep her from remembering her quest to find Kay kidnapped by the Snow Queen).
4.06 By not halting and by not straining. Now that the Acer netbook is finally up and running with all programs successfully installed, there is no need to spend as much time on it. I am glad to have it share this empty room with me like a pet, guarding its familiar place like a puppy on a pillow, quietly gnawing its bone of folded proteins, ready, willing and able to serve on call and needing nothing in the way of maintenance except some electricity, a cooling breeze and an occasional software update. Now I am free to resume my long distance quest. My abundant leisure is a privilege and an opportunity. Few people can experience empty rooms and empty days without clinging to something. This is not to imply that I have reached a perfect state of equanimity, only that my thoughts are directed at that goal. Balance between attack and defense is characteristic of grandmaster chess play; sometimes a winning move can be a simple waiting move when the opponent is obliged by the rules of the game to make some move where any move in any direction would allow penetration (this is called "zugzwang"). A favorable position between two unsupported kings facing each other is called "taking the opposition". It would be a waste of precious time for me to get mired in busy distractions (including playing chess, unfortunately) or laziness or despair like those unfortunate tropical roaches who share this space with me. They meander into the sticky black cavern of the Hoy Hoy Hotel attracted by the illusory bait there and never check out.
In this regard the very first sutta in the Samyutta Nikaya relates how the Buddha managed his quest. According to the sutta, one night in Jeta's grove he was visited by a certain devata of stunning beauty, illuminating the entire grove. The devata said to him respectfully, "How, dear sir, did you cross the flood?" The Buddha replied, "By not halting, friend, and by not straining I crossed the flood." --"But how is it, dear sir, that by not halting and by not straining you crossed the flood?" --"When I came to a standstill, friend, then I sank; but when I struggled, then I got swept away. It is in this way, friend, that by not halting and by not straining that I crossed the flood." This could very well be the description of how I successfully hiked three thousand miles from Mexico to Canada (CDT 1999, Seven Million Steps). To cover such an enormous distance in one season, it is necessary to keep moving almost all of the time. Sometimes I would take a short break after lunch but usually I would just keep on going like on a treadmill, averaging twenty mountain miles a day. Slow and steady wins the race. It did not require a lot of effort after my body got into shape. Afoot and light-hearted (as Walt Whitman put it), I traveled with a minimal load. I did not worry about my progress or struggle to make deadlines, except that I knew in general that if I did not cover enough distance every day my food supply would run out before reaching the next town. This was a strong incentive to keep going but not a source of anxiety. My longest stretch was thirteen days. As each long summer day would start drawing to a close I would begin looking around for a place to camp in stealth mode (low profile without fire or tent, with only a tarp in case of rain). Almost any secluded level spot under a tree would do. Sometimes I would even hike (on roads) in the cool of the night by moonlight or starlight. It was easy (my memory has smoothed over the rough spots). I felt buoyed by a feeling that I was always making progress. I wish that spiritual practice could be as easy. The secret is to develop a daily routine that carries one along by not halting and by not straining.
Recent News 2012
Home Page (jwleaf.org)