a cautionary note

I like my socks to match what I'm wearing, typically, when I'm dressed in my business casual work clothes. I change at work from cycling attire (I bring my work clothes once a week to have on-hand so I needn't ride to work with them wadded up in panniers or risk getting them wet/dirty/etc.).

I usually change in the restroom on our floor rather than the workout fitness room locker room, a habit I adopted during the year the locker room was closed for remodeling. In the morning, since my ride is under 3 miles and generally down hill, I don't need to re-shower in the AM... at least no coworker's have complained about it.

As I change in a bathroom stall, I usually hang my clothes over the top of the door and set items like socks to the side, propping them up on the top of the TP holder, for example. Well, this morning things did not go so well. Like a tired or distracted first baseman missing what should have been an easy out, I bobbled the rolled-up socks and they landed with a *sploosh* into the toilet.

My first thought was to somehow save them and dry them out, however, the thought of having wet socks perched on my desk, staring at me soggily, only further irritated me. So I opted to trash them and instead wear socks that don't match what I'm wearing.

Funny considering on the ride in I was thinking "it's such a really great day for riding" buzzing down the road with happy, positive thoughts in my head, unaware of the sock drama about to unfold minutes later.

it took a cold to get me to pause to post

I think I've been going full-tilt all summer long with so many activities, as posted before, I did some camping trips this summer, toting a bicycle along whenever I could. I was a bit disappointed it looks like I won't do a charity ride this summer or a longer-distance event, however, sometimes I did get out for a 11-12 mile ride solo or with my wife... it has been that difficult to get away to cycle this summer.

Finally, a cold that hit me this week - less than a week after the kids started back to school - got me to slow down enough to write an update on what I've been doing lately bicycle-wise.

I might be considered by my friends and neighbors to be the "Harold LeMay" of bicycles. I think I have eight currently, though not all of them are keepers. The most recent purchase was a pair of Japanese Tange double-butted cro-mo steel-framed 18-speed Shogun touring bicycles, both converted to mustache style bars when new. Both were taken care of really well and ride like new.



I am planning to sell one and keep the other at this point. The springy Schwinn seats and upright position make for a very enjoyable ride on an asphalt paved trail.

Another bicycle I've been toying with is a Schwinn BMX bike pulled together from parts handed down from a friend of mine. Originally, I thought this'd be the bike to tote along to the camp grounds, but that idea was tossed in favor of my mountain bicycle, since we'd be riding greater distances.



I've fooled around on this bike with the kids on their bikes but I have a feeling I'll eventually sell this too. For me it's just a curiousity. Watching MTV's show SCARRED has pretty much took away my interest in doing wild bicycle tricks and plywood jumps.

This'd be me on a jump... from the film Napoleon Dynamite... at about 30-something seconds into the clip.


For my birthday this year, the kids painted me a painting of these bicycles. They were inspired by another artist's work, however, I think they did a pretty good interpretation of bicycles - not bad for 5 and 6 years-old.



The week of my birthday in August, we went camping at Lake Easton in WA State. Here are a couple pics during a ride along the John Wayne Trail with me and my friend, Bill.





I'm still bicycle commuting 2-3 times a week in general and will continue to do so as long as there isn't ice in the morning. My commute might be slightly affected by a highway construction job, but I have a few work-arounds for that I've explored. Last year, I rode until December and stopped until February - using an indoor bicycle trainer during that period.

Until I post again - keep the rubber side down! :)