Today we made some rigging adjustments on my boat. I went for a row around the
lake to test the new configuration, and just as I was at about the farthest point
from the beach where we dock, the gentle breeze from the east turned into a gentle
breeze from the west. Then the water got choppier. Then I started noticing that
rowing against the wind was getting to be a noticeable effort, Then I noticed the
wind was actually strong enough to fill the air with dust. (That's what strong
winds in a desert do.) Then I started seeing whitecaps, and noticed the wind
sensor alarm on the side of the lake was lighting up. Getting back in wasn't
really a whole lot of fun - in fact, for a single, it was verging on scary, and I
was beginning to feel like a sail. I bet the sailboat out there today was having
fun, though.
And I can tell this will be the pattern for my days --
as I approached the eastern end of the lake, before the wind kicked up, I noticed
that the three flags at some facility near the north shore were at half-staff. I'd
been thinking of nothing but rowing, and suddenly the Columbia was dragged back
into memory. "Glad" is not the right word, but I am gratified that those flags
were lowered, and to have the crew brought back into my memory -- whether it hurts
to think about them is really not the issue.