TOP TEN!!

AP Top 25
1. LSU (33) 5-0 1,593
2. USC (32) 4-0 1,591
3. California 5-0 1,475
4. Ohio State 5-0 1,420
5. Wisconsin 5-0 1,271
6. South Florida 4-0 1,203
7. Boston College 5-0 1,172
8. Kentucky 5-0 1,143
9. Florida 4-1 1,031
10. Oklahoma 4-1 992

USA Today Poll
1. USC (45) 4-0 1,483
2. LSU (14) 5-0 1,454
3. California 5-0 1,363
4. Ohio State (1) 5-0 1,313
5. Wisconsin 5-0 1,251
6. Boston College 5-0 1,138
7. Florida 4-1 1,000
8. Kentucky 5-0 971
9. South Florida 4-0 960
10. Oklahoma 4-1 925

And on a non-cycling note, can you friggin' believe the Cats are top-10?? Top-10?? And amazingly they deserve it. No losses. 2 quality wins against formerly-ranked teams. A hell of an offense. Other SEC teams flagging or beating themselves up. Who knows zither and tither, but this team seems to have legs. The only team I truly scared of is LSU, and Tulane gave them everything they could handle for 60% of the game yesterday. They lose all the rest of their games, but I think otherwise. It's a team with great senior leadership and has horses, actual horses (well, not actual, but...), at numerous positions.

SUV commute

Date: Sept 30 Sun
Mileage: 22 (Crosscheck)
September mileage: 183
Year to date: 1591

Although today was a Sunday- hence not a school day- I still worked in what I'll call a commute. L had a soccer tournament (they lost all 3 and it's all depressing) over behind Oxmoor. Needing to get some more miles in, I switched the the Blueridge's Mavic Open wheels+28C Gatorskinz on to the Crosscheck and away ho. I was tempting fate b/c I went out yet again, only a week later, on the Crosscheck with nary a tool, tube or pump. I threaded through Cherokee, St.Matthews and The Mall (that's the older name, but I still prefer it) and finally arrived at the Gauntlet- Shelbyville Rd. from The Mall to Oxmoor Mall. For those not in town, this is one of those 6-lane monstrosities including an interchange with our local ring road- 264/The Watterson in this case. I'm pretty confident of my skills and generally commuter logic, but these intersections are simply NOT built for bikes and you're one distracted cellphonesoccermomSUV away for biting it. I cross unscathed but with a 6" birds-eye view of a Mercedes SUV on my left. Guess he either needed to assert himself or was just a dumb fucking piece of shit. Whichever.

The return trip was a little easier, through St. Matthews on the north side, then through Seneca and Cherokee, giving me 22 miles of errand/commuting mileage. And b/c I was riding a relatively aggressive (as compared to the LHT or the Bleriot) frame with slightly narrower tires, I pushed it and rode pretty hard. good stuff in great weather. Now if the futbol team could just get a win.

A+

Date: Sept 29 Sat
Mileage: 28 (Bleriot)
September mileage: 161.5
Year to date: 1568.5

If I were to be a Deist, and if I were to prayer that a higher authority interjected into my life to help me obtain my own personal needs, I would say that God, in fact, did answer my prayers this morning with weather that was just perfect. L has a soccer tournament this weekend, so I knew that this a.m. provided the best opportunity for miles, so I headed out about 8 for a tour of Broadway, the Riverwalk, downtown, the Beargrass Trail and through the park for a simply wonderful ride on the Bleriot. Highlights sans camera:

• Bowman Field is having a balloon show of some sort, so the first real image of the a.m. was hot-air balloons, about 7 of them, hovering through the trees and over the houses in Seneca Gds. Perfect pic moment, but alas.
• sunny skies, cool temps and a great bike underneath.
• on the note, come Pride that I have one of the prettiest bikes around. I'm sure the alum/carbon Trek crowd looks with bewilderment at a "throw-back" rig, but you know they're secretly covetous of such a pretty and comfy machine.
  
• 2 full episodes of 'This American Life' on the ipod. If find that sometimes I don't want to listen to the ipod, but rides sometimes provide the only real opportunity to take in public radio.
• I found a new best-of classical music selection. I had downloaded some tunes for my Humanities class, and this morning feasted on the finale of 'Cosi Fan Tutti'. What a piece of music! Another gift from whoever created and inspired it.
• Bikes. The nice weather brought out numerous groups of riders in the Riverwalk, downtown and park area. How could you avoid it?

The day, ride, groove, and circumstance just made me giddy a couple times. It couldn't have been any better, unless I guess it were twice as long. But I'm not complaining.

Ocupado

Date: Sept 28 Fri
Mileage: 14.5 (LHT)
September mileage: 134.5
Year to date: 1540.5

Man it's been a super busy week. Wednesday I went from work to post-work meeting to 1 hour of what ended up to be not free time to another meeting and got home at 9.15. Yesterday seemed equally busy, although I was at home a bit more. This morning I almost didn't answer the bell, but I did it, albeit in the shortest form possible. This afternoon was a Friday, so some work folks went a drinkin', so I had a couple and a fish sandwich to finish the day out. Today it finally cooled off a bit. This a.m. brought 59F and I wore a jacket. This p.m. held almost perfect weather at 80F and sun. This weekend is full of kid camps and a futbol torneo, but I may just sneak out early tomorrow for a sunny day ride on the Bleriot. I'll say it was mission accomplished today though.

Miles

Date: Sept 25 Tues
Mileage: 18 (LHT)
September mileage: 120
Year to date: 1526

Commuted with 'Sheryl' in the p.m. It's still damn hot at 90F when it averages highs of 77F this time of year. It's just hot and muggy and unpleasant. Had a pretty good ride, though, going down through Irish Hill, the Beargrass Trail and then through the hills of Cherokee. I don't climb quickly, but it's a "head down and grind" kind of technique at this point. Tomorrow holds a meeting after school and another meeting downtown until evening. Gotta' make the decision. To ride with its difficulties tomorrw? Whither the rain (that will come if I ride and won't if I don't)?

Commute 2.0

Date: Sept 24 Mon
Mileage: 23 (LHT)
September mileage: 102
Year to date: 1508

Finally had the first bigger-mileage commute in a good while. I looked and it was the first day of commuting over 20m since April, if you can believe that. Dang! Last Fall is when I had so many great commuting days in the 30s. We're awfully busy right now with work, the wife with church, soccer, stuff. I felt really good today, at least for most of the afternoon portion. I found an interesting off-road field today down by the river. I was sort of proud of myself for doing some explorational riding on a commute- very Minneapolis like.


View Larger Map


This apparently will be the location of the new dedicated cyclocross course that is part of a greater park expansion along River Rd. To the very left (west) in this drawing is the field. I always thought it was a junkyard. Maybe it was and was covered over, but it's essentially a big flat field. Some complains come from the fact that in the center of this is the present old River Road CC, which is being used for 'Cross as well as other nice things. They're going to tear it up and make it more official. Who knows? I was glad to do a little off-roading and glad to get 23m total on the day.

Sold

Wow! I sold both the Bianchi and the C'dale this evening, the Bianchi for $200 and the C'dale for $100. I personally think the Bianchi is worth less, but the C'dale is in great shape and is worth more. I almost held on to the C'dale after cleaning it up. It's a great commuter, but I have my share of wheels and it's time to move on.

Sunday rides, Oh Well

Date: Sept 23 Sun
Mileage: 3 (CC)
September mileage: 72
Year to date: 1479

Date: Sept 23 Sun
Mileage: 6 (CC)
September mileage: 78
Year to date: 1485

Short loop with L dropping off bday announcement to local friend. rode CrossCheck for first time in forever. Crocs prolly aren't the best for such riding. :-) Both boys haven't been on too many rides of late, and both enjoyed themselves yesterday and today. Fall project: More family rides. Maybe I can get the good wife involved. Out in a while for a more substantial ride. Ankle still sucks. Sore most of the time. Will tread gingerly.

Wow, Bummer. just got back from my 2nd ride of the day, and what a disappointment it was. I spent the morning cleaning up the C'dale for sale, and then went over the Crosscheck b/c I was/am ready to ride it. So I took the CC out for what was to be a mixed ride- trails in Seneca, 'cross course at RiverRd CC and finally some gravel down by the river. Instead, just outside the park I flat.?? I couldn't see much on inspection so I guess I pinched flatted, although 35c at 100lbs usually deter that kind of thing. Of course I took no tools with me b/c I was in fact riding 35C at 100lbs, thinking I would have no prob. I scooted over, flat tire a floppin' to meet the fam at Beargrass, as the boys had youth group. The good wife took pity on me, but warned me severely at any bike gunk that might soil her ride. eek. Oh well. Does the thought count?

Mossy Garage

For sale

The builders are starting the kitchen remodel soon, so I'm selling the two bikes that have been inhabiting the "screen porch" for a good while. I already waxed poetic bout the Bianchi here at this site. The Cannondale is still a damn good viable city bike. It's much livelier than the LHT, although I like the comfort and security of the LHT more. If I don't get anything going with sales, I'm going to keep the C'dale. I'm sure there's somebody out there who'll want the Bianchi for a super-fat fixie project. It screams it!

I created a quickie 2nd site with pics. I might just put a whole bike gallery over there. Don't you just love them?

C.A.T.S.

Cats Cats Cats!

My few readers mostly dwell in non-Kentucky regions, so they care not for the fair college football non-terribleness. I, on the other hand as a long-time UofK football sufferer, take delight in the Cats' latest good fortune on the gridiron. First we have last week's superbig win over rival UL. Today, it gets even better with UL's most pathetic loss to 30-point underdog Syracuse coupled with the Cats big balls win at Arkansas. This euphoric football temperament is quite rare, so I will soak in the wine for as long as possible.

Busy Saturday

Date: Sept 22 Sat
Mileage: 4+ (LHT)
September mileage: 69
Year to date: 1476

Z and I started the morning with a bike ride to Breadworks for scones, a muffin (my blueberry/bran) and decaf coffee. I actually bought some decaf beans, and am finding that I like the taste alright. Decaf is better than no coffee at all. Z is strange. He rides big gears uphill and small on the flats, which runs counter to practice. He's no future Lance, but neither and I. It was nice to ride with him, and if we're not doing soccer (please try to not sarcasm), we might have to sneak in some all-boy rides.

Wilco!!!

Aside from some afternoon bar hopping after work, the evening turned even better with a trip to see WILCO! We had the extreme good fortune of seeing them last October at Iroquois Amphitheater, in what I think was the best concert venue I've experienced personally. This year they've crept closer to the big leagues, moving to our local AAA baseball stadium, Slugger Field. To be honest, I was skeptical of the layout, as you never know what you get with mini-stadium shows, but the night, and the band, proved to be superior yet again. This is a band that has just flat out found its collective groove. Jeff is approaching 40 seems to be in a somewhat nostalgic mood, choosing to wear a A.M.-era hat and they played 4 or 5 tracks from that album. I just saw a recent blurb on a message board about the great poster, and here it is, and NO, I didn't buy one b/c I'm a dumbass. Nice design. It just rocked all round and had a nice blend of old and new. And I love how they can meld acoustic folk with all-out walls of noise. Love it.


Set List
1. Misunderstood
2. Forget The Flowers
3. You Are My Face
4. IATTBYH
5. Handshake Drugs
6. Side With The Seeds
7. Show in the Arm
8. She's a Jar
9. Impossible Germany
10. It's Just That Simple
11. Too Far Apart
12. Jesus Etc.
13. Walken
14. ITMWLY

Encore
15. California Stars
16. Hate it Here
17. Box Full of Letters
18. HMD
19. Spiders

Encore
20. Via Chicago
21. Red-Eyed and Blue
22. I Got You 23. Outtasite (Outta Mind)

Commute

Date: Sept 21 Fri
Mileage: 16 (LHT)
September mileage: 65
Year to date: 1472

I'm posting Saturday morning about a rousing, successful Friday. As someone who purports to ride, I in fact did that on Friday, commuting to work for what I believe is the 2nd time (maybe 3rd but too lazy) in September. It's been a month to remember! I'm feeling better though, and the numbers continue to be good. The ankle still feels like crap. Maybe after all the heart stuff is out of the way I'll check into that.

Straightforward commute on the LHT. Later in my return trip home I became convinced, rightfully or not who knows, that a change to drop bars is the best for the LHT. I think the 'Stache bars could be great for that perfect combo of frame and stem, but more than anything I miss that flat cruising position that a drop bar brings. Hell, I could almost go Dove/Albatross, but am not financially ready for that yet (given my recent offline purchase). After the UK/UL bar hop escapade from last week, the LHT is rattling all over the place. I think the fenders, panniers, gearing and maybe both brakes are all out of slight wack. Don't you hate those little annoying noises that can emanate from a bicycle. I have no real wrench skills, but I at least try to ferret those out.

Mr 1%

Most of the week has been my Tuesday stress test and the reentry to the work schedule after missing so many days (3 4-day weeks in a row). My stress test went great, understanding that I had to do a dobutamine/atropine test. It was quite strange to lay on a table hooked up to a bunch a wires and have a nurse doing the ultrasound on me like I was a pregnant woman, all the while having my heart rate increase just laying there. Very strange. and my ankle still feels like shit.



Aside from having a seemingly healthy heart, I did have the interesting (good?) fortune of learning that I have a Coronary Sinus so large so as to be in the "1%" category. That's the blue vein cutting across the middle of the heart. The cardiologist was positively giddy at seeing pics of such a rare occurrence. I also indicates that I have an extra Superior Vena Cava, something people usually lose in childbirth. I'm Special, Damn Special. None of the "abnormalities" affect performance in any way, supposedly, so we'll say. Gonna get on the bike tomorrow for a commute. the diet has been much better of late. the exercise, the bike, has to follow.

Andy

There's a reason, a genetic reason, pros are pros. Check out how much slighter Andy Hampsten is then these two other guys bedecked in 7-11 kit. I guarantee you the guy on our left is very thin in real life, but not Giro-winning thin like much-retired Andy. Now that's a CLEAN cyclist there, I'll guarantee you that too.

le lapin

A Midnight Rider claimed you could never find honest-to-God French win in a box, but here it is. I haven't had any, and probably won't for several days to counterbalance last night. The Good Wife said "hey, adult juice boxes". And supposedly with a Green spirit too. I'll have a report soon enough, which for me is "Good" or "Bad".

A+ Day

Date: Sept 15 Sat
Mileage: 19.5 (Bleriot)
September mileage: 44.5
Year to date: 1451.5

Date: Sept 15 Sat
Mileage: 4.5 (LHT)
September mileage: 49
Year to date: 1456

Two rides yesterday, both having some measure of "errand" about them. The first was a road ride on the Bleriot. Let's start by saying that yesterday's weather was PERFECT- 70F, sunny, light clouds to give the sky texture, clean, fall crisp. My good neighbor Tom had asked me to fix his back tire for while, but it was during the ankle incident, so I never responded. I decided yesterday to stop by a shop en route and pick up a tube. The closest option now is Bardstown Bicycle, but nobody seems to like that shop- high prices and not-so-nice service. The next is OnYourLeft Cycles, the place I go for wrenching on the Bleriot. The owner, John, is really nice and his primary job is to wrench. The shop is the size of a modern bathroom (not ours). You couldn't put 20 people shoulder to shoulder. But they didn't have any 700x35 tubes, as it's mostly a mtbike/roadbike joint. They suggested a shop I'd never visited, The Bike Depot. I think this is a shop that Louisville has needed for a long time. They carry Bianchi, Jamis, and Breezers, but much more importantly it's a shop founded on sustainability and a progressive vision of cycling as function instead of Lance-like, Trek-like fashion. The founder Jackie Green is very involved in local cycling issues and before the full-on shop he founded a bike messenger service for the 'Ville, the only one in fact. Now the shop is both full-service and fully committed to supporting cycling as what it should be, revolutionary. And carrying Bianchi, they have nice bikes.

San Jose tasty fixie

Volpe 'cross bike/do-all "Cross-check-esque"

And finally the famous Milano. Nothing more to say about that.

I work with a former marathoner who now has bad knees. Don't they all? She wants a "bike" but can't decide on type- commuter? century bike? neighborhood? I think she will ride it b/c if she's type-A enough to run a few marathons she certainly is enough to ride. I'm just trying to give her some input so she makes a good choice and my few readers know there are plenty of bikes out that that can multi-task to be a good commuter AND century bike. I think the Volpe above is a good example of that.

After looking at other people's potential bikes I did a loop up Cox's Park and through Indian Hills towards home. Great ride on the Bleriot.

Later I attended a party in the Phoenix Hill area, riding the LHT. I'm redundant, but I love to beat the cars going up B'town. The traffic was pretty heavy, so I just jammed along, sometimes in between traffic and parked cars (I know, I know, very dangerous there. I watch) and other times taking a full lane. Obviously I'm feeling better. Maybe too better. Certainly I had more than 1 drink per day yesterday. I was supposed to come home and watch the UK/UL game with the fam and instead ditched them for a little bar hopping. Not right and not good. Must do penance. Go Cats though, with the first victory in a while.

Today, 1/2decaf1/2reg small coffee and a muffin for breakfast and piety the rest of the day. But a great day yesterday!! Oh, and I have a tasty treat coming too. More later on that.

Vices

The boys and I- we I think, the good wife was there too- had a good discussion of 'vice' the other day. In their minds, 'vice' is something really bad, and rightfully so. They know it's a pejorative term of some sort. They further extrapolated, interestingly, that a 'vice cop' is a cop who is also really bad, depraved and such. We tried to correct them on such usage, but they seemed skeptical. Furthermore, they conflated the issue bringing up 'vice-president'. We know it's a different usage, by why? English much more so than Spanish is famous for these Homonyms. Other common examples include: bank, crop, bear, peer, sink, fritter, pants, slip, slide, dry, fit, class, shine, creep, divide, page, gin, trip, keel, ship, fall, hedge, needle, scrape, riddle, throw, train, ...

My 'vice' for the morning is coffee. One jarring thing relating to my Afib was the admonition to drinking caffeine. At the time I thought "No biggie. I don't drink that much". Only later did I realize how much I drink/have drunk/drank. My usual was/has been/is a large something: coffee, Americano, Americano with extra shot, Latte with extra shot (rarely), and finally a French Press pot at home. At home I measure a quantity of water from my coffee mug- roughly 1.5 mugs. I haven't really thought of drinking too much, but now I perhaps think otherwise. This morning I ordered a medium halfreg/halfdecaf at Breadworks. It's enough to give me that coffee pickmeup, but I think a more suitable portion of a known and very popular stimulant.

Another vice worth exploring is wine. I've been a somewhat regular drinker since I was 17. When I say regular that's to say in my adulthood I might have 4-8 drinks total all week, depending on whether I buy a 6-pack or a bottle or 2. I have also gone long periods drinking very little-to-none, so I don't think "it" is an issue. After the "incident" I was told "no booze" as well. Now I have clearance, but would like to keep things well under control, just like the cafe or the bloomin'onion/nacho/cheesefry extravaganzas of can creep up on the unbeknownst. I had most of a bottle this week, 1 drink a day as they say. Last night I bought some French wine in a box- or maybe it's Californian with a Frenchie panache. It looks like a juice box or a box of Euro warm milk, the point being that I like the screw top; it makes single servings much easier than a cork. I've had the sameg discussion with both my friend J in NC, my friend M at work and with the gal at the WineRack. All of us like wine, but none of our respective others do. Henceforth all of us are forced to recork wine, which is a risky proposition, or just drink the whole damn bottle, which is usually the case. Slightly lower-quality wines with a screw top allow "recorking", so as to follow the 1-glass rule. So, we have last night's purchase of 2 bottles of inexpensive ($9.99 and $7.99) grape juice, both with screwtop or fake cork.

And the final vice, of course, is purchasing bike crap. The good wife knows more stuff was in the works, but I did go ahead and purchase the handlebars from Vik in Canada. So the LHT will go drop-barred. I'll need to rethink the stem issue, and I'll re-add the interrupter levers. From there the eventual tire change will take place, but I think the moster Serfas will do me appropriately during the winter, although I did have my first flat on an innocuous splinter or something recently (at end of first commuting week).

It's nice outside. I'm going riding.

Re-First Commute

Date: Sept 14 Fri
Mileage: 15 (LHT)
September mileage: 25
Year to date: 1432

Hooray!!! Today felt like I did the first commute of the present school year all over again. After getting only 1.5 weeks of work commuting in before the ankle thing (and then heart thing), today felt fresh and tentative like a first day would. I certainly didn't have any rhythm concerning clothes, b/c I really couldn't find much this a.m. Frankly I didn't have much riding rhythm either, but I was riding!!

Highlight (lowlight?) of the day: Seeing a sing [sic] (*i put that in there on Saturday after noticing that "sign" had become "sing" due to my poor typing. i looked up to verify its correct usage, so there you have it) draped across a door down Shelby Park area (read 'hood' for outoftowners) that read MY BITCH FINALLY DID IT!. I still can't quite come to terms with whether it actually said that, but I think it was a boy birth announcement- blue instead of pink- but that's what it announced. Damn I'd like to be his daughter.

Riding on the 'stache bars got me thinking that I will probably need another stem, as the one now is too short. We'll see about the stem/slope combo. That could slow the deal down unless the adjustable stems are peachy.

But on the bike and saving the world!!

LHT tweak

The LHT is in the back room instead of in the garage, and that can only mean one thing. I'm RIDING tomorrow. Since I last road the weather has transitioned from mornings in the mid-70s to those in the mid-50s, so that will require a little creativity. I also haven't decided on footwear, although Tevas with socks sound good for the a.m. I'll certainly report back in on the first ride in almost 4 full weeks. Amazing stuff. Wish me luck.

And on a different front I'm making plans to mess with the LHT. I've decided to take the 'Stache bars off and add regular drop bars. This will necessitate a new stem probably, but the levers and bar-cons should be fine. I think I'll also resurrect the Tektro 'cross bar-top brake levers too. I found a Nitto Randonneur bar used via one of the list-serves, and am getting a bar of Salsa Bell Laps thrown in for good measure. The whole package should be too pricey, although I'm intrigued about the stem issue. I'm considering a adjustable Ritchey stem, one in which you can change the angle. That sounds interesting, to be able to go up or down depending a bit on mood and circumstance. What do you think, cork or cloth? shellaced cloth? Yes, I think that might be my answer, as I like the think, crisp and eventually soft fell of used cloth.

First, though, a ride, a commute, as it should be. Next week I have my stress test on Tuesday and the thought has crossed my mind to ride to it. That's sort of ridiculous, don't you think?

medico

Date: Sept 12 Wed
Walk: 4m
ipod: ThisAmericanLife, Gillian Welch, Wilco, Avett Bros mix

had to take the day off and go to the doc, one of several visits over the next few. got blood drawn and a schedule for a stress test. b/c the tobillo is so nasty it has to be a chemical one. guess that works. quien sepa? after the appt. I took a big loop on some walking errands, first to Ear X-tacy for some tunes and some replacement cases, then to Old Towne for inexpensive wine, and finally to Kroger for food stuffs and "baby" aspirin, something I am now have to take, at least for the time being. on a good note I did get clearance to have a little wine, but I've personally decided to forgo the coffee, at least the caffeinated version. bummer but not really. i also have clearance to be on the bike, but for some reason I'm not ready for tomorrow, so it'll be Friday. but forward progress none-the-less. and nothing at the doc's office to foretell imminent doom.

9/11

Date: Sept 11 Tues
Walk: 40min (2.5m)

interesting notes on this 9/11 day:

• got a walk in. felt good all in all. a little ankle pain. a couple light-headed spells. going to the doc tomorrow, so we'll begin address that.
• starting feeling better yesterday afternoon. it felt good to not have too much ankle pain and to not feel chronically fatigued nor about to have a cardial infarction.
• watching a little MSNBC tonight about 9/11. L wanted to do so after discussing it in his class. Powerful, Powerful images. many 'Murcans will react to coverage like that by pulling a Fred Thompson. ""We are finally on the right track in Iraq and we're making progress." Yea, great progress. Fact is, when I watch the video from that fateful day I become angry that we went after Bush II's daddy-enemy instead of going after the real enemy that is Al-Qaeda. We didn't for Bin Laden but instead falsified trumped up charges to go after a non-existent threat, one the Bush family had already been fixated on. It was a disservice, as still is, what has been perpetrated in Iraq. The video makes it so much more plain, to me at least.
• Does anyone care about the Vuelta? Not me. Does anyone care about professional cycling or Valverde's tribulations to ride the Worlds? Not me. Has anyone ever seen a sport shoot itself so vehemently in the foot? Not me.
• Does anyone who reads my blog like Real Madrid? Does anyone care? I suggest you not.

Hopefully things on my personal front are turning the corner. Feeling better but have many long-term goals. the health thing is tantamount at the moment. i would rather be prepping for winter adventures like Doug than playing the waiting game here.

peace out.

Que tarde

it turned out to be a perfect, effete, bourgeoise afternoon here in the Southern/Midwest 'Ville. In liue of watching grain-fed macho American football, I've spent my time switching between the USA/Brazil friendly and the U.S.Open final featuring Federer and Djokovic. Very un-American don't you think? The U.S. didn't play too badly. It would've been interesting to see the match with a real ref, b/c the one today let them wrestle, in effect. As for Federer, he's playing like garbage but staying in it. A true campeon, and probably the greatest.

And another un-American observation was the pathetic McDonald's commercial I saw this afternoon. These two bozos try to one-up each other with how cheap their purchases are (you can imagine where this is going). Then a thin, pretty mid-20s young woman chimes in how she got her double cheeseburger for only $1.00. That's the savior of modern American society!! That $1.00 gives you 440 calories and 23 grams of fat, with the fat content being 35% of your daily allowance. You would have to eat more than 2 bunches of broccoli- or 15 cups- to achieve the same calories. Now that I have a seeming long-term imperative in front of me I may be thinking more in these terms. I remember back in 1999 when I lost 40lbs and felt great that I could taste the lard in an Oreo, making them a most disgusting venture to ingest. Hopefully I can get that discerning again.

Wow, an actual ride

Date: Sept 8 Sat
Mileage: 9.5 (Bleriot)
September mileage: 9.5
Year to date: 1417

I just had to had to get out, just OUT! I had mowed the yard and taken it is rather easy and I just need to move again after 3 weeks of absolutely friggin' nothing. I pumped up the GranBois and went on the slowest, mildest ride I possible could. The ankle felt about 50% so I never once put any real effort on it. And the ticker, well, i certainly didn't juice the Lactate Threshold to gauge my latest VO2 Max. I just went on flat barrio streets and strolled along, trying to keep the heart rate as comfy as possible. The only real, I'll call it, shimmer is an occasional feeling of being light-headed, but it's only a glimpse, a fleeting notion. As I stated in the previous post, I don't know if it's real or if I'm gun shy, but I'm damn gun shy. But I rode.

Afib

It's interesting that I can share on this medium something I'm loathe to discuss save with my closest family. I've been belly-aching about the ankle, which is still icky. I was planning to get it together and go to PT when my week, and life, went sideways and upside down on Wednesday and Thursday.

I cooked some steak fajitas Wednesday with some steak that had been in the freezer for a while. I grilled it and cut out all the fat to leave me with just meat portions. I also made batch of chicken for the good wife and whoever else wanted it. Around 7-8.00 some seeming indigestion set in, making my chest aflutter. I waited it out, as I didn't feel too bad, just having a wiggly chest. When I laid down that night I felt like I needed to take a couple big belly breaths, but no biggy, indigestion.

The next morning, Thursday, I felt fine and got ready for work. On the way in the truck, though, the chest flutter came back. "NOT indigestion" I thought. I made it through the day at mostly full strength but knew something else was up, so I made plans to go to the urgent care center after school. It was extra crazy b/c we were supposed to drive carpool for soccer and the plans were all asunder.

Again, I never felt bad per se, just a little tired and that I had a jumpy ticker. No shortness of breath or pain, although I did get a little light-headed at work a couple times. At the urgent care center, they hooked me up to an EKG, although that was a slight adventure. The nurses tag-teamed me b/c one was training. They couldn't get the stickies to stick and shaved a couple nice patches in my chest. Although cool about it, the doc said I had a 1-way ticket to the ER with something called Atrial Fibrillation. Long short is that the upper part of my heart, the Atrium, was misfiring and not in synch with the lower portion, the ventricles. Once at the ER they treated me quite nice and did more tests including bloodwork, another EKG and a chest Xray.

As can happen in life, it went away. Just like at the autoshop when you want them to hear that nagging noise. The doc had the original EKG in hand and had heard it with a stethascope, but it disappeared. More good news came in that the blood tests didn't show a heart attack, although that isn't ever 100%; the enzyme numbers disappear after a while as well. I've had different what I'll call insignificant health issues before, ear infections, sprained ankles, a bladder/prostate infection, but they all mend. This is the first time I've stared life and death in the face. I was saying to myself, "37 yrs-old and THIS??".

I've been itchy lately (well, not physically). I know my health isn't that good. I'm overweight and I'm sure my cholesterol numbers and such aren't great, but I figured I could mosey along, ride the bike, and confront these things at 50, not at 37. Another irony of all this is that I called my doc Wednesday morning to schedule a full physical b/c I don't feel all that healthy and want the handwriting in large scrit in front of me. And now I will.

I sit here Saturday and can't tell whether I feel physically poor or that it's mental. I feel tired and listless, like I could take a nap at any time. I took a 2-hr one yesterday instead of being at work. I don't have an appt. until Wednesday so I wait until then to get further news. After reading up, I found at that Afib is a screwy thing. Some people get one instance and it never returns, and most often it shows up in old people. Which am I? the lone instance or am i some kind of degenerative "old person"? it's all quite vexing and very unsettling.

I just want to ride the bike and feel healthy and positive in doing it. I'm very proactive, having cleaned up the diet since last Tuesday, but I am facing long-term, life-long challenges and the road is dark and murky and delving into the unknown.

"Promoting pedal power"

Nice article in the CJ today about a new bike program in town. Humana, the often fraudulent insurance company, has initiated a bike share program for its employees. With their ID they can borrow a bike for a brief amount of time and return it to the dedicated station in front of their HQs. Hizzhonorforlife waxed poetic, as usual, about what a great idea it would be for the city. Also mentioned is a free-bike program in Lexington, one I was not aware of. The bikes are are Trek Lime(s), I think. That's the one that's fully "automated" with Shimano's coasting package. A pretty good move, if you ask me.

And the ankle is shit. I can walk now without a noticeable limp, but can't imagine doing anything overly ambitious. I caught the back of a sandal on a chair leg last night and it hurt like hell. Sucks to be me. My weight is at an all-time high, so I'm going to watch desserts and chips, but pinche i gotta burn some calories.