Got My Splotch Back

It's all because of the return of the splotch, I'm certain! Bette, I may have been a bit hard on you....

1. There is a plethora of new men in my life, even though of course nothing's going anywhere. One guy even left me a voicemail, saying, "I don't know what you've done in the past couple weeks, but you really look good. I mean really." I saved that one in the archives. Then I pondered the implication that I'd obviously looked like a total dog (or at least nothing special) to this guy, what, only two weeks ago?! I erased the stupid voicemail.

2. *name redacted* called me to tell me that my other, temporary new bike was ready! She'd toiled away on a weekend morning with it, and then when I got there, she dangled a piece of heavy metal (which looked suspiciously like a piece of pipe that had come off of the underside of her kitchen sink, which really made me want to turn her kitchen sink on, just to see what would happen, but it may have actually been a bike stem or something, which just goes to show you how much I know about bike parts and kitchen sinks) from my knee by a string, in a very scientific manner, during an incredibly scientific bike fitting, performed in her living room and lasting approximately 5 minutes because I was worried about intruding while she was getting ready for her frate*.

*A frate may or may not be a "friend situation" that may or may not become a "date situation," depending on the intent of the parties and who's reading this and whether or not it's a secret. And if it's a secret, then I meant to say that she was getting ready to ship something abroad, and I simply misspelled "freight."

The bike disintegrated like a mummy from the last Indiana Jones movie, 25 yards into my ride home. Kidding! Here's a shot of my temporary new pimpin' cross-turned-road bike, safe and sound:
And then Cyclesportsmechanicguy safety-checked it for me on the spot, made some teeny tiny tweaks and pronounced it a safe and cool ride, and then refused to let me pay him (I made sure to take my helmet off)! One word: S p l o t c h

3. My brand new crash replacement bike has arrived!!!! And it's not even June yet! The shop called today to tell me it's built and ready, and if I want to bring in my pedals, they'll put them on, and also my special cassette that I purchased for my original bike. How did they even know about mysplotch!? That part's a mystery, even to me.

-topic change-

The local NPR station had one of their painful pledge drives recently, but the one cool thing about it was that they were advertising this one gift in particular that I'd never heard of, and that I immediately saw was perfect for my parents, who aren't getting any younger, and also indirectly perfect for me (the one who is totally stressed about this whole "old" thing and having to put my parents in a home pretty much any day now):

http://www.positscience.com/products/

Cognition-enhancing software! Well of course you practically have to donate a kidney to NPR to get that gift, so I just emailed the link to my dad (who'd called me on my birthday and started rambling on and on about some guy I didn't know that he hasn't seen in 20 years, until finally I had to remind him that I was at work, hullo!), but I didn't hear back, so I'm pretty sure he didn't buy it. Actually, I'm a little worried that he's forgotten how to check his email or use the mouse. Then, I tested my mom's cognition, by asking her in the most subtle way whether she knew the meaning of "exsufflicate" ("sesquipedalian" is one of her favorite words). She didn't (major red flag!). But then I received an email from her:

Empty, frivolous. Huh! It wasn't in the dictionary but I Googled it, so don't send me a cognition program...

PS: Before I sent this, I looked it up again in Google and that time I couldn't find it (am i in the twilight zone?)

Hm. Not exactly reassuring.

Not the most mundane week...

1. I turned thirty-*unintelligible*.

2. At my birthday party, I received a marriage proposal, from not one person, but two people, both of whom I adore ("Will you marry us?"). I said yes.

3. This morning, I managed to turn what I'd thought would be a flat 8-mile run (that I was worried about being able to finish) into a 9-mile run on rollers, without hating life. In fact, it felt fantastic. But I'm glad I grabbed that extra Gu when we started. Paradise Loop: It's not just for cyclists anymore. Then: brunch at Sam's! I ordered Eggs Benedict. I've never ordered Eggs Benedict before! It was fluffy and amazing. I couldn't believe how amazing. Wendy said, "Of course it's amazing. It's Eggs Benedict. I'd have ordered it myself...if it weren't such a dietary disaster." Doh. And on the way to the car, Judy informed Marc and me that there is, in fact, no protein in beer. Which makes it difficult to rank as the world's best post-workout recovery drink. Said we, "But are you sure?"

4. Beth began turning her cross bike into a road bike for me to use while I await my new one (the latest: first week of June). Maybe I'll actually ride this month after all!

My New Bike

The 2008 TCR c w! Total out-of-pocket cost: $100. Giant came through, and so did my insurance. Yay! Next weekend is my last one off the bike, and I start PT this week, so I hope the bike's ready soon! I have to start training for the Death Ride!

I hope it goes better than last year...

After watching Wendy capture "top female finisher" (and 3rd overall) in the 6-hour Lake Merritt ultra marathon yesterday, and watching Marc capture 8th overall (in his first ultra!), and scoring yet another awesome Patagonia capilene PCTR race shirt (thanks Wendy!!!), and seeing all the yummy food put out for the runners at rest stops (pizza!), I've decided to seriously consider a marathon in December (and ultimately an ultra before I turn 40). Wendy says I have to focus on either cycling or running at the higher levels (you can only go so far without the specificity training), so this should be interesting.

First, we'll see how the 8 miles goes next Sunday, out in Tiburon with a couple wacky ultra runners (I'm off the bike, anyway). Then, the true test will be striking some sort of balance between the cycling and running, so that I can manage one or two personal records in both.

Say it isn't so!

It took a couple weeks to get strong enough to take my bike to the shop after my crash. I got the news on Tuesday: Nicked frame and bent front fork. Under Giant's crash replacement program, they'll switch out my women's 2007 OCRC small frame and front fork with the men's TCR Advanced extra-small frame and fork (for $1440), but they won't switch them out with my exact bike's parts, because they don't have any. In the alternative, I can get the extra-small men's 2005 OCRC frame and fork for $765.

Hm. Carbon technology is so new as it is. Dunno if I should go back in time 2 whole years. And the TCR frame has a totally different geometry. Plus, the men's extra-small top tubes are actually a centimeter longer than the women's small.

I'm waiting to hear back on whether any of the bike damage is covered under my renters' insurance. They didn't sound optimistic, but I can't help thinking that it's a good sign they haven't called me back yet (I know: I'm setting myself up for disappointment).

I only broke my elbow! It didn't even require surgery! I was out of the cast after a week! My bike shouldn't be totalled. And I keep thinking that if I had just let it languish on the side of the road a little longer instead of busting my ass to find it with my already busted elbow, it might have been stolen. That's covered.

Aaaaaargh!

Well, I'm improving quickly. So quickly, in fact, that sometimes I forget my elbow's broken. I'll do things, like lean on something when I'm getting up, or straighten my arm without thinking, or turn a doorknob at normal speed, and I'll suddenly be reminded. But that's cool, because it means I'm healing, and besides, the yelps garner sympathy.

I hadn't anticipated not being able to floss, or put my hair back in a ponytail for over 2 weeks. What a pain. Random women in the gym locker room were very helpful with the hair, but I thought it would be awkward to ask them to hold one end of the floss. Sometimes stuff flies out, you know. Anyway, I can do all that now. Ponytail procedures are still painful, but less so every day.

I also have absolutely no tricep in my right arm. I try to flex with all my might, and there's nothing there. Amazing how quickly it goes. And how much you use your elbow when you flex your tricep.