Sounds of Valley Streams

I spent the morning calculating my hours for my internship and then we set out to find the perfect bicycle. There is one I like a lot, but it’s a little more than I want to spend. I thought maybe I’d find a bike and we’d try out another one of the trails on the King County Trail Map. Unfortunately, we didn’t have any luck.

But, it was 60+ outside—way too nice to stay inside. We got the dogs in the car and headed to Cougar Mountain. Because the sun was out, it was much nicer than the last time we went. We followed Coal Creek for much of the way, which made it a tranquil hike. The dogs had a blast. So did we—except for the fact that I got a blister. I think the hike was a bit much for Luna (3.46 mi), because she seemed to get really tired and was sick on the way home.

It took us a while to get back for a couple of reasons. I guess there was an overturned semi (scary!) on I-90, which had traffic moving at a snail’s pace. We decided to take 405 and back track through Renton. Right before we got on the freeway, however, two police cars cut across traffic to pull someone over. The incident was a little out of control. One of the police officers even brandished his gun.

On a positive note, to kill time before facing the traffic, we stopped by The Great Harvest Bread Company and sampled some of their famous Cinnamon Chip bread. It was so good that we decided to bring a loaf home. I found out that the company also offers a few wonderful sounding recipes.

The title of this entry comes from a book I read several years ago that left a lasting impression on me--Sounds of Valley Streams. It's based on Zen Buddhist philosophy. The subject has been on my mind a lot lately, especially after reading Bowen's thoughts on differentiation and my own efforts to be less reactive.