A Quick Get-Away, and Entering the Homestretch

We spent much of last week with friends in Door County, Wisconsin. Door County (a 5 1/2 hour drive from Minneapolis) is a touristy area northeast of Green Bay on a peninsula that juts into Lake Michigan. It was Tammy's and my first visit to the area. The peninsula is crowded with vacationers during the summer months, but with diminished numbers as the weather cools, most stores already have abbreviated off-season hours. One restaurant/bar owner we spoke with in Fish Creek said he will be closing soon for the winter and heading south for Florida until springtime. 

We'll return to Door County before long to make some more memories. 

I had a physical therapy appointment a few days ago for a follow-up about the patellar tendonitis I've been dealing with in both knees since last December. Since stopping riding more than five weeks ago, the condition has noticeably improved. I'm reluctant to begin riding again, though, preferring to remain off my bikes to ensure that I won't aggravate the tendons and cause the tendonitis to return. It's been so persistent. I plan to wait until late next month after my knee replacement surgery before soft-pedaling on my indoor trainer and beginning my long slog back to the form I had a few years ago. The thought seems daunting when I ponder the road ahead of me. My hope is that my new knee will allow me to put in more arduous efforts than my troubled knee has permitted in recent years. 

I mentioned to my physical therapist that there are times when I doubt whether I'll ever again be the long-distance cyclist that has been part of my identity for decades. Over the years, I've wondered how I'll transition from the active person I am to someone who's more sedentary and more risk-averse. I don't feel I'm there yet, but thoughts about my activity level in the years ahead are more frequent. Aging gracefully has been a worry of mine for a while. It will be challenging for me.

Tammy and I were watching The Summit on CBS a few nights ago. One of the contestants commented that the average person experiences several personal evolutions during their lifetime. It was a thought-provoking remark, and I missed the next several minutes of the show as I pondered it. In my own experience, I would agree with her. While I'm still the same guy with a youthful approach to life as I was fifty years ago, I've abandoned some of the core beliefs and practices that have been anchors in my life. 

I'm no longer affiliated with a church, and my faith life, which used to be an essential part of me, is a dying ember. That's easily been the most significant change/evolution for me. More than anything, it causes me sadness and confusion. Sadness because I used to look to my hour spent in church each week as the highlight of my week. I am confused because I don't want the decision to jettison Christianity from my life to be influenced by MAGA people claiming to be Christians while showing zero in the way of the fruits of the faith. They have definitely played a role in where I find myself, but honestly, I was on my way to agnosticism without their help. They merely confirmed my decision.

We're in the homestretch of what will be the most consequential presidential election in our country's history. I know that was said about the last election as well. Both things can be true.

Tammy and I voted yesterday. We were surprised by the number of people in line—a good sign! I'm hopeful that the other early voters in line were people like us who have had enough of Republicans' lies, misinformation, and bigotry and want to vote the party's candidates out.

Trump and Vance continue to make immigration the centerpiece of their campaign as they lie to voters about the intent of immigrants. We're supposed to believe that they're here to commit crimes at unprecedented levels and that they traveled hundreds of miles or more on foot to vote for Democrats. 

Republicans like to evoke the names of people who have been killed by immigrants but fail to mention that crimes by immigrants pale in comparison to crimes by U.S. citizens. Every time they mention Laken Riley's name, I wish someone would provide them with a list of names of schoolchildren who have been killed or wounded in mass shootings at schools in the last, oh, I dunno, week?

Additional reading.

That's all I've got.

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