Animal/bike aventures
1. Last Friday morning, about halfway down our road on my way to work, a small bird flew smack into the side of my helmet. I felt a flurry of feathers next to my ear and saw it, out of the corner of my eye, shoot straight up into the air behind me before recovering itself and flying back into the trees.
2. Monday morning at about the same place a young rabbit ran out of the bushes and started running along ahead of me, in the grassy space between the side of the road and the low stacked-stone wall around a Chardonnay vineyard. I kept thinking it would just jump over the wall as soon as it had the opportunity, but either the wall was too tall or the rabbit was too nervous or inexperienced to think of it, so it ended up running a full quarter of a mile right along the base of the wall until it finally came to a low utility box, hopped on top, and vaulted over. As soon as it hit the ground on the other side I saw it stop and sort of lean up against the inside of the wall, catching its breath.
3. Yesterday I came within about six feet of broadsiding a deer that came crashing out of the trees in front of me – same spot on the road. It was young, too. Not a fawn, but still soft and fuzzy and obviously totally freaked out by the bike. There was another one right behind it; I stopped to make sure there wasn't going to be more, then rode on.
4. Tonight about 30 black calves (newly arrived from the livestock auction, apparently) froze in their tracks when I rode by and stared at me without moving the entire time it took me to pass their field. I guess they had not seen a bike before, either. The adult cows in the group didn't give me a second glance, just kept eating.
Strange animal behavior aside, I've been having a lot of fun riding my bike lately. Instead of just going straight to work and back I've been leaving early enough to explore new routes and neighborhoods, run errands, or just ride around looking at things and experimenting. Tonight, for example, I rode past my house and up to the bend in the road, then coasted back. Then I was curious: could I coast all the way to my house from the END of the road? So I road past the bend and all the way up to the horse pasture, and sure enough – I could get all the way back home without pedaling. Then I wondered if I could coast the entire length of the road – more than a mile – so I rode all the way back to the end, then coasted all the way to the main road, then turned around and rode back home.
Until I started riding a bike, I always thought this road was flat. My first time riding home, I realized it was not – that last half-mile kicked my ass for half a year until I got used to it, and I kicked my own ass emotionally all during that time, berating myself for having gotten so weak that an invisible incline was enough to make me red in the face. Now I can ride it at regular speed without breaking a sweat, and now today, realizing that the grade is steep enough that I can coast at about 15 miles an hour for a whole mile – that makes me realize, maybe I could've given myself a little more credit in the beginning. It's also gratifying to be able to enjoy riding up and down the entire road several times in a row, just for fun. Sure, it's no Iron Man, but it's progress all the same.
Today I'm feeling pretty good. Last week I set a secret good deed in motion, and it made me happy all week, thinking about it and knowing that it was going to be happening and that the person had no idea at all that it was going to happen ... I have realized recently that doing nice things for other people is approximatley a hundred million times more satisfying than doing them for myself, so I'll be doing more of that. Also, I lost two more pounds and my sugar is coming down again, so that's a relief (though I'm still really tired of having my fingers constantly riddled with tiny little wounds).
Another thing that's making me happy: I'm sort of slowly coming to a decision to go back to school, probably starting in the fall of 2008. I've been wanting to do this for the longest time, but never seemed to be able to decide what I wanted to do. Art school always came to mind ... but making art is not the same as making a living making art, and I don't like business and commerce unless it's for fun. That's something I hate about what I do now – it's all commercial, all about promoting consumption ... So I've been thinking about health education – maybe diabetes education, maybe something else – and am starting to look into programs for a Masters of Social Work. There are several I could do without having to move, and I could be done in two years if I can figure out how to go to school full time. Which I'm pretty sure I can.
And finally, I'm trying to plan a trip to Portland for about a month from now. I always cringe to invite myself to stay with friends, but I do have several friends there who have repeatedly invited me to come, so I'm gonna try to make it happen.
2. Monday morning at about the same place a young rabbit ran out of the bushes and started running along ahead of me, in the grassy space between the side of the road and the low stacked-stone wall around a Chardonnay vineyard. I kept thinking it would just jump over the wall as soon as it had the opportunity, but either the wall was too tall or the rabbit was too nervous or inexperienced to think of it, so it ended up running a full quarter of a mile right along the base of the wall until it finally came to a low utility box, hopped on top, and vaulted over. As soon as it hit the ground on the other side I saw it stop and sort of lean up against the inside of the wall, catching its breath.
3. Yesterday I came within about six feet of broadsiding a deer that came crashing out of the trees in front of me – same spot on the road. It was young, too. Not a fawn, but still soft and fuzzy and obviously totally freaked out by the bike. There was another one right behind it; I stopped to make sure there wasn't going to be more, then rode on.
4. Tonight about 30 black calves (newly arrived from the livestock auction, apparently) froze in their tracks when I rode by and stared at me without moving the entire time it took me to pass their field. I guess they had not seen a bike before, either. The adult cows in the group didn't give me a second glance, just kept eating.
Strange animal behavior aside, I've been having a lot of fun riding my bike lately. Instead of just going straight to work and back I've been leaving early enough to explore new routes and neighborhoods, run errands, or just ride around looking at things and experimenting. Tonight, for example, I rode past my house and up to the bend in the road, then coasted back. Then I was curious: could I coast all the way to my house from the END of the road? So I road past the bend and all the way up to the horse pasture, and sure enough – I could get all the way back home without pedaling. Then I wondered if I could coast the entire length of the road – more than a mile – so I rode all the way back to the end, then coasted all the way to the main road, then turned around and rode back home.
Until I started riding a bike, I always thought this road was flat. My first time riding home, I realized it was not – that last half-mile kicked my ass for half a year until I got used to it, and I kicked my own ass emotionally all during that time, berating myself for having gotten so weak that an invisible incline was enough to make me red in the face. Now I can ride it at regular speed without breaking a sweat, and now today, realizing that the grade is steep enough that I can coast at about 15 miles an hour for a whole mile – that makes me realize, maybe I could've given myself a little more credit in the beginning. It's also gratifying to be able to enjoy riding up and down the entire road several times in a row, just for fun. Sure, it's no Iron Man, but it's progress all the same.
Today I'm feeling pretty good. Last week I set a secret good deed in motion, and it made me happy all week, thinking about it and knowing that it was going to be happening and that the person had no idea at all that it was going to happen ... I have realized recently that doing nice things for other people is approximatley a hundred million times more satisfying than doing them for myself, so I'll be doing more of that. Also, I lost two more pounds and my sugar is coming down again, so that's a relief (though I'm still really tired of having my fingers constantly riddled with tiny little wounds).
Another thing that's making me happy: I'm sort of slowly coming to a decision to go back to school, probably starting in the fall of 2008. I've been wanting to do this for the longest time, but never seemed to be able to decide what I wanted to do. Art school always came to mind ... but making art is not the same as making a living making art, and I don't like business and commerce unless it's for fun. That's something I hate about what I do now – it's all commercial, all about promoting consumption ... So I've been thinking about health education – maybe diabetes education, maybe something else – and am starting to look into programs for a Masters of Social Work. There are several I could do without having to move, and I could be done in two years if I can figure out how to go to school full time. Which I'm pretty sure I can.
And finally, I'm trying to plan a trip to Portland for about a month from now. I always cringe to invite myself to stay with friends, but I do have several friends there who have repeatedly invited me to come, so I'm gonna try to make it happen.
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