Breast Cancer Ride

This weekend I participated in Minnesota's inaugural two-day fundraising bike ride to nourish women and men living with breast cancer in our community; the first ever Breast Cancer Ride. Saturday, June 21 we started at the Normandale Community College in Bloomington with opening ceremonies and rode to Treasure Island Resort and Casino in Red Wing.  Gordy and I were among the first riders to hit the streets. I was jonesing to get on my bike throughout the opening ceremonies.  Kudos to Gretchen for mapping a fantastic route. The sun was shinning and the weather was perfect for a ride.  I rolled into Treasure Island around 12 noon, my ride time was just over 3 hours and I averaged 16 mph.  I don't usually ride that fast but the day was meant for riding and the course was excellent.  There were only about 115 riders so we were strung out pretty good. After arriving at Treasure Island I chatted with Dave from Erik's Bike Shop, I had a squeak on my bike that was driving me crazy and I determined it was my gears and not my peddles as I had first suspected; believe me after 55 miles of listening to a squeak you can narrow down it's location. Dave took a look and discovered my derailer was out of alignment and needed an adjustment. Within minutes he had my bike up and running absent the squeak, yay! I put my bike in the bike corral, Gordy arrived shortly after I did and we had lunch together.  I also received a fantastic Thai massage, it was heavenly.  I then picked up my luggage and checked into the hotel.  After showering and putting on fresh clothes I headed out for a walk and a visit to the marina.  It was just a beautiful day!  I then went back to my room to cool down a bit and found myself taking a nice little nap.  I woke shortly after 6, put on fresher clothes and headed off to dinner.  I sat with some fun people for dinner and ran into an old friend.  We went out for a beer and then off to the beach for a bonfire.  

The goal for Sunday was to be the last two people to leave the Island and I believe Gordy and I succeeded in that.  I met up with Amy, from Specialized bikes in the morning and she hooked me up with a bike to test ride for the day.  I had never ridden a high end road bike before so let me tell you it was nice! Sundays ride was full of wind and hills, in stark contrast to Saturdays ride. That little Specialized Ruby rode like a dream.  The MPH for Sunday was much slower and a super workout.  I believe it will take a few days to get my riding legs back. We rolled into Normandale about 3 PM and waited until the last riders arrived.  While waiting I was able to take advantage of the chiropractors free adjustment, that was nice :)  It was great fun to see everyone at the end of the ride, we attended closing ceremonies then headed on home.  

I will for sure do this ride again next year.  It was one of the best!  The crew was fantastic they made our job of riding so much easier.  The food was great!  Lots of firsts for me, a Thai massage, riding a fancy high end road bike and meeting some great people whom I hope to keep in contact with.  The money raised on this event will go to Open Arms of Minnesota. Open Arms is the only service provider in the Twin Cities that delivers nutritious meals to people living with chronic and progressive diseases including breast cancer, HIV/AIDS, ALS (also known as Lou Gehrig's disease), and multiple sclerosis (MS). Unlike a traditional meals-on-wheels program, Open Arms prepares it's own food, tailored to the nutrition needs of their clients.  Best of all, there is no charge for any of Open Arms' services.

In 2004, Open Arms began working with breast cancer clients. The kitchen staff developed a Mild Diet, which includes milder smells and flavors that are more appealing to those who struggle to eat due to nausea, and Nausea Care Packs, for clients undergoing radiation and chemotherapy. In 2008 their efforts include incorporating organic foods into the Mild Diet menu. 

Proceeds from the Breast Cancer Ride will not only support the current breast cancer program but will allow Open Arms to accept additional people dealing with breast cancer. No one in our community should go hungry during this difficult and challenging time.

For more information, visit: www.openarmsmn.org or call 612 872 1152

RiDE ON LiVE ON

Headaches

Whew, finally a morning without a flippin' headache.  Wednesday I was hit with a nasty one, put me right out of commission. I was fine in the morning but by the time I got home from work I could hardly keep my eyes open.  

So here's the deal, I have had a headache every day since 1992, not a fun thing but manageable. They started out really nasty, I would have to lay down at least once a day to get rid of it. Over the years I have done everything under the sun to manage the pain.  Tried prescription meds, they just made me sick and paranoid, tried self medication, same problem, went to a pain management clinic and physical therapy for about 3 years.  Learned to change my life and just live with the pain.  Eventually the nasty ass knock me out headaches lessoned and now it only happens about once a month and Wednesday was this months headache.  I can usually find relief by laying flat on my back and meditating but for some reason nothing was working on Wednesday.  I was really bummed out because I wanted to go riding Wednesday night.  I laid down for about 2 hours then tried to get up, I even put on my riding gear but it was not going to happen.  I laid back down for another hour then got up and tried to go out for a spin on my road bike every bump I hit was like a shock wave to my head I finally said fuck it and went home.  I was in bed and sleeping by 2130 and that never happens.  

Thursday morning things were much better and today it's back to normal.  All things considered if I had to have a nasty ass headache I guess Wednesday was the best day for it. Yesterday I had to go to Normandale and pick up my ride packet and today I have tons of chores to get done before the ride this weekend.

I'm doing the Breast Cancer Ride, riding from Normandale Community College to Treasure Island Casino and back to raise money for the Open Arms organization. I'm really looking forward to the ride and a headache simply would not have fit into the plans. 

that's all...

What's in the News

It's a toss up as to which story is my favorite "With verve to spare" residents at Walker at Hazel Ridge Senior Community in Maplewood have formed a Wednesday Wii bowling league. They "play" on a 109-inch jumbo TV screen bought with money raised by students from North High School. They are in negotiations with a local retailer for bowling shirts. or "Till death did them part: Couple's marriage endured for 83 years" Clarence and Mayme Vail were married on February 17, 1925, they were married for 83 years. Clarence died Saturday with Mayme at his side. He was 101 years old and she is 100 years old. Together they begat four generations: six children, 42 grandchildren, 101 great grandchildren, and 43 great-great-grandchildren. Clarence's advice to young husbands " Just do what she wants you to do." Gotta love a guy like that!

Front of the business section:

Ethanol plant's startup delayed. VeraSun cites high corn prices for decision. Only days before launch, VeraSun Energy said it will delay the startup of Minnesota's newest and largest ethanol plant because of high corn prices and troublesome profit margins.

Page 3 of the business section:

Xcel Energy begins switch to soy oil transformers. Xcel Energy on Tuesday unveiled one of the first of thousands of soy oil electrical transformers it plans to install in Minnesota this year as part of a plan to switch to agriculturally based resources in all its new transformers.

Ok, maybe Xcel needs to talk with VeraSun; agriculturally based resources raise the prices and cause troublesome profit margins. 

I'm not going to mention "Rewriting the Law...In Secret." A group of five lawyers drafted legal opinions to circumvent military justice, the federal court system and international treaties - and shield anyone from war crimes prosecution. They were following orders of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney. 

Nor am I going to mention "Terror suspects were moved to keep the Red Cross at bay." Senate probe reveals harsh techniques used while military branches objected. The U.S. military hid the locations of suspected terrorist detainees and concealed harsh treatment to avoid the scrutiny of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

All they do is PISS ME OFF!

But let's leave on a good note:

"Girl helps cops nap lemonade theif" twelve year old Dominique who was running the lemonade stand with friends dashed after the man, who ran into a house, she then called the police. Steve Tryon 18 was arrested on a preliminary felony charge of robbery. The kids got their $17.50 back!  All is right in the world.

Sleep more, eat less, lose weight.  I'm going to bed. 

sweet dreams...

cm

Sleep

One of my co-workers informed me yesterday that if you don't get enough sleep you will gain weight. He said he had  been watching something on TV, I don't remember the name of the show, my television has not been turned on is so long I don't know if it even works. Anyway, it was one of those fake news shows. You know the ones that think what they have to say is really important when in fact it's mostly BS, like dateline or something.  Anyway, as I was saying he was watching a show on TV and it was about people who do not sleep enough and how they gain weight.  The idea is that your body needs energy and if you are not sleeping then it needs to get it some other way, so people eat to stay awake.  OK, I can buy that, I don't sleep and I eat about every two hours from the time I wake up (0430) until about 6 PM. I'm 45 years old, I'm 63.50 inches in height and weigh 140 pounds. My body fat is 20.3%, my body mass index (BMI) is 24.6 so I'm thinking all I would have to do to lose a few pounds would be to sleep more.  According to this study people who sleep more eat less.  One of my goals for this year is to sleep more so I can kill two birds with one stone, sleep more, lose weight.  I'm going to try it.  At this time I average around 5 hours of sleep a night, up from 4 hours 6 months ago.  I'm going to try to add one more hour to my night of sleep and see what happens.  This would be perfect, I keep thinking I need to stop drinking beer so I can lose a few pounds, now I can still drink beer and just sleep more.  I wonder if naps count and if so how long does the nap need to be??? My co-worker is using the study at home, he told his wife he needs a nap after work so he can lose weight.  I would need to get to bed by 2200 in order to get 6 hours of sleep, it took me 6 months to get from 4 hours a night to 5 so lets check back in December to see the results.

Until then sleep more, eat less and don't give up the beer.

peace and good night.

Pivotal moments

There are times in our lives that change us, at the time it's happening we don't realize the impact but years later we realize what a pivotal moment it was.  Lately I've been thinking a lot about my past.  I've spent the last 5 years working hard to become a better person.  Part of that is realizing my defects of character and making changes.  Just today as I was riding home from a fantastic day in Stillwater watching the final stage of the Nature Valley Grand Prix I decided to take the long way home which gave me lots of time to think. I made some realizations; one being I am physically stronger and emotionally weaker than I thought. I talk a lot so no one really knows how I feel.  I have random thoughts that I push out of my head so I don't have to deal with them. When I am hurt I cover it with humor, sarcasm and/or anger but don't express the true nature of my feelings.  As I ride along the trail I think about the pivotal moments of my life. 

1. 1963 being born, that started this whole thing.

2. 1982 leaving home at the end of my dad's foot.

3. having nothing to eat and no place to call home.

4. 1984 Lawrence dies and I learned how to cry.

5. 1988 fell hook, line and sinker in love, I find out just because you love someone it does not mean they will feel the same.

6. 1991 found myself in the ER with the neurologist telling me I may not walk again.

7. 1996 road my bike 150 miles just to prove I was healed.

8. 2001 all the childhood fears become a reality, planes are flown into the twin towers and the Pentagon, flashbacks of the air raid sirens going off, walking single file to the hallways, hunkering down and having to cover our heads. The United States has been attacked. Watching the television with tears streaming down my face. What the hell!

9. 2003 I turn 40, have a big bash and realize I have lived nearly half my life already and what have I accomplished?

10. 2005 I'm 42 and have had the same job for 21 years, half my life, it's time for change.

11. my father has a heart attack, my mom gets sick and I realize they will not be around forever. 

2008 I'm 45, I'm riding my bike down a trail and wondering what will happen tomorrow? how do I make myself a better person? I pledge to talk less, listen more, allow the random thoughts to enter my mind and to explore their meaning, allow myself to feel what I am feeling and not cover it up. I'm good with being alone but it is much better to have someone to share the fun stuff with. I need to get back to my spiritual self and away from the material world. I will work less and sleep more. Is this one of those moments???

peace

Product Recommendation

Ok, so I'm cleaning my bike today, I went for a nice long 60 ride this morning and have not cleaned my bike since before the MS150 ride, it was truly a mess.  I cleaned off all the road scum and was applying lube to the chain when some grease found it's way onto the floor.  I tried to wipe it up but only succeeded in smearing it all over my hardwood floor.  Take note: garages are for cleaning bikes not bedrooms.  Anyway, as I was saying; there was grease on the floor and I had it all over my hands, I took my flip flops off so I would not track the grease all over the house. I went to the basement, another good place to clean your bike if you don't like the garage again not in the bedroom.  I get to the laundry room and use the handy dandy Lemon GOJO Hand Cleaner, presto! My hands are clean.  I head back upstairs only to discover there is a track of black nasty grease from the bedroom, down the hall, across the kitchen and down the basement steps.  What the Hell! I had a big ol' gob of it on my left foot. I try to wipe it up with a damp cloth, no luck. A light bulb goes on in my head; Lemon GOJO Hand Cleaner. I head back down stairs, get a cloth, grab the tub of Lemon GOJO Hand Cleaner and retrace my steps.  What do you know, it cleans it right up, no smears, nothing!  I used it on the ceramic tile in the kitchen and the hardwood floors in the hallway and bedroom worked like a charm.  For less than $4 you can have an 18 oz tub of Lemon GOJO Hand Cleaner. Great investment. Go out and get yourself some today.

WORD OF THE DAY

Yammer  v

1. to complain peevishly

2. to talk loudly; to make an outcry

use it in a sentence...

MS 150

Whew, finished riding in the MS 150 this afternoon.  What a great ride!  Friday RRC, MA and I met in Blaine, MA and I parked our cars at the sports center and transferred all of our things into RRC's car.  The three of us then drove to Duluth, we made a pit stop in Hinckley and ate at Tobie's, note to self "do not eat at Tobie's again, the food is nasty.  We arrived at our hotel in Proctor, checked in then headed to Duluth.  RRC and I dropped MA off at the Green Mill so she could meet up with her family.  RRC and I then cruised Duluth and headed to Superior, we stopped at JT's for a beer.  From there we headed back into Duluth and Pizza Luce's mmmmmm, the best pizza on earth!  After eating we contacted MA to see if she was ready, she was still dining so we cruised around a bit until MA was done.  We picked up MA then headed to Dubhlinn Pub to stock up on carbs.  Now I thought we were going in for one, but it turned out we were going in for several. After a handful of Black and Tan's we decided we had better head back to the hotel and get some sleep.  

Saturday morning proved to be a bit difficult, I think we should have stuck with just one Black and Tan.  The start line for the MS 150 is at Proctor High School so MA and I rode from the hotel to the high school.  RRC took our luggage on to Hinckley for us.  We crossed the start line around 7:30 AM, the game plan was to start at 6:30 AM but as I said we should have stuck with one Black and Tan on Friday night.  The morning was perfect for a ride, blue skies, a few clouds, and the air was cool.  At about 8:30 AM we found ourselves stopped on a bridge, the view was beautiful, rushing water over rocks and under the bridge. We spent a little time there admiring the view.  At around 9:15 we stopped in Carlton so MA could mail off a postcard, it was 68 degrees and the morning was turning into a perfect day!  Lunch was a Willow River followed by two more rest stops and we cruised into Hinckley around 4 PM.  I can tell you I was not on my game in the first part of the morning, it took until lunch before I shook all the cobwebs out of my head.

After arriving in Hinckley we found our team tent, Real Estate Riders, hooked ourselves up with a cold frosty beer and socialized for a bit.  Team pictures were followed by a raffle, Yippee! I won tickets to a Vikings game!  After that MA and I went to the hotel, got ourselves checked in, took showers and met her family and friends for dinner.  After dinner I went to the Casino and MA headed back to the room, no gambling for her.  I doubled my money, cashed out of the machine and headed back to the room.  By 10 PM we were both snoring, zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Sunday, rise and shine another full day of riding.  We had a quick breakfast at the hotel, stowed our luggage and off we went.  On the road around 7:30 AM, we were for sure at the back of the pack this time.  I think everyone else was up and gone by 6:30 AM. Today's ride was awesome, no head wind, a bit overcast in the morning, so it was nice and cool.  I kept my jacket on until the second rest stop.   We made excellent time today, no cobwebs, no Black and Tans to sweat out, fabulous! We cruised into North Branch, the halfway point at about 10:30 AM, had lunch then off we went.  Two more stops and we were at the Blaine Sports Center shortly after 2 PM. This was by far one of the best rides I have had in a very long time. MA and I both registered to ride again next year.  I had said this was going to be my last year, but it was so much fun, I have to do it again.  I felt so good at the end I could have added another 25 miles and made a century ride out of it. 

Ready to Ride

Heading to Duluth tomorrow, the MS150 bike tour is this Saturday and Sunday, I sure hope I am ready for it.  RRC is giving MA and I a ride to Proctor/Duluth on Friday then MA and I will do the ride together. I have not been on my bike all week.  Had planned to ride Wednesday with the Penn Cycle women but the ride was called off because of bad weather.  I went to yoga instead and actually I think it was better for me.  We did a lot of calming poses.  

Anyway, as I was saying I'm heading to Duluth tomorrow for the ride.  I still have not packed and cannot decide on what to bring.  The weather forecast is 50% chance of rain on Saturday and 30% chance of rain on Sunday but this is Minnesota, we can expect anything.  Guess I'll decide in the morning.  RRC and I will be going to Pizza Luce Friday evening for dinner, it's one of my favorite places to eat. MMMMMM I can taste the garlic already. 

Went to the Science Museum tonight, went by myself I kinda like going alone, I get to spend as much time as I want with the dinosaurs.  I have a thing for pre-historic, history, that sounds weird, pre-historic history hmm. I also saw "The Alps" at the Omnitheater, it was good. Everest is playing at the Omni as well but I can only see one free show per visit so I'm going to try to catch Everest next week.  It ends June 12 so I have to hurry.  The Star Wars exhibit starts June 13 along with "Special Effects" at the Omni, that's going to be fun! 

It's going to be nice riding my bike all weekend, it has been a hectic week at work.  I have a number of cases that have been taxing my brain so it will be great to put it all on the back burner and just ride.  Riding always helps to clear my head. 

Time to catch some zzzzzzzzzz 

ciao,

cm

impulse purchase

I am not one to buy things on impulse, I usually research whatever the item is. Ok, I'll admit sometimes I'm sucked into buying something hanging on the rack while waiting in the checkout line at the grocery store but not often.  Anyway, as I was saying I usually spend a lot of time researching whatever it is I'm going to buy. For example when I needed to buy a new car it took me months to decide on which car then several more months to figure out what I wanted on the car and where to make my purchase. When I bought my new bike it was three months of research before I even went to test ride them.  With that said, let me tell you about my new lawn mower. Last Sunday I'm at work thinking about what I'm going to have for dinner.  MMMMMM salmon on the grill.  The game plan is to get home, spark up the charcoal and while that is heating I will get the rice started and then cut the grass in the front yard.  It only takes about 1/2 hour to cut the grass so the charcoal should be hot and the rice nearly done.  I fill the gas tank, and push the lawn mower out to the front yard, attach the sparkplug, prime the engine and pull the cord; nothing!  A weird sound comes from the mower, hmmm it usually only takes one pull to start the engine.  I prime it a little more and pull the cord, nothing, same weird noise. Ok, one more time...oil starts splooging everywhere, nasty!  I quickly bring the mower back to the backyard so I can see what it happening.  What a mess. I clean up the oil and take a look, the dipstick has come apart from the mower. What the hell! So I think, I have another lawn mower, I will get that one and see if I can get one mower out of two.  One has a bad wheel and the other is leaking oil.  Well by this time the coals are hot so I put on the Salmon.  I have been thinking about dinner all day and I'm not going to let this lawn mower issue ruin my dinner.  I putz around with the two mowers until my salmon is done.  Enough of this, I'm going to check the Sunday ads online and see if anyone has mowers on sale, but not before I eat my dinner.  

Fantastic!  Dinner is great and I made enough so that I can bring some to work the next day for lunch.  Too bad I don't have a girlfriend to share it with.  I will admit that is one thing I miss, having someone to share dinner with. Maybe next  year.

Ok, so dinner is done, the dishes are put away and I have checked the Internet for deals on mowers.  I have my list of stores and prices, the only one I could not get a price listing for was Menards and there is one just down the street so I plan to hit them first.  I pull into the parking lot and score a spot right next to the door.  I walk into the store ask the man behind the counter where to find the lawn mowers, he points me in the right direction and I'm off.  I get to the lawn mower aisle where I'm greeted by one of their friendly service people.  I tell him I need a new mower, mine just went to hell and I'm tired of messing with it.  I take a look at the electric mowers, they are right in front of me.  I really did not plan to buy an electric mower, they were just the first ones I saw.  He tells me that they have not had any complaints about the electric mowers, people seem to really like them.  The only down side is you have to drag the cord around with you.  I take a closer look $148.00, 18 IN electric mower. Hmmmmm, it takes me about two seconds, gas/oil mower gas prices nearly $4 a gallon vs electric mower.  Electric wins!  No fuss, no muss and I can carry it myself.  I put the mower on a cart, get to the checkout lane and I am out the door in 15 minutes, back home in another 15 and cutting the grass in 10.  Within one hour, I went to the store, purchased my mower, drove home unpacked it, assembled it and was cutting the grass.  It took a little getting used to, I felt like I was vacuuming the lawn.  It cut like a dream and it is nice and quiet, no worry about disturbing the neighbors. Now I have a fancy new lawn mower.

A guy from work came over yesterday and picked up the two old mowers so now I don't even have to worry about what to do with them. 

Life is good...

biking

Whew, can't believe it's June already, time just keeps speeding up. I have the MS150 ride coming up this weekend, June 7 & 8, I'm really looking forward to it.  Last weekend I put on over 100 miles riding on Friday and Saturday.  It is so nice to get back to riding for pleasure, the last couple years I have been riding hard and not really enjoying it. Riding with AG was like being in a competition all the time, I felt as though I had to be speeding along and could never enjoy the sights and sounds around me.  Now I ride at my own pace and enjoy it all, take breaks when I want, stop to watch the sunset, people, animals, have lunch with a friend, its wonderful. Thanks to GT showing me some great trails around the Lakes in Minneapolis. 

Next week I plan to step it up with my mountain biking.  I have been mostly concentrating on road riding to get ready for this MS ride but when that's finished I want to dedicate more time to off road riding.  I really need to practice, practice, practice.  I plan to dedicate my Friday mornings to riding and learning the technical parts of off road riding. There are enough trails close to home I should find a variety. I have the Chequamegon Short and Fat race in September that TB and I were fortunate enough to get into.  I would really love to beat last years time by at least 10 minutes, 15 would be even better. I am also hoping to do the Ore to Shore race in August but I need to find someone to come with me.  I could go alone but the drive is pretty far and I would rather not go alone.  

RiDE ON LiVE ON