gwadzilla

Rants on Cycling and on Life

5.20.2005

homework
as a kid I thought I was tricking my parents, thought I was getting one up on the teachers, thought I was beating the system
PT is like homework
now I realize that I need to do my homework
I wish I had done my homework or at least some of it
right now I am doing my homework
in fact I may deserve extra credit for pulling out the heat pad to warm things up
it hurts less
and I get greater mobility
lets see if my Physical Terrorist gives me a gold star

I am feeling very fortunate that I found a Physical Terrorist who is fun enough to keep me interested and motivated
like a good teacher

BIKE KILL 2004
this movie is a long download
but it is most definitely worth it
great soundtrack
great filming
great editing
amazing dialogue... what is sigular for dialogue?

BIKE KILL 2004


thank gundog99 for this info
(not sure where he snagged it... but he did)

some sort of urban bicycle burning man
only it is east coast punk rock!
great documentary
looks like a wild bunch of folks getting creatively perhaps dangerously creative

the Drunk Cyclist can mess with a man's had
how can porn and Ann Colter be on the same page
might as well leave the page blank
as it would leave the reader feeling just as empty

Music in my iTunes:
currently listening to The Jam
not sure what your tastes are
but if you liked The Clash
you most certainly will appreciate The Jam



but what do I know?
most of my CDs are repeats of my vinyl

BTW: Bike to Work Day
bike to work day is usually an everyday event
since breaking my finger it has been Walk to Work Day
under my PT 's (Physical Terrorist) recommendation I have been avoiding the bike
permission to ride a stationary bike
orders to not be stupid enough to ride a bike
with the official Bike to Work Day happening I could not resist
for some reason I felt it vital to RIDE AND BE COUNTED
it was not a mishievous temptation.... it was a righteous calling
so last night after a late night on the clock and a few drinks at a local pub I wound down by collecteing my gear for my ride to work
the rigid Karate Monkey Single Speed was my ride of choice
there was air in the tires
there were pedals on the cranks
pretty much ready to go
so I gathered up shoes, helmet, GLOVE, glasses
leaving the rest of the apparrell to be dictated by the temperature of the morning
actually gear was gathered other than shoes
my winter shoes were out in the open, my Sidi shoes were revealed when I eached for my rain pants the next morning

the next morning arrived fast
lisa went to bed sick and woke up sicker
dean woke up at 6:30, which woke grant up at 6:30
perhaps it was 6:20 as our bedeoom clock is set to trick me by being 10 minut s fast
I got up to intercept all toddling invaders
in an effort to manage grant I put dean in front of the television
this is no the standard morning routine
grant walked right through me
straight to momma
with dean watching television I was able to get him to wear the clothing I selected
and eat the food that I prepared (banana and oj... not much preparation really)
with lisa sick I accepted the responsibility of driving cross town to drop dean off at school
the drop offs can be a bonding pleasure, but on this day my actions were cutting into my Bike to Work experience
back from dropping dean off I leashed up the dogs and marched into the woods

did I mention it was raining?
did I mention it was cold and raining?
did I mention it was raining cats and dogs?

even roscoe and brutus were bummed by the rain
the dogs got walked long enough out that I was able to see that at least one of the dogs had pooped
the other one will figure it out as we walk back and will have ample time to drop a load
went inside
unleashed the hounds
watched and wondered why they refuse to shake dry outside rather than inside
gathered, wallet, cell phone, blackberry, company id/building pass and headed down to the basement to suit up and head to work
with the rain coming down I opted for a full GORTEX gear
head to toe
with my City Bikes jersey hidden I grabbed a Timbuk2 messenger bag with a large red City Bikes oval patch to aid in my representation
in actuality...
I just hope that the drivers see me....
it is tough for a driver to see a cyclist through a rain covered window all foggered up because they are breathing heavy as they watch porn on their dash board DVD while they check emails on their microscopic Blackberry
with a plastic bag over my splint and a clip on fender over my rear wheel I was off and rolling
my path took me past a park in Mt. Pleasant.... not so much as a straggler from the local ralley
would like to say that it was good to be on the bike
but for some reason when it rains car drivers break out in a bad cas of stupid

bumper to bumper traffic
angry agressive hatefilled car drivers
I know.... I own a car
I know... I see their expressions as they run me off the road

down through the city
mount pleasant/adams morgan/dupont circle
the white house/treasury department
ah
freedom plaza
not much ditance
but plenty of nice views... what can be see between the rain drops and Metro buses

arriving for the final moments of the rally
missed the speeches
but caught some of the energy
it was a large wet wheel-filled amemba mass
then with a blink of an eye
cyclists rushed off to work
volunteers began to tear down in a shockingly efficient fashion
I had almost missed the whole party
it was hard to make contact with people
everyone looked like a wet rat
as far as I can recall.. I do not have many wet rat friends
I went from booth to booth
making small talk with what wet rats I could recognize
bopped here
bopped there
scored swag here
scored more swag there

still managed to get to work by 9:25
only 25 minutes late for work
and about 10 minutes earlier than I often arrive
about to suit up in my wet gear and pedal my way home
not sure how much urban riding I care to do with one hand and one claw
pot holes cause pain
panic stops and sudden movement cause fear
all of the "what ifs" are too much for me to risk
all of the worst case scenarios are enough for my wife and physical terroist to do more than say "i told you so"
worse yet... something happened and they said, nothing

it was good to get on the bike
it was good to get out for Bike to Work Day

5.19.2005

blogging as I break from planining my caper
not my caper, planning my escape

tomorrow is Bike to Work Day

I need to stand and be.....
hold on
correction
I need to ride and be counted

so I scamper around for gear as I think about the opinion of my physical terrorist

PT: Physical Terrorism
had another PT meeting today
it hurts
but... that is what it will take to get better

the sessions can be a trip
definitely proving things true...
"misery loves company"

LEMONADE: Another glass of somewhat watered down lemonade

yesterday I was fortunate to score a ride home from work
sitting in a car rather than walking gave me the option (and strength) to go for a run while I walked the dogs

ran for 35 minutes
walked for 10 minutes
pushed it up the hills, slow... but more than a slow walking stride

the dogs did not get as much water time
they were a tad disoriented as I reversed a loop that they are not entirely familiar with

5.18.2005

different times
different cultures
different responses to similar surroundings

it is not so much tha I am old
it is more a matter that I grew up in a different time
the world was a different place
I was at a certain age
my age lead me to experience the 80's from the perspective of a teenager
which world lead to a focus of different set of priorities than a young grade schooler, a young adult, a young parent, or grumpy old fart may experience during this same era

there is a group house two doors down from my mount Pleasant home
there are some pretty cool kids there
they are creative and they are productive in their creativity
they are fun and they are interesting
they are young... but they are not kids
they are young adults
and I am an old fart
it is all relative

well...
when they have a party or a bbq I usually get invited by someone somehow
more than likely they are inviting me so that I won't be the old fart that called the cops
okay... just kidding
they invite me to chapparon
okay... just kidding
they invite me just "cause"

cause it is the neighborly thing to do
cause it is a party... the more the merrier
just cause

I always meet a few interesting people
we have awkward yet friendly conversations
as they look at me with certain suspicion wondering why I am not at home taking my Geratol

somewhere it is revealed that we grew up in different world
we grew up in different times
we grew up different
which make me old and them young
I become that old fart

somehow I just don't get their take on the 80's
these young hip counter culture kids love the 80's
not the Minor Threat at Landsburgh Culture Center, not the Henry Rollins spoken word thing ad DC Space, not just going to the 9:30 Club to dance, catch a band, to just hang out
not the community center shows and there was Fort Reno
it seemed that Government Issue and Iron Cross were the house band at the Wilson Center

no.. they gravatae more towards the pop Culture that was the 80's
more like a high school dance

sure in y past there were high school dances, of which I attended many
so Funk, Go-Go, and Pop R&B dance hits were part of my vocabulary
B-CC had very cool high school dances... Ed Mulaney packed the house
none students needed a pass that was approved the wednesay before the dance

and THRILLER!
ask anyone!
they can tell you where they were the night that Friday Night Videos had its WORLD PREMIER
MTV was not an option everywhere
cable was just starting the infection that HOMOGENIZED our country
Band Aid meant two things... my band aids as a youngster were flesh tone while my adolescent Band Aid include Paul Weller and Dan Akroyd...
riddle me that...

in any case

they have these really great parties with music, food, and fun
but I just don't get it
sure I love the music
but I do not hear quite what they hear
guess I hear what an old fart hears

vh1's version

my point?
not quite sure
still trying to figure it all out

not bike related
but funny...

here is the SHOCKER!

from my friend at ROBLOG

i recently joined up with a BLOG-COOP

BIKECENTRIC

I may post there from time to time

Velo Vengence!

check it out!
(this was shared with me from my brother... also a member of DCMTB)

Ride of Silence:



official link
(this information was shared from fellow DCMTB member; Dave)

5.17.2005

can someone translate this page for me?
it looks pretty cool.

I tried to SHIZZOLATE it... it was still... cool.... but still not clear

sandbagger....
from the folks at Britannica.com

Main Entry: 2sandbag
Function: transitive verb
1 : to bank, stop up, or weight with sandbags
2 a : to hit or stun with or as if with a sandbag b : to treat unfairly or harshly c : to coerce by crude means sandbagging the government -- C. W. Ferguson> d :
- sandĀ·bagĀ·ger noun
to conceal or misrepresent one's true position, potential, or intent especially in order to take advantage of
did those guys SANDBAG at Lodi Farms?

I was not there....
I have not checked the lap times or the results
I am just trying to stir something up!

5.16.2005

lemonade: just had my first glass of lemonade... it was a tad watered down

went for a trail run
ran 30 minutes; slowed to a walk on the hills
cooled down with 15 minute walk after the run
all trail
quite nice actually
felt good
not spry
but good

no mountainbiking for a while
considered this SHOCKWAVE GAME to keep my technical
but was not inspired
it was more downhill than cross country

amusing

some fun ads.....

Leo's Sport Club; it is not porn... it is European.
more Euro Style
and this condoms

cyclist/bicycle people

there is more to being a cyclist than riding and racing
in actuality... I am more a 'bicycle person' than a 'racer,'
although I do race
I rode long before I ever raced
and
I plan on riding long after I lose interest in racing

cycling is part of my life
cycling is part of me
cycling is part of who I am
cycling is part of my past and most definitely part of my future

cycling is more than my corny swag t-shirts, the stickers on my car, or the yellow wristband on my arm
cycling is something inside of me
being a cyclist is many things...

being a cyclist is health and fitness
being a cyclist is a mode of transportation
being a cyclist is activism
being a cyclist is a being part of a culture
being a cyclist is riding bikes
being a cyclist is working on bikes
being a cyclist is communicating and communing with other cyclists
being a cyclist is sport, recreation, and fun
there is so much more than putting a number on the bike and pedaling fast
(or trying to pedal fast)

more than anything... being a cyclist can be measured in how I see the world
miles
distance
time
it is all weighed differently

last weekend was the 12 Hours of Lodi Farms
a great local race which I have enjoyed racing many times in the years prior
missing it this year will only aid my appreciation for it next year
I have had fun reading the reports and hearing the stories of various friend's experience racing this weekend past

the weekend prior was the AMBC Maryland State Championships at Greenbriar

both events passed me by
future events will be missed
that is what happens when a person breaks their finger crashing on the first rock in the first race of the season

in the scheme of things...
this injury is nothing more than a speed bump in my life's path

P.A.C.E. (Positive Attitude Changes Everything!)

it is important that my time is well spent in the weeks to come
off to buy some running shoes
maybe that will help me to make some "lemonade!"

oh...

remember...

WABA/DC's Bike to Work Day!
mark your calendar
tell your coworkers
tell your friends

stand up and be counted!
DC DOT' Bicycle Page