Finished reading: Canada by Richard Ford is remarkable. A good cottage read 📚

Time to get up!

Impressive repurposing of a dead tree here at the cottage we’re renting

A wooden totem pole carved with animal figures, including an owl on top, stands on a deck next to an outdoor structure surrounded by trees.Two intricately carved owls are nestled within a wooden tree trunk.A carved wooden sculpture depicts a bear nestled in a tree trunk.A wooden sculpture depicts the head of a bear, carved into a tree trunk, situated near a lake.A wooden owl sculpture is perched on a tree stump with a background of green foliage and a clear sky.

🎧 A poignant memorial to a father in this episode of Strong Songs

Finished reading: I Am Ozzy by Ozzy Osbourne is quite the tour through rock and roll debauchery. Hard to understand how he got anything done. Great excuse to revisit the music though 📚

Finished reading: A Theory of Everyone by Michael Muthukrishna is a compelling and fascinating book about us, our culture, and our future. Any book like this has a unifying principle and I found this one’s focus on Energy Return on Investment intriguing. 📚

🏊‍♂️ The lake is the only cool place around here and I’m grateful for it

A serene lake under a partly cloudy sky is shown, with open water swim statistics overlayed, including distance, time, and average pace.

Finished reading: I really liked the premise of The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley: how would people adjust to being brought from the past into the present? Well written too. The last third was a bit too much standard time travel plot though, which detracted from the cool premise 📚

First week of vacation was a great success

A serene lake reflects the pastel hues of a sunset sky, with a small floating dock visible in the water.

🏃‍♂️ A sobering war memorial on today’s run. Likely a large proportion of the young men in the area are inscribed on it

A stone monument stands under a stone archway in a grassy outdoor setting, surrounded by tombstones, with fitness tracking data overlay.

George has settled into cottage life

A golden retriever is sitting on a gravel path near a bench and some rocks with trees in the background.

Finished reading: Although it took two library loan periods, I enjoyed Lord of Chaos by Robert Jordan 📚

Finished reading: The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Older continues a fun series: solving mysteries on a gas giant planet. 📚

Finished reading: Tapper’s Day Off by Dan Moren is a fun short story. I’m glad to read more in this universe 📚

Finished reading: Despite having watched and really enjoyed Slow Horses on Apple TV, reading the first book by Mick Herron was still great fun. 📚

🏊‍♂️ Nice to be back in a lake

A serene open water swim is taking place in a picturesque lake surrounded by lush trees, with performance metrics displayed at the bottom.

Finished reading: An Immense World by Ed Yong is a remarkable book. A fascinating exploration of the senses and what we can learn by trying to understand the perceptions of other animals📚

🏃‍♂️ Hazy out there from the forest fires on today’s run

A misty outdoor landscape features a marshy area and trees in the background, with overlaid text detailing a running activity summary.

Vacation starts now!

A tall glass of beer is placed on a wooden railing overlooking a lake with a sunset reflecting on the water.

After three weeks with a Readiness to Train score around two, I’m glad to be back in the green. Time to get active again!

A smart watch display shows a fitness progress chart with a motivational message and a highlighted peak on Thursday.