two weeks down!

lowlander outdoor adventures

Check them out.
http://www.lowlanderoutdooradventures.com/index.html
Props to Paul for having the balls to go for it and start an adventure tour business. More power to ya, Paul!

operation and recovery

Here's a drill going into one of my bones in preparation for attaching my new ACL. (which it turns out was the simplest part of the entire surgery)

And here is my new ACL.

Here's my ripped and broken femur. Turns out I basically broke a bone. So six weeks no weight on it while it heals. See that pink part in the middle? That's exposed femur bone. It should be covered in a nice white cartilage.

Here is the cartilage reattached (with nails). It was floating around in my knee joint area.

Here I am on the couch with my newly reconstructed leg watching the 2006 Tour of Flanders (thanks John!).


Headed back to the doc today for an update.

post-op report

Finally go to ride with John B. again on Tuesday. At our usual time, 5:30am (0530). Unfortunatly, it was a short one, only a couple of miles, and, even less exciting, in a truck owned by MU. And the ride was to the Institute for Outpatient Surgery. My knee was repaired Tuesday morning. John graciously agreed to bring me in and stay with me until Bridget could get there after dropping Nora off at a friends house at 7:30. She didn't miss much as I didn't get out of there until 2 p.m. The staff of the IOS were great. (At least the ones I remember) Last thing I remember before 2pm was thinking that my glasses which were laying on my lap before surgery needed to go in my bag o' stuff under the bed. Evidently I chatted with John and the nurse for quite a while afterthat, even giving John some sort of emergency authorization (probably one of the smartest things I have ever done). Then Before I woke up I was chatting with the anesthesia people about Sam and Nora. If one gives out deep dark secrets under anesthesia, it sounds like I have a pretty clean life. Dr. Smith did one heck of a job fixin my knee. Evidently it was worse than expected and I think he expected pretty bad. I was in the OR for about 2.5-3 hours. A long time I later learned for a simple ACL repair. My ACL repair was simple but the rest was not. I had shorn off a bit of the end of my femur. Fortunately Dr. Smith was able to find the piece and replace it (Cool!). But that meant that everything will be a lot more complicated as far as recovery goes. I have to be off my left leg for 6 weeks. After that I have no idea what to expect. No weight on my left leg at all. That will be a trying time for all in our household. Started some electroshock therapy tonight. two little electrodes on my quad for half an hour. 10 seconds on, 10 seconds off. Kinda like a little massage. Anyway, enough pounding away at the keyboard. My knee is starting to hurt and I gotta go ice it again.

Pictures soon.

snowy day

bmi and sports

Girls sports. I had been thinking that Nora would like cross-country (she says otherwise). The Columbia Track Club has a youth xc program which looks like a lot of fun for the kids. She competed in a race recently with them and did really well but did not enjoy it. Now I read of Propam's experience in women's xc and I think Nora would be better off sticking to soccer. At least it seems that soccer doesn't have the obsession with weight that other sports such as xc and cycling have. Eating disorders that lead to lifelong problems. Sometimes I think that Nora may be a little small for soccer because some of those women are big. Not fat or anything but stout, obviously in good shape when you seem them running around out there. Since ACL injuries have been on my mind lately, I have found out that they are more prevelant among female atheletes than male. Especially soccer players. But a torn acl is nothing when you compare it to the problems that the eating disorders can create.

Now to male eating disorders. It's holiday season and for the first time I can't run or ride off the food I eat. If I didn't want to be competitive I wouldn't really worry about it at all but it will be that much harder to get back in shape after surgery if I have to ride off extra weight too. Just ask Jan.

surgery

Wednesday December 6 is the first day of next season. Training for Fall 2007 cyclocross racing starts then. That is also the day after I have knee surgery to repair my torn acl, ripped medial meniscus, and the worn-out covering of the medial condyle of the femur (in other words, osteoarthritis). I will be receiving an allo graft. That is a piece of ligament from a dead guy (now I'll have to sign the back of my driver's license!) and physical therapy starts about 24 hours after my outpatient surgery. Actually I already have started therapy as I have some pre-operative exercises to do 2x per day; leg lifts and other quad strengthening exercises.

this really sucks

Well I ain't going to St. Louis to race today. My knee which is now the size of a grapefruit was totally screwed up yesterday trying not to fall off a damn mound on the downhill course which was included in the cx course that we raced yesterday. I guess I'll go to the doctor tomorrow. I can hardly walk. The best I can do is shuffle around stiff legged. Dammit dammit dammit, I suppose this probably means that the entire cx season is blown. Dammit!

I did see Bubba. He looks a fine hound.

Friday, Nora took an IQ test to see if she qualifies for Triple E, EEE, the advanced education program here in Columbia. We should hear the results in a couple of weeks. Talk about a test, "Here kid, we know you are smart but let's see if you are smart enough to earn the official label of Smart Kid."

glass houses

"The president of the National Association of Evangelicals, an outspoken opponent of gay marriage, has given up his post while a church panel investigates allegations he paid a man for sex. "

hee hee

i thought i had legs redux

The results are posted for the Rock Bridge Revenge. I finished 17th of 32 runners in the 20k. I prefer to think of that as not Middle-of-the-pack but First Place! in the second half of the pack. Also I finished 3rd in my age group (out of 8, if I counted right). Props to Bill Stolz for a great 3rd place finish overall in the 10k!

In other news: I am now a Cat three cyclocrosser. Middle-of-the-Pack here we come! Thanks Mike W. I did more CX races in my first year of cyclocross than I did road races in all my years of cycling (33).

In non-cycling news: The Columbia Business Times (which I haven't read at all until a few days ago) evidently has some very fascist leanings or at least it's columnists do. Some guy named Larry Schuster. A paragraph from his recent column in the CBT whining about the smoking ban:

Our brands of do-gooders are self-righteous souls who live under the narcotic delusion that they are the conscience of our community. They make exceptions to fit their playtime but not mine. In my opinion, their concentration in Columbia is akin to the goose population in Stephens Park, just a few too many in a small place. Maybe we should sponsor a roundup and relocation program. Surely scientists will soon discover these folks to be a new breed of hypocrites: “homo sapien goose poopalous.” (my emphasis)

OK. two things here:

1. The idea that people he doesn't like should be rounded up and sent elsewhere smacks a bit of fascist policies of the Nazi era. or perhaps more to his liking stalinist policies.
2. As my 13 year old son pointed out: perhaps there are so many of these "do-gooders" in Columbia because they are a majority.

2 questions arise...who the hell is Larry Schuster and how did he get elected to the city council?

While I am on the topic of CBT...Their cover story is about a "consulting firm" who (get this doublespeak) is,"known nationally for its creative mail, radio and strategic communications." Sounds like advertising to me. There is also a fairytale and another screed about the selfishness of the West Broadway folks against 4 lanes in the middle of town. (yes Providence should be made 2 lanes). Jesus! makes me want to barf.

Thanks for reading.

i thought i had legs

or...why can't I go any faster?

Raced out at Rock Bridge State Park Sunday...the Rock Bridge Revenge 20k run. Actually the revenge part comes the day after the race when you stumble upon getting out of bed because your legs are so racked with stiffness and soreness that they rebel against any notion of movement. Actually "soreness" is not the right word: sore is when you smash your thumb with a hammer, this is more like dropping an anvil on it.

It was a Beautiful run even through the ice-cold creek (twice). It was great to be out in the woods on a sunny morning in October. Trees changing colors, deer out to see why there were so many two-leggers chugging through the woods, and the occasional squirrel yelling in anger at the runners. The actual race for me was kinda weird. My legs were not cooperating with my heart. I never was anyhere near my limit aerobically but my legs wouldn’t go any faster. Everytime I tried to go harder and think I was really starting to push it and my legs would say, "Give us a break, we're going already, ok!" Then I would glance down at my heart rate and it would say, "nope, you are just huffing along on stroll." I guess that is the difference between HR and Perceived Exertion. Nevertheless, great race. Great run. Someday they'll get the results posted and I'll have an idea how I compared to the rest of the back-of-the-pack.

Although running this race was pretty cool, I really missed not racing the latest iteration of the Bubba Memorial Cyclocross series. Probably won't be able to make it to another one until Nov. 5 or 12.

And...what about that local cx scene? The Columbia Fun Times Cyclocross Race and Picnic? Down by the ROTC Tower? Picnic and bonfire to follow at Stephens Lake? Maybe we could talk Bubba into coming?

more nonsense

check this out from Trib Talk:

"...Now you’ve even made it a rule in Columbia that you can’t have dinner and a cigarette. I think it is ridiculous. This is getting to be more like Russia every day."

Ha ha hahahahahaha, that is so funny!

Let's see...I assume that by "Russia" this caller means the former boogey monster we were all scared to death of back when I was a child. Now there were (are) a few things about the way Russia was (is) ruled that leaves lots to be desired. But, BUTT!, smoking was not one of those things that was outlawed back in the USSR. There were the occasional political crackdowns, gulags, executions, mass murders and other governmental misdeeds but smoking was not something one had to be afraid of doing.

Come to think of it, "this is getting to be more like Russia every day." Maybe I'll start smoking.

I'm number #1

Cross practice was way fun! Nolan and Ethan showed up. Nolan practiced bunny-hopping most of the time (something I need to do). I rode a good hard 30 minutes then had to scoot home to get Sam to a school dance. (his first). They were both impressed with the course and excited about the possibilities. We set up some cones to make several turns and break up the long straightaways. Ethan said, "Since Butthead won't be here next Wednesday I am going to move practice here."

In other news: I am the top-ranked Cat. 5 in zip 65201 (oops...you gotta be logged in under my name to see that) but you can see that I am one of only 12 Cat 5s to be ranked 638 nationally. And I don't even have the oldest license!

Your USCF Road Race Cat 5 Standings
1!	Rank in your zip code (65201)
18	Rank in your state (MO)
22	Rank in your riding age (40)
112	Rank in 5 year age range (40-44)
174	Rank in 10 year age range (40-49)
638	Overall Rank

mighty mighty c's

Raced Sunday.









Everything went well;












I didn't fall over the barriers









or skid out in the gravel.









And best of all I won.

Let me tell you, it feels good to win, finally. I have been close many times but I don't believe I have ever won an athletic contest before. So even if it is the Cs race of a local series it is really nice. Back in grade school I couldn't (and still can't) play basketball or any of those damn sports; I always ended up getting hit in the face with the ball and bending my glasses. Really awkward. I tried track in 8th grade and came in dead last. Sucked, I tell you.

This Sunday will be a big test. 20k trail run. I have a feeling I may be slow on the trail. I don't want to roll an ankle or screw up my knees. Gotta Bubba race again the next week.

Buddy, the USCF official, said, "I'll guess we'll have to move you up to the Bs now" So that's where I'll go. Back to the middle of the pack.

A huge amount of thanks goes to Karl at Klunk for all the help he provided getting me set up on my bike. It worked great!

1/3 marathon

Update of recent events:

Ran my legs off Sunday October 1, doing two legs of a 3 leg relay as part of the Columbia Half Marathon. Our team finished 9th overall in the teams division. There were 36 teams so that is really great! I ran for 1 hour and 7 minutes but I don't know how far. Sometime I have to get out and ride it with my bike and see what the old odometer says. Next year I'll do the whole thing on my own.

Next (foot)race is in one week at Rock Bridge State Park. Should be a cool trail run. I think I'll do the 20k option.

Next cyclo-cross race is Bubba #1. Sunday Oct. 15 at Creve Coeuer Park in St. Louis. Photos and results soon. I heard there was to be a Bubba race in Columbia but that was shot down by the parks dept. dimwits. I'll take my cash and go somewhere else. Hey Josh, what about the field down below the Alpine Tower on the MU campus? It's better than Stephens Lake. Speaking of cyclocross I went out last night with Seth to said field. Had a good hard workout there. The Redline is working great. If I don't do well Sunday, I have only myself to blame.

Sept. 10 Sam and I took the road I course here in town. We are both now officially licensed road cyclists.

Nora has biked to school every day so far except one and that wasn't her fault. It was raining or Bridget had to go somewhere. Something like that. Sam too. Now that he is a certified cyclist he can (and did before) ride to school everyday. He even takes the busy route by choice. Go figger. Give him 30 more years of riding to work and school and he'll look for the quiet streets.

Speaking of Nora, she was elected president of her homeroom. She has to chair class meetings every Monday and Friday. I don't know what all she has to do but she does it with great aplomb I am sure. Now she wishes she had gone for bigger fish and ran for 3rd grade student council representative

Tonight? Tonight we are going to go sit in the cold, drink hot chocolate (we may have to have two thermoses: one adult and one kids) and watch the MU soccer team get beat again. They started so well! What happened?

religious truths

1. Muslims do not recognize Jews as God's chosen people.
2. Jews do not recognize Jesus as the Messiah.
3. Protestants do not recognize the Pope as the leader of the Christian World.
4. Baptists do not recognize each other at Hooters.

and one more truth:
The Pope has not read the Bible!

i'm in love

i didn't see anyone

so it's not trespassing, right?

Palestine/Israel "is given over wholly to weeds. … We never saw a human being on the whole route." --Mark Twain, Innocents Abroad

Strangely enough Innocents Abroad was recently used to justify the "displacement" of Palestine's/Israel's previous occupants by the current regime there. I, for one, am not at all comfortable justifying imperialist enterprises and hence our nation's foreign policy on satire.

In response to an earlier response to his response to a nationally syndicated columnist, one recent writer to our local paper claims that before the Zionists settled in Palestine/Israel that the land was empty and not really "Palestine" anyway. To back up his claim he goes on to refer to not one, but three books: the Hebrew Bible, the Christian Bible and the Muslim "Bible" or Quran, "And this is the land the Jews returned to reclaim in accordance with the divine sanctioning of the Bible and the Quran!" WTF!?

No one ever settled an argument peacefully by relying on revealed truth.

The more I think about this the more I am sickened that this sort of argument is taken seriously by anyone. WTF!? Using ancient texts of "revealed truth" to justify the slaughter of countless thousands? WTF?! And both sides of are doing it.

It makes me want to puke.

my new ride

I might even get to ride it soon.

all they need are grocery stores

Developers can include bars, hotels
City approves deal for Stadium tract.

By MATTHEW LeBLANC of the Tribune’s staff

Published Wednesday, September 6, 2006

Despite objections from neighbors who don’t want bars and hotels near their homes, a local investment group has won city approval to build a major commercial development at the eastern terminus of Stadium Boulevard.

[more...]

First of all look at this map

Then ask, "What neighbors? The ones who live by highway 63? And they are worried about noise? Why did they move next to the highway?" It's their noise I have to listen to everyday as they drive in and out of town.

2nd of all...Of course there should be commercial development in a new residential area. Otherwise what you have is...oh hell what's it called? oh yeah, "sprawl" Like what the neighbors live in. Sprawlsville. Now all they need is a grocery store. Why aren't the neighbors demanding that? With that and bars nearby they won't ever have to drive again! No more DUIs either. That'd be living in the big city!

These people who move to the edge of a booming city then get upset when the city comes to them! WTF! They move to a sprawling subdivision and then drive their goddam cars, suvs and pick-em-up trucks and make the automobile traffic in the city that much worse for those of us who live in the city. You'd think they would be the most vocal and ardent supporters of walkable and dense cities. And if they don't live and work in the city...they damn well better be farmers. Then their wagons would be most welcome downtown at the farmer's market.

cx season is upon us!

I picked up a new (to me) bike the other day. A 2005 Redline Conquest. I am stoked about it but it's not yet rideable...needs a few parts. Anyone have any of these laying around?

9spd Right Brake/Shift Lever
9spd Rear Derailleur
9spd cassette (12-25?)
Chainrings (110)
Chain
Front Derailleur (unless I go with one chainring at first.)
Rear Cantilever brakes
Rear Brake Bosses

And possibly a pair of, whaddaya call 'em, "sissy levers"? top of the bar brake levers.

Watch out here I come!

Ashland residents take stock of new mailboxes

Morons to the left morons to the right. There is just so much wrong with this whole story.

As I am always telling Sam...Bad design is the bane of our existence. These guys had to really try hard to create such bad design. Good design would have been the easy way. Any ten-year old could have done better (like the one in the article for instance).

Althought it was hard to pick just one...my favorite line is

Attaching the boxes directly to houses wasn’t an option because that would require postal workers to walk through the neighborhood delivering mail.

Horrors!

some recent rides

www.RouteSlip.com
My heart rate chart looks like the profile of the Sapp Ride!

he's off

Sam is on his way to Japan. Endlich. Finally. What started over a year ago with me opening my big mouth is on its way to completion. I am really excited that he has this chance to go and am proud of him to be willing to go. His mother and I have been stressing over all the stuff he has to bring (not much really) and hoping that he will be able to keep track of it all. But I know we really needn't worry.

Last night we all went out to dinner and then had some ice cream at Sparky's. Sam just about sparked a family fight when he refused to share his food with the rest of us. " I didn't order what you have because I didn't want it!" Well! Some of us had ordered our food with reference to what everyone else had ordered and with the idea that we would all share. So his backing out of the unspoken contract was not met with applause and laughter.

Everyone made up before going to bed and after a short night we all got up and went to see him off. I have tried to track the progress of the airplanes via the web today. Frustrating in part because so far both flights have been at least an hour late. I don't envy the kids (and the teachers) having to hang out in O'Hare for an extra hour. Although you know they probably got a kick out of it. If I remember right, and it's been a long time, there are lot's of O'Hare Krishnas in the airport.

More to come...

story of issac

I forgot to mention this story. I think it's about the most repugnant in the entire Islamo-Judeo-Christian tradition. Just like ol' Abraham, people continue to hear the voice of their god commanding them to kill their children. Only now we call it mental illness. Where the hell was Sarah in all of this? She should be charged with child endangerment.
[updated 2:25p.m.]

all the more reason

A (presumably) Christian pastor here in Columbia has neatly summarized a few of the best arguments against Islamo-Judeo-Christianity. Thank you Pastor Dooley.

These include:

• "Jesus is a loving god, but definitely not a pacifist"
• "Jesus participated in destroying Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19 and threatened Nineveh with the same in Jonah 3"
• " King David, a soldier acclaimed for killing tens of thousands"

critical mass

Much as I want to stick it to the cars and their drivers this is not a good idea. Hopefully, it's probably the same wankers who wobble on the sidewalk or on the wrong side of the street. At night. With no lights.

I am a critical mass. Critical mass will only be achieved when we get more responsible riders riding responsibly as they go about their daily business. Not by a bunch of folks clogging the roads.

Besides, the damn rules of the road are good for something. Everytime I go and do something I know I shouldn't, like ride up alongside the cars stopped at a light I just about get creamed by a driver who didn't know I was there. Better to wait in line than in triage.

tooth fairy?

Caution spoiler ahead!

Did you know that compared to 35 years ago, kids get 10 times the reward from the tooth fairy? I have talked with several parents and the consensus seems to be that the tooth fairy brings "about a buck" per tooth. I think I got a dime. Dang! you say? Consider that I remember buying gum and baseball cards and candy for a dime or quarter back then. So a dollar for a tooth seems to be about on target. 75 cents may be more equitable but can you imagine the trouble that would cause the tooth fairy? lugging around three heavy coins per kid when one lightweight crisp 1 dollar bill would do the same if not better?

That said, Nora lost a tooth last week. (If any kids if are reading this, stop. Now.)

After eating dinner and watching some World Cup at my brother-in-law's house we came home and crashed. Nora had the sense to put her tooth under her pillow before she hit the hay. Now...I usually stand in for the tooth fairy, delivering the booty early in the morning if not late at night, but this time the "tooth fairy" had no energy to stay up either and forgot to fish out the tooth and replace it with a dollar. However, after a few hours sleep, I did have the energy to ride early the next morning. Then, as I was finishing up my ride Bridget called and asked if I had replaced the tooth? No, I had not. As soon as I got home I went into Nora's room and looked at the scrunched up pillow and knew that, even though it was in a baggie, it would be difficult to find the tooth without disturbing her. I barely lifted the very edge of the pillow case just a bit but let go and it fall back down. I didn't really even move the pillow at all. Just as the pillow case touched the bed, a "sleeping" litte girl stretched out a hand and said, "Dollar!"

if i only had a pump

major props to the Perfessor!

I was out toodling around McBaine on my bike pretending i was Floyd Landis when I hit a little rock of some sort in the middle of the road. one or two seconds later i heard the dreaded, "phup, phup, phup, phup" as a the air in my tire followed the laws of physics and redistributed itself from a high pressure area to a low pressure area. my tire was flat in seconds. not to worry i told myself. pull the tube out. put the new tube in (checking the tire first for any sharp thingys). pump up tire. ride.

Not so simple. I learned the importance of pump maintenence this morning. Evidently one has to check the seals on one's pump periodically and lube them too. I haven't done that. I had no functioning pump. fortunately, i had a functioning phone. And double fortunate for me, Nathan Means was almost out of bed and willing to come haul my ass home. He said it was no big deal but we all know differently. He's on summer break. nothing to do but sleep ride and watch the Giro.

Thanks Nathan!

if i only had a brain

Went to Gentry Middle School Thursday night to watch Sam perform in a school program. He sang some songs with a choir but he (and we) was not as enthused about that as we (and he) were about the short scene from the Wizard of Oz he was to perform. He did quite well! He has never done any acting on stage before so we were all a bit nervous for him. But he seems like a natural. I have a few fotos but they didn't turn out that great and I haven't even downloaded them off the camera yet but I just might put up a picture of him singing. or if i get really ambitious and tech savvy a video clip of him as the Tin Woodsman.

As I write this it's raining outside and that means that most likely Nora's soccer game will be cancelled. That's sad but also a relief. She can sleep and we can relax around here. I took Friday off sick. I really am. Why else would I be up at 2am? The way I feel now I may not be in to work on Monday either.

Which also means that I haven't put nearly the miles in this month that I planned or hoped to. Approx. 100 less than last year. I take solace, though, in the fact that what I have done has been "better" and higher intensity than last year. And I have been running which I think is adding to my base fitness. blah blah...thanks for reading.

janes addiction anyone?

So I'm sittin' here at work listening to launchcast on my computer. Usually I listen to my own station but today I have been listening to "80s Alternative" All the best music so far has been stuff from 1984-1988. I know lots of folks like to make fun of the 80s music (and there was, like now, lots of crap) but overall these were the Golden years for music in my opinion. The Cure's "Standing on a Beach", All of R.E.M.'s music, Jane's Addiction, Eurythmics, Love & Rockets, I can't even begin to name them all. Butthole Surfers, Dead Kennedy's, there's two more. It was all so good.

It was all on the radio station at K-State; KSDB was a breath of fresh air after the stifling top-40 junk like REO Speedwagon and Journey. Even now I have a hard time listening to any radio station other than a college station. Fortunately, the station at MU is run a lot like KSDB used to be. It even has the same frequency that KSDB did. I don't know the djs or most of the songs they play but I do know they don't play any friggin' commercials. Can't stand the stuff. Once in a while I flip up the dial to KBXR to see what they are playing but usually it's a commercial so I hit the down dial as quick as I can.

But I digress...those years were great ones for music and for me. What a coincidence that these same years were also my under-grad days.

a good time was had by all

We spent Saturday night and Sunday morning out in the rural hinterlands of Boone County playing. I took quite some photos which mostly turned out pretty good. By the looks of the kids faces it appears that they had a great time.

I of course came home Saturday night to "take care of the dog." It just so happens that I was able to ride the Tour de la Haute Croute before I went back out Sunday morning. Funny how that works.

the hour run

I ran for an hour on Saturday... not a long time by marathon standards I know but it was a long time for me. I haven't run that long for maybe ten years. So far no problems with my knee but I am not running again until Wednesday and then for only half an hour. It felt great to run on the MKT and I want to do it again next Saturday, but maybe this time with a friend.

Speaking of friends, after running Saturday, I went with Sam and the neighbor, Dr. Foote, out to help a friend who had also been our milk man. His farm by Fayette had been totally destroyed in a tornado March 12. Not just the barn or milk shed or even the house but everything. Gone. Wiped out. We went out and with about a thousand other folks took down what was left standing (part of the house and parts of some sheds) put it into big piles and burned it. Amazingly only one cow died in the storm and fortunately no one in the family was hurt. They were in the basement and by the looks of the house that seems to have been a really good idea. They sure don't build 'em like they used to though. It was an old house and solid. man. I was on a crew that started tearing off the second story. That was one well built house. I had gone downstairs to fetch a wrench and started thinking about the amateurs such as myself who were working in such close quarters with large hammers. Getting nervous for Sam, who was still working up on the second floor having a grand time smashing walls with a hammer, I returned to the second floor solely then to get him down from there. I had no sooner reached the top of the stairs than I has hit in the head with a flying piece of lath and plaster. it was only a flesh wound and didn't bleed much but it certainly made getting my son out of there more urgent.

It was really great to see all the people there helping out and feeling that they owed the family a debt for providing such a service to us.

food

It's funny what goes through one's mind when one is bonking.

I took the day off and was going to ride for maybe 2 hours and then do some work around the house. I got out on the road and figgerd that, "Hell, it's my day off and I really could put off the work at home..." so I ended up riding for 3 and a half hours. Let me tell all you young'uns...You should bring lots of food with you when riding alone in the boonies for three hours.

Among other places I rode out to Easley and did the hill there 2x. Sheeit, They graded that hill steeper or something since last summer.

But that was all nice and fine cuz it came before the 2 hour mark. I realized then that it was not going to be easy getting home without food. I ate my one little granola bar an hour earlier, and let me tell you there ain't much out southwest of Columbia. I mean Sapp's a nice townlet and all but they don't have a Casey's or 7-11 or even an A&W. I rode up and down the main drag but didn't see a one.

Actually, I was only a little hungry as I headed back down Woodie Proctor (who was he anyway and why does his name sound like a medical procedure?) and I didn't feel any sense of dread at the coming miles. Meanwhile my wheels kept getting farther from home and somehow (and i didn't know this until later) I was drifting with the wind. As I started back up the home stretch toward town on KK I realized just how far I had come with the wind. As the crow flies it's maybe 10 miles from the intersection of K and KK but I wasn't flying. crawling is what it was. wobbling was how I was doing it. Every bump made my stomach hurt. I never felt that one before. a dried shriveled up bean rattling around in my gut. As I passed the various eateries, Upper Crust, Shakespeares, MFA, etc. They all sounded delicious and it was torture passing them but the thought of stopping to eat and then having to get back out ON the bike and IN the wind was too much to contemplate.

I started fantasizing about the food I was going to eat when I got home. Taking inventory of the fridge and freezer. How long would it take to fry up the frozen hamburger (too long). Wondering if my wife would miss the bratwurst we as a family have on the menu for wednesday night (she would). Sudying the most efficient way to get the most food in me with the least amount of work and time...,"I'll walk in, turn on the stove for coffee, mix some chocolate milk, while i drink it, I'll cut the bread for my sandwich, then while I drink my second glass of chocolate milk..." Thank god for tuna in a can.

I ate and ate some more...and then fell asleep.

What a GREAT day off!

Bill Napoli

What more politics!...Sheeit!

Really, I'm just helping out the Smart Bitches (their term not mine) google-bomb the bastard in South Dakota, Bill Napoli. He is one of the prime backers of South Dakota's new anti-abortion law. His description of a case of acceptable abortion consists of the following (from PBS Online NewsHour):

FRED DE SAM LAZARO: Napoli says most abortions are performed for what he calls "convenience." He insists that exceptions can be made for rape or incest under the provision that protects the mother's life. I asked him for a scenario in which an exception may be invoked.

BILL NAPOLI: A real-life description to me would be a rape victim, brutally raped, savaged. The girl was a virgin. She was religious. She planned on saving her virginity until she was married. She was brutalized and raped, sodomized as bad as you can possibly make it, and is impregnated. I mean, that girl could be so messed up, physically and psychologically, that carrying that child could very well threaten her life.

So there you have it...Just doing my part to piss off the radical right.

time flies

It's been a month since I wrote in this thing. There has been so much going on that I haven't had time to stop and write. I am still not sure where to start and of course now as I am writing nothing is coming to mind.

Nora is still playing soccer on Friday nights. Her team which was beaten 23-1 in their first game, held the last team to only a 2 or 3 point lead and they actually scored! Sam turned 13 Feb. 1 and seems to be really turning into a teenager. Fortunately he seems much more well adjusted than I was at his age (or now). We took him and 14 of his closest friends to a video game "store" where they played non-stop violent games for 2 solid hours on 11 foot screens. I can tell you that won't be happening often. This place has "lock-ins" on Friday nights where you start playing games 11pm Friday until 7am Saturday. Talk about a healthy lifestyle. 8 hours on a couch in the middle of the night sustained by pizza, soda and donuts. Crazy! One of Sam's friends has done this at least once. Not my kid.

one grote race!

I did one last CX race on the 8th, the Grote Prijs Shawnee. A great race. Spectators, 4 barriers, 2 run-ups (one off camber), beer, coffee and pizza. The course was a tight one in a park and I would never have imagined that you could get a full on course in it but they did. I finished in the middle of the Bs. Got my work cut out for me.

Anyhow since then lots has been going on. The most momentous for me is that I turned 40 last Saturday. S0 far so good. Got a long ride in with The Perfesser and Patti on Sunday. Unfortunately, John was sick and couldn't come. Otherwise it was a perfect ride. Another Ashland loop with the same folks this weekend would be really nice. Bridget doesn't work tomorrow so I will probably get a slightly longer-than-usual ride in.

Last weekend was also the weekend of the flu at our house. It all started when Nora threw up at 4 in the morning Saturday. This was after playing an Excellent soccer match friday evening. She is a wiz with the ball and a joy to watch on the field. Damn! Her team is made up of "free agents", girls who don't have a regular team so they have only known each other for two weeks. The competition is made up of "traveling" teams that the girls had to try-out for. They have been playing together for a (relatively) long time and as a team are much better than ours. They are also a lot older than Nora and many others on her team. She is in a U12 league and she is 7. Still, on an individual level, Nora is as good or better (or will be) than many of the girls on the other teams. It is really fun to watch her skills develop.

Back to the flu...Bridget then got sick later on Saturday and missed a ride on the MKT she had organised in honor of my Birthday. She and Nora stayed home while Sam and I and about 12 other folks headed out for a 7 mile trail ride. Some of my friends on the ride hadn't ridden a bike for years so I was really honored that they picked my birthday to come out and try it again. With children no less.


Afterward we retired to Shakes for some pizza and beer. Actually only me and Sam and the Wrights (neighbors and some of the nicest folks I have ever met) made it to Shakespeares. Ann B showed up. and we all had a great time. Thought about my sick wife and child the whole time of course.

Monday after going for a ride, I came home and got sick. Fortunately I never threw up but I had a much higher fever than the previous two sickies. Missed work tuesday but was all better by Wednesday. Sam got sick tuesday evening and missed school Wednesday. He went to school yesterday and seems to be just fine. I think we may all be better now.

Planning on going out for a run in about half an hour. a short fast 2 mile run.

out of the closet

Ok...I know. I wasn't going to do this. I am only posting this for public insemination (sic).

The letter in today's Trib finally spells it out.

If a person wants to build a case for same-sex "unions" ([useless parenthetical comment deleted]), it will have to be done without the aid of the Bible.

Of course one could and should just as easily say:

If a person wants to build a case against same-sex "unions", it will have to be done without the aid of the Bible.

Yep, you gotta leave your religion at home when you enter the forum.

hectic around our place

• Bridget's dad had a stroke (he's doing fine)
• Bridget went to KC to be with her parents for the week
• School started for the kids
• Too many late late LATE nights
• Most importantly, just in time for my 40th birthday, I found hair growing from out of my ear.