Tuesday, March 29, 2011

six hundred, sick, sun, and SPRING...


Of course...
All good Spring training programs
start off with

getting sick.

blah!

I have been laying around bored and listless all afternoon,
and had to bail on my bikish meeting tonight,

so figured I might as well distract myself

with a little good ol
' blogging.

At least I have had the Sun here to hang out with.
And finally, I can hear the snow melting, slow but sure...


I have spent my afternoon starting to dig into a new book.
So far, so sucked in...
Anything about living in Europe,
especially by someone who lived in San Francisco,
of course I go gaga over.


The new JCrew catalog arrived today.
I enjoyed drooling over it as I slurped up my soup.

As I logged in I noticed
that my last post
was my
600th Post!!
Why are these things so thrilling in blogland?

I don't know,

maybe it is because they are like other ritualistic moments in life.

A time to stop, celebrate, look back, and look forward.
A time to think of your accomplishments
and what you want to accomplish.

Regardless, it's kind of damned exciting.


Miss Sarah is also celebrating a blogiversary today.
I particularly liked one thing she said:
Sometimes I wish I could be more like other blogs. More technical. More organized. More bikey.
What these three years of blogging has taught me is that it's funnest to write and post about the things that feel natural to me. Although I do love riding the bike, what I find even more important is what riding has awakened and reinforced in me:
Love for my community, friends, and family.

Amen sister.


I found a new-to-me blog today.
Sometimes, it is certain things people say
that you can just so completely relate to.
Sometimes I think what is the point of blogging...

Check out what Margarita has to say: Why I Blog

I do sometimes also wish I had more bikey things to say,
but not today,
and not everyday.
I do sometimes also wonder what is the point,
but in the end I enjoy being here.
And I appreciate you being here too.
On my bikey days
and on my not-so-bikey days.

Best of all, when you visit me today,
you won't catch my cold!
May you stay healthy and be ready for Spring.
I know I am!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

fabulous...


I have been 40 for a week now.
I am slowly coming to grips with it.

Now it is time to get back to the

fabulous...


Living in Minnesota is a such a struggle for me.

It snowed today and my super crank came out,

unfortunately I am talking about me, not my bicycle.

But I do what I have done for four years,

I pick myself up,

I get on my bicycle,

and I get on with it.


Despite the fact I had started seriously riding

outside in early March last year,

and all I want to do is give up today,

I hopped on the trainer tonight.

Yeah, I should NOT have to be doing this still,

but the alternative is to gain even more winter weight,

no thanks.


I have actually really enjoyed riding the trainer this year.

It has been a rough winter weather-wise,

and it has been a rough winter life-wise.

Hopping on the trainer after work,

queuing up something that transports me away,

wearing about ten less layers of clothes,

sweating, sweating...

It is all so necessary,

and as life always is for me on my bicycle,

so very meditative and therapeutic.


But that is about the limit of my positivity!

winter - ENOUGH already!

Spring, let's get it on.

It is time to be

40 AND fabulous!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

how the heck did this happen?


age 7, one of the best birthday gifts ever
the Ramblin' Rose


well,
it happened...
like a train moving down the tracks
with it's light beaming directly in my eyes.
today
I turned 40.
how the heck did this happen?


not one to look back in life and dwell,
I have been doing more of it lately

and find myself in a bit of a melancholy mood.

I have a 40 year old baby book

my mother so sweetly put together

oh so many years ago

and found myself looking through it

on the eve of the big day.

What details lay here?

I was born at 8:45 am

I was 8 lbs 3 3/4 oz, 20" at birth.

I smiled spontaneously during my 3rd week.

True to form, I held off on saying my first words

as long as possible - until my 16th month.


when we were living in NorCal
H and I both read Any Human Heart.

It is likely the best book either of us have ever read.

we have held on to it knowing we will go back to it again and again.

recently this book was brought to life by PBS

and I found myself moving through the mini-series

in my state of melancholy.

still cognizant of

how short life is,

how quickly time goes,

and how important the now is.


I get the mid-life crisis thing,
I think H and I have been there
for awhile.

How I chose to embrace it

is my decision.

time to
move forward

thoughtfully,

with consciousness,

and with foresight.


Happy Birthday Me!
May I Make it a good one...

Monday, March 14, 2011

being an adult...

can i just interrupt this blog to say it has been one hell of a time lately and today was one hell of a day. sometimes being an adult really stinks, but being an adult is trying to weed through the bad to get to the good. it's a big week as you shall see in a few days....

i wish for peace, good fortune, smartness, treasure found in the journey, and my loved ones forever held close.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

holding a memory...


During our time in Denver
we had a moment to visit

one of my old
stand-by shops.
Immediately,
H spotted this necklace

and wanted to buy it for me

as a birthday gift.

How could I refuse?

I love how it hangs

and the simplicity
and whimsy of it.

Collecting jewelery
when one travels
captures a moment
and forever holds the memory.


More about the artist here.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

life...



The better part of the last three months
we have spent extremely stressed out.

Life has thrown us one of those curve balls

and we have been working through the stages

of what to do and where to go.

In these moments you have to look at the beauty

and this is exactly what I found myself doing

when I was summoned to Denver

and found myself there 24 hours later

for an intensely emotional 36 hours.

Life
is
what happens
when
you least
expect
it.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Southern hospitality...



Let's leave Austin
and head on over to Greenville.

Home of another well-known cyclist.

I was here in January for a work trip

and was smitten.

Maybe it was the fact I could see my neck,

walk outside,

and breathe the air.

Maybe it was the girl on a bicycle

with her fast lovin' gear on

that made me relate

(and jealous...).

Maybe it was all the bicycle lanes downtown.

Maybe it was the fact it was actually a fun work trip.

Maybe it was the fact that I love textiles

and there is such a rich history here.

Maybe it was the fact that it was
60 degrees and Sunny
in January...

I was not able to bicycle while I was here,

but obviously it's got some good cred.

A true Northerner at heart,

the South always intrigues

and challenges me.