Saturday Ride and other random things

This morning I left at about 7:40 a.m. to head down to the bike shop for the Saturday morning breakfast ride that Karen and I lead into Kirkland. On the way (about a half mile after leaving the house) I spot another cyclist up in front of me so I speed up thinking to catch him and see if he's someone new from town coming to catch the ride. As I catch him we crest the big hill on campus and I see about 1000 cyclists pouring out onto the road....it was quickly apparent that this weekend was the MS150 ride - which Karen and I rode last year, however neither of us wanted to do this year because we both dislike fundraising and dislike it more when we have a minimum that we can raise.

So, I end up in the pack with them while I'm heading to the bike shop - oh what fun! They were a loud crew this year - I was almost a little sad that I hadn't participated - that's my kind of group! Anyway as I turned off their route onto the road leading to the bike shop they all began to yell at me that I was going the wrong way! haha - I was glad that no one got off the route to come track me down but it was a humorous moment.

Karen apparently got the same kind of thing when she veered off the route to head over to our starting place!

The skies looked a little ominous as we headed out on the ride - and we indeed got wet - which was not too bad because it was more of a light sprinkling than a downpour - about 3 miles outside of Kirkland the skies cleared and we were presented with beautiful blue skies and a very warm sun to help dry us off.

The cafe was very chilly as they had their air conditioner on AND the overhead fans going as well! Unbelievable! I was shaking by the time I finished my Strawberry pancake!

We headed back to DeKalb and were nice and dry by the time we got home. There was a very light breeze out of the NW so we got pushed a little bit, which is always a nice feeling!
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Now for other random things -I have this new laptop which I am enjoying a great deal! It comes with the wireless thing already in the computer so I didn't have to go buy that little card thing - nice! I hope you know what I'm talking about - when it comes to computers I can troubleshoot em but I never have any ability to pick up the technical jargan - and I have to say I don't really ever go through the trouble of trying to figure out what all the things are - as long as I can work them and navigate on the thing I don't necessarily need to know! :)

I'm very excited about this trip to Springfield and courtesy of Bikejournal.com I think I may be managing to hook up with some of the riders (or at least 1) from that area while I'm down there - I'll wait and see and keep my fingers crossed!

I pick up the rental car on Monday because I'm not driving my gas guzzling suburban down there! I'd really be losing out from a money standpoint! I'm going to them hit work, check emails and shoot off replies then head home, load my bike and bag in the car along with a big jug of sweet tea that I'll make before heading out the door and then off I go for a 6 hour drive! Better pack the CD case as well so I can keep myself entertained!

Poor Bob has been working a lot of extra hours - yes he's getting paid for it, but he's exhausted! He's been going in at 5 a.m. working until 4 p.m. and then going back in at 8 p.m. till 10 p.m. to help the second shift guys with the shut down of one of the lines because apparently the second shift guy who's in there doesn't know how to shut down the line that Bob runs - there is also a half hour of drive time each way - so he's just beat! I'm a little worried that without me there to prod him and push him out of bed in the mornings he may be late for the first couple days I'm gone!

We are still waiting on our Stimulus check - okay, I know it's not money to count on - because we technically wouldn't have been expecting it BUT I am expecting it and it really ticks me off that it's not here yet - I got a letter telling me I should expect it in on a certain day - that day has come and gone and I'm still waiting - I could really use that right now especially with this trip coming up! Oh well! It will probably come in while I'm gone so that Bob can't do anything with it till I get back - that's about how things usually go!

I've come to find that I really love the McDonald's sweet tea! ALOT! That stuff rocks!

Joy of Joy my 16 year old daughter who is getting her license in the fall has asked me to get her pedals and shoes so she can clip in and start doing the longer rides with me! Who would have thought that the kid who loves to drive would get cycling fever! I am thrilled - she's been wanting to ride every night with me and has been riding with her brothers during the day to the Library, the pool and to the park! I'm so happy I could do my little happy dance!

Okay, I think that's about it....
I noticed when I logged on that there were now 4 visitors from Portugal - drop a note people! Drop it in Portuguese even - as I need the practice!

Okay everyone - take care! Be safe and I'll catch you again soon! I am hoping to log in at least a couple of times while in Springfield!