The Crick in my Neck

I’ve got a crick in my neck like you wouldn’t believe (is “crick” a colloquial term? I don’t think may people around here say it. They say “I have a stiff neck.”). This is Day 3 of it. Maybe I need a massage. I’m sure someone could wring whatever’s stuck out of me. Deb’s given me some good exercises to do for it, but I forget. Odd, isn’t it? That something bothers me like crazy but then I forget to do what’s supposed to make it better. That would never happen to my mother. If it makes you better, do it, she says. No excuses.

She thinks I always have excuses.

Or maybe a long hot bike ride would do it. Maybe I need to sweat from exercise rather than from exertion. There’s a difference, I think. I’ve been sweating from exertion, but it doesn’t feel as cleansing as the kind of sweat that comes from a bike ride. I think my body is sending me a message: Go for a bike ride.

 

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The Happy Sweat

I’ve not been riding my bicycle much lately, and I miss it. I don’t know why on earth I just drifted away from something that…

1. I love,
2. makes me feel good,
3. is cool,
4. burns calories,
5. keeps my heart beating nice and slow,
6. sweats out the day,
7. provides an hour or so of solitude,
8. and clears my head.

I can’t think of one single thing about bicycle riding that’s not good for me and that I don’t love, and yet I’ve let months slip away without riding much to speak of. Maybe the fact that my knees feel as if they belong to some old limping woman has something to do with it.

Deb often comes home from work at lunch, jumps on her bicycle, and rides it back to work. Then she rides it home again…it’s a 12-mile round trip. Sometimes she throws in a longer route home just for fun.

So, last night after dinner, I took myself on my own little bike ride…maybe 10 miles. It was beautiful. I mean, we were sitting outside here with temperatures in the humid 90s and without air conditioning, and I thought to myself, “Hell, if I’m gonna sweat like this, I might as well get some good out of it,” so I jumped on my bike and sweat like you wouldn’t believe.

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“Cave of Forgotten Dreams”

Yesterday was great. Seriously. Probably because the sun shone all day and it was Saturday, so no work. Played in bees, went for a nice bike ride with Deb (on which we stopped at Coffee Emporium for necessary refreshments).  After the bike ride we took a brief rest, then realized we could catch a movie at the Mariemont in 30 min…I always amaze myself at how quickly I can go from a sweaty mess to a freshly bathed popcorn-eating movie goer.

We saw Cave of Forgotten Dreams. It’s surprisingly wonderful documentary (of course, I’m sort of a documentary junkie). You’ve got to see it, Reader. Go.

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A Preview

I think I started 2011 well. Before you were out of bed, Reader, I was on my bicycle. I logged some dark, rainy miles, and every single mile felt great. I love riding in a light rain, and I love riding in semi-darkness, and I love riding when most people are still snoozing. While I was out riding, Deb was on the golf course with Murphy. It’s sort of a good way for each of us to set the tone for the year.

I exercised, I ate well, I took a nap; we took care of Deb’s mother, we played, we visited with friends, we settled in with the pets, we fell asleep on the couch. It was good.

You can expect to hear more of these here. I know, it sounds boring. But for some reason, most of the time it’s not.

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Snap Out of It

It’s been quite chilly, and I’ve been bullheadedly unwilling to accept this change in weather.

But after work yesterday, I put on my 3/4 length biking pants and my SmartWool socks and my wool jersey and a screamingly reflective jacket; I lit all the lights…I was blinking a million different ways…and I took off on my first “it’s time to face the inevitable” ride of the season. And do you know that as soon as I began pedaling, I felt better.

Okay. So, it’s chilly. Yes, the days are shorter and the nights are longer and winter is coming. Yes, you’re getting older and eventually you will die. Get over it. Get on your bicycle and ride it.

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Ride Something

How do you like the new header, Reader? We have a wider version of this image hanging above our pantry door, and I love it. It reminds me to be strong and quirky and ride a horse. Well, I don’t ride a horse, but I do ride a bicycle.

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Six People this Weekend

Really. There’s just not that much going on around here. I hardly saw a soul all weekend long. Let’s see:

1. There was Jerod and Trisha early Saturday morning for one of our twice-weekly workouts. I don’t like doing it on Saturday, but our schedules got shifted around and we settled on Saturday. We’re both doing great…losing a significant amount of body fat. Jerod looks different. I look the the same, but I guess fat is changing to muscle. You know, though, we work out a lot more than our muscles. We work out a lot of ideas and problems, too. Years ago, Brian and I ran together for our long runs every Saturday morning. It made for a great relationship…2-3 hours of running will loosen up a lot of conversation.
2. Oh, and Jana had us over for dinner on Friday night. It was delicious. Deb says Jana is “just about” the best cook she knows. Which is Deb’s way of saying that Jana’s probably a better cook than I am, but she’s too sweet to say it. And I have to agree…very very very tasty…and what’s more…very very very healthy. Dan and Tiffany joined us for dinner there. I asked for recipes for every single thing we ate. I loved it all.
3. We went to dinner and to a movie on Saturday night: Eat Pray Love. Go to see Julia Roberts, but the movie suuuucked. Well, I’d skip the movie entirely if it were me. I’m not that crazy about Julia Roberts…she’s no Annette Bening (and if you haven’t seen The Kids Are All Right, go. Now. Yesterday). Deb didn’t want anyone to go with us, and I agree. No people.
4. The usual church people on Sunday morning, but they don’t really count. Deb said she didn’t want to go to lunch with anyone after church, though, so we ate fresh tomatoes and corn on the cob and salad at home in the shade on our deck. It’s not too hot if you stay in the shade. And I’ve taken to wearing a hat when I work in the sun. The floppier the better. I’m looking for a wide-brimmed straw hat. But I have a small head, so few fit me.
   

   Tilley: My new hat

5. We rode our bikes to Deb’s mom’s house Sunday afternoon (and got stuck there because of rain).
6. Went out for our usual Sunday pizza last night. Deb didn’t want to invite any people.
7. So, that’s a total of six people this weekend.
8. I realized that when we hang out or eat at home, Deb likes to invite people over. I don’t. I like very few people over here. Too many people over here can wear me out (no, not you, Reader. We love it when you stop by).
9. But when we go out, I like to include people because I can always leave. Deb doesn’t like to include people quite so much as I do when we go out. She gets worn out by that (again, I’m not talking about you, Reader. I’m talking about other people).
10. Figures.

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Air in Your Tires, Grease on Your Chains

Good morning, Reader. I got bored with the old header. It was fine for March, but here we are near May, so a change is in order. I didn’t want another painting, and I didn’t want another nature scene. So, we’re bustin’ out with industrial for a while. Meanwhile, let’s get those bicycles tuned up.

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To Do: 4/13/10

To Do:

1. Write the checks, sign the forms, mail the tax stuff DONE
2. Pick up dry cleaning. I wonder if the guy who owns that dry cleaners talks like that all the time. It would drive me crazy. DONE
3. Pack DONE
4. Oil change DONE
5. Wash car
6. Write the parents
7. Write the freelance job DONE
8. Buy groceries DONE
9. Ride my bicycle! DONE
10. Buy some new clothes because, really, I look like a poor person at work
11. Print some non-Salt poems to read at Kent DONE
12. Submit To Happiness to the contest
13. Write at least one paragraph of the novel DONE
14. Eat protein at every meal DONE
15. Drink plenty of water
16. Check the Amazons to see if the queen is laying eggs and to check the pollen stores DONE
17. Get my darn hair cut. Or at least find a shampoo that changes things.

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Write My Name in the Pollen with Your Finger

My eyes are gritty. All this bicycle and scooter riding in all this wind with all this pollen is making my eyelids glue together at night. It’s not pretty. I am one big mucus factory.

Yesterday I felt as if I were biking for a while in a tornado. All that pedaling for nothing. No progress. Although it probably looked spectacular…a bicycle and its rider perfectly balanced but perfectly upright and going nowhere on Eastern Avenue. I was covered with little flowers and I had a golden pollen glow by the time I finished. No amount of eye rubbing helps.

And when I said the other day that I smelled honey…well, I think I smelled the tulips our friends brought us on Easter all opening and spreading their pollen in the kitchen. Or maybe it was honey. I don’t know exactly.

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