March Madness

It’s March, a time of year in Chicagoland where we really don’t know what to expect, a season of the unpredictable.  Weather can be cold, it can be warm, windy, rainy, snowy, icy.  When it comes to cycling, one needs to be savvy and flexible, ready to ride when the weather allows, willing to ride when conditions are less than favorable.

One of the blessings of being a cyclist who enjoys both mountain bike (dirt) riding and road riding is that I can pick and choose the type of riding according to what the day offers.  Wind and cold may mean that I ride dirt trails in the woods.  Moist weather may mean that the road is the best place to experience the joy of riding.  Either way, I am going to be on  the bike.

I like these days, when my time is my own, when I have the choice.

Lately, the only reason why I don’t ride is fatigue.  I rest when my body needs a rest.  I have been riding when I want to ride, which is practically every day.  Last night, I rode in shorts and a tee shirt, on dirt trails, led two friends on a ride through the familiarity of my favorite system, two hours of hard riding that showed me that I am already coming into form.  I slept the sleep of satisfied fatigue last night, the tired joy of a man who has pushed his body in the right way.

Funny, my friend that I led along the trails last night posted on FB about the comical patience that I displayed as I led her and her boyfriend last night.  It was fun.  I had to ride harder than usual, pay attention to the lines I am familiar with, because I was leading two above average riders.  I liked that I was able to push myself.  I was proud.

Life is always good when I am riding, even in March.

One note — my son will win a huge NCAA basketball pool that I paid for him to enter — if Villanova wins.  Pretty cool.

Practice That Stare

Tags

condo living, neighbors

It’s starting to become comical.  Correction – it has been comical for a while, but even I am starting to laugh a little more at the situation.

The situation?

If it wasn’t obvious already, my downstairs neighbor is a crazy woman obsessed with driving away her upstairs neighbors.  So obsessed is this woman, so driven to control her world and expand it beyond her little condo, that she refuses to give up.  It’s lunacy.

Call me childish.  It won’t offend me.  I am childish and proud of it.  Last Wednesday night was the monthly condo association meeting.  Days before, a sign was posted at the entrance to the development to announce the 7 PM meeting.  I have gone to one meeting since I moved in last April.  Each meeting has a time where residents can voice their concerns, complaints and suggestions to the condo board, followed by the business of the meeting.  I know that my unfriendly downstairs lunatic attended a meeting to complain about me shortly after I moved in.  I complained about her at the meeting that followed her early morning outburst to my daughter and I last October.

I bought a leather recliner last Wednesday evening after work.  As I was toting the recliner up the stairs to my place, 15 minutes before the condo meeting was to begin, my favorite neighbor emerged from her cave.  She rushed out the door to the courtyard, a sheet of paper in her hand.

Hmmm… I wonder where Terese the Terrible was headed?

Attending a condo board meeting was not on my agenda for the evening.  However, no way was I going to miss witnessing her tirade in front of the meeting.  Even better, my presence might just upset her enough to shut her up.  I moved my new recliner in, brushed my teeth, then headed out the door for the meeting.

Yes, it was a bit of a childish thing to do.  It might also have been a good thing to do.  My neighbor was leaning over the chairman of the board, fervently preaching to her as I walked in and took a seat in the third row of seats.  A nice couple seated next to me introduced themselves and chatted with me while we waited for the meeting to begin.  Finished with her sermon to the board chairman, Terese the Terrible took a seat two rows directly in front of me.  I knew that she saw me, especially when she turned around and attempted to give me an evil stare.

I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.  It was a really pitiful attempt, but there was a bit of demon in her eyes.  What was that about the couple asked me.  All I said was that we shall see.

We didn’t see.  Moments later, Terese whipped out her cell phone and began texting frantically.  I felt special.  Very special.  She was upset that I was there.  Her plans for audience to her complaints were foiled.  The meeting started, the floor was opened to resident comments.  My neighbor sat in the front row, fists clenched and silent.  The meeting moved on to the business of the meeting.  A few minutes later Terese’s husband, Thad the Tiny Balled, walked in and sat next to his wife, a stern stare in my direction as he sat down.

The meeting adjourned, the board still seated at the front of the room.  The lovely couple surrounded the chairman, Terese frantically shoving the paper in the chairman’s hand, obviously a written complaint.

I have heard nothing.  Maybe that document was an announcement that she is moving?

That is my prayer.  I can only hope.

 

Screw You, Gas Company

It’s that time of year.  Do I wear green?  Yes.  It’s necessary.  Do I fill out a bracket?  Of course.  There is almost no choice.

It’s time for my crazy downstairs neighbor to provide the heat.  My furnace is off.

Yes, I am a cheapskate.

Specific

Tags

lemonade

Tuesday night I experienced a first, something that took me longer to experience than it probably should have.  After all, I travel often enough.  Maybe I have been more lucky than most when it comes to travel.  Who knows, all I know is that what happened is my first time.

My flight home was cancelled due to weather.  Chicago was having a snow storm, a minor one, but other parts of America were experiencing storms, so I imagine that my plane couldn’t make it to Atlanta.  The thing is, I needed to spend more time with my customer, was pretty sure that I wouldn’t make it back to the airport for my flight.  The flight was delayed as I checked my text messages, then cancelled.  I was stuck in the customer’s factory, an error in their wiring causing a delay in the configuration service that I was providing, so I needed more time to complete my tasks.  Rather than get annoyed at the cancellation, I was happy that my customer wouldn’t have to pay the charges to change my flight.

Funny, when I pray, I don’t always expect a real answer.  I had prayed.  I wanted this visit to this specific customer to be successful.  God answered my prayer in a very specific way.

I stayed an extra night.  I came back the next morning, made a few tweaks to each of the transmitters that I had configured the past few days, improved performance to within a quarter inch accuracy on every transmitter installed and configured.  Adding lemonade.another day gave me more time with a customer who has the potential for a ton more business, including training engineers who have influence on plants around the USA.

Dang, I feel good about myself!  I feel good about what happened.

Oh and I got to drive the Cadillac that I had been upgraded to for another day.

Lemonade, children, lemonade.

On The Road Again

Tags

biking, personal

Last week I took advantage of the warmer weather, pulled my bicycle off of the trainer in my spare bedroom, took it down to my garage.  The weather was comfortable, with more comfortable weather forecast for the weekend.  While it was dark by the time I arrived home from work, too dark to ride the road (it’s just too dicey around here), I did want the bike ready for the weekend.  Fresh batteries went into the wireless computer and the fork mounted transmitter.  The headlight and rear flasher went back on the bike.  Tires were checked, chain cleaned and readied.  I prepped a ziplock baggie with spare tube, patch kit, CO2 cartridges and inflator, dollar bills.  Gloves, road helmet and head sweat liner, socks, shoes were all set out in their place on the shelf above my bike.  A little apprehensive yet excited about my first real road ride in quite a while, I was ready to roll.

Saturday morning emerged with a burst of sunlight through my bedroom windows.  I smiled as the brightness peeked through the blinds, rested and ready.  My plan was to spend the first part of the morning in my usual way, with a light breakfast and coffee, a few moments of meditation, then the few chores that needed to be done around the house before heading out on the bike by mid morning.  Careful not to plop down on the couch lest I get too comfortable, I changed into my cycling clothes — two layers with shorts and a insulated long sleeve mock neck tee as the first layer, thick tights and a long sleeve jersey as the second layer.  Wool socks are always my choice for my feet, no matter the weather, so I pulled on my Woolie Boolies then headed out the door.  Temperatures were in the low to mid thirties, so I knew that the ride would be a tad brisk, but still comfortable.

There is something wonderfully satisfying about hearing the first click of cleat to pedal, the light resistance straining against my legs for the first pedal strokes followed by a pleasant hum as the wheels spin lightly.  There was very little getting used to the feel of the bike underneath me as I have already been out plenty on my mountain bike this year, but the feather light titanium framed beauty that I ride feels like nothing after riding the 10-12 pound heavier mountain bike.  There is a pleasure to riding both bikes that I refuse to compare to anything else in life.  I will just say that there is a reason that I have been riding for some 25+ years.. and will continue until I am no longer physically able to ride.

My goal for Saturday was simply to spin out the cobwebs, ride for a few hours.  That goal was accomplished nicely, with 32 miles on my odometer at the end of the ride, a little better that 16 mph average.  The first ride of the year should never feel like punishment to my body, something that was accomplished.  There was enough left in me to finish the day, yet enough taken out to let me know that my body would be thanking me the next day.  Along the way, I met a woman who was getting ready to ride, a pleasant conversation with an expression of hopes to see each other again out on the road.  There was light to almost non-existent traffic, good weather, and plenty of blessing packed into the short time I took getting reacquainted with my titanium two wheeled friend.

Sunday afternoon found me out on the dirt trails again.  Our weather dry the last four days, the trails I ride ready.  I got 90 minutes in on the mountain bike before I had to quit.  I had promised a friend at church that I would fill in for him as an usher for our evening service.  The time on the trail was fabulous, especially when I came across my friend, Roy, out on the trail and was able to ride with him for a while.

On the road again, looking forward to more time out.  I need to ride.  May is around the corner and I have a difficult event to train for!