2007-05-26 - 7:56 a.m.

...meanderings of a well-rested woman...

I slept a blissful ten hours last night, and right now I am sitting on the back porch enjoying a cup of coffee and watching adventurous Mizzy explore the backyard and beyond.

I made it home from Peninsula U. at about 6:30pm. Now that Spring is in full swing, the Drive is packed with random oscillatory members of the ADL - Anti-Destination League. The ADL is an international organization discovered by my friend J when we both lived in Ny*ck, NY.

The ADL are everywhere - and likely to hold meetings anywhere. Their membership mission is to slow down any persons who appear to want to get somewhere. The world is full of ADLers - a favorite strategy is to weave randomly back and forth across the sidewalk at a snails pace. Even better when they are part of an ADL 'cell.' An ADL cell is a group of two or more ADLers who can effectively block off traffic in multiple directions. And a new strategy involves cellphone technology. Clever. Pick up the cellphone, talk, and stand or wander in front of everything and everyone as if you are drunk. Even more effective in a CAR! Cellphone technology is the best thing that ever happened to the ADL movement.

J and I are not sure, but we think that the ADL were founded in Ny*ck. And it was when I moved to Europe that I reported the presence of international chapters. The ADL had spread to Europe. Now that I am in BC, I am re-thinking the origins of the ADL. It must have been a west coast movement. In fact, I begin to suspect that the first meeting took place in front of opened doors on the Vancouver sky train (see previous rant.).

Anyway, knowing of the existence of the organization and their purpose sometimes makes it a little less frustrating. And sometimes even exciting because it becomes sort of like making a 'rare bird report.' I can come home and report to K - or J - that I've had an ADL sighting. Of course, reporting ADLers on the Drive is a bit like saying, "I saw a sparrow..." Oh well. At least we can report on the new and innovative techniques they seem to be inventing out here.

That was a long and involved way of saying that I made it through the ADL demonstration occurring on the Drive, ordered a veggie pizza from the best pizza place in Vancouver, and made it home. Sigh of relief.

ADL has come in a different form at Mountain U. It's a long, involved, and continuing story about trying to 'secure' my startup money. No, it hasn't occurred yet. This week I thought I was SO close. I really thought that I was THERE, and that the money could start coming in. WRONG. Yesterday another 'requirement' came up and it looks like my $50k purchase will either be delayed or unacceptable because I did it wrong. sigh.

So while K was going back into the ADL jungle to pick up the pizza...I lay on the couch and made my first attempt at meditation, to clear my head of unhappy thoughts, and to put it in a peaceful place......

I suck at meditation.

Fortunately I'm not getting a grade. My mind went everywhere. breathe in.. breathe out...where was I? oh yeah. breathing. happy place...I wonder if I could sell those books at the yard sale tomorrow...WAIT. In the present. Stay in the present. Are you still breathing? yes. Just the breathing. Uh huh.. okay. still breathing. Now picture a peaceful place. I wonder if that guy Marcus still lives there. Oops peaceful peaceful. Forget Marcus. Think about Stefan instead. And the hedgehog. No, wait, just go back to breathing. breathe in. breath out. breathe in. breathe out. I wonder when the pizza is going to get here....

That's me meditating. Okay. So it was my first time. I'll get better at it. And it was kind of fun to see where my mind randomly went. But at least I got Derwood the Purchasing Dude out of my head (at least until K came home and asked me another question about him. To which I replied, I just spent fifteen minutes meditating so that I didn't have to think about Derwood anymore! It worked. we talked about something else.)

I've just finished the one, glorious caffeinated cup of coffee that I allocate myself each day. God it was heavenly. God, I want another. So thank you, God, for putting me on the Drive, next to the only coffee place in the world with drinkable decaf...