Miscellaneous Missives

At one intersection, we stopped and listened to/sang Glory .   It's on my cycling playlist, and it's been a good song to ride with this summer. "No one can win the war individually It takes the wisdom of elders and young people's energy" Yesterday I joined MN NOC (Neighborhoods Organizing for Change), Black Lives Matter, and teachers from the AFT (American Federation of Teachers) to march for change.  The specifics surround the Philandro Castile shooting, but the march was about more than one person.  It was about bringing about change to our communities.  It was peaceful although twenty-one arrests were made.  The march ended at US Bank .  I need to do more research since the Google machine isn't helping, but it is said that US Bank and Wells Fargo make money off "state sanctioned violence."  Although I was more than happy to march, I was not willing to be arrested.  Is this lame?  Marching in support and chanting "From the scho...

I would, however, like to thank Trump and Pence for their new insignia.  It doesn't get any better than this. Today's Human.com Daily score is 69%... meh. I started packing for my seven days of RAGBRAI yesterday.  The camping tote is basically packed.  When I started packing, I realized one of my pairs of bike shorts didn't match my jersey, so I had to go buy a new pair (all black... matches all).  Excessive? I'm tapering this week which means I'm not riding much.  In reality, it means I might not ride this week. The Republican National Convention started yesterday.  I really thought it was going to be fun, but it is not really any fun at all.  My focus is no longer on the Presidential campaign.  I don't care... really!  I'm going to focus on what matters... House and Senate.

Today I joined a group ride with Hiawatha Bike Club again.  The ride was advertised as a 30 mile ride featuring Islands of Peace Park , a Mississippi River ride, and sculptures on the return.  We we followed part of the Mississippi River that I had not rode, and it was a delightful ride.  On the return, we passed the start of the ride where most had parked their cars.  I was a bit confused until I remembered the sculptures that were mentioned.  These two are downtown near the convention center, and the are interactive.  As someone pedals the bike under the sculpture it talks and makes noises.  Another person can pull the rope moving the head.  Both are quite amazing.  From pictures on FB, it looks as though they light up at night.  Although today's ride was slower than I would have liked, I met great people and the interactive sculptures (Wolf and Moose) were amazing.

KC at Word Savvy asked about crazy behaviors .  I have been exhibiting a big one these last couple of days.  When I get overwhelmed or scared, I often quit, give up, throw in the towel... Since I am hundreds of miles behind my cycling last year, I am freaking out about this year's ride.  It's going to be much hillier and that scares me.  Thursday someone posted the weather outlook for the last week in July.  Of course, I had already been putting the towns of the ride into weather.com and knew the forecast was mid nineties for the entire week.  How did I prepare myself for this?  I decided not to ride yesterday because it was too cold.  In other words, I quit.  Today I was on the same path until a ride popped up on my bike club calendar.  Riding with others is always motivational, so I will ride today thanks to this update.  The good news is next week is a rest week.  I'll ride Tuesday with the group again, but that will be...

I'm sure you've seen this, but I LOVE it! Tonight I road 25 miles on my own and then road the other 25 miles with the bike club.  At the beginning of the ride they were wondering if Summit was open.  I explained that although it was still closed, cyclist could get through, but I thought we should forego the one block of protesters.  My reasoning, which I did not say, was I thought it to be disrespectful for 13 of us to ride through.  The leader, however, decided to follow the cops advice and ride through.  As we passed a group with large Black Lives Matter signs, I held up my fist in solidarity.  The three in front of me did not see my gesture.  The sign holders, who had been silent, acknowledged my solidarity by chanting Black Lives Matter.  The gentleman next to me wondered aloud if they had done that for us.  I didn't tell him about my fist in solidarity, but I did take a mile or so to talk to him about implicit bias, mental illness, a...

My life has come down to two basics, biking and books.  With only 11 days, 21 hours, 41 minutes and 6 seconds until the start of RAGBRAI, I'm happy to be back on my bike.  Yesterday's ride was hot and humid (like crazy).  I always sweat a ton when I ride, but yesterday was out of control.  Let me gross you out a bit.  When I returned home, I could wring water (sweat) out of both my bandana and my hair... not even joking. I've also been sticking with reading one book for each three young adult (YA) books I read.  As soon as I blog about the YA books, I start a book from my reading list.  Yesterday it was Gloria Steinem''s My Life on the Road .  She's coming to St. Paul for Talking Volumes, and I think it could be interesting.  I liked the book (4/5 stars).  I really did.  However, I can't get past her comments about women and Barry Sanders.  "Young women, she said, ask, 'Where are the boys?' as in, 'Who are the boys voting ...

This is where I decided to retrace my path. The light made it seem like a good idea. I started riding my bike again on Friday with a 25 mile ride.  Yesterday I rode 30 miles.  Today my plan was to do a similar ride and perhaps add a few miles.  Anyone that knows me and reads my blog guesses I sometimes push my limits.  On FB people questioned whether or not I had clearance from my doctor.  My doctor wanted me to wait until both saddle sores (turned into bulbous boils of disgust) had completely cleared.  Since the saddle sores are not completely (although mainly) cleared, I'm going to guess my doctor would tell me to be cautious.  Anyway, I feel good about riding which is important since I found myself lost on today's ride.  I had asked twice for directions, but I think the other cyclists thought I had more of an idea of my location.  I guess I should have realized I was farther out than I had planned when another cyclist, who was giving m...

Allowables by Nikki Giovanni I killed a spider Not a murderous brown recluse Not even a black widow And if the truth were told this Was only a small Sort of papery spider Who should have run When I picked up the book But she didn't  And she scared me And I smashed her I don't think I'm allowed To kill something Because I am Frightened Yesterday I finally felt I could get back on my bike, and today I wanted to ride Summit Avenue.  As I rode up Summit, I came across this scene (picture taken on my return trip).  I wasn't sure what was happening, so I asked the officer if I could ride through.  As I kept riding, I realized what was happening.  It's the peaceful protest outside of the Governor's mansion.  As I rode past, I became emotional  (hand to mouth, tears in eyes, a bit choked up...).  Although I've written, prayed, and thought about the problems in our society, I still am not personally affected by it, and maybe that...

Feeling Murky Shoulders by Naomi Shihab Nye A man crosses the street in the rain, stepping gently, looking two time north and south, because his son is asleep on his shoulder. No car must splash him. No car drive too near to his shadow. This man carries the world's most sensitive cargo but he's not marked. Nowhere does his jacket say FRAGILE, HANDLE WITH CARE. His ear fills up with breathing. He hears the hum of a boy's dream deep inside him. We're not going to be able to live in this world if we're not willing to do what he's doing with one another. The road will only be wide. The rain will never stop falling. Yesterday I woke up to the Facebook video of the black man murdered by a police officer in a St. Paul suburb.  This was after a black man was killed by police violence in Baton Rouge.  These are not isolated events.  We are all too familiar with the names of black men and women whose lives have been taken at the hands of pol...

Today I left in the early morning to drive to God's Country to get my bike fit.  Although it seems excessive, it actually saved me money.  I also wanted to ride the rollers (hills) around the lake.  Although I realize my doctor said to wait, I thought one ride couldn't hurt.  I may have been mistaken since I only went a little over five miles.  To make it worse, I forgot my cycling glasses, sunscreen and my inhaler.  It was a good reminder.  I drove back home tonight, and all in all, it was a good day.  It helped me have a bit fuller life yet not as full as President Jimmy Carter's life. This trip gave me the chance to listen to my current book.  I'm reading/listening (Kindle and Audible work well together).   A Full Life:  Reflections at Ninety by Jimmy Carter.  I've decided that Jimmy Carter is my favorite President (Perhaps it's a tie between him and Barack Obama).  He's brilliant.

The Fourth of July plan was to ride Tour D'Amico as I did last year , but alas, I still have a few more days before I can ride my bike (I'm healing!).  Instead I volunteered to help with the ride .  My job started at 7am with ride registration/check in.  I talked to wonderful people and instigated conversations with several based on their jerseys.  I did get a peak at this year's RAGBRAI jersey on one of the riders, and it's styling.  Not that it was a contest, but I checked in more people than the others at the table. On the reading front, I'm doing fairly well.  My goal is to read three young adult books for each adult book I read.  Yesterday I read one of the novels that will be featured during the upcoming Talking Volumes series.  It was a memoir about her husband's death.  On Goodreads I gave it a 3 out of 5, but it's more like a 3.5 to 3.75.  The Light of the World is really a beautifully written book.  I also read a go...

...and this is why I go to the farmers' market. I'm not doing anything fourthish this weekend.  Instead, I'm relaxing, reading, and healing.  It's actually a bit boring, but I realize I have no real complaints.  This morning I visited the farmers' market.  I always save my favorite booth for last, so I know how much I can spend on sweets.  My favorite is the lemon ricotta cookie.  In addition, I bought a carrot cake muffin (only way to eat carrots, oh, and carrot cake).   Reading Update: Yesterday I read Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist .  I found this gem by reading my Bookmarks magazine.  It was a shorter novel, and I wish it was a bit longer.  The setting is the 1999 World Trade Organization protests in Seattle.  Each chapter gives the perspective of a different character which all work together.  My rating is 4.5.  Unfortunately, Goodreads doesn't let anyone give a portion of a star.  I'd compl...

Yesterday my dad and I accomplished the plumbing tasks on our list.  My dad put in my new white kitchen faucet.  Getting a white faucet (as I wanted) was not an easy task, but we persisted.  It's installed, and a new faucet really does make a difference. While we were at the hardware store picking up some items we forgot, I couldn't help but notice the shower heads.  Since my dad is a great guy, he said he'd install a new shower head... no problemo.  (My dad likes to speak in Spanish any chance he gets.  It really happens a lot, even in his texts.)  Anyway, when he looked at my old shower head, he thought a new one was a really good idea.  The rust in my water is insane. We also had time to practice setting up my new tent.  Even the idea of sleeping in a tent, setting up a tent, you know... drives me a bit insane.  It's easy.  Since I'm paying for tent valet (RAGBRAI last week in July), I only need to set it up t...