This Ordinary Life

I made friends with my first full-on Buddhist at Christmas dinner last year. She's an opera singer who moved to Germany a few years ago from overseas. At the time, we had a good chat about the Buddhist life philosophy and how this view can be very comforting for those with turmoil in their lives. I didn’t really think much of it at the time.

We didn't keep in touch, but she happened to be singing at an event I attended in Germany last weekend and I thought I’d say “Hello”. Knowing I hadn't kept in touch and that she wouldn't have expected me to be there, I tried on subtle means to get her attention. You know what I mean, small waves to get their attention, mouthing "hey, how are you", etc. Of course, it turned out that initially she thought I was some freak fan (she has quite a few of those) and indeed didn’t recognise me. Luckily, I was able to recognise a friend of hers who had heard about the nice family she’d spent Christmas with and ended up explaining who I was better than I did. To her credit, at the time she had only seen me in a suit and 10kgs heavier, whereas now I was in t-shirt and jean minus those 10kgs.

Apologies for the digression, but a bit of background is necessary to demonstrate that Guru are not self-proclaimed nor do the fall into your lap. It was only after sitting for couple of hours with the opera singer and a friend of hers that I came to the realisation that my latest Guru happens to be a 26-year old Buddhist who's sum of life experiences makes for very sensible advice giving. For whatever reason and irrespective of circumstance, she spouts forth something that makes you stop, reflect and re-evaluate. She doesn't actually give you any answers, just food for thought that enables you to reach a level of clarity that you didn't have before.

I have been lucky enough to have several Gurus in my life over the years. They have helped me see thing in ways that helped me to get more out of life's experiences. If you don't have at least on Guru in your life, I highly recommend you open your mind to finding one. It’ll allow you to look at yourself from the outside and believe me the view is enlightening, if not at times scary.

However, this entry is dedicated to my latest Guru.

“May you have as much clarity in you own life (and your relationships) as you help people others try to find in their own.”

On the road to my own enlightenment, bring on India!

Posted by this ordinary life at 9:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The following is an amalgamation of emotional thought. It is not a representation of my current state but rather an attempt at an emotional purge. I liken it to what opera singers do to train their voices.

It's interesting how in a city full of people you can be lonely. People are all around you, but they neither notice nor register your presence. All it would take to break the loneliness is a comment or awknowlegement of your existence. A smile, bump or gaze would be sufficient to make you feel that the veil of invisibility has been lifted.

It's a strange sensation to go from warmth to coldness within the span of moments. This is my life at present, a pendulum of emotion and sensation. I am no longer aware of how I should feel or even how I expect myself to feel.

It's like living in a fairytale where purpose has been lost and replaced with an uncertainty. Why am I here and what expectations do I apply to my interactions. I work, socialise, train, toil, think, ponder and expect, but what for?

This is among the many questions I am to answer during my trekking in India. Hours of wandering up mountains at high altitude will give me a clarity that is rarely reproduced in the urban jungle of London. I look forward to achieving emotional enlightenment.

Posted by this ordinary life at 11:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Another weekend, another ride… This last one saw me getting out of bed way to late to participate in the Dynamo weekly ride around Richmond Park, so I had to find an alternative. This took the form of what should have been a 75km round-trip ride to Windsor Castle and back. The reason Windsor Castle scored a 1 is that when I though I had turned back toward London, I actually continued a few kms further west toward Maidenhead.

This was a mainly flat course, which enabled me to test the Variado’s performance on long flats. I found that I was able to settle quite nicely into a rhythm and cruise at about 30kmph. For the E’tape, I’ve been told that my average speed needs to stay above28kmph, so this average needs to come up to about 35kmph on flatter courses. I have put in an order for some new Sidi Zeta Road Shoes to replace my Triathlon Sidi T1s. I am hoping a stiffer sole and snugger fit will enable me to get some more power out of my legs. Hindrances on this route were mainly traffic lights in Inner/Outer London and road surfacing. What a difference it makes to cycle on freshly laid asphalt rather than rough grade sandpaper that covers most of London’s roads! No to forget the 10-15km cross winds and spitting rain.

The scenery on this route was very variable. The beginning of the ride takes you through some of London’s nicer parts such as Notting Hill, Shepherds Bush, Chiswick, Kew and then to of the not so nice parts like Hounslow. Finally, you pass along the northern boundary of Heathrow complete with riding underneath the path of 747’s just taking off. It finishes with a stint on the A4 and a few country roads near Datchet, before snaking along the Thames for a few kms past Eton and finally up to Windsor Castle.

Now Windsor Castle for me was a slight disappointment from the outside. Here I was envisioning a commanding castle on a green mound much like Camelot or Edinburgh Castle. What I got was a nice looking castle that was so cramped in by the town around it that you couldn’t appreciate the forest for all the trees. A shame, but I think I’ll still visit it properly another time.

The trip back was along the same route as the way out, which made for slightly monotonous riding. However, considering that I had a 17:00 hair cut, it was quite enjoyable to ride against the clock.

My stats are a bit boring, but I’ll share them nonetheless. I’ll be off on travels over the bank holiday weekend, so the next ride is likely to be some rounds of Richmond Park with the Dynamo Cycling Club in two weeks time.

Posted by this ordinary life at 8:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Why does everyone always want a free ride? Gone are the days of people walking hours to go to school, saving up a month to buy some soap and consumerism just being a pipe dream.

We now live in a convenience society that seems to be getting worse by the minute. I openly admit that I happily partake in this phenomenon and my cupboards are full of stuff that I felt at the time of buying was essential or "must have". If I was lucky, I got a dozen uses out of most of it and now I realise that some of it was such a bad buy that there isn't even a second-hand market for it. Anyone want an old Ipaq that is outpowered by even the most basic of today's mobile phones? How about a bluetooth dongle that was designed as not to be compatible with headsets from other brands? Or how about a set of precision stenciling blades?

What amazes me most is that we are so gullible that we buy things we don't need time and time again. I amalgamated my collection over 10 years despite thinking how much useless and impractical stuff I had time and time again.

I have a big trip planned in a couple of weeks to India. It's a bit of a spiritual cleansing. In preparation, I think I'll undertake a bit of a clensing of another sort by selling what I can on Ebay and taking the rest to the charity shop.

Take a look in your closets, cupboards and wardrobes and see if you can't do a bit of cleansing of your own. You'll feel better and might end up with a few extra pounds you can put towards the next round of useless things to buy.

Posted by this ordinary life at 10:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's a strange beast stress. On the one hand it makes people depressed, insomniacs and starvation victims. Then on the other hand you've got people who excel when under stress. They go from mild mannered to hero status and all as a result of a reflex that is supposed to invoke a fight or flight reaction in nature.

I am more than a bit stressed at the moment. Life changes and adjusting to new scenarios take even me out of my comfort zone. It has been an enlightening experience seeing how life continues irrespective of what happens and that we are actually able to control how we react to things, although only seemingly to a limited extent.

For instance, my brother had a devastating car crash now over 10 years ago. I was at university in Scotland at the time far from where he lay in the hospital in the US. His injuries caused him to fall into a 3 month coma and it was a year before he was rehabilitated enough to be released from the hospital.

The first time I saw him after the accident was almost 9 months later. I, of course, was kept abreast of his status and progress by my parents and spoke to him whenever I could. I soothed my sadness with alcohol and mountain biking (no, not at the same time!). However, what really helped me get through those dark months was a visit to an old host family of mine in Germany. As soon as they saw me, they put their two 3 month old babies in my arms and asked me to look after them. All I can say is seeing life in tragedy was the best therapy anyone could give me. The experience is one that I don't wish on anyone; however, it did invoke a change in me that has stayed with me since.

What is interesting is that there have been a number of situations and experiences that have shaken me since that crash and I have had a different reaction each time even though I thought that I'd cracked the "sensible" coping mechanism. Why, despite thinking I was becoming more laid back and relaxed, did still I sometimes react in the traditional way (e.g. drinking, insomnia, etc)?

I think it's because sometimes we want or even need to suffer. It has a cleansing quality like having a shower after something bad happens or a hard run after an argument. It strange that we have such masochistic tendencies and that they are actually to a certain extent healthy.

One thing that I have found out about my newfound laidbackness is that we all sometimes need a blow-out to let off steam. It's just a matter of finding what the healthiest way of doing that is. I have taken up cycling and hope that does it for me. Otherwise, there is always a nice cold pint of Erdinger…

Posted by this ordinary life at 7:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Now I enjoy my music. Music makes you smile on your darkest days and gives you perspectives on situations you never knew existed. Cleaning toilets, running up muddy vales and mundane chores suddenly become enjoyable, life's tragedies a bit more manageable. It’s like magic.

I am not too picky about genre. However, there are certain bands that shine out above the rest. Cake is definitely one of these.

Your day is crap and you need a boost? Listen to "Sheep go to Heaven". Your day is slow? Listen to “The Distance”. Cake pretty much have a pick-up song for every downer.

The only shame is that I once saw Cake in concert at the Shepherds Bush Empire and the lead singer was an arrogant w@nker. Sadly, artistic brilliance isn't equivalent to social grace.

But in the case of Cake, the quality of their music more than makes up for it...

Posted by this ordinary life at 11:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

It amazes me the quantity of foreigners working in fast food in London. I wonder if after spending a few months learning English, people go back to their home countries and found fast food empires catering to English ex-pats. All I know is that if immigration laws were tightened the hungery in London would not get fed.

I was in a Subway yesterday and the range of nationalities, accents and English speaking ability was amazing. Not to mention the rudeness of the fat Essex secretary who was getting frustrated that they couldn't understand her. With the level of her apparent intellect, I would have ignored her as well if given half a chance.

So, if you're travelling to London to learn English, a word of advice. Get some experience in fast food and at least you won't have to worry about getting a job when you get here.

In the meantime, I’ll be enjoying a well deserved foot long Sub of the Day, turkey breast and ham. Yum!

Posted by this ordinary life at 7:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This weekend saw me and the Variado head up to the Peaks District for the Phil and Friends Challenge. Phil's a famous cycling commentator and his friends are an assortment of cycling fanatics with ages ranging from twenty-somethings to eighty-somethings.

The route is 150km of some of the most challenging the Peaks District have to offer. Total climbing was over 2600m. Combine that with the distance and you have a formula for pain and punishment.

I did what I could to prepare myself which included commuting to and from work (23min and 10km each way), a dozen gym sessions focused on core stability and 2 swims. Basically, I was very ill prepared. Although in my defence, I did carb load in the form of long drinking sessions while at Cowes Week on Monday and Tuesday, can't remember Wednesday and umpteen portions of pasta in various forms on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

I went up to Leeds on Saturday to meet up with one of my riding companions. His kids kept calling me "Jonathan", a guy who last visited and replaced me (I used to visit often when I worked on projects in the North). His wife had put on a serious feed complete with spaghetti bolognaise, garlic bread and banana splits. Only problem was that his son, Aaron, has a mild nut allergy, which meant that at 2am that spoon full of chocolate sauce with a small piece of nut that he stole from his Dad's plate resulted in him projectile vomiting a plate full of spaghetti with bolognaise sauce into his bed. I heard his cries for help at 1am and found the poor guy in a pool of vomit, not knowing what to do. My eight hours were only mildly interrupted, whereas his Dad spent an hour clean it up. This was the nail on the coffin as we didn't even manage to get a good night’s sleep beforehand.

Well, we were out of bed at 6:00 and on the road a 6:30. My mate's Imprezza rocketed us from his house to the start in Stannington in record time. Not only was I amazed that at 80mph his car was on the road, but that our bikes remained on the roof.

We started off at 8:00 with a group of about 40 people, but they quickly strung out as we travelled around the Peaks District. Rather than take you around the route blow-by-blow, I thought it fitting to give you my top ten comments.

10. £18 for First Class from Sheffield to London is not just cheap, it's a lifesaver.
9. Realising that triple chain sets are not for wimps they are for 18% gradients. Shame I only opted for the double.
8. If you break an arm off a cheap pair of DHB sunglasses, expect to lose
them the first time you get a cross wind.
7. Invest in a good pair of padded shorts, getting saddle sore is not pleasant.
6. If you are unfit and try to ride up xxxxx, don't cry. Just get off and walk, although that's not particularly easy either.
5. There no feeling like passing a guy on a £2000 carbon fibre bike on a £650 Focus Variado.
4. Don't stop for lunch even if the temptation is great.
3. Fixing a puncture after 125km of cycling is a feat that defies the rules of physics.
2. 73kmh is very, very fast!
1. A cup of tea and slice of pineapple paradise never tasted so as after 7 hours of riding.

For details of the rest of the ride, just have a look at the chart. I am amazed that I am still alive!

In summary, the Variado is proving to be a very worthy adversary for what the UK has to throw at it. Its next major event is another 150km cycle through the South Downs in September. Let's see if I'm not a bit better prepared for that one. Not as if that would be difficult after this event!

Posted by this ordinary life at 9:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)