So, instead of further studying for my midterm this morning, I ordered my bike from Zanes. I got a quick sizing done yesterday at East Coast Cycling Academy (after getting lost and irritating the owner, Les), called in to Brendan at HQ, and got the ball rolling. Once the sizing was done it all went pretty fast, I have to say that I'm impressed with the efficiency of it all. Maybe it's because I've been terribly inefficient of late. Because I could have ordered my bicycle two thousand fund-raised dollars ago. Ooops. But, it's done now, and tommorrow I'm leaving to go back home for spring break. Sadly, it shan't be super fun for me; I need to work as a substitute teacher for as many days of the week as possible. I don't really care for the job, but the money's great for essentially babysitting. I really commend my mother, and all educators out there.
With any luck there will be a little fun to be had over break; I'm planning on biking from Shepardstown to D.C. with a friend of mine, and also visiting another friend in Richmond at the end of the break. So essentially, I just have to muscle my way through five unpleasant days of employment. I really don't want to graduate, ever. Because then what am I looking at? Forty, fifty years of work? Ughhh. Maybe I can pick up enough about bikes this summer to become a retailer or something like that. Specialty retail is supposed to be a lot of fun. Anyway, this is a time for gladness, because my BIKE IS ORDERED, SUCKER!!!!!!! SPRING BREAK, HOMBRESSSSSSSSS!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Habitat Nostalgia
So I effectively fulfilled the half of my sweat equity that entails working with an affordable housing affiliate in one day. I crawled out of a twin-sized bed this morning, that I shared with another person, at seven o clock... that said, I was sorely tempted, to play hookie. Obviously, and thank goodness, I did not. It was a lot of fun, especially since a friend I did Habitat with all through high school was there, and orchestrated the whole build. The experience taught me, as all my other Habitat builds have, that all Habitat trips are invariably the same, albeit in a good way. The skilled supervisors are always hillarious in that sort of brief, no nonsense way. There will always be a gaggle of people who are essentially there so that they can talk to each other, and not work unless forced to. There will always be a shortage of tools, or something similar, that will result in a lot of standing around. It is always a fulfilling experience despite the setbacks.
Maybe these things aren't always the same, but things were similar enough that I felt I had jetisoned back in time four years, only it was the winter instead of the summer, and I was only doing this for one day, instead of a week. We put up a few roofing trusses and laid some cement, a foundation, and put a few posts in the ground. Doesn't sound like much, but while we weren't as productive as we should have been, it ended up being quite a lot of work. The whole experience showed me what well oiled machines my church Habitat endeavors were, since we usually put up more than five houses in the week.
It was great to have Amanda there to talk about things that no one else would understand. I also got to tell her more about the ride, and relate it to our experiences in high school. The fact that we'll be sleeping thirty to a room struck a bell with both of us, and she reminded me to go to sleep quickly before the snoring occured. We even talked about having a reunion build with the kids we all went with in high school. Since most of us are twenty one now, we saw things going very differently; here's to hoping that it happens, and even more that our hosts don't kick us out.
After the build, I came back home, showered, and then went on a ride with my roommate Chris. For those that don't remember, he's my cyclist roommate who tries to kill me on bike, in one way or another. We went in street clothes, for the most part; partly because it's sort of chilly still, and partly because it was supposed to be a leisurely exploratory ride. It was immensely fun seeing where Port Republic would take us, and chosing roads based on how they looked from the start, rather than planning anything. At one point we ended up on a road Chris knew, where we pulled off the road to let the traffic that had been building behind us pass. A motorist said something unintelligible (at least I couldn't hear it) to us, before his girlfriend hit him. It really set Chris off. It was funny.
We ended up in Purcell Park, where bikes aren't allowed, and a few of my friends were hanging out. Totally didn't plan it. We also didn't honor the "no bikes allowed" part, and did a lap on the gravel path, and played some "bike frisbee". I suggest you try it; almost every sport is improved on bike. Besides soccer. Or swimming. After the park Chris suggested we do a little biking in our highest possible gear. It was as "awesome" as you'd expect.
On a last note, my grandfather donated two hundred dollars to me, bringing my total to $2700-something. Feeling pretty good about the fundraising aspect.
That is all. Peace out hombres!
Maybe these things aren't always the same, but things were similar enough that I felt I had jetisoned back in time four years, only it was the winter instead of the summer, and I was only doing this for one day, instead of a week. We put up a few roofing trusses and laid some cement, a foundation, and put a few posts in the ground. Doesn't sound like much, but while we weren't as productive as we should have been, it ended up being quite a lot of work. The whole experience showed me what well oiled machines my church Habitat endeavors were, since we usually put up more than five houses in the week.
It was great to have Amanda there to talk about things that no one else would understand. I also got to tell her more about the ride, and relate it to our experiences in high school. The fact that we'll be sleeping thirty to a room struck a bell with both of us, and she reminded me to go to sleep quickly before the snoring occured. We even talked about having a reunion build with the kids we all went with in high school. Since most of us are twenty one now, we saw things going very differently; here's to hoping that it happens, and even more that our hosts don't kick us out.
After the build, I came back home, showered, and then went on a ride with my roommate Chris. For those that don't remember, he's my cyclist roommate who tries to kill me on bike, in one way or another. We went in street clothes, for the most part; partly because it's sort of chilly still, and partly because it was supposed to be a leisurely exploratory ride. It was immensely fun seeing where Port Republic would take us, and chosing roads based on how they looked from the start, rather than planning anything. At one point we ended up on a road Chris knew, where we pulled off the road to let the traffic that had been building behind us pass. A motorist said something unintelligible (at least I couldn't hear it) to us, before his girlfriend hit him. It really set Chris off. It was funny.
We ended up in Purcell Park, where bikes aren't allowed, and a few of my friends were hanging out. Totally didn't plan it. We also didn't honor the "no bikes allowed" part, and did a lap on the gravel path, and played some "bike frisbee". I suggest you try it; almost every sport is improved on bike. Besides soccer. Or swimming. After the park Chris suggested we do a little biking in our highest possible gear. It was as "awesome" as you'd expect.
On a last note, my grandfather donated two hundred dollars to me, bringing my total to $2700-something. Feeling pretty good about the fundraising aspect.
That is all. Peace out hombres!
Friday, February 22, 2008
No, they're cycling shoes
There's something uniquely invigorating about logging in to the bike and build homepage to find that one eighth of your fundraising requirement has been met by the donation of a single entity. Special thanks go out to my church, St. Andrew Lutheran, for donating five hundred dollars to the ride to end poverty housing! It really was far more than I anticipated getting from the church that has already given me so much, and that introduced me to Habitat for Humanity back when I was a freshman in high school.
In other news, I'm finally getting fitted for my bike so that I can get it shipped out. My rationalization for having taken so long is that the bike's arrival will probably coincide with the spring thaw, so I can just put it together and hit the road. I'm sure Dan, who has generously lent me his Ralleigh to train on for so long, will appreciate having his bike back. Sadly, I haven't been able to ride it very much of late, with all the snow and ice and my not liking really cold, windy weather. The last part is just me being lazy, I know, but even though I haven't had much time in the last week on that particular saddle, I have been cycling an hour a day. Lately I've become well acquainted with one of the spinning cycles at UREC, which I have affectionately named Rusty.
Rusty's a great old bike, situated right in front of the basketball courts, and with clipless pedals. Sadly, they're inverted and backwards, so the pedals need to be switched out in order to be used. Since my knowledge of bicycles is... bad, lacking, the list of adjectives stretches, all synonymous with "nil"... I've not been able to use my cycling shoes on Rusty. Funny thing about my cycling shoes. I use mountain bike shoes, mostly for comfort. The simplest way to describe the difference between moutain bike shoes and road bike shoes is this: you can walk normally in mountain shoes. Road shoes, don't even try. Consequently, when I bike to class I just keep my cycling shoes on, a fact that has led many people to believe I'm trying to make a fashion statement.
I must sadly burst these persons' respective bubbles. They're practical. Why bring two pairs of shoes when one will suffice? I must embarassingly admit though that I really like walking around with shoes that have velcro straps instead of laces. If I had normal tennis shoes that were velcroed instead of laced, I would wear them. I really don't like laces; hate them, even. I still have to wonder if complete strangers don't think I'm mentally impaired when they see me walking down the street.
I'll end my exceedingly rambly post with a bit of business. Tommorrow I have my first Habitat for Humanity build in almost a year. I'm really looking forward to it, especially since someone I did Habitat with in my youth will be on the trip, coordinating it. Now I just have to print out the forms, and knock out part of my sweat equity requirement. Booyah.
Peace out, Hombres.
In other news, I'm finally getting fitted for my bike so that I can get it shipped out. My rationalization for having taken so long is that the bike's arrival will probably coincide with the spring thaw, so I can just put it together and hit the road. I'm sure Dan, who has generously lent me his Ralleigh to train on for so long, will appreciate having his bike back. Sadly, I haven't been able to ride it very much of late, with all the snow and ice and my not liking really cold, windy weather. The last part is just me being lazy, I know, but even though I haven't had much time in the last week on that particular saddle, I have been cycling an hour a day. Lately I've become well acquainted with one of the spinning cycles at UREC, which I have affectionately named Rusty.
Rusty's a great old bike, situated right in front of the basketball courts, and with clipless pedals. Sadly, they're inverted and backwards, so the pedals need to be switched out in order to be used. Since my knowledge of bicycles is... bad, lacking, the list of adjectives stretches, all synonymous with "nil"... I've not been able to use my cycling shoes on Rusty. Funny thing about my cycling shoes. I use mountain bike shoes, mostly for comfort. The simplest way to describe the difference between moutain bike shoes and road bike shoes is this: you can walk normally in mountain shoes. Road shoes, don't even try. Consequently, when I bike to class I just keep my cycling shoes on, a fact that has led many people to believe I'm trying to make a fashion statement.
I must sadly burst these persons' respective bubbles. They're practical. Why bring two pairs of shoes when one will suffice? I must embarassingly admit though that I really like walking around with shoes that have velcro straps instead of laces. If I had normal tennis shoes that were velcroed instead of laced, I would wear them. I really don't like laces; hate them, even. I still have to wonder if complete strangers don't think I'm mentally impaired when they see me walking down the street.
I'll end my exceedingly rambly post with a bit of business. Tommorrow I have my first Habitat for Humanity build in almost a year. I'm really looking forward to it, especially since someone I did Habitat with in my youth will be on the trip, coordinating it. Now I just have to print out the forms, and knock out part of my sweat equity requirement. Booyah.
Peace out, Hombres.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Finally over fifty
Finally over fifty degrees here. And sunny. I was going to go on another hike, but it looks like no dice. So I'll ride instead. Later.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
A Taste of Summer Coming Back
Last year I bought a Shenandoah National Park pass for a hiking trip I took to Old Rag Mountain. I realized this past weekend that it expires at the end of March, and with the weather on Saturday reaching well into the fifties, I grabbed a bunch of friends on the cuff to go on a hike somewhere down Skyline Drive. It was one of those perfectly spontaneous decisions that you're always glad you made, and wish that you made more of. The weather was beautiful, just cool enough in the mountains to quicken your pace while you hiked. Sadly, no one thought to bring their camera, so all I have to describe the scene are my words. I'm sure they won't suffice in the least.
We stopped at the first overlook we came to, taking a moment to blast the music and take in the scene from the hood of my car. Afterwards, we ambled down a trail for maybe a mile before blazing our own down a valley. After a rock scramble back up to the car, we drove to another unmarked trail and chose the uphill path. I ran up most of it, some three miles. I'm definitely going to try a trail run sometime soon.
We were just starting to lose the light over the mountains when we headed back down to the car, but once we got back on the road we were treated to that golden haze preceeding twilight. Even though I've seen it a thousand times, there's something surreal about a winter sun being swallowed by the hills, and the clouds catching all of that light. I'm looking forward to views like that all summer, the kind that make you pause. The kind that make you profoundly happy to be alive. And I look forward to another hike like that next weekend.
We stopped at the first overlook we came to, taking a moment to blast the music and take in the scene from the hood of my car. Afterwards, we ambled down a trail for maybe a mile before blazing our own down a valley. After a rock scramble back up to the car, we drove to another unmarked trail and chose the uphill path. I ran up most of it, some three miles. I'm definitely going to try a trail run sometime soon.
We were just starting to lose the light over the mountains when we headed back down to the car, but once we got back on the road we were treated to that golden haze preceeding twilight. Even though I've seen it a thousand times, there's something surreal about a winter sun being swallowed by the hills, and the clouds catching all of that light. I'm looking forward to views like that all summer, the kind that make you pause. The kind that make you profoundly happy to be alive. And I look forward to another hike like that next weekend.
Monday, February 4, 2008
At least I can tick one thing off the list
Not a very highly productive last few days. I still haven't gotten sized for the Allez, no dice for any of the dealers back home. My physical training's been on the decline as well because of not running on Saturday; to improve matters, Jamie's caught the flu bug that's been going around, so it looks like I'm not going to get a run with her until at least Wednesday. It was rainy today, although considerably warmer than it has been recently, so I've decided that barring ice or snow, I'll be biking for the rest of the week whenever possible. It's time to get back on that saddle.
On the brighter side, I secured myself a spot with the local Habitat chapter and that'll take care of half of my sweat equity requirement. I've thoroughly missed roofing and dry-wall, so it'll be nice to start swinging a hammer again. I also fiddled a bit with the layout, hopefully it's not too busy for anyone out there.
Short one today.
Peace out hombres.
On the brighter side, I secured myself a spot with the local Habitat chapter and that'll take care of half of my sweat equity requirement. I've thoroughly missed roofing and dry-wall, so it'll be nice to start swinging a hammer again. I also fiddled a bit with the layout, hopefully it's not too busy for anyone out there.
Short one today.
Peace out hombres.
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