Life with Soul or 4550

Our 2010 Kia Soul in Loma Linda, CA

Kia Soul that is, the Hampsta car.  We drove into the Budget Rental lot and saw a bunch of cars.  I figured we'd be getting the Nissan Sentra.  While nice, the Sentra is your standard econo-car.  Just down the row sat two Kia Souls, one green and one black.  I said something to Trixy about how cool it would be if we got upgraded and could get a Soul.  But we had reserved the cheapest car we could find and the Sentra sat there waiting.  When we walked up to the counter and gave our names we were asked "Green or black?".  "Green" was Trixy's reply.  We were upgraded because I was tall.  Sweet deal!

Trixy with Soul at Henry Coe State Park

At just over $16,000 the Kia Soul is not cheap.  It plays in the same sandbox as the Honda Fit, Scion Xb, Nissan Cube, and an ever growing field of competitors.  There is much to like about the Kia Soul.  But before getting there, let me surface what I don't think is so hot.

Soul in Bend (near REI)

1) Blindspots

I noticed these while in Bend OR and only when parking diagonally.  Otherwise the windows are big and useful.

2) Mileage

Yes it isn't really that bad, but I am used to my Honda Civic that would get 32 mpg at a steady 85 mph.  Or 43 when driving 55-60 mph.  Instead the best I got was 32.5  when driving 55-60.  When driving a pretty steady 80 I was about 25.5 mpg.  The engine is something like 147 hp while my Civic was 127 hp, some differences but enough?  I'm not sure.

The rear pillar makes backing up a challenge

3) automatic transmission

A general bias.  I might have liked a manual more.  But tromp down on the accelerator and the little hamstas take a few moments to get the message.

4) I could never figure out how to play music through the USB connector with my iPod Touch or mini connected.

Dog (and luggage) friendly Soul

What is to like?  Everything else.  We took the Soul with 5585 miles and returned it with 10135.  The elapsed time counter showed 92 hrs and 40 minutes when we returned it which was actually some 30 minutes less than actual (due to figuring out the system about a half hour down the highway).  Our trip MPG was 25.86.  We traveled to within miles of the Mexican border and into Canada (although the Soul stayed in America).

Soul in South Bend WA

The Soul can easily accommodate four six-footers and have room for each one to have a 22" duffle AND see out the back window.  The climate control dials are large and easy to reach and adjust.  I found the gauges to be well placed and very readable.  The driving position was very good and never felt awkward even after hours of continuous driving.

The steering was responsive and tight.  Twisty roads are fun, but don't mistake this for a sports car (though admittedly I never did push the Soul to its limits).  You will want to be careful on less than smooth corners to be sure.  The Soul will just sort of skip sideways. 

Soul & Horse Tail Falls

The unkindest thing I can say about the ride is that on the choppy LA freeways left much to be desired.  Otherwise very nice.  One other thing I need to mention.  We encountered some very blustery winds.  The Soul held its ground and I rarely felt a tug on the steering wheel.  I don't know how the engineers did it.  Our 2001 Accord didn't manage as well.

Kia is working hard to design and build stylish cars and I would not hesitate to put this one in my driveway but for the gas mileage.

Soul over the Columbia River

As I write this I wonder, if I were a car what someone could write about me  Or what if I were to write about someone else?  From my worldview we all have the same designer.  We have different purposes to fulfill, we have differing strengths, weaknesses, skills, and abilities.  Would the reviewer take that into consideration?  In a human being is refinement built-in or developed? From my worldview "Love" is a foundational principle and the most powerful "force" in the universe.  But how does that fit in to a car-type review?  Would it be the engine? the fuel?  In any case I continue to reflect on my own life.  Is it possible I am being transformed from a Diablo into a Soul?

Bill with Soul in South Bend WA

Of Lamborghini's and Soul

A thought came to me, I'm not sure now how, but would I, if I could, buy a Lamborghini.  On one hand the easy answer is "duh, of course!"  I have admired Lamborghini cars since the mid 1970s.  On the other hand the answer is much more complicated and it revolves around "stewardship".  Not a word I enjoy or even frequently use.  None-the-less there it is.  If I earned enough money that it was like dropping $200 or maybe even $2000 then sure I probably would.  As I continued to mull over just how much I would have to earn to do that I drifted away from stewardship - largely because I was passing a Gallardo on Interstate 10 just west of Loma Linda.  I realized that at the age of 13 I would have sold my mother to the Tusken Raiders of Tatooine to have a Countach, but a mere "few" years later I simply was appreciating the car as art - the finest of automotive art.  The kind of art that I can appreciate in the Lourve or that a friend or foe may own.  Not something I need to possess.  Not something that would even be a status symbol if I owned it myself.

I started thinking about art.  Where is it?  Certainly it is in "Oil and Canvas".  We can say "Music" as well.  Certainly we can debate the "good or bad - ness" of art - and if we do I'll bring up about 90% of automotive design of the 70s.  But for now skipping judgement and interpretation of the quality of art, I began to see that art is all around.  I enjoy roasting coffee.  The people selecting the beans from around the world and providing tips are engaged in art.  The manner in which I roast is an art.  Automobile design is art, not just the design of the body, but the mechanics and engineering is an art and the blending of the bits and pieces is art.  On our honeymoon we stayed four nights at Colton House which the guide book suggests asking the owner about his home brewed beers and I began to get an idea of the art of beer.  We toured the Deschutes Brewery in Bend and I was reminded to appreciate the variety and depth of artistic endeavor in the creation and brewing of beer.  We toured the Tillamook Cheese factory and, later the Rogue River Cheese factory (still hand-turned) and found (unsurprisingly) just how artistic cheese making really is.  We visited a chocolate maker who offers up his own artistry.  We dropped into Bath and Body Works and as I write this am enjoying some scent Trixy sprayed onto a card.  There is an art to scent making.  Auto-mechanics of Cameroon (at the very least) are artistic.  And medicine is said to be a marriage of "art and science".  

My point here isn't art AND/OR science but that all IS art AND science.  All of this got me thinking that because of our biases, distractions, perspectives, values, and baggage, more often than not we seem to miss the artistry that is presented to us every day.  Dinner out involves the chefs, waiters, and others: the look, aroma, taste, and ambiance are integrated into an artistic whole.  Whether you drive a Lamborghini or Kia Soul creative effort was invested.  Whether a movie, a photograph, a song, a poem, or a painting has any commercial appeal becomes irrelevant to the artistic expression.  Yet we so often judge success based on consumer reception.  We judge based on our tastes and biases.  We warm to an artist or not.  Others may or may not agree with our assessment.  So whether you are e.e. cummings or Paul Neil Milne Johnstone, Ansel Adams or the average Joe Snapper it is important to remember this isn't about judging qualities between our perspective and the creator's.  As an individual I can like or dislike something and that has nothing to do with the artistry of the creator.  Vogons and Ferraris are both invested with a creator's artistry whether or not I appreciate them.

And on a drive during Annual Leave, I was thinking about all the people who feel like cogs in the gears of systems in which they have no input.  Whether or not they have the opportunity to add to the creative output of their respective widgets, the manner in which each approaches their work is an artistic endeavor.   We enter into the artistic endeavors of job performance, dialogue, marriage & relationship building, and people empowerment.

All of this brings me back to stewardship.  We are who we are: skills, experiences, biases, temperament, and cultivated tendencies.  We are stewards of ourselves.  Our thoughts and actions influence events around us and we can come to realize the shared stewardship we have towards one another and all that we know of as "life".  If I may put forward that "good" stewardship is investing our best artistry in all we do.  This thought brings me back to my father's words:  "Do what you love and do your best doing it."  That itself is an artistic endeavor.

Back in the USA

So I have been in the USA for about 10 days now. The questions come fast and furious about Cameroon or being back in the US. So without further ado and perhaps much ado about nothing:

What I LOVE about being back in the USA:
Cheddar (and now in no particular order)
Blueberries
Cherries
Fireflies
dry air (even in the "humidity" of South Bend)
Highways
really fast internet
Lula's coffee house; Elia's (in a new location); papa joe's
deep conversations!
The open landscape of Michiana
more privacy
not being stopped by the police and asked for my papers
no "gratuities" to governing authorities
Life feels easy here, I just don't know how else to describe it.

It was wonderful to drop in to SoCal visiting with a few friends and family; to see the mountains, but I don't really miss living in California. Indiana really has felt like home. I have missed our friends who have moved away. But have completely enjoyed those who are still around. I found myself musing that if South Bend had mountains it would be close to ideal. That is quite a change from when we were looking at residency options.

Yet I do miss Cameroon. Perhaps the saying is true: home is where the heart is. My heart is with Trixy and "the kids". I also miss my home-roasted coffee and Beno's pain au chocolate. I miss seeing Mt Cameroon. I miss bananas that have flavor. I miss awesome avocados and pineapples. But when I return to Buea all will not be the same. Some friends will have moved on to the next chapter of their lives and new friends will be made. Change is constant.

"Youth is wasted on the young" is a memorable line from "Its a Wonderful Life." I have a sense of my own mortality. I will not be here forever. Like George Bailey I wonder if my life has had any real and lasting impact. And then I think that it really doesn't matter if I have a legacy or even what it will be.

We share our time ever so briefly. Even if we get three score and five years together (as my parents are celebrating this year), it is still too brief. Remind me - please - that I believe I should treat others as I want to be treated. Not because I expect them to treat me that way. But because I choose to love even when they hate. I will choose to bless even when I am cursed. Remind me of this when I am cursed. Remind me of this when I am ugly and angry. Remind me of this in gentleness and with compassion. Remind me so I can learn and grow.

Life isn't easy on any continent. Life can be deceptive. We can be focused on the ball and miss the gorilla. We can be focused on the gorilla and miss the people dropping out of our lives.

Reality isn't just what we think we see or what we think we know. Our perspectives are all clouded, our understanding of reality is limited. There is no single algorithm or logic to explain everything. If science has taught us anything it has taught us that we really don't know much about anything. Science shows us that our perceptions cannot be trusted. Sciences teaches us that our bias influences our reality.

Who are the thought police? Are we free to choose what we believe? Do we really have to ridicule those who believe differently? Does what we believe make us better people? Do the things we value make more trustworthy? or do we just consume them? When our values bump into different values are we able to respect each other? Remind me again, that I choose to respect you even if you don't respect me.

I don't have all the answers. Thankfully no one I know does and I'm pretty sure no one else on the planet does either - even when they to think they do.

This I do know: Life is to be lived; to be savored. Like the effect on the taste buds of a good coffee or extra sharp cheddar, my life can be a savory delight, not just for myself, but for those with whom I interact. Please remind me when I am as unsavory and tasteless as an American banana.