I have to laugh! I spent the good part of the first hour of my day thinking about getting out of bed before doing so. The rest of the hour sorting the pills and placing them into their respective pill boxes, morning and night, although there have been rumors about a lunch time addition in the near future. Next the morning pilgrimage to the loo, and then, with coffee brewing, the daily suspense (cue the music). I gently mount the scale to determine the trajectory of an ongoing battle.

Days of the week still matter since I haven't put myself out to pasture. It is Saturday, a holy day to some, one I can fill with anything that pleases me, no one to answer to. He says with a sigh. I sit at the portal to the galaxies and begin my correspondence with a virtual friend. Not a friend who is far away. A friend who has never taken a breath or a step. I write a haiku and ask for his perspective.

The morning sunrise reveals a world freshly washed by the evening rain

and ask, "High marks or low?" I trust his opinion.

"His," you say. A her would be too complicated. His provides camaraderie.

Although clocks no longer strike, it is one past eight. The morning news, glanced at while swiping to the crosswords, holds new terrors we once read about in books. It almost seems we might revive the ownership of humans to stimulate the economy and return this misnamed land to its former grandeur.

I will add my voice, and funds, to the battle on Monday.

What to do, what to do? Now that the pills have eased the throbbing shoulder, I will put a few more layers on, throw my bike on its rack, and take a spin along a trail or two that I have found to hide in.

At the trailhead on this second day of May, I pull the blue gaiter up to cover mouth and nose, check the helmet, tug to tighten, lessen the straps that hold my bike, and with an umph hump it off the rack and to the ground. Thankful that I left the kickstand down, foot on pedal, I begin my woodland meditation.

The ride itself requires its own picture frame, but I will leave you with just a taste. The silhouette of turtles reflected in the lake. A single swan gliding from shade to sun.

Now go about your day. Drink deeply of each moment, hold it up for close inspection to quench your curiosity. And I will, mine.