April 2016

A wonderful Monday! Sometimes you just want to dance.

On today, Earth Day, spend some time with nature: in the woods, at the beach or visit your local park.

I’m listening to birds sing, water falling through a creek and the rustle of leaves as an animal makes his or her way through the brush.

Taking a moment to visit nature makes me appreciate our planet. It should never be taken for granted. We are merely a visitor and we should do our best to make it better than when we arrived.

The other day, when I wasn’t feeling well and was trying to get my bearings back while lying in bed, I watched the original EPCOT video as narrated by Walt Disney in 1966.

I had never seen the video in its entirety but I had seen some snippets in the Walt Disney exhibit at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. I found watching the entire video to be quite fascinating as I have a very strong admiration for Walt Disney’s ability to foresee “a future”. While there are elements of the original vision in the Epcot we know today, EPCOT was to be a planned city, designed to very detailed specifications. Cars and other motor traffic would have been pushed to parameters and underground. Innovative public transportation would have been the norm; the People Mover at Magic Kingdom and the Monorail would have been key in moving the folks at EPCOT about the city.

As an almost Civil Engineer, I am thoroughly fascinated by the hub and spoke concept, especially as it was depicted in such a geometric design. Automobiles would not have encountered traffic lights as the design of the roadways would have incorporated roundabouts and non-conflicting intersections.

I love the idea of more people walking and less people driving. The only thing that I didn’t really agree with was the climate controlled aspect; I’m a sucker for fresh air.

I think Walt had some great ideas with this original concept of EPCOT and it’s unfortunate that more of our urban renewal projects in the United States don’t share his vision. A lot of what we do seems to be patch up jobs or addendum so to existing city layouts. Wouldn’t it be something if folks got together and built a new city from the ground up today?

The only thing that comes to mind as being remotely close to Walt’s vision is the “Spaceship” being built on the Apple Campus in California. I am anxious to visit that someday. I think we need a lot more in the way of forward thinking people in the world.

When we visit Disneyworld I’ll often comment that Epcot is my favorite of the theme parks. While it isn’t what Walt originally intended, I do like the awareness, educational and social components of the theme park. I feel like while all of Disneyworld is designed for families to have fun and to lose themselves in their vacation, Epcot has the added bonus of bringing just a touch of education to the experience.

It’s not the same as living in a well designed, ultra-high tech city, but at least it’s a start.

I have lost six pounds since Saturday. I wish I could say the weight loss is due to hard work, careful eating and determination, but the reality is I’ve had some sort of issue with my stomach that made me curse any food whatsoever. Quite frankly it had been over 20 years since I had last vomited, but my this weekend through last night has confirmed all of my plumbing designed for that purpose works just fine.

Earl was kind enough to hold back my hair Sunday morning during one of my spells. Actually, since I have no hair, he just kept a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

I have no fever, no chills or any feeling of malaise other than the unsettled stomach and the food exiting my body from various orifices at an alarming rate, so I ruled out any sort of flu or anything of the sort. I feel fine other than the queasiness, which has subsided considerably in the last 12-14 hours. Unfortunately, Earl is now showing the same symptoms as of last night. He stayed home from work today, a rarity for him, and I am doing my best to take care of him while still fighting an occasional queasy stomach and working from my home office.

Getting sick in the manner has helped me reevaluate my eating habits and health in general and I’ve made a couple of adjustments to my diet. Contrary to my tendency to make broad, sweeping changes to my life, I’ve committed to give up a couple of things through the end of April in an effort to make it a habit. I’ll reevaluate how I feel at the end of the month and go from there. Small changes make a bigger difference, especially when they stick as intended.

I really wish I could figure out where this ailment came from but I guess it will remain a mystery for the time being. In the meanwhile, I hope Earl doesn’t suffer with it as long as I did. Even 48 to 72 hours is much too long.

Twenty years ago today Earl and I had our first official date. Much of our time together was spent driving through the mountains of Vermont in my little cherry-red 1994 Hyundai Excel. During that ride I knew that I was sitting next to someone that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, no further questions needed. We shared secrets, we got to know each other a little bit and about halfway through the ride, Earl felt comfortable enough to put his hand on my knee for the very first time. I can still remember the happy tingles that shot up through my body like it happened only yesterday.

We are both a couple of decades older, the Hyundai Excel is long gone and we still enjoy trips through Vermont from time to time. The most important outcome of that day, 20 years ago, is that I began the journey with the man that I knew was my soul mate. No questions asked, no hesitation necessary.

It was just meant to be.