BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 29 min.
TIME BACK: 29 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -18C, 7 km/hr wind there; overcast, -11C (-18C with windchill), 15 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: warm-up pants, turtleneck, waterproof shell, running gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Oh my GOD - I did not dress for the weather today!! It's been so mild all week, and the weather forecast predicted that today would have similar weather to yesterday's. Given that, I dressed just as I did yesterday. The difference is that it was about 10C colder today, so the plastic-y waterproof shell and the flimsy single-layer cotton gloves were absolutely not cutting it. By the time I got to work, my thighs were red as cooked lobsters from my knees to my hips and completely numb. My fingers burned with cold for most of the ride. It was - to say the least - unpleasant.
If there is any bright side to today, it's that it's become quite obvious that the days are getting longer again. It was great when I first started noticing the rides home getting lighter, but now even the morning rides are lightening up. Even in the cold and the fog, the rising sun bursts pinkly through the overcast sky and makes me feel better about everything. The cold is a little less stinging, the ride feels a little shorter, even sharing the road with cars feels safer as it gets lighter out because I'm more comfortable that people can see me. Today felt like being back to freakin' winter again, but for the most part, this week has really started feeling like spring.
Oh, I can't wait til it's really spring . . . be gone, snow and slush and freezing temperatures! I'm feeling really, fully, completely done with winter.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Week Twenty-Four - Day Four: Waking Up is Hard to Do
BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 28 min.
WEATHER: partly cloudy, -12C, no wind there; clear, -3C, 6 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: warm-up pants, tights (I brought a skirt to wear at work today, so I wore the accompanying tights for my commute), turtleneck, waterproof shell, running gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
My alarm went off at 6:30 am, and I wanted to cry. So soon, Alarm Clock?? I just need a little more sleep . . .
Last night I tried putting my daughter to bed without her soother for the first time. I know she naps at daycare without it, so I figured I should start weaning her off it at home, too. Well, maybe that wasn't so wise . . . I put her to bed and all was fine for the first half-hour or so during which I cleaned up the post-dinner kitchen mess and heard nothing but silence from upstairs. Then the crying began. Okay, no big deal, sometimes she needs to cry it out a bit as she's falling asleep. I sorted the recycling and took out the trash, fed the cats, wrote my blog. She was still going strong, her angry cry seeming to pierce into the core of my body and shake my spine. There's really only so much of this I can take! I went upstairs and found her lying in her crib, looking at me innocently as I entered the room. "Soo?" she said, and I didn't have the fortitude to deny her. So I gave her the soother, and all was calm.
Unfortunately, this wouldn't last. Because of the crying, she ended up being overtired by the time she actually fell asleep. This led to less-than-ideal overnight sleep. She woke up twice, and both times I had to force myself out of my warm cozy bed to soothe her, change a diaper, get her some more milk, or some combination thereof. I was already tired when I went to bed. Having this interrupted sleep didn't help.
So at 6:30 am this morning, when my alarm went off, I found it nearly impossible to open my eyes. They were gritty, as though I'd fallen asleep face-down on a beach. For the first time in a very long time, the excuses not to bike began swirling through my head. I'm too tired. I'm too pissed off. If I drive I can sleep in a bit. I was so tempted to say, "aww, fuck it!" and just drive. But then the other voice came in, the rational voice that knew better. Biking will wake you up. You'll be more alert at work if you bike. Being tired is a lame excuse. It's not worth the $12 in parking.
So I biked today, excuses be damned, and I'm very glad I did. I even got to chat with a fellow cyclist on the way home when we got caught at a couple red lights together, and that was a blast! I was still tired at work, that can't be denied, but I did a whole lot better with my clients than I would have if I had driven. So, excuses: you FAILED! And tonight, I'm going to bed damn early - I can't handle another dead-tired day like this.
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 28 min.
WEATHER: partly cloudy, -12C, no wind there; clear, -3C, 6 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: warm-up pants, tights (I brought a skirt to wear at work today, so I wore the accompanying tights for my commute), turtleneck, waterproof shell, running gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
My alarm went off at 6:30 am, and I wanted to cry. So soon, Alarm Clock?? I just need a little more sleep . . .
Last night I tried putting my daughter to bed without her soother for the first time. I know she naps at daycare without it, so I figured I should start weaning her off it at home, too. Well, maybe that wasn't so wise . . . I put her to bed and all was fine for the first half-hour or so during which I cleaned up the post-dinner kitchen mess and heard nothing but silence from upstairs. Then the crying began. Okay, no big deal, sometimes she needs to cry it out a bit as she's falling asleep. I sorted the recycling and took out the trash, fed the cats, wrote my blog. She was still going strong, her angry cry seeming to pierce into the core of my body and shake my spine. There's really only so much of this I can take! I went upstairs and found her lying in her crib, looking at me innocently as I entered the room. "Soo?" she said, and I didn't have the fortitude to deny her. So I gave her the soother, and all was calm.
Unfortunately, this wouldn't last. Because of the crying, she ended up being overtired by the time she actually fell asleep. This led to less-than-ideal overnight sleep. She woke up twice, and both times I had to force myself out of my warm cozy bed to soothe her, change a diaper, get her some more milk, or some combination thereof. I was already tired when I went to bed. Having this interrupted sleep didn't help.
So at 6:30 am this morning, when my alarm went off, I found it nearly impossible to open my eyes. They were gritty, as though I'd fallen asleep face-down on a beach. For the first time in a very long time, the excuses not to bike began swirling through my head. I'm too tired. I'm too pissed off. If I drive I can sleep in a bit. I was so tempted to say, "aww, fuck it!" and just drive. But then the other voice came in, the rational voice that knew better. Biking will wake you up. You'll be more alert at work if you bike. Being tired is a lame excuse. It's not worth the $12 in parking.
So I biked today, excuses be damned, and I'm very glad I did. I even got to chat with a fellow cyclist on the way home when we got caught at a couple red lights together, and that was a blast! I was still tired at work, that can't be denied, but I did a whole lot better with my clients than I would have if I had driven. So, excuses: you FAILED! And tonight, I'm going to bed damn early - I can't handle another dead-tired day like this.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Week Twenty-Four - Day Three: Traffic Jam
BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 30 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -7C, 6 km/hr wind there; partly cloudy, 1C, 9km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: warm-up pants, t-shirt, waterproof shell, running gloves, scarf
NOTES:
On the way home today, traffic along Stony Plain Road was backed up about 12-15 blocks. I crawled along with the cars for a few blocks, trying to figure out just how long this slow-down would last. I had already left work a little later than usual, and I started getting nervous that this traffic stand-still would prevent me from making it to my daughter's daycare to pick her up in time before they closed. Then, it occurred to me: one of the many advantages bikes have over cars is that in a pinch, I can take to the sidewalks. Feeling myself in a pinch, that's exactly what I did.
The sidewalks weren't in great condition. Some were properly cleared of snow, and with the mild weather we've been having lately those areas were practically bare. The other areas where people didn't bother clearing the snow, on the other hand, were a complete and utter mess. I had to stand up out of my seat for a lot of the sidewalk riding as the half-melting hard-packed sidewalk snow gave way beneath my wheels and threw me to and fro as I powered over them. Standing up off the seat allowed me to maintain my balance better and maintain control of the bike, even as it fishtailed while making its way over brain-shaking ice-snow mini-moguls. I was desperately happy that this didn't last any more than ten blocks or so, because it wasn't pleasant. At least I made good time, easily cruising past long lines of cars and buses stuck in gridlock on the road. Most importantly, I got to my daughter's daycare on time and was greeted by her happy little face as she ran towards me yelling, "Mama!!" in a way that always brightens my day.
By the way, I found out what was causing all of that back-up: close to the intersection at which I turn off Stony Plain Road to ride the last few blocks home, I found two cop cars parked behind a stopped car taking up one of the two westbound lanes. It looked like a routine traffic stop. I shook my head to myself, thinking of all the backed up traffic carnage caused by this one ill-timed, ill-placed maneuver. Today, I was mighty happy to be riding my bike. Otherwise, I might still be stuck in traffic!
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 30 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -7C, 6 km/hr wind there; partly cloudy, 1C, 9km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: warm-up pants, t-shirt, waterproof shell, running gloves, scarf
NOTES:
On the way home today, traffic along Stony Plain Road was backed up about 12-15 blocks. I crawled along with the cars for a few blocks, trying to figure out just how long this slow-down would last. I had already left work a little later than usual, and I started getting nervous that this traffic stand-still would prevent me from making it to my daughter's daycare to pick her up in time before they closed. Then, it occurred to me: one of the many advantages bikes have over cars is that in a pinch, I can take to the sidewalks. Feeling myself in a pinch, that's exactly what I did.
The sidewalks weren't in great condition. Some were properly cleared of snow, and with the mild weather we've been having lately those areas were practically bare. The other areas where people didn't bother clearing the snow, on the other hand, were a complete and utter mess. I had to stand up out of my seat for a lot of the sidewalk riding as the half-melting hard-packed sidewalk snow gave way beneath my wheels and threw me to and fro as I powered over them. Standing up off the seat allowed me to maintain my balance better and maintain control of the bike, even as it fishtailed while making its way over brain-shaking ice-snow mini-moguls. I was desperately happy that this didn't last any more than ten blocks or so, because it wasn't pleasant. At least I made good time, easily cruising past long lines of cars and buses stuck in gridlock on the road. Most importantly, I got to my daughter's daycare on time and was greeted by her happy little face as she ran towards me yelling, "Mama!!" in a way that always brightens my day.
By the way, I found out what was causing all of that back-up: close to the intersection at which I turn off Stony Plain Road to ride the last few blocks home, I found two cop cars parked behind a stopped car taking up one of the two westbound lanes. It looked like a routine traffic stop. I shook my head to myself, thinking of all the backed up traffic carnage caused by this one ill-timed, ill-placed maneuver. Today, I was mighty happy to be riding my bike. Otherwise, I might still be stuck in traffic!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Week Twenty-Four - Day Two: Et tu, Mike the Bike?
BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 29 min.
TIME BACK: 29 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -8C, 9 km/hr wind there; clear, -3C, 6 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, turtleneck, fleece mid-layer jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Don't die on me now, Mikey!! STAY WITH ME!!!
Over the weekend I took it upon myself to try to clean Mike up a bit. I took some bike cleaner and a wire brush and some lubricant and went to town on the chain and gears. It was a remarkably messy and disgusting task, and since I was doing this on my uninsulated front porch in my pajamas, it was freezing work as well. As I started, I found it remarkable that Mike was working at all, given the state of his chain. It was so encrusted with filth - snow, dirt, road salt - that some links wouldn't bend as they went around the gears. Working the pedals backwards with one hand as I tried to clean everything with my other hand, I found that I would hardly get through one rotation before the chain would fall out of place and get stuck. How did I ever let you get so injured, Mike?? How the hell did you manage to work under those conditions?
This week, everything has continued to feel just a little bit off with good ol' Mikey. Everything feels just a little bit creaky, the stem has to be tightened at the end of each day, the chain sometimes skips a bit as I pedal along . . . and there's the knowledge, too, that the last time I took him in to get some spokes replaced, I was told that the back rim is "untrue" (I don't think that means that it cheated on me) and if more spokes break on it then the whole rim will likely have to be replaced. Oh, Mikey, I've ridden you hard, it's true - but do you have to give up on me so soon? It's hardly been six months!! At least make it through the winter for me, hon - do it for old time's sake.
I'm planning to take Mike to a self-serve car wash this weekend and give him a really good high pressure wash. Hopefully that'll do him some good. Get him all spiffy, lube him up, and maybe he'll ride as good as new by next week! Until then, I just hope he makes it through the rest of the week. Now that it's so mild and everything's melting, he just might have a chance . . .
TIME THERE: 29 min.
TIME BACK: 29 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -8C, 9 km/hr wind there; clear, -3C, 6 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, turtleneck, fleece mid-layer jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Don't die on me now, Mikey!! STAY WITH ME!!!
Over the weekend I took it upon myself to try to clean Mike up a bit. I took some bike cleaner and a wire brush and some lubricant and went to town on the chain and gears. It was a remarkably messy and disgusting task, and since I was doing this on my uninsulated front porch in my pajamas, it was freezing work as well. As I started, I found it remarkable that Mike was working at all, given the state of his chain. It was so encrusted with filth - snow, dirt, road salt - that some links wouldn't bend as they went around the gears. Working the pedals backwards with one hand as I tried to clean everything with my other hand, I found that I would hardly get through one rotation before the chain would fall out of place and get stuck. How did I ever let you get so injured, Mike?? How the hell did you manage to work under those conditions?
This week, everything has continued to feel just a little bit off with good ol' Mikey. Everything feels just a little bit creaky, the stem has to be tightened at the end of each day, the chain sometimes skips a bit as I pedal along . . . and there's the knowledge, too, that the last time I took him in to get some spokes replaced, I was told that the back rim is "untrue" (I don't think that means that it cheated on me) and if more spokes break on it then the whole rim will likely have to be replaced. Oh, Mikey, I've ridden you hard, it's true - but do you have to give up on me so soon? It's hardly been six months!! At least make it through the winter for me, hon - do it for old time's sake.
I'm planning to take Mike to a self-serve car wash this weekend and give him a really good high pressure wash. Hopefully that'll do him some good. Get him all spiffy, lube him up, and maybe he'll ride as good as new by next week! Until then, I just hope he makes it through the rest of the week. Now that it's so mild and everything's melting, he just might have a chance . . .
Monday, February 8, 2010
Week Twenty-Four - Day One: Stamina
BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 30 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -7C (-13C with windchill), 17km/hr wind there; overcast, -6C (-13C with windchill), 19 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, turtleneck, fleece mid-layer jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Over the weekend, I went out dancing with my friends. Being a single parent, this is something I rarely do. The cost of babysitting can easily double the typical price of a night out, making it remarkably expensive for someone on a student budget. Even when I throw all caution to the wind and spend the money anyway (babysitting money is, after all, classified as "sanity fund" money because occasional babysitting helps prevent me from going insane), I'll still have to wake up when my daughter does the next morning - typically, at 6:30 am. It is rare that I'm prepared to spend money beyond my budget and get four hours of sleep all for the sake of one night on the town, but it's been long overdue. So on Saturday night, I gathered up a couple girlfriends, put on my knee-high dancin' boots, and hit the town.
The last time I went dancing was maybe a year or more ago. I went out in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt because I had no clothes that would: (a) be appropriate for dancing in, AND, (b) fit me when I was at my heaviest. I tired quickly. It didn't take long at all before my legs were sore and I was sweating and panting. Quite honestly, I was mortified. I couldn't believe how out of shape I had become. How did I - the girl who could spend a whole night on the dance floor back in the day - become this person who could hardly get through a few songs? For what was supposed to be a fun night out, it had turned into something pretty depressing.
This past Saturday, I was kind of scared that the same thing would happen. I put on my knee-high boots, a new curve-hugging skirt I bought post-weight-loss and the same long-sleeve black scoop-neck shirt I wore when I went out a year ago. I did my makeup as best as I could and straightened my hair. When we got to the venue, we checked our coats and headed straight to the dance floor before even ordering our first drinks. We began dancing and, I am proud to say, I didn't stop dancing until we left just before closing time. Even as my friends took turns sitting out certain songs, I kept dancing. And I'm not even talking step-touch, step-touch kind of shuffle dancing, I was going all out. I reveled in my new stamina - I could dance, jump around, sing along at the top of my lungs to all the songs, and scream my head off after each song ended, and I never ran out of steam. I was sweating like a filthy animal, mind you, and I probably looked like an absolute fool - but my thighs never got sore, I never got tired, and I felt good!
Sometimes when I bike I still feel like I'm ridiculously out of shape (I guess it can be hard to gauge progress in my fitness when I have to ride slowly out of caution on these slippery winter streets). Given this, the physical benefits of biking have never been more obvious to me than they were on Saturday night. Sure, I still have a whole lot of weight left to lose, but I'm feeling healthier than I have in a very long time. My stamina shocked me. My thigh strength made me proud. It's been too damn long since I so un-self-consciously had such a good time. And, dare I say, I have bike-commuting to thank for that!
Bike-commuting, you're the BEST!
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 30 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -7C (-13C with windchill), 17km/hr wind there; overcast, -6C (-13C with windchill), 19 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, turtleneck, fleece mid-layer jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Over the weekend, I went out dancing with my friends. Being a single parent, this is something I rarely do. The cost of babysitting can easily double the typical price of a night out, making it remarkably expensive for someone on a student budget. Even when I throw all caution to the wind and spend the money anyway (babysitting money is, after all, classified as "sanity fund" money because occasional babysitting helps prevent me from going insane), I'll still have to wake up when my daughter does the next morning - typically, at 6:30 am. It is rare that I'm prepared to spend money beyond my budget and get four hours of sleep all for the sake of one night on the town, but it's been long overdue. So on Saturday night, I gathered up a couple girlfriends, put on my knee-high dancin' boots, and hit the town.
The last time I went dancing was maybe a year or more ago. I went out in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt because I had no clothes that would: (a) be appropriate for dancing in, AND, (b) fit me when I was at my heaviest. I tired quickly. It didn't take long at all before my legs were sore and I was sweating and panting. Quite honestly, I was mortified. I couldn't believe how out of shape I had become. How did I - the girl who could spend a whole night on the dance floor back in the day - become this person who could hardly get through a few songs? For what was supposed to be a fun night out, it had turned into something pretty depressing.
This past Saturday, I was kind of scared that the same thing would happen. I put on my knee-high boots, a new curve-hugging skirt I bought post-weight-loss and the same long-sleeve black scoop-neck shirt I wore when I went out a year ago. I did my makeup as best as I could and straightened my hair. When we got to the venue, we checked our coats and headed straight to the dance floor before even ordering our first drinks. We began dancing and, I am proud to say, I didn't stop dancing until we left just before closing time. Even as my friends took turns sitting out certain songs, I kept dancing. And I'm not even talking step-touch, step-touch kind of shuffle dancing, I was going all out. I reveled in my new stamina - I could dance, jump around, sing along at the top of my lungs to all the songs, and scream my head off after each song ended, and I never ran out of steam. I was sweating like a filthy animal, mind you, and I probably looked like an absolute fool - but my thighs never got sore, I never got tired, and I felt good!
Sometimes when I bike I still feel like I'm ridiculously out of shape (I guess it can be hard to gauge progress in my fitness when I have to ride slowly out of caution on these slippery winter streets). Given this, the physical benefits of biking have never been more obvious to me than they were on Saturday night. Sure, I still have a whole lot of weight left to lose, but I'm feeling healthier than I have in a very long time. My stamina shocked me. My thigh strength made me proud. It's been too damn long since I so un-self-consciously had such a good time. And, dare I say, I have bike-commuting to thank for that!
Bike-commuting, you're the BEST!
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