SpokEasy

October 2022

Happy Hallowe’en

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HAPPY HALLOWE’EN! HAPPY HALLOWE’EN! Today I didn’t ride, except to get to work. Now that it’s starting to get dark, the kids will be out trick-or-treating. Call me a Scrooge if you like, but I don’t hand out candy. I don’t feel safe opening my door to a steady stream of people that I don’t know; and as the evening goes on, the big boys come out. They’re bigger than I am; and really too old to be out collecting candy. Talk about getting spooked! At least the youngsters have good weather for outdoor activities tonight. It’s clear; calm; and will drop to the low 60s overnight. So it’s not so warm that costumes will get too hot; but not so cold that they have to bundle up underneath those costumes. It looks good for tomorrow morning’s ride, too. I want to pare another 10-12 miles from those remaining before I reach my Love to Ride goal. In fact, I’m getting excited by the idea of watching the final 240 miles fade away. It looks like I might make it by the middle of November! But at the moment, I’m just taking it easy. If a night ride is your thing, watch your spokes! Happy Hallowe’en!  

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Why Tired

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Why Tired? Why tired? I mean, why are we tired? Check out this video for possible reasons. Is it a hidden health issue? Or getting too little sleep? Or even overtraining? Going all hard, all the time does more harm than good. It’s the fast track to overtraining; exhaustion; and burnout — even loss of interest in something you used to enjoy. Why risk that? We want to keep on enjoying cycling, don’t we? When I’m tired all the time, it’s now often because I consistently get to bed too late; and then of course I’m tired and sleepy. But I have a sleep disorder that went undiagnosed for nearly 14 years (you read that right: YEARS!); and of course I was miserable then. It was like having a permanent anesthetic hangover! It’s been quite a while since I did any real force-development work; and it’s because I can’t seem to get up the energy. I’m trying to get my diet back on track; and I need to lose the 8 pounds that I regained since March. That’s another thing: when I’m always tired, I’ll feel like I’m hungry when I’m not. But why tired? Maybe because today I at last got my Sunday long ride up to 40 miles. My Love to Ride goal is well within sight.🙂 It looks like we’ll have good weather most of the time this week; and that will be a big help. Speaking of Sunday, it’s time for This Week’s Featured Product! Check it out for riding equipment for young ‘uns!

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I Won

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I Won! I won my gamble with the weather this morning! Last night the forecast predicted T-storms from the time I normally head to the salvage store. Naturally I didn’t like that; and could only wait and see how conditions were this morning. By today, the weather report had been changed to “partly cloudy”; and rain/T-storms beginning about noon. That was a lot better; and off I went to the store. While I waited for them to open, some other customers and I were keeping a wary eye on the sky. Over to the Northwest it looked pretty black; but it still wasn’t raining when I was ready to ride back home. The wind seemed to be strengthening, though; and indeed, it was blowing at 15 mph! As usual when there’s a pesky headwind, I was glad I didn’t have a trailer. Those things can carry a lot; but they also create wind resistance! It still wasn’t raining when I got home; but I wanted to rest a while before going anywhere else. Around noon I decided I’d better wash the dishes; and as I worked on that chore, I heard a few fairly strong gusts of wind. I also heard what sounded like a few raindrops. After I finished washing dishes, I got online to check the weather again. The radar looked like there was rain close by; and then I heard thunder. I decided I wasn’t going to go anywhere! Soon afterwards, I learned that we’re under tornado watch until this evening. It’s a good thing I don’t have to go out; so you might say that I won again.

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Getting Close

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Getting Close! I’m getting close to my Love to Ride mileage goal for the year. Less than 300 miles to go! If you want to participate, it isn’t too late to set a goal and start riding; and you know they say, better late than never. Our weather is about to turn unpleasant. It won’t be cold — in the 70s — but T-storms are in the forecast. It doesn’t look good for my trip to the salvage store. Rain is one thing; but lightning is quite another!  We really need rain, though. We got some this past Tuesday; but it wasn’t enough. It’s actually quite amazing to see how fast things dried up again; and for us, that’s unusual. Sunday’s forecast is much better: mostly sunny; calm; and a high of 74. The weather can hardly be better than that for riding😊 I’m also getting close to retirement. Just a little over two months to go; and I’m looking forward to having more time to ride. It will be nice to not have to get up at 4:30 am; and I can start to lengthen my daily rides a little. I’ll have more time to work on this web site; and maybe I can take better care of myself when I’m home to cook. My diet has been badly off track for months; and it’s long past high time I got things back under control. Getting back to the weather, it got more and more overcast all day today. It was a relief to not have the sun smack in my eyes on the way home!    

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Did I Forget

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Did I Forget? Did I forget to post this week’s featured product on Sunday? If so, here it is:  This week’s featured product is the TSLA Women’s Cycling Jacket. It’s good for cycling, of course; and for other outdoor activities such as hiking. Waterproof yet breathable; and it can roll up small for easy storage. This garment is sweat-wicking; and you can stash it in a jersey pocket if you start to get too warm! The TSLA comes in sizes X-Small through Large; and you can choose from colors red; navy; blue; neon yellow; black; and neon orange. Hood has a drawstring; the roomy back pocket holds your cell phone and other needs; and reflective tape adds to visibility. Fabric is 100% polyester. Now that we’ve had some cold nights — down into the 40s! — I’m naturally thinking of jackets. and other cold-weather gear: leg warmers; warming packs; and so on. It’s time to bring out the hot chocolate, too! But after a cool spell, it’s turned warm again. How typical! When it does get cold again, I suppose it will happen all of a sudden. I’d prefer it to be more gradual. Then it’s easier to get used to lower temperatures. All I can do is keep that jacket and some warming packs handy!

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Stop the Presses

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STOP THE PRESSES! Stop the presses! I’ve got great news: it rained today! Overnight we got just enough of a sprinkling to settle the dust. I could see dry patches beneath parked cars; but the ground was wet enough for my road bike to get splattered. As the morning went on, the clouds gathered; and when I went outdoors at about 11:20 am, it was raining. We know it’s been dry, indeed, when rain is big news. It didn’t rain for very long; and by the time I left work it was clear and sunny. Too sunny, in fact. This time of year, that star of ours blinds me as I’m riding home from work. Sunglasses don’t help in such a situation; and then I wish it were cloudy! Let’s see, now. Have I got any other “stop the presses” items to report? I can’t think of any; and I’m not sure I want my days to be full of earth-shattering events. That’s too much excitement for me! It’s the same old thing: go for a spin on the road bike; ride the hybrid to work; come home and work on blogs. I had thought of going to the park to ride this morning; and the decision was made for me when a long freight train beat me to the crossing. I didn’t want to wait for it; so I took an alternate route to the park. There was time to ride only 10.4 miles, because I had to be sure to leave enough time to go feed my friends’ cat.  Down to 55 degrees tonight; and a North wind of 10 mph. I’ll need to layer up tomorrow morning! Fifty-five degrees might not sound cold; but it’s a big change from 80 degrees! The wind will make it seem colder, too. At least it won’t be snowing. That would really stop the presses!

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Drought Buster

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Drought Buster? We might have a drought buster in store. There’s a 20% chance of rain tonight; and a 50% chance of T-storms tomorrow. We certainly need the rain. There’s hardly been a drop since early July! The catch is, once a drought buster comes, it often keeps raining for days. Amazingly, there’s a weather system in the mid-Atlantic that has the potential of becoming a named storm! It seems to be heading towards Bermuda; and I hope it doesn’t develop the way Ian did.  It looks like I might miss the rain tomorrow morning; but I think I’ll ride in the park. The wind will be pretty strong; and I do get tired of battling headwinds on the levee. I’ve been up there before when it was cold; raining hard; and a sidewind made bike control very hard! That’s not my idea of fun. After tomorrow it’s going to clear up for a couple of days; and Friday it’s likely to rain again. Next Monday will be sunny and warm; and I know the kids will like that for Trick-or-Treat. Sunday will probably be sunny and warm; but pretty windy. That’s not fun when I’m riding back home from 20 miles away; but I need to get in a 40-miler. Yesterday I rode little over 29 miles, because I was tired and stuffy-headed; and I figured I ought to take it easy. Saturday’s weather looks iffy. There’s a chance of rain and T-storms; and I hope such activity waits until I get home from the salvage store. One good thing about a drought buster is that it will settle the dust for a while. Every time there’s a breeze, I see clouds of dust blowing around!      

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Dust Bowl

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Dust Bowl We’re turning into a Dust Bowl here. There’s been very little rain since early July; and they’re saying that the Mississippi River is at record lows. I noticed this past Spring that it didn’t rise nearly as much as usual; and it sounds like poor rainfall isn’t unique to New Orleans. Today it’s bright and clear again; and it warmed up fast. I’m glad there isn’t much wind, because it made the trip to the salvage store a lot easier. Often enough, the ride back home from that place has meant battling a headwind — while pulling a loaded trailer! It’s interesting to see what the salvage store will have. I never know what I might find; and that’s one of the big attractions of the place. This morning I found 4-oz bags of macadamia nuts! I don’t buy macadamias often, because they’re quite expensive; but today I got some. Speaking of expensive, some unfortunate neighbors of mine are now put to the cost of replacing car windows! For  a long time, local news has been full of reports about car burglaries; often “smash-and-grab”. About 7:00 am, as I was walking over to feed my friends’ cat, I saw two vehicles with busted-out windows. Up until now, my immediate vicinity seemed to escape this nefarious activity;  but no longer. I’m so glad I don’t have a car to worry about! I’m planning tomorrow’s log ride, of course. With these Dust Bowl conditions, I must be sure to take a full Camel-Bak! I found bottles of Propel at the salvage store; and that can be tomorrow’s electrolyte drink. I also found a box of a dozen Gatorade Whey Protein Bars in my favorite chocolate-caramel flavor! The weather for tomorrow looks like it will be a repeat of today; so riding ought to be good.

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Where am I

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Where Am I? Where am I? Which way am I going? What day is this? Scrambling to go to two occupational therapy sessions per week is a drag. The change in the weather doesn’t help. I, for one, have a hard time getting moving when it’s cold. I don’t care who says that cold “perks you up”; it has the opposite effect on me! This morning it took me so long to get going that I had time for only a very short ride. Then I had to ride to work; visit my desk to drop off helmet and bike trunk; and catch the bus to go to my therapy appointment. If I hadn’t had to worry about catching that bus, I could have done a longer ride; and I hope to get in my usual mileage tomorrow. Getting to work several hours late throws off my sense of timing; and I feel it for the rest of the day. For whatever reason, I was very sleepy as well; and that made things harder. No wonder I think: where am I? What’s going on? Low of 45 degrees tonight. That’s not my favorite temperature for riding; but at least they don’t expect rain; or much wind. I’ve complained often enough about how my nose runs when I ride in the cold; but it’s not my only problem. If I need an extra layer over my leg warmers, I have to deal with flapping pant cuffs. That means an extra pair of socks; and a LONG pair. Then I can stuff those pant cuffs into the socks. In addition, there’s the woe of leg warmers that slide DOWN while the cuffs of my cycling shorts slide UP. This happens quite often; and when it gets too uncomfortable, I have to stop and adjust my clothing. That usually means removing my gloves; and then I have to watch that I don’t drop my hand warmers. Oh, and which way am I going? Sometimes I wish it were South to a place where it’s always warm.

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The Harder They Fall

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The Harder They Fall? The bigger they are, the harder they fall, so the saying goes. Or maybe, the warmer the days, the colder it seems when it does turn chilly. We’re getting our first taste of real Fall. This morning it was about 59 degrees when I went out to ride; and the wind was 15 mph, with gusts up to 24 mph. I didn’t feel like struggling against that wind for miles; so I went to the park and rode around four times. Unfortunately that meant a headwind on the way home from the park! Tonight will be even cooler; and the wind just as strong. The first few cold days are quite a challenge; and I’m inclined to turn wimpy then. It doesn’t help that our cold weather tends to arrive abruptly. One afternoon it will be in the 80s; and the next morning it’s barely 50! On top of that, we’re likely to have crazy fluctuations in the temperature from day to day. I hear people complain about that often. They say, you never know how to dress; and they’re right. What do you do when the weather is so capricious? One day I’ll need the electric heater; and the next day that same appliance will be a hindrance when it’s turned warm again. As a result of the crazy swings in temperature, I have all sorts of layers all over the place. Sometimes it’s hard to keep track of them all; and I don’t need to lose any of them. Oh, for a magic wand to chase away the cold, windy mornings. The colder they are, the harder they fall?

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