Author Archives: Alan Kesselheim

Recently I received my Medicare card in the mail. How the hell did this happen? Suddenly I’m among the elders. Young people call me sir, out of some generic habit of respect for old people. Marypat and I have sporadic … Continue reading →

Year by year the currents of time speed up, so that, looking back, it’s like scenery clicking past as I slide downstream on a heady flow. Suddenly, it’s fall again. I am back to riding my $5 town bike up … Continue reading →

Listen. It isn’t hard. You don’t have to plan. Don’t worry about going far. It won’t take long. Just go. I was reminded how easy it is, how powerful, just last week. We decided to escape the summer heat on … Continue reading →

Traditions are a good thing. They keep me up to speed, set a deadline, establish an expectation. With traditions, it’s hard to waffle. This one began with a fantasy. Actually, fantasy might be a little strong, because it might really … Continue reading →

This time of year, I check the USGS streamflow gauges every day. Actually, I peek at them all year long, mostly out of slightly compulsive habit and in search of the occasional surprise (like last year’s November bonus of floating … Continue reading →

Easter Sunday. Time to go to church. It is below freezing at dawn, clear and cold. 24 hours ago there was a couple inches of fresh snow on the ground. We wait for mid-morning warmth, and arrive at the bank … Continue reading →

Every so often I get a nudge from the universe, a bump of ripple effect that is so unexpected, so startling, so overwhelming that I don’t know what to do with it except to hold it as tight as I … Continue reading →

It’s always a crap shoot, heading for Utah in March, hoping for enough water in the Dirty Devil to float a boat. Seems like for the past decade we’ve had it on the radar, sometimes even set out with intentions … Continue reading →

Okay, I’m calling it. Paddling season, 2017 has begun. Yes, it’s still winter. Yes, there are days of skiing still to be had. We want more snowpack, we really want more snowpack. If we don’t get more snowpack, come August, … Continue reading →

After my dad died in mid-October (worth it’s own post, but not now) and it became clear that the kids had their own plans for the holidays – Ruby on the Colorado R. in the Grand Canyon, Sawyer with Bella … Continue reading →