TGIF - 7/18/08

So I did something totally uncharacteristic of me last night ... I sacrificed sleep for a movie. Those that know me know that I am no good without my 8 hrs of beauty sleep. No comments, just go with it. Anyhoo, I somehow got involved with a plan to go see The Dark Knight on opening night ... at the 12:02am showing. Today has gone well, considering I got to sleep just before 4am. But I am going to need some caffeine here shortly.
I normally judge a movie by whether it was a waste of 2hrs of my life (much less the $10 ticket) ... The movie was awesome. Seriously - the fact that I'm not whining about sacrificing sleep to see the movie is essentially a ringing endorsement. It amazed me how many people were at the theater to see the show - Sara and I pulled into the parking lot and saw BUSES. Really.

Greenbelt this week was good fun as usual. Good to see Sonja and HvT (C3) out there in the B race - Sara and I get lonely being the only estrogen out there. With daylight being what it is this time of year, we're up to about 18 laps on the course, which makes for interesting times at the end when everyone gets antsy for the finish and that hill seems like a mountain. It was either pretty fast or I am still reeling from a week off the bike (excuses, excuses) but we're gluttons for punishment so it still qualifies as "fun".

Giro di Coppi- hoping it will be rescheduled but also dreading having to stay in race shape through the end of Sept ... I've been looking forward to some MTB rides - I live so close to Patapsco State Park that its a shame I don't MTB more often. My poor bike hasn't been touched since I broke my wrist in an unfortunate lapse of judgment at Patapsco almost 2 years ago. Needless to say, it'll be babysteps for me to get back in the saddle again (pun intended).

That's about all I've got for today. I know, I know - its not up to my usual standards, but its all I can do with about 3hrs of sleep. In need of caffeine or sleep. Or both.

Random Ramblings

About halfway through my ride yesterday, I thought to myself that it must be a full moon right now. Drivers were more irate, impatient and distracted than usual. I lost count of the number of times I thought to myself "hang up the phone and drive!" I admit, I forgot to use the more PC acronyms and threw out a few expletives during my 2hr jaunt through and around Ellicott City. At one point I was cruising on 108 through a green light and this 16 year old female decides to make a left turn from the opposite direction. She didnt stop until I had locked up my brakes and prepared for impact. We stopped close enough that I could slam my hand on her hood and tell her to hang up the eff'n phone. She didn't even apologize.

I went out last Friday night with a couple of friends and we talked a bit about drivers and cyclists. It is pretty indicative when our friends/neighbors/family members have a negative and/or aggressive attitude toward cyclists - these people actually LIKE and KNOW us as people. This does not bode well for those that don't know/aren't related to a cyclist. I remember not too long ago having to lecture my mom that the cyclist that she complains and whines about might be ME !

After the first decent ride since my "break" from the bike, I hopped in the car to run some errands. Okay, the ultimate goal in my errand-running was to stop by Rita's for an italian ice. Anyhoo, I realized that EVERYONE is driving like a jerk-face - I think I was more frustrated in the car than I was on the bike.

Lo and behold, it IS a full moon over the next couple of days. I'm still not going to check my horoscope on a daily basis because I have never been a huge believer in astrology but I swear there must be something to the phases of the moon and its effect on people.

I know a bunch of people are bummed that the Giro di Coppi is postponed but I have to say I'm relieved - after a week off the bike and I'm not going uphill that well right now, this gives me time to get back into the swing of things. Love the course and I'm glad they didnt have to change it. I didnt get to do it last year b/c they didnt have a field for me (only 3/4 women), so I am looking forward to the race when it does happen.

The season is winding down, though - I made a quick list of upcoming races that I plan to attend and realized how few there are ... Hunny Bop, Tour of Millersburg, Page Valley, Turkey Day, Giro. I've decided I'm going to lay off the TTs ... they're just not being friendly to me so until I figure out the issue, I'm not going to keep banging my head against the wall. One of the house-mates from Louisville generously offered to put my TT bike in their car for the trip home - I advised him that my feelings wouldn't be hurt if he pushed it out of the car on the highway ... yeah, I need a break from TTs.

TGIF 7/11/08

TGIF, indeed ! Ever notice that when you take a week off of work, it takes at least two weeks to catch back up and get back to good ?

This week has been a whirlwind for various reasons, not the least of which was me coming back to a flooded basement (thank you, Sara and Mitch, for helping out while I was gone). This is a new experience for me - I've always PAID homeowners insurance but never actually used it. The most amusing part of this story was that the police/fire dept had to break down my front door to turn off the water (a hose to the washing machine burst) since no one was home. My front door wouldn't close for about a week - thank goodness that my TV is circa 1980 and no one would steal it if I tried to give it to them.

So, to make lemonade out of lemons, I think I'm going to take this opportunity to revamp the basement into an entertainment room. Once the walls are torn out/replaced/repainted and the carpet is replaced, I think I'm going to put in a half-bath and fit out the room with a TV from THIS century and a nice surround system. We'll see - big plans but it seems like a good project for fall/winter. If anyone knows a good contractor (for the bathroom installation), let me know.

To quote another cliche, things tend to happen for a reason. This week was a planned week off the bike - thankfully, because I dont think I would have had time to train between catching up at work and handling the basement drama. I do feel like a slug after 5 days off the bike, though. I finally broke down and hopped on the rower last night - that nearly killed me. Maybe I ought to do that more often. Back on the bike tonight and we'll see what I can bring to Hagerstown - I'll either be rested and fresh or rested and stale. Here's hoping for the former.

Happy Friday !