Going back to D.C.

Kinda excited here - going to DC for the annual trip for work. Prior to last years trip - it was 1982 when I was last in D.C. with my parents. Funny thing was that I had chicken pox about mid road trip that year. Boy did that suck. Sitting in the back seat with my older sister - yuck - with chicken pox - double yuck - on the road straight through to D.C. - and my mom smoked - infinite yuck. Last year - airplane and cocktails on the flight - a much better method of travel. I do love the road trip however. Seeing the country from the road - the ability to get out and look about - priceless to say the least. I do have fond memories of visiting Civil War sights back in the 80's - we went to Gettysburg PA and walked the fields and that was an impressive feeling.

Last year was really cool - we only had 2 days so we tried to pick the best things to do in that amount of time. Due to the nature of my job, we opted to hit some of the memorials of wars since past. The WWII memorial is pretty neat and of course the Vietnam Memorial was stunning. You can see where chalk or conte crayons marked the black marble where family members etched the memory of loved ones onto paper. I had the chance to talk with some vets that were there - and a few cried hugging my neck. That was a moment I wont forget.

Another moment I wont forget was the trip in the 80's when Reagan was in the White House. We had taken a tour as a family and when we were going from room to room, we heard what sounded like a herd of wingtips scuffling down the hallway - it was distracting to say the least. We were in the Lincoln room or something like that and all of a sudden the man himself stuck his head in and said " Howdy folks! Welcome to the White House! I hope you like what I've done to the place. Enjoy your stay!" R.Reagan impressed even a youngster with his smile a mile wide - my parents who hated the guy were also impressed.

So this year we go for work and play I guess. I will have to forgo the Loon Party but to pass up an all expenses paid trip to DC would be foolish.


andy

Badger?

Well, I am guessing that taking that much time away from the bike takes that much away from your fitness - more than I thought.

I have been dying to get out on the bike - I mean that literally. My work has got me tied up about 55 hours a week or more for the last month. Dont get me wrong - I am happy to be working, especially in this employment climate but if one does not take the time to throw some effort in the direction of "brain breathing" you will go nuts.

So with that comes the weekly call for valiant soldiers of the bike to harness up their stead and head on out for the Saturday battle. Neils call to valor is in the form of pre-riding the CX course out near fletcher. I am game...at least my mind is. My body was giving me red flags of warning. So 8 am I am up for the morning brew and a bagel. The kids are milling around downstairs with legos and other cool stuff. I am frustrated in my attempts to even find my cycling gear - has it been that long that I dont know where my riding gear is? yup - it has been.

okay - between sips of Dunn Bros and cream cheese bagels - i gather what is needed for cool temps. One step outside and I realize that winter is upon us and I am not ready. hmmmm. which bike? dry ground so I am thinking blue thunder - nope ... two flats...man, has it been that long that I didnt remember the flats? Okay, bianchi....nope I left that at the shop. Single speed rat bike - not a chance when the others are riding road bikes - plus i still have nightmares from Cheq 40. What else? my wifes Bridgestone MB3 - 3 inches too small but a nice bike - all set with gears...gears? so a quick call to neil that I am running behind and a switch of pedals and minor adjustments. Now...my helmet - where is that thing? geez - i should have just crawled back into bed with my wife at this point...nope - I am biking dang-it. retro helmet - retro bike with a wide saddle - that hurt by way after 30 miles.....and to the shop I roll with the road slicks and ipod.

I am 10 mins late and Hemi and American flyer are poised for a cruise out of town - hemi...great. the man that gets stronger in the winter and destroys us in the summer. a few more adjustments and off we go. I was fine out to fletcher but i was noticing that small frame geometry makes a negative impact for a tall guy. I wasnt really spent - i was happy that my lungs and heart fitness was still good - I had to mechanical advantage on this small bike. I really had no advantage when my chain broke heading out there....with one mighty call to JayT - he was at the road side in 5 mins with a chain tool - he is my new hero. and in a flash he fixed my bike and vanished into the cold horizon with his trusty buick. He gets the Pit Stop award - heck the most team oriented guy in our group and he held that title today with pride and he wasnt even on the bike.

I fell off the back most of the ride - i had the ipod so I was fine - small pedal stroke - no speed - i felt bad for the guys. I split off at territorial and headed up the west side of elm creek - by the time i got home the temp dropped it seemed and I started to bonk. once inside I found the Blue Moon (3) and two hotdogs - a bag of carrots and a snickers bar. I was satisfied and buzzed. warm shower and a nap - then a day at the mall with the family. I say a good day - at least I got out.

oh - badger? we came across what looked like a badger in the road - it was reduced to the height of about 1/4 inches and neil looks back and says with curiosity...."badger?". it seemed really fun at the time.
andy

Reminded of the frailty of Life...

It never ceases to stun me...the loss of life I mean. It seems so artificial these days with all the acting on TV or the laize faire reporting of killing, death murder. Well, it seems this way to me as it really doesn't hit home that much -until a day ago. How close to we come to the inevitable every day? I dont want to stop and think about it but it is good to realize that our lives are held in a very delicate balance from the Almighty. I am not afraid of what will happen to me - I am confident beyond a shadow of a doubt my fate once my heart stops working - I am not being cocky here just confident. ( for more information read the Bible and go to Church )

Saturday morning I woke up to a near perfect day - warm....the day off....the sun was out....the bike was ready the night before complete with water bottles filled ready for the Jay 100K. Then the call came in from mother in law - Tina's uncle had fallen down some stairs the night prior and they found him a few hours later. The fall knocked him out and I guess the way he landed, it cut off his breathing - they did CPR and he was on life support and was brain dead. Just like that it was over - and this morning they took him off life support.

Whenever I hear of a family member or someone I know that passes on - it think good and hard about how I am living my life. Are the things I am focusing on things that will matter for a lifetime? Am I doing that which is good and honorable to the Lord? (see Neils excerpts on this)

So....when I look back on the weeks prior - and I say that I am bummed cuz I didnt get to bike at all - I know that I can say that I encouraged my kids, help in cub scouts, taught in Sunday School, preached in Jr Church, made dinner for the family, prayed with my kids every night...you get the idea. This weekend was a reminder and wake up call that tomorrow or even the next 5 mins are not guaranteed and what we do NOW is important.

hope to hit the bike though this week - it is the best therapy.


andy