It is with great sadness that I write this part of the post. Army has lost to Navy in football for the 14th consecutive year, a record that even some Navy folks might find appalling. Well, in a weak moment of compassion, at least. On the positive side for at least some Army supporters, the Black Knights on the Hudson did win the point spread. Navy had been predicted to win by 17 points, and Army fought like the devil to win, and only lost by 4 points, a very creditable performance. But in vain. (Mea culpa, it just slipped out.) We had given our great friend, Colonel Charles Cunis, 17 points, so we owe him a dinner when we get out to Colorado. (Let’s see, we were thinking about a choice of Army or Navy delicacies, either Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) or lobster and filet mignon…)
This next entry may be a little weird… we were told by a good friend, a retired US Navy Vice Admiral, about a movie that another Navy admiral (a former boss of mine, in fact) had recommended to him, which makes me seriously question their taste in movies. Sharknado is about a waterspout spawned by a hurricane off the West Coast that sucks up thousands of sharks and deposits them onto the flooded streets of Los Angeles. (Think on the bright side; it could have deposited thousands of lawyers instead… but I digress.) I looked online at the write-up of Sharknado, and despite the ridiculous nature of the concept, there were several redeeming attributes of the movie, actress Tara Reid for one. And there were follow-on sequels with great whites, hammerheads and tiger sharks landing in Manhattan. I am hoping that D.C. is next… the sharks could feed on the lawyers there, if they weren’t dissuaded by professional courtesy.
Okay, getting away from sci-fi humor, it’s been a busy bicycling week. It started with my working with the Sumter Landing Bicycle Club to fix up donated bikes for underprivileged kids in Sumter County. We must have received about 50 bikes that were repairable, and a dozen more that were designated as spare parts bikes (the term hangar queen is used in the Navy for unflyable aircraft in that sad state of disrepair). It’s been years since I had ridden a cruiser, which is obviously the bike of choice for many Villagers. The readied bikes were then loaded onto trailers by Sumter County Sheriffs and carted away for distribution. 
My Lovely Bride and I also got in several forest hikes and bike rides on local roads and on mountain biking trails at Santos Trailhead near Ocala. One was to the Landbridge overpass across I-75, part of the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross-Florida Greenway, a 110-mile swath of forest and prairies that runs from the St. Johns River to the Gulf of Mexico. It’s amazing how few people use these trails, especially on weekdays. The Greenway is a fabulous place to get away from the noise and bustle of city (and Villages) life.
Suzanne has been busy with events lately, including this Sanaya presentation at Unity of The Villages. It was almost SRO, and the snowbirds aren’t even back yet!
We also headed to Lecanto, Florida, for Suzanne to present the Sunday Message and a Sanaya session at Unity of Citrus County. Both were very well received by the enthusiastic and hospitable Unity community, led by Rev. Marciah McCartney.
I would like to acknowledge the anonymous blog reader who sent me a link to a spoof video of a country and western singer. The title of the song? “If My Nose Was Running Money, I’d Blow It All On You…” I don’t think it’s going to win the next Country Music Award for best new hit song. 
We haven’t had a lot of rain lately, but this past Sunday I walked the puppies out front and there was a double rainbow over My Good Friend Bob’s house. By the time I ran in to get my camera and tell Suzanne, the secondary rainbow had faded, but the primary was still vibrant. Bob must think that his house is guaranteed good fortune this year…
Lest anyone think that Suzanne and I take ourselves too seriously, this photo should dispel that erroneous thought. Only Britons, Aussies and Kiwis are likely to recognize what’s going on here. It is a game I learned while serving on exchange with the Royal Navy in Portsmouth, Hampshire, UK. Two players lie on their stomachs about three feet apart, blindfolded, holding rolled-up newspapers in their right hands, and the hand of their opponent in their left. The starting player asks, “Are you there, Moriarty?” The other says, “Yes” and tries to roll out of the way of the impending newspaper strike. Rudy and Gretchen are acting as referees as we demonstrated this parlour game for good friends. It is said that consumption of wine or beer makes this game much more fun… and who said that the Brits never contributed anything to American culture except the Beatles?
Finally, this sign for U-pick Tomtoes and Brocklie caught my eye the other day while driving up US-301…