Raise a Cupcake

to TOB
who came to be
just one short year ago

for TOB
like you and me
just chasin' off life's woes

the TOB
who would agree
that cycling's apropos

so TOB
she spews for free
'bout Betty and some joes

this TOB
some say she's me
or some old coot who blows

- um, T O B

The Way Home

It's a fine ride home -- here are just about all 12 miles of the commute....










































- TOB it's all smack in the midst of the metro...and did you catch the other bicycle commuters?

Rumination

sometimes all that's necessary
is a careful examination of the pieces
and of the intricate connection
between their working and their resting

- ob

Pointless and...wait, there's BEER?

Ridin'?

Yep.

An off-road century?

That's what the shirt says.

Whoa! You're ridin' a hunderd miles?

Read the shirt.

Buuuuut you've barely been riding this past month...

Don't need to. Ridden before. Know how to ride.

...sooooo...

It's a great shirt.

Yep...

...yep....

...and...they'll need...people to...um.......cheer...and stuff.

And the beer.

Soooo...you're on cooler detail!

Durned tootin'.

Of course.

- The Bag hits the dusty trail Oct. 7th

Did I HUH?

Have
you

Pildered

your

Wasser??

that sounds like it could be nasty :-)

- The Bag sez go get a shirt!

Wisdom is Seeing

- TOB and Prudence made an evening grocery run

Just Pause

I skipped out on the ride in this morning
I woke up tired
I wake up every day tired
but this morning was the tired that I feel
at not having enough time at home
after working late and getting up early
so the pink sunrise became my excuse
for a quiet morning
watching the colors rise in the backyard sky

- ob sometimes it's nice just to sit

And Breathing

scratch the breathing...well, except that I can do that while undertaking other things on the list so OK maybe breathing stays but the vent covers just aren't getting done and if they don't get painted they'll rust so maybe leave that one on the list but maybe skip the car-washing since the car is a beater anyway but I still need to have the oil changed and tires rotated and have that clunk checked-out but I'm cycling to work tomorrow so who cares for tomorrow anyway and after that IT'S FRIDAY!

- OB and then I can crash, right??

OK, Scratch the Vacuuming

but instead add:

read blogs



- The Old how do I get all the entries read?!? Bag

How-the-Heck

do people do all this and work full-time too??

clean/lube mountain bikes
work on garage shui
vacuum the basement
wash-out the cat boxes
mow
Round-Up the weeds
go through desk piles
email Cindy
vacuum the floor
wash the car
breathe
pay my bills
make a Target run
catalog returns
cards
spraypaint the vent covers
first buy the paint

- TOB whew!

Unassuming

It was an unobtrusive arrival. After a tough beginning to her life (the rest of her siblings were snapped-up and spirited away months ago) she finally found her home with me. Like leftovers and last-picks tend to be, she was hopeful when we met and quietly found her spot in the stable: glad to have a home but not sure she really had a place here.

I wasn't sure, either.

I was eager to get her out and about, but it took a couple rides to realize I was expecting her to be like Betty. I knew she had Betty’s strong lineage, but unlike Betty she wasn't in her element when I introduced her to the crowd. She was content to head down the road with everyone but she stuck to the periphery. Rather than wanting to dance around and play chase games, she seemed to have something else on her mind, but I wasn’t sure what it was. She was comfortable around the others in the barn, she even welcomed Red, but she always had that distracted look in her eye: is she running from something? looking for something? She was congenial enough, but was upfront: this is who I am...I'm not much into changing. Just can't.

I started thinking she just wouldn't be happy here -- maybe next spring we'd need to find a better home -- but then came my own distraction: work was starting up again.

I traipsed out to the barn last Monday morning to start the commuting routine. Betty was staying home this time, happy for the extra Zs. The newbie would be taking her place.

She wasn’t overly ancy when we took off, but right away I could feel a difference in her gait. It was a bit springier...somewhat more comfortable. The load felt lighter, the rutted road in the industrial park was smoother, and the washboard limestone trail was easier...the dust didn’t even bother her. She was matter-of-fact, even happy, about her work. Then, she had the chance to follow the uneven, narrow walking path through the grass on the freeway overpass where the sidewalk ended she could have some fun on this stuff....

Betty, always willing but definite in her preferences, would have done what needed to be done, but probably would have taken to the road, and once back home would have changed into her clean shoes. This one relished in the varied terrain and the splatters, and I could see her eyeing the park reserve we pass by on the way home...wonder if there’s a bit o' singletrack hiding in there? When we got back she pranced into the stable all happy-like and didn't even bother with clean-up. What a paradox: unassuming, practical, industrious and strong yet graceful...

...Beatrice Francine?

- OB don’t ask how I come up with these names...nor whether this one will stick!