A day of nothing but relaxation

I didn't ride today.  I didn't run.  I didn't even swim.  I got up early to go weigh in at my Weight Watchers meeting (um... that didn't go so well), took the dog to the vet, ran some errands and did a little bra shopping.  BTW- on a side note- bra shopping is far worse than any swimsuit shopping day.  Do you even KNOW how hard it is to find something to hoist the girls up to where they were in my 20's.  Well if you don't know- it's incredibly difficult.  Why oh why does gravity do such terrible things to my chest.  But I digress...
It was a great day to do lots of nothing.  Sometimes it's just what you need.  I enjoyed every minute of it.

The day ended with a nice little fire in the backyard.

Today was pretty chilly.  I refused to put on my down jacket, so I just froze when I went outside today.  It's March, doggone it- it's sunny and it should be warm so I was protesting the frigid weather.  It didn't do any good.  It was still cold despite my protesting and minor temper tantrum. 

The dogs and I went outside after dinner to enjoy a little fire.  It's the first time I used the chiminea that was given to us by some friends.  I had no idea that pinion wood smokes like a... well... a chimney.  The smell was heavenly and I felt like I was being transported to Colorado, the Grand Canyon or any other number of places where we're surrounded by beauty and enjoying an evening camping by the firelight.  It was so peaceful.  The hum of the highway and the glow and crackle of the fire did my soul a world of good!



So even tho I didn't even look at my bike or running shoes today, my heart and soul got a great workout of rest and relaxation.  And that's not a bad thing! 

well I guess it's officially March

When it's spring-like for 2 days then suddenly turns to winter in an instant.  Remember how beautiful  my commute was the other day?  Yeah, it was nothing like that today.  It seems we have a touch of bi-polar in the weather.  In like a lamb, guess that means it's going out like a lion. ROAR!!
See that flag up there? That's a strong northerly wind.  A cold wind (like there's such a thing as a warm northerly wind, right).  Brrrrr... had to stop and put on a hat, then stop and put on my full finger gloves, and then stop to pull my wool socks up to my knicker bottoms.

Yeah- I looked pretty darn cool (in Nerd World).

Since I was stopped so much- I figured I might as well get a picture of me. I look thrilled (notice the Elvis lip curl signaling my displeasure at my frequent stops and my ever-slowing pace into the wind).

The trail I was on parallels the highway so I looked over at the highway with all those wretched fools driving in their cars.  They don't know what they're missing.

They're missing the freezing cold north wind, the almost-blow-you-down gusts, the... WAIT- maybe for once they have it better than me.
Oh WOW- I had a momentary lapse of intelligence/perspective there.  There's NO WAY they have it better than me.  Sure they have their awesome cage protecting them from the elements and their satellite radio and their really, really warm heater turned all the way up keeping their toes all toasty and their fancy seat warmers keeping their tushy toasty... DANG IT!  Why didn't I drive??


OK- I'm better now.  I might have been cold, but I still had it better. I might have been fighting the elements, but it sure did feel good to be moving outside!  Moving slowly, moving unsteadily in the wind, moving forward.  Moving all the same.  And it felt GREAT!!!

So like life, the ride continues...

Commute derailed

I rode to work yesterday.  I did not ride home.  I did not ride today.

This time of year, and for the next couple months, I will wrestle ferociously with my allergies.  I never knew allergies could make you feel sick- like you have a cold sick.  The last few years I've experienced some terrible allergies.  Last year I just thought it was the sniffles when in reality I'd been fighting a sinus infection for about 2 months.  Who knew?

So I rode to work not feeling that great, and by the end of the day I was done.  I called my hubs and he came to pick me up.  It's *ONLY* 3 miles, but with the equilibrium issues in my ears and the fuzziness in my head I thought it not best to get on a bike and try to stay upright and balanced.  I came home and slept from 4:30-9, woke up long enough to let my contacts unhinge from my eyeballs- then went back to sleep at 10.  Woke up this morning feeling much better.

On another note, I've seriously fallen off my Weight Watchers wagon.  Seriously!  I've gained 2 lbs in the last 2 weeks.  I was down 11, now I'm only down 9.  Truth be told, I have NOT been tracking, not been showing much self-restraint and not really caring much.  I don't know why, but I'm at a stand-still.  After losing 11 lbs and not having my clothes fit any differently AT ALL or not even having anyone notice, I'm feeling rather discouraged.  I need to get back on it- and start caring.
Here's to hoping I can turn things around...or even care to.

Since you stayed with the post this long- here is a reward for your tenacity:

It's my philosophy on cycling:  SLOW down and enjoy the ride!  Style over speed.

LOVE this blog

I've discovered a really great blog.  Stick figure cartoon observations on cycling/commuting.
It's fantastic.  You really should check it out!
www.biseekell.blogspot.com


Here's one of my favorites:

Now get on over there and check it out!!

I'm a BikeHer

I joined a cycling club today.  I haven't belonged to a cycling group in many, many years.  6 to be exact.  I'm a lone ranger when it comes to riding.  I go when I want, where I want, and how fast I want.  I'm a maverick (yeah, you heard me, John McCain- you're not the only maverick out there). I'm a bike riding,  errand running, work commuting, adventure seeking maverick.

 So why did I join a group?  Because this isn't any ordinary group.

This is BikeHers.  Get it?  Bike Hers.  Bikers.  (it took me a while, too).
It's a women's cycling group.  Not a fast racing group.  Not a hammer group.  A group of women who like to ride, enjoy being outdoors, and want some company on the road.  Safety in numbers and all.

Welcome to the club!

I'm hopeful that this is the group for me.  I've wanted to share my love of cycling with other women in a non-competitive non-threatening way.  For the love of biking- not because we have to average a certain pace or go a particular number of miles.  Riding for the joy of riding.  Riding because being on our bikes makes us happier, stronger, healthier, more confident women.

There's nothing wrong with competition.  I wish I had a competitive bone in me, but I don't.  I don't fit in with racers for a number of reasons: the top two being that I'm slow and I don't need to win.  That kinda defeats the whole point of racing.
I just want to ride my bike, take pictures and enjoy the ride.

It's very exciting.  Very exciting, indeed!!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...

A beautiful day for a neighbor- would you be mine, could you be mine? Won't you be... my neighbor.


Before I go on about my day, I have new BIKE BLING!
I ordered a handlebar bag from Trigo (an independent artist on Etsy).  It's made from recycled bicycle inner tubes.  It holds my cell phone and my inhaler on my stem where they are handy).
It's so cute!!!  At least I think so.  How can you be having a bad ride when you look down and see this cute guy staring up at you?

I digress..
It WAS a beautiful day in the neighborhood.  The morning's commute was chilly-willy, but since the wind was a north wind and I ride south in the mornings, it was at my back (thank goodness).  Not a lot of traffic out, so it was nice and quiet.  Just the way I like it.
Have I told you about the saweet setup I have at school?  I have an office at the back of the library.  Because my office was once part of the living quarters for the nuns that taught at the school years ago, I have a full bathroom in my office.  My bike gets parked in my office, and I have the option of showering if I arrive at work all sweaty and worn out.
It's a pretty sweet deal I've got going on there.

Me in my office with my bike in the background

The ride home was GLORIOUS!!!  The sun was shining, the wind wasn't too bad, and the lake was pretty deserted.  Score!!!  I rode 15 miles after work and dragged out the commute a little longer than normal.  It was so nice.  On the dam, the lake just looked so pretty.  Breathtaking.  Gorgeous.  I LOVE this lake!

It was such a nice day for riding, I almost didn't want to come home and have it end.  It was one of those days where I could have ridden into the night all the way to Texas (notice that I didn't say I wanted to ride north into the headwind). ;)

Thank goodness for the ability to ride!

Great day for a run- not so much for a ride

I wish this were taken on my run this morning.  The sun is shining here (it wasn't this morning) and the lake is calm (it most certainly was NOT calm this morning).  It's just such a pretty picture of the lake.   

Today was a beautiful day for a run.  I had considered biking instead, but with winds sustained at 25-30 mph, I didn't need to purposely feel frustrated for hours on end.  Turns out the run was just what I needed.
I headed out to run at 8:00am.  The sky was overcast, the humidity was high, the wind was blowing fiercely.  I ran to the lake, around it, and back home.  Battling the wind going south was hard, but it made me look forward to running around the other side and getting the tailwind that was sure to come.  Or so I hoped.  As I rounded the dam, I felt sadness at the level of the lake.  The water has dropped at least 6 feet and it doesn't appear to be getting any better.  Normally the lake level drops significantly in late summer, as the lake provides drinking water for north OKC.  However, the level is rarely this low in February.  It worries me that we're headed for a drought this summer unless the rains bless us this spring.
Anyhow- I rounded the lake and hit the tailwind on the way back north.  Can I get a whoop whoop??  The tailwind was glorious!!!  It was literally pushing me all the way back home.
My run was slow, but it doesn't really matter.  It matters that for 11.5 miles I enjoyed the beauty of nature and felt a part of it.  I smelled the delicious pine scent of the trees and felt the spray of the water on my face and the sound of my feet shuffling along the trail.
A great day it was!!!