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Have you ever been told how the seasons mirror the stages of life? That Autumn is like middle to old age and Winter is like death? As I was riding yesterday, it occurred to me that this isn't really a very good comparison. We were riding down a tree-lined country road with the beautiful hues of Fall all around while leaves were showering down coloring the air and road with yellows, oranges, and reds. It didn't seem like the end of anything to me. It seemed more like a celebration. Imagine all of nature celebrating another successful year of living. A year in which those trees grew and produced fruit. They survived! So now they array themselves most colorfully and rain down the beautiful leaves like confetti. Its a celebration! Then following all this display, they rest and await the warmth of the Spring to burst forth in another cycle of growth. The bare limbs and trunks we see in Winter and associate with death isn't death at all.

The older I get the more I learn that so much of what we were taught was false. It came as no surprise that the story of the first Thanksgiving was embellished. There never was a big happy feast where the Indians sat down with the settlers. The settlers were given food because they were starving. Bad move for the indigenous folk. There wasn’t the abundant harvest for them to sit down to eat. They were thankful, no doubt, but not for plenty. They were thankful to be alive! As I sit here on this Holiday morning I find plenty to be thankful for. I have many people to be thankful to. So many people in my life help make my way easier. Many of them have passed away leaving happy memories and the lasting legacy of their love and care. I can’t express gratitude to them. I have to express myself to those who are here. Pay the debt forward.

I was told a long time ago that one key to weight loss was to record all your food intake each day. That seemed like a difficult task to me. That changed with the advent of PDA's. I have used Diet Organizer Mobile to lose 50 lbs over the past year and maintain it. Recently Bev downloaded it to her PDA and although she had lost weight over the past year without it, she is now losing about 2 lbs per week by making sure of what she is eating. It is remarkable how well it demonstrates the relationship between calorie input, calorie burn, and body weight. By using it in combination with Fit Day , we determined the calorie restriction to get to a goal weight by April 20 when we go on the Florida Bike Safari . We've already achieved a 15 pound reduction which is has made an appreciable difference to the energy required to power the tandem. In spite of the fact that I have changed the cassette to a higher gearing, the overall impression of energy needed to maintain speed or climb hill

Another bomb was dropped last night. Chris admitted he was an alcoholic and left with David Perkins for detox and treatment. They say he will be gone a month. It is possible he will be gone much longer.... That leaves a very unprepared Nikki to fend for herself and her sons. This has left Bev and Sara upset. And me? I think if this had happened a few years ago, I would have been devastated. Right now, I don't really feel that much. With all that has happened up to now, this is what I have come expect from my life. I was listening to a good friend of mine giving me some kind words after I had shared the situation with him. I listened but was very detached from it all. There was a sense of amusement there. It is as if the absurdity of it all has finally caused my sanity to wobble at the brink. Funny that Bev learned from friends that he and his wife, his son and daughter and their spouses have received counseling over their son's addiction. It affected the whole family! Sara has

There was a time when I would have never believed the day would come when I could wear cycling clothes without feeling somewhat embarrassed . I mean, look at them! You look like some kind of spaceman. I was modeling myself in front of the mirror before I left this morning. There I was looking rather odd and very un superhero like about to go out into public. Thank goodness that cycling has received the public attention it has over the past few years. It might be more than embarrassing , it might actually be dangerous. Thanks to Lance and his ilk most folks aren't surprised by seeing grown men in Lycra . Although there was that one fellow who gawked slack jawed as we rolled by as if he had never seen anything like us. Now I have more items in my cycling wardrobe than in my work wardrobe.

Bama isn't doing so well this year. This photo shows the new accessory for the well fitted Bama fan. I wonder what it means?

I don't know how many times we have spent the lottery. It is nothing more than wishful thinking. A daydream we have sustained over the years that we most often summon up while we are in Florida. I suppose someone could come up with a rational explanation for our irrational behavior. I really don't know if coming up with plausable reasoning is in any way useful or helpful. There are lots of times that we use rational explanations for things which pop up from the subconscious. I was reading about an experiment where patients had the two hemispheres of the brain disconnected. I suppose this may have been due to trauma or surgical necessity. In these cases a person could be shown an object in say the eye opposite his speech centers. Although he could not name the object he was looking at, he might display an appropriate emotion. Yet being unable to articulate the name for the object, he would then offer some rational explanation for the emotion. Suppose this is happening through o

Over the past week I haven't been able to get all the exercise I am used to. Meanwhile I don't think I have been watching the calories as accurately as in the preceeding months. I think I can feel a little weight creeping back in the mid-section. Of course this means WAR! I am back watching every calories again. I cannot let the Holiday eating get away from me. I also cannot let circumstances get my exercise program down either. Tomorrow I have to get in some riding no matter what is happening. I need to come up with an alternate plan in case I am thwarted again. It can be jump rope or walking or spinning but I can't let that get me down again. Tomorrow Chris's family comes to see the newborn. I hope they remember to give David a measure of attention. I don't know why I fret over it so. It is difficult for all of them no matter how you slice it. I have heard from Mitch, Randy, Joe, and Oakie now. They all send best wishes to Nikki, Chris, David, and Max. I wish I