Looking Around

Something new to reset the e-mail

I am not sure what I want to go on about here this week. It is not like there is a lot going on in my life. My friend Halima has returned from Mexico. Actually, Halima is a long close friend to my fiance, Lynn. In any event, she is staying here with us, keeping us entertained with stories from Mexico. What can I say, here is a woman who traveled to Mexico for a two month intership and stayed for almost two years. At one point, she was an out of work, illegal alien south of the border. I am catching some of the stories she tells on tape, but I am afraid that I am missing some of the good ones.

Riding my bike to work is going well. The weather here in Atlanta this time of year is exquisite. The days can be almost warm and bright, the blue sky seeming to go forever. The early mornings and late afternoons are almost cool. At night, the tempurature drops down to a decent brisk degree, and not cold at all. I love this part of the country in the Spring and Autumn. It is just about perfect bike riding weather. So, my commitment to exercising more and riding in to work manually is paying off and keeping on going. Trouble is brewing, though. My nice new Giant is taking up too much indoor storage space. Soon, I will have to find a place outside or not (and risk the irritation of housemates)... better get it out side soon. We have a porch, so it should be fine. It is just that I paid so much for it... ok, not that much, but more than I thought I ever would. Anyway, I am still riding after a month and feeling kind of fit and trim (although I still have a few pounds to go and I still get winded going up short hills I am getting there).

What amazes my about the biking in to work is that I am leaving the house at the exact same time as when I use my car. Yes, I am only going about 2.5 miles, but in "city" traffic with stop lights and all, I still have the same driving time (about 12 minutes). That was one of the fears that kept me back for so long, I dreaded the idea that it would take significantly longer to bike in. I think if I were going 10 miles it would. But, in the city here, anything under about 8 miles is going to be very close. For all the lights and stop signs tend to be equilizers for travel time. And, mostly, the traffic cooperates with the slow moving manual traveller in the outside lane. I keep right and they tend to keep left as they go around me... so it works.

I did get flipped off today for the first time. I was about to make a left turn in traffic. I was behind a bus. My vision was restricted and I made a first attempt to get into the driveway at work. A little car came zipping along down the road quickly. She wasn't speeding, but she wasn't waiting around either. I quickly steered back into my lane. She would have been kind of cute, shapely face, dark hair, good skin... then she flipped me off. Bitch. Oh well, I didn't get hit and she didn't hit me, I called it even but she just had to toss out an extra little gesture.

Later.