The end of another work week...

These work weeks seem to pass rather quickly enough. I'd say these weekend nights don't. The time from 8pm till 12mn is SO very long. I suppose I should not complain.I could be working in the old Rite Aid store slugging out the 600 or more prescriptions every day. Oddly enough, I might actually enjoy getting back to that scene. The inaction here in the hospital grates on your soul. I also have slowly lost a lot of information that I once knew about the myriad of Rx products in an open formulary. I might go ahead and contact Walgreen about openings for the future when they come to town. Just to see what the old boys would pay. I might be surprised.

The problem with time moving so quickly is that the week off will pass quickly too. I have a lot to do this week if the temperatures cooperate.

Sayings...

Just a list of fractured quotes as titles for future rides...

1) Are we there yeti?
2) Not over Yeti!
3) Return of the Yeti (rhymes with Jedi)
4) You ain't seen nuthin Yeti
5) Yeti nights...
6) We're not out of this Yeti

Yeti...

I read an email from Paul Barnett last night where he asked if we would ride the century in Anniston Saturday even though starting temperatures would be in the 30's. He went on to say his wife reminded him that I was like the Abominable Snowman and loved blizzard conditions. That made me think of the Yeti. This was the trail name I was looking for. A solitary, reclusive creature living on the slopes of the mountains of Nepal. Well, in my case, it would be the hills around Sylacauga. I relayed the name to Solo so I guess it is official. This morning Bev referred to me as "Adorable" a loose reference to the Yeti in Monster's Inc. who wondered why he had to be called Abominable.

Cold days in March...

That cold snap has hit and temps this morning were in the 30's with a brisk wind. I was having to take Mother to the Doctor anyway but I wouldn't have been able to ride without bundling up pretty good. It is more fun to ride unencumbered than to ride in a parka! The forecast looks cold for Saturday morning. I had got Melanie to agree to say late by a few hours so I could ride the Woodland Calhoun 100 and then come to work. I doubt Paul will be interested in a cold morning ride! But who knows. I really hope we don't get a similar cold wave for the Bike Safari like we had the first few days of last year's event. That would be really uncomfortable for Bev and David.

I don't know what I will do. I may just dress warmly and try to ride anyway. The next 2 mornings are cold and I could get out and give it a try. The fact I have to begin riding so early is tough as well. If I could wait for a warm up, then it wouldn't be so bad. On the other hand, I have braved much colder temps when I was fishing, hunting, and especially when we went to Yellowstone that year!

Does it do any good?

This morning Beverly took Sara to the Oral Surgeon to have her wisdom teeth removed. While they were gone, I took advantage of the warm morning to get in a ride of 15 miles. Sara did fine, she came home a little groggy. Now she won't have any more trouble from those teeth. Funny thing what some of these vestigial body parts can do to us. I guess she will be back on her feet by tomorrow.

I won't be able to ride in the morning. Mother has an appointment with her doctor at 8am. That will be a short night of sleep for me. I took a nap this afternoon to prepare for a short night tonight.

I wonder how much good these short rides each morning are doing? I could suppose that an hour of riding is equal to a spin class, and those do a lot of good. The other thing I wonder is, as one improves his fitness level, does the same amount of miles burn the same calories? There seems to be less effort there but that could be a factor of recovery or improved oxygen utilization. If not then as your level of fitness improves, you will have to push harder and harder to burn the same calories as before.

The trip to Tennessee...

This past weekend I rode up to Jackson, Tennessee to ride bikes with Mike and cheer him up a bit. We rode at Mousetail Landing. The park was so named because a tannery burned there in the 1800's and the mice, fleeing the fire, were so numerous the place was named after them. We rode on two good mountain bike trails a total of 22 miles. Mountain bike riding is a lot different from road bike riding. 22 miles on the mountain trails is probably equal to more than double the same miles on a road bike. Mike was tired after that day of riding. I stayed thru Sunday and returned to Cullman to pick up Bev and David.

This morning I took a short ride of 15 miles. It was windy! I don't know how to factor in the extra work of wind but it certainly makes the ride harder. Much the same way the wind will work in Florida next month. I have increased my fitness level quite a bit since last year. I should have no problem with Bike Safari this year.

Tomorrow will be colder. Sara has to have a tooth cut out in the morning so Bev will be up early and gone. Nikki is out of school. She will probably come over in time to relieve me for a possible bike run. I need to keep my fitness level going so I can burn those extra calories.

Why am I not sleeping in???

This morning I got up early and went on a Mountain Bike ride with Mike Sherrill. He had brought his new bike and had been looking forward to riding for some time. Of course that mean't a short night of sleep for me. I got in about 12:10 and went to bed quickly. I awoke before the alarm and got up and went to his Mom's house to pick him up. Then we were off to the Skyway Motorway. We rode an easy 12 miles and then I got back home to rest and eat before work at 2pm. I was fortunate in one sense. I got a flat on my bike. It was the first in many years. I didn't have to break down and fix it, I was close enough to the finish to just air it up once and roll down to the truck, walking it the last 300 or so yards. I am lucky that I didn't have the trouble miles back that way but I did have the fixit kit and pump so all would have worked out. Today was perfect as to temperature. Riding early in the morning with only the shirt and shorts! Surely Spring is here!

Tomorrow he wants to ride again. This time I have a little more time to spare. We can do a longer run. I wonder if he would like to ride the side closest to Talladega Creek. Actually I think he would be happy riding anywhere. The views off of the Skyway Motorway helped make the day this morning. Other rides don't have the views but have other objects of interest.

Now I am tired. That long ride this morning has worn me down. I'll rest tonight. Also I forgot my Palm today for the first time. I'll have to keep up with my foods tonight and enter them later. I didn't pick it up to bring to work. Darn!

A day off at work...

This morning I slept late and missed the start of Sarah's spin class. I thought about going on a ride like the previous mornings but elected to take a day of rest. I had ridden the past 3 mornings and thought a day off might be good. I don't want to over tax myself and besides, I expect to ride or hike tomorrow morning.

The bike club was supposed to meet at Oak Mountain for a ride this morning. I wonder if Paul went? I would have tried it but having to work curtails the fun. I want to organize a trip there with a central location so we can have a end of day event with a bonfire and food. I don't know if that is possible. Maybe later in summer. Parks tend to close at sundown. Right now that would mean a quick ride and quick supper. In June, there should be plenty of daylight.

Tomorrow I guess I will get out for a MB ride. Mike is in town but said he would go to church. This morning he was busy with taxes and his property. He mentioned Monday as a possibility as well. Bev mentioned her Dad and Mom saying they wish they could see David. I had an idea to drop them off in Cullman and go on to Jackson and ride a weekend with Mike. He seemed so down when we spoke last night. Perhaps it would cheer him up some. Randy wrote a note today. He sounds like he needs cheering up as well. I can relate. Maybe it is something about mid-life that causes all the depression.

What you'd rather be doing....

This morning was another repeat of the past two days. I got out on my bike and made a 15 mile loop. As I was riding, I thought about what I rather be doing if I could do anything I desired. The answer came back, I don't know! A lot of the things I have believed I wanted to do lately have come at a price of anxiousness when I can't immediately fulfill the desire. Like getting worked up about not being able to ride certain days or go on an overnight backpack trip. So a lot of what I end up doing isn't planned, it is just spontaneous. The Bike Safari or going to Navarre requires a lot of planning. With planning comes a lot of obstacles that can interfere with the joy of anticipation. Also, as I prepare for Bev and David to join me in Florida, I worry that they won't enjoy themselves. Now after a certain point, it isn't up to me whether someone else enjoys themselves. All I can do is anticipate the obvious. I read something about worry yesterday that has stayed with me. It said, we all worry as though it was something we are supposed to do. We worry as if worry itself was a solution to our problems.

I realized out riding today that the best plan is to attempt to increase the enjoyment of each moment no matter what it is. Right now I am riding a lot, using cycling for my weight loss goal. Maybe I can create a fitness level that can last for many years. But that can't or won't be the only enjoyment in life. I have to connect with the other things I enjoy doing and also keep looking for new ones. Face it, cycling is hard work. Hiking is hard work. Almost everything worth doing requires effort. It is just a matter of finding the right combination of things that bring fulfillment and peace. Things which fill up the emptiness and light the dark.

Justice....

Excerpt from Hogfather by Terry Pratchett

"All right," said Susan, "I'm not stupid. You're saying humans need ... fantasies to make life bearable."
No. Humans need fantasy to be human. To be the place where the falling angel meets the rising ape.
"Tooth fairies? Hogfathers?"
Yes. As practice. You have to start out learning to believe the little lies.
"So we can believe the big ones?"
Yes. Justice. Mercy. Duty. That sort of thing.
"They're not the same at all!"
Take the universe and grind it down to the finest powder and sieve it through with the finest sieve and then show me one atom of justice. And yet you act as if there were some sort of rightness in the universe by which it may be judged.
"Yes. But people have got to believe that or what's the point—"
My point exactly.

Morning rides...

The past two mornings, I have taken the initiative and gotten out on a 15 mile loop from home and started biking. I had planned to get some exercise as soon as I changed to the new schedule. The cold mornings have kept me indoors up till this week. But as of yesterday, I broke free.

The days have been windy! Mother suggested that I could take note of the wind direction to make it easier for myself. On a circular route, you will have to cycle into the wind on at least 3 of the 4 cardinal points. Cross winds slow you down a good bit when the wind is strong. Besides, I am doing this to get in shape. Harder is better. Today the gusts of wind slowed me down a lot. I managed rides in the 15 mph average range. I really don't know how good or bad that is. I expected with the shorter distance, I should be able to go faster!

Since I can only get in an hour of riding, I can compare the ride to time spent in spinning class. One advantage to riding is the time savings of getting up to the class and setting up the bike. I can be out of the drive and gone pretty quickly and that frees up time. I believe there are benefits to riding that I can't get in the class.

Horn Mountain Shelter

Yesterday, I volunteered my time to work on the shelter up at Horn Tower. I worked with two men from the Forest Service one of whom was an archeologist. He had extensive information about how and when the shelter was built. It turns out the shelter was originally built for registering folks coming to see the fire tower which was a really big item of interest in the 1930's. The CCC crew who built it was composed of young Black men. The Foresters had pictures of the men who built it. They even had a copy of the blue prints.

I did a small part of the work. Mostly I helped peel the uprights and picked up rock and smoothed the base under the shelter. So now when I look at the shelter, I can be proud for having got an appreciation of what it took to build it.

Another big ride today...

I am supposed to be meeting Paul and Richmond today at 1:30 to ride a big ride. Whether or not that is out to Fayetteville or Childersburg or elsewhere, I don’t know right now. I should look at the weather and conditions so I can evaluate the best routes considering wind direction and traffic factors. That might be a good thing for the club to publish. Data on what are the best rides for the areas we travel.