SpokEasy

May 2020

Route 66

Route 66 This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” Cycling Route 66 sounds like a chance to visit an earlier era. Explore the small towns along the way; enjoy great food; visit the many historical sites. Route 66, in fact, has become an icon. It plays a major role in Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. It even comes into the entertainment scene. Thinking of the Steinbeck novel, of course, makes me think of Oklahoma. There’s that famous song; but there are cycling trails, too, for roadies and MTB enthusiasts alike. Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area is for you if steep hills with hairpin turns are up your alley. For a multi-purpose trail suited to all levels of ability, try out the Lake Hefner Trail. This one is heavily trafficked; so use caution. Enjoy seeing wildflowers along the way. If you happen to be an angler, perhaps you’d like to bring along the fishing pole. For urban exploration, there’s the Museum commemorating the tragic 1995 bombing in Oklahoma City. Tulsa offers many cycling routes. The name Tall Chief Cove catches my eye thanks to my interest in ballet; and the ballerina Maria Tallchief. If I were to go on a bicycle tour in the Sooner State, I’d rather go across open country. I love to see wide-open spaces. I’d better choose my tour time carefully; Oklahoma is part of the notorious Tornado Alley. I would also need to pay attention to the precise route.  Oklahoma is said to be the windiest state of all. Some parts of the state are mountainous! And, unfortunately, passing through the flat portions might mean plenty of oil wells. PHEW! But, I might spot a scissor-tailed flycatcher, and there would be other birds as well. Or bison. Or, maybe I could just, well, be a tourist and stick to Route 66. ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Quantum Leap December 12, 2023 Afternoon Ride? December 11, 2023 Think Ten Times! December 9, 2023 Going Farther Afield December 8, 2023 Load More TRANSLATOR

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Let’s Go Hellenic

Let’s Go Hellenic This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” Let’s go Hellenic, and take a bicycle tour around Greece! If you enjoy island-hopping, try out Kos. It’s reputed to be more bicycle-friendly than most parts of Greece. Flatland-lover? How about Thessaly?  Or head to Thrace for some mountain biking. Like touring anywhere, going Hellenic can be either costly or done on a budget. See here for tips. Is Greece safe? As of this writing, travelers to Greece are advised to follow usual safety precautions. Naturally there are places and situations that should be avoided. If you’re a devotee of the Mediterranean diet, you’re in luck while visiting Greece. This way of eating has been around since the 1980s, and was inspired by the traditonal cuisines of Italy and Greece. Lots of legumes, veggies, non-white pasta, olive oil, fish, and grains. I’ll go with lentils and  brown rice, with a bit of cheese on top. The climate of the country is cold and wet during Winter; and hot and dry during the Summer. If you’re on the eastern coast of Greece during July and August, watch out for the maltemi! It can blow at 11-33 mph, which can mean a very tough headwind. For  mythology lovers, how about a tour through Arcadia? Listen closely, and you may hear Pan playing his pipes. Or even just the birds singing. To quote Ogden Nash, “That’s what the shepherds listened to in Arcadia/Before somebody invented the radia.”   ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Sunblock Day January 2, 2024 2024! January 1, 2024 Out with a Bang December 31, 2023 Seven-Up December 30, 2023 Load More TRANSLATOR

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First Semester?

First semester? Nine weeks sure sounds like it. Is it time to hit the books for exams? It\’s hard to believe that this is the ninth week that I\’m working from home. Has it really been that long? The time has seemed both long and short. It\’s seemed long because, when it began, I don\’t think we expected it to drag on for all these weeks. It\’s seemed short because, at my age, time flies anyway. My home state is starting to ease some restrictions at the end of this week. I agree with the people who think it\’s still too soon. Sure, I\’d love for the neighborhood Chinese restaurant to re-open, so I can have some Mandarin Chicken! And fried rice! Even if they do open again soon I\’ll feel safer getting take-out. As to returning to work, I think it would be wise to let personnel who fall into the \”high risk\” category come back later. I\’d be considered \”high risk\” for several reasons. Perhaps the first semester will be followed by a second? On top of that, I\’d want to be sure I\’m not actually carrying that virus; and that my co-workers don\’t have it, either. In fact, my concerns about \”what if I\’m an asymptomatic carrier\” add a tinge of guilt to any outing except for my bicycle rides. No further news as to when I\’ll be going back to regular work. It won\’t be this week, I\’m quite sure of that. I\’ll keep plugging along at work-from-home; and I hope I can pass the first-semester exams!

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Old Cyclists Never Die

Old cyclists never die; like Old Man River, they just keep rollin\’ along. Seriously, though, what will I do if I reach the point where I can\’t ride a bicycle any longer? Get a recumbent? A StreetStrider? Another adult trike? Sometimes I already feel old and weak. Many a time I\’ve been out riding, and had silver-haired riders of both genders whiz past me. Including, of course, today. I put in 37.4 miles. This morning I tried to ride steadily, even if I wasn\’t as fast as I would have liked. I didn\’t feel fast; and naturally, I had a headwind on the way home. In some strange way, though, I seemed to feel different. More solid, if you will. I can\’t quite put my finger on it. A check of my ride data after I got home showed an average speed of nearly 13 mph, a bit faster than usual. Wind conditions were similar to last Sunday, too. It looks as if I\’ve been doing something right, so I\’d better keep on doing it. If virtual Tour de Cure means no time cut-off, I ought to be OK. I hope I\’m doing my on-bike fueling right. Today I alternated between bites of Kind and Quest. I tried the Quest Birthday Cake flavor this time; one bite every 15 minutes. Kind seems to give me a bit more of a boost. I\’ll bet I was a sight, though. It was cool enough for a full-sleeved jacket when I set out. My newer jacket, which has its sleeves, has a busted zipper. Even with a long-sleeved blouse, I though my arms would be too cool if I wore just my vest. I put on the vest and the sleeves from the busted-zipper jacket. The former is white; the latter is coral. Even with my Camel-Bak and reflective vest over it all, it must have been quite visible. Maybe it made me look senile? But no worries. Because, y\’know, old cyclists never die.  

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Heartless?

Am I heartless? You might think so if you could see my Garmin screen while I\’m riding my road bike. Where\’s the heart rate reading? A week or two ago I began to see bizarre heart rate readings as I rode. One day the screen said I was in HR Zone 0.9, and I knew very well that I was working harder than that. Another day, when I checked my data post-ride, it said my max HR had been in the 170s. NO WAY. If I\’d been working as hard as that, I probably would have been blacking out. Or worse. I guess the sensor is wearing out. This will be at least the second time I\’ve needed to replace it. What a nuisance! Maybe I should work at getting more in tune to my RPE. At any rate, I haven\’t worn the chest strap for several days. Why bother, when it isn\’t giving accurate readings? The battery in it was changed recently, so I don\’t think that\’s the problem. It\’s true that I now can tell quite well when I\’m in my maximum HR range. That\’s when I\’m breathing very deep, fast, and hard; close to the point where I\’m sobbing from exertion if I try to keep it up more than a very short time. Probably I need to do more work to get myself to that max HR, so I\’ll be better prepared for riding into a stiff headwind on Tour de Cure day. The catch is that my leg muscles are apt to give out before I can get there. In fact, they think I\’m completely heartless.    

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Wet Beginning

A wet beginning is what we\’re getting for this weekend. It had been gradually clouding up all day. Shortly before 3 pm I heard some faint grumbles. I thought they might be thunder, but the window unit makes such a racket that I couldn\’t be sure. Soon it began to rain a little, on and off. I had been considering riding to the supermarket after I clocked out of work. I really want to sleep in tomorrow morning! The weather was making me have second thoughts. By the time I was off work, I was hungry. I fixed and ate some supper. About 5:30, I glanced at the window. It has a curtain, of course, but it looked like it had gotten darker out there. I heard the wind getting  up, too. I went and took a peek at the sky. It looked rather menacing, and it was starting to rain again. Shortly it began to rain quite hard, and it began to thunder. I decided it was the better part of wisdom  to stay home. There isn\’t anything that I need urgently. I just don\’t care much for the idea of trying to go to the store during the week. I clock in to start work at 8:00 am; and clock out at 4:30 pm. It would be difficult to go before work. After work, I often simply don\’t feel like it. On second thought, working from home makes flex time much easier. I can punch in a little late and either take a short lunch break; or work a little later in the evening. So yes, it would be possible to make a grocery run before work! Incidentally, it might not be a bad idea to keep myself out of grocery stores this weekend. If I go, I\’m apt to buy more food to do more cooking. And I\’ve simply GOT to stop cooking for a while! I\’m glad a wet beginning to a weekend doesn\’t mean it will rain all weekend long. It looks like tomorrow and Sunday will be OK.    

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More Kitchen Shenanigans

I\’ve been up to more shenanigans in the kitchen. And what, you may wonder, does The Complete Tightwad Gazette have to do with that? The book includes a letter from a subscriber to the newsletter telling how to greatly reduce cooking time for dried beans. Soak the beans overnight; drain them; and freeze them. They\’ll cook soft much more quickly. A couple of months ago, on a visit to the salvage store, I found a can of Pace Taco Complete. I bought it and brought it home. I\’m not about to try keeping taco shells; they\’ll never stay crisp in this humid climate. While I like tacos, I\’ve always found them annoyingly messy to eat. How does one keep that shell from cracking, and spilling the filling everywhere? But taco filling doesn\’t have to go in taco shells. I first tried Taco Complete in lentils. I cooked up two cups of dried lentils, then added the can of taco filling. It not only tasted good, but made the filling go much farther. I soon began to think of other experiments. Black beans came next. \”Taco black\” is good, too. I cooked up this mixture two days before Easter, and  froze most of it for later. I moved the most recent hot dog tikka masala from the freezer to the fridge, so it would thaw in time for Easter. Wait a minute. I had plebeian hot dogs for Easter? Not steak? Whoever wants steak may have it, but it\’s too expensive for me. Besides, if all I need to do is heat and eat, I\’ll have more time for further shenanigans in the kitchen.

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Hoppin’ John

Hoppin’ John Hoppin’ John? Who on earth is that? To be honest, I have no idea who Hoppin’ John is; nor where he comes from; nor why he’s hopping. Maybe he’s a jackrabbit. Jack is a nickname for John; and what do jackrabbits do? They hop! Whatever the explanation may be, that Hoppin’ John character was famous enough to have a recipe named after him. I found it in the course of reading What Do I Eat Now? (page 151) and thought it looked interesting. Yesterday evening I tried it; taking liberties, of course. This dish is meant to be layered in a pan, but I don’t have the pan. I mixed it all up in a five-quart pot. I needed that big pot to cook the rice, anyway. One of the ingredients in the recipe is green bell pepper. I’ve never cared much for bell peppers; especially not the green kind! I substituted chopped celery; and a small amount of red bell pepper. Hoppin’ John also uses red onion. Fortunately that’s my favorite kind of onion. Raw celery can take quite a bit of chewing, so I cooked the onion and celery with the (canned) black-eyed peas while I was waiting for the rice to cook. The celery still had some crunch in it at the end; that’s fine with me. When the rice was done, I used my slotted cooking spoon to transfer the legume mix to the pot with the rice; I didn’t want too much liquid in the finished product. This recipe uses some cheese, too; I chopped up about 2.5 ounces of Monterrey Jack cheese and stirred it in. And diced canned tomatoes. “HJ” is pretty good. I began to think of variations on it right away. I think I need a chest freezer for all this stuff I keep cooking.

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Maylasia

Malaysia This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” Maylasia for some reason makes me think of steaming jungles. Indeed, the nation’s climate is humid, with average annual rainfall of 98 inches. That makes New Orleans seem arid by comparison! Bicycle touring there sounds like a sweaty business! But Malaysia’s geography is actually quite diverse. There are mountains and coastal plains. Cycling routes are quite diverse, too. Here is an account of a tour of the Cameron Highlands. I like the riders’ laid-back approach; just having a good time riding. It sounds like a beautiful route, and they had fun meeting local people and enjoying local food. There are other bicycle tours in Maylasia. Visit some of the islands. See Buddhist temples, or ride through a rainforest reserve. What about the customs of this country? It would be hard to remember the should’s and should nots that are so different from one’s own. Never point using your forefinger. That’s something that we in the USA do all the time, without thinking about it. Don’t point your feet towards people?  Does that mean you should stand with your feet turned out, as in ballet? Not discussing politics when in abroad is plain common sense. Getting back to the humid climate, be sure you keep hydrated. Bring along a Camel-Bak for water, and bottles for electrolyte drink. Be sure you have the right bike; are you going for road riding or mountain biking? Whichever it is, enjoy the ride in this diverse country. ABOUT ME I began this website primarily as a way to present the story of how I accomplished a century ride on an adult tricycle. Other riders of adult trikes might want to know whether it’s possible. It sure is! You can read all about it in My Story. I live in New Orleans; and  retired in January 2023. More time for cycling! Website designed by Cecile Levert © This website is the property of its author. DISCLAIMER I am not a cycling coach; nor a health professional. This site is based on my own experiences, opinions, etc. If you need help, please consult the appropriate professional.   FRESH FROM MY JOURNAL Relearning December 19, 2023 I Traverse Afar? December 18, 2023 I Envy Time December 17, 2023 Holiday Food December 16, 2023 Load More TRANSLATOR

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What\’s in Store?

Goodness knows what\’s in store with all this coronavirus upheaval. It would be wonderful if the solution were something that could be bought in a store. If only it were so simple, this would have been stopped dead in its tracks before it could get going. How long will this state of affairs continue? It\’s certainly created a great deal of havoc already: sickness, death, economic upheaval, and more. Who knows what will come next. Many events around the world have been canceled, or at least postponed. Oktoberfest is off the calendar; bad news for lovers of beer and oompah. Tennis lovers will have miss the Wimbledon. The Tour de France is at least put off until later in the Summer. Last week I received word that the local Tour de Cure will be virtual. I can\’t say that I\’m surprised. \”Virtual\” seems to be the new normal. I don\’t have Strava ,  but maybe I can use my Garmin. It would be a relief if a virtual TdC means, no cut-off time. All the same, I mean to keep working to increase my pace; and I have FAR to go! Not two weeks ago, I was trying to push 15 mph into a breeze of 7-8 mph. My legs were screaming Uncle after only 20 seconds! When it feels like a struggle to ride against the wind, I tell myself, \”I need this\”. And I do. Weather is fickle; and, despite forecasts, you never know what\’s in store.

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