John Wise

The first stage of my day begins at home with about 90 minutes for showering, breakfast, getting caught up with a quick pass on news, email, the social universe, and occasionally a few small chores such as cleaning the kitchen, laundry, or putting a quick clean on the bathroom.

The second stage typically begins at a coffee shop where my first imperative is an attempt to write. This can easily be derailed if a conversation is struck up or I meet someone else for coffee. My computer is still the Microsoft Surfacebook I bought two-and-a-half years ago, my first notebook, and my current interface to the larger world.

I believe it was back in 1985 that I started the habit of joining a public space where back then in the main train stations from Frankfurt to Wiesbaden and various other points around the German state of Hessen I would grab a copy of the International Herald Tribune, a hard roll (brötchen), and a cup of tea to people watch and catch up with current events. Back then I didn’t know I had to start writing to learn how to write, I do wish I’d started practicing that well before I hit my 40’s.

Fast forward thirty-three years and I no longer eat bread, I learned to enjoy coffee, I’ve not touched a newspaper in more than a decade, but I still enjoy people watching and getting caught up with international affairs. One other major difference between now and then, while in Europe I didn’t speak any language fluently (though I did attempt American English), and consequently the conversation of others was not translated into anything meaningful. Sitting in coffee shops across the United States from New York City to Los Angeles and a hundred points in between it is a curse to listen to the inanity of a population fixated on media and sports personalities, workplace dramas, and real estate decisions.

So maybe this blog entry should have had the theme that if a lifetime lasted more than about 75 years the burden of witnessing the stupidity of the masses would be too much to bear.

Is there a point again where I can sit happily in a public space and no longer care about the news, conversations, and lack of curiosity from the cross-section of humanity I’ve been in the presence of? I’ve got the feeling that a content and peaceful future for me will be a portion of my ashes sitting in a box unable to hear, see, think, and complain like the grumpy old man I never wanted to be.

It’s a beautiful Friday the 13th and so I thought I’d take advantage of these fleeting moments of spring before every day starts pressing into the 100’s and walk to lunch. Along the way, I had time to stop and look at some of the details missed as we drive by with windows uptight and the air-conditioning on. This particular bloom is on the Prickly Pear cactus. If you look close on the top right of the paddle you’ll see some white fuzzy stuff, that’s evidence of cochineal bugs. This particular scale insect has a larger-than-life reputation and yet very few people even know what it is; it is the source of natural red dye!

It was nearly two miles to the Mexican restaurant three of us were meeting up at noon. My path took me through the Scottsdale Airpark and out along a main street that was fairly devoid of life besides what cruises by in cars. Prior to reaching that road though I got to ogle the well-manicured landscapes of these small corporate offices. I tried finding what type of particular cactus this was prior to posting it so I could share its name, but Bing and Google let me down.

So much is in bloom, just ask anyone who’s suffering from a wicked case of seasonal allergies. Walking out here only makes me think that we have this work scheduled short lunch thing all wrong. We should all have extended lunch breaks where we can take a long walk and feel healthier for the effort instead of racing the clock. I’m not complaining really, as I’m the boss and can effectively do as I please, but still, I wish all of us had this flexibility.

The early buds of the Saguaro cactus are still days away from blooming. On another specimen, sap was dripping from the buds and crystallizing much like the trichomes on the marijuana plant. My walk took just under 40 minutes so I arrived early and just kept walking to get my step count even higher before indulging in what was probably too many tortilla chips. How can someone go for Mexican food and avoid the chips? Damned diets.

It’s spring in Arizona and the amount of sniffling due to allergies is certainly a testament to the power of what’s in bloom across the desert. I was out for my walk trying to accumulate my daily 10,000 steps as it’s getting hotter here in the Phoenix area, now approaching 90 degrees or 32c. In another month I’ll have to visit a local mall for indoor walking as when it hits 100 degrees or 38c the sun becomes too oppressive to endure and often it’s this temperature by 9:00 in the morning. Someone I know in Finland just posted images of ice and snow, I can’t relate.