Prone to Wandering. The Hierarchy of Happiness.

Remember that bumper sticker, "Lost, and Prone to Wandering"?

I am seldom lost.  But prone to wandering?  Oh yes, absolutely.

I don't know if I could work at Barnes and Noble.  It was tough enough working among the shelves at The Little Professor years ago, and that bookstore was the size of your average Baskin Robbins.  I found that answering questions and looking up special orders was the best position for the likes of me.  Alone among the shelves, I was always sampling the flavors.

So, when I went in to B&N to look for a book on diet detox, and came out instead with a tall coffee and an oversized paperback by Gretchen Rubin, titled "The Happiness Project", it was no big surprise.


Channel 2's Storm Tracker Radar is having a busy week, so it makes me happy to have a new book. 

See?  The Happiness Project is working already.  Probably better than the detox would have.  Though maybe not as well as a bike ride.

Hmm, now there's a hierarchy for further study.  A hierarchy of happiness.  

Remember air, water, food, shelter, love/belonging, self esteem, and self actualization?  Back in 1943, Maslow likely felt no need to insert exercise into his hierarchy of needs.  Physical activity was probably assumed, a part of acquiring food and shelter.

For most of us in 2011 though, acquiring food and shelter means hours of forced inactivity.  

When it comes to my personal Hierarchy of Happiness, mountain biking is high on the list.  But this is no kind of day for any kind of bike.  Even though running in the rain is usually fun, today's tornado warnings change that equation too.

Now last week, that was some awesome weather.

Twice while running in Wickham Park, the Bluebird of Happiness himself hopped out to share the trail with me.

Scrub Jay - Wickham Park Trails

I paddled over to Sampson's Island for a run.  Not only were the county workers spraying herbicides for Brazilian Peppers...

Wait, isn't that a pine?

...but there was also a bobcat warning posted.  

Cool.  Swimming bobcats.  I hope I see one.

Sampson's Island isn't too sandy yet, and a few loops of running combined with the 20 minute paddle, was an easy-access workout right from the backyard.

The trail goes over a creek dividing the island,

then through mangroves, peppers, and pines.

No bobcat, though. 

Another venture right out the driveway is a llama ride.  OK, they are probably alpacas.  Whatever you call them, I call them adorable. 

Not that any excuses are required to wander up Tropical Trail.

On the way back from Mather's Bridge, there's some exercise equipment that I've been biding my time to use.  A week ago, it was being pressure washed, and over the weekend, it was really crowded.

But finally, I have the DeSoto bleachers all to myself. 

The Richmond XTerra, and carrying the bike up 16 flights of steps is only 9 weeks away.  I want to do a little stair running in bike shoes in case there's a chance we can go.
 

Stair running was on my list again for today, but unless it clears soon, it's not going to happen.  

Popeye working overtime keeps us from traveling far on the weekends lately, but it did provide an opportunity to hitch a ride down to Malabar with him on Friday.

Killer and I rode home from there, with a tour of Turkey Creek on the way.

The Ho Chi Minh, near Brook Hollow

(Oh, and I ran into Mr. and Mrs. Blownfuse on my way back.  Blownfuse is doing the Cross Florida this weekend.  Awesome.)

I have been resisting the same old rides, but Saturday was so nice, I relented and rode up to River Road.

Sunday, at the last minute, we agreed to meet Northstar, Tom, and Inspector Gadget at the Econ.  By the time we got around to the Gator Trail on the bikes, Mosquito Hour was approaching fast.  Mosquitoes at the Econ are almost as scary as the gators.

Even so, we stopped on trail along a high bank to check out a big one. (Gator, not mosquito. Not til dusk anyway.) 

Around the bend came two girls, paddling downstream aboard sit-on-top kayaks. 

"You might want to swing wide on the next bend," I yell.  "Big gator!" 

They thanked me, then said,  "Wait til you see what's around the next bend for you." 

"Dead gator," said one girl. 

"Pee-yew!" said the other. 

Sure enough, there it was, floating downstream like a carrion kayak with half a dozen vultures on board.  And every bit as pee-yew'y as advertised.

That day was pretty much the end of the good weather.  It's been raining now for 4 days straight. 

Bike Eat Sleep Repeat may well be the order of my usual hierarchy of happiness.  Variety for me, like exercise for Maslow, is a given, as assumed as air, water, food, shelter. 

I am happy to be prone to wandering. 

And just as happy to have a good book on a rainy day. 

Which, of course, I would never have found if I hadn't been prone to wandering....