The wife and kids snuck away to Presque Isle to spend some quality summer vacation time with the family. I've stayed behind trying to use some kid-free-nights to catch up on outstanding project work from the last two semesters (yes, I'm two semesters behind on my school work). I wrapped up last semester tonight and hope to wrap up last spring tomorrow. I was hoping to squeeze in some homework from my present semester, but I'm just too tired. One of the reasons I'm too tired is that I decided to walk to and from work today. This is part of my master plan to deal with my punishing work and school schedule using the counterintuitive time management strategy of taking MORE time to commute to work rather than less. My reasoning is that time spent walking is more conducive to thinking (more so than driving a car or biking) and that an extra two hours per day dedicated to nothing more than extended, solitary meditation will improve my mental health. I surmise that improved mental health coupled with this extended meditation time will make me more productive at work and school, not less. I'll be figuring things out all the while, walking and thinking of new ways to do things and whatnot. After all, Thomas Jefferson could not have been mistaken when he said "There is no habit you will value so much as that of walking far without fatigue." It all sounds good. But I'm too damn tired tonight to realize any extra-homework-productivity.
If nothing else, a long walk through the city does allow you to spot hidden gems that you'd never see on bike or in the car. I ran into this wonderful graffiti on the back of the old Wild Oats (soon to be Trader Joes) building just off of Marginal Way. It's a nifty stencil of kissing bird-men ascribed with the elegant and defiant "fags". At first glance I thought it was flying monkeys from the Wizard of Oz (I've seen that movie more than my fair share with the 2 & 5 year olds). Once I puzzled it out, I couldn't help but think of a choice quote from Homer Simpson on the topic. A very nice find. I marked it (more or less) on the map of my walk route (see point B on the map after the fold).