Judgments

Recently, I have begun to make a conscious effort to notice and remember what clothes my friends were wearing. I started this experiment a few months ago in an effort to improve my observation skills. I wanted to remember more details of an experience and I thought this would be a good way to start.

About five minutes after I would leave my friends I would try to recite to myself what they were wearing. At first I just concentrated on the color of the garments. I must admit that my first few observations were a bit rocky. I would remember that they were dressed in something. Was it blue, green or red?? Then I slowly would begin to remember more details. So and so was wearing a green shirt and blue jeans.

I call color remembrance level one. It took me almost a month to become observant enough to remember the colors. Level two included me remembering the color and type of clothes. So and so was wearing a white button down blouse and blue jeans with buttons and wide pockets. Good. Success! I started to believe that I was increasing my observational skills.

Then something bad came along with the good. I began judging people for their outfits. Eeek!!! I am known for not judging people by their outward appearance but the side effect of this experiment has caused that very trait to pop out of me. I don’t like that. I just want to observe what a friend was wearing and not think to myself that they should throw away those ugly shoes.

What do you think? Is observing my surroundings important? Is it important enough for me bring judgments to the forefront of my mind? Is there something else that I could observe about a person or my soundings that wouldn’t bring up negative or judgmental thoughts.

I am NOT a Plumber

Last week the inside portion of my toilet handle snapped.  It was a clean break but this meant that I couldn’t flush the toilet using the handle. I had open up the back lid and stick my hand inside to lift the flapper.  Sigh!  Sigh!  I hate fixing things.  But, I hate broken things much more.

The first thing I decided to do was call brother L and ask him to come over and fix it for me.  The following is a paraphrased version of our conversation.

C:  My toilet is broke.  Can you come and fix it?

BL:  Explain how it is broken.

C:  Explanation

BL:  Um…no you can fix that yourself.

C:  But I don’t want to. (whiny voice)

BL:  Seriously, it is a two minute fix.  It would take me longer to drive to your house than it would take me to complete the repair.

C:  But, I don’t know how.

BL:  It is simple and I know you can do it.

C:  But, I don’t want to! (more whiny voice)

BL:  Too bad…do it yourself.

Sigh!  Sigh!  Sigh!  I guess this meant I needed to fix the toilet myself.  The next day I took myself to Lowe’s after work and I soon became overwhelmed at the amount of repair items in the plumbing aisle.  I got the attention of an employee and he helped me pick out the right thing.  The new piece seemed pretty simple and theoretically easy to install.  Theoretically is the key word of that sentence.  I removed the broken piece  easily and then I began to try and fit the metal piece through the hole.  Good .  Then I tried to fit the plastic bracket in the hole in the toilet.  Guess what??  It didn't exactly fit.  I tried pushing it in.  I encountered some resistance so I push a bit harder.  Snap!  This is the sound the new piece made as I broke it. 

Fu*k   Fu*k    Fu*k

I guess it didn’t fit into the hole.  After a closer inspection I realized that the mounting piece was a touch too large to fit in the hole.  OK so day 1 of this repair was a FAIL.  But I didn't feel too bad as I discovered I had a much better understand of the inner workings of my toilet.

The next day I went back to Lowe’s and I explained my problem to the worker and he gave me a slightly different piece that might work with my brand of toiled.  As I drove home and I had hopeful thoughts that the repair was going to be a snap.  Negative Houston! 

This time the piece did fit in the hole great but the plastic piece that lifts the flapper was too long or it was shaped wrong because it was too close to the front portion of the tank.  I looked at the piece and I saw notations on it that said you could cut it to fit.  I took it to the kitchen and grabbed a steak knife and I started to saw at the plastic.  In hindsight this doesn’t seem like a good plan.  I could not saw through the plastic but I did end up bending it back and forth and finally snapping the end off.

I took the shorter piece back to the bathroom and I discovered that it was still too long.  A little more work with the knife and some bending and viola the piece was now about 1.5 inches long.  Yea...1.5 inches.  But at least it fit in the toilet without rubbing the edge.  Score.  Now I tried to attached the plastic flapper piece to the new arm.  Problem Houston because the hole is too small.  The hole is small and rectangular and the flapper is larger and a triangle.  I tried all kinds of things to get it to fit.  Pushing it.   I tried attaching some dental floss to use as a mini rope to pull it through the hole.  That did NOT work.  I tried using my tweezers to pull it through the hole but I couldn’t reach it.  It just didn’t fit.  Damn Damn Damn.  You know rectangles and triangles do not fit together.

I believe I threw some sort of fit in the bathroom when I couldn't get it to work.  Luckily no one was there to witness the long stream of curse works that left my mouth or the vast amount of foot stamping.  After I had calmed down a bit I decided to remove this old toiled bowl cleaner thing that was installed in the back of the tank.  A long long time ago it contained cleaner but it had long since run its course.  Done.  It was removed and I felt like I could do that one little thing.  

I went to bed angry with not solution in sight.  The next morning I got up, used the bathroom and got ready to get in the shower.  Don't imagine it too much but this did involve removing my clothes.  I lifted the back of the tank to manually lift the flapper and I had a rude awakening.  Splat!  This was the sound the very COLD water made as it hit me in the chest.  I didn't know what to do with the little tubes that fill the tank and they were just flopping about wildly in the tank.  So not only did I have to manually flush the toilet I also had to duck from the water fountain that came out the toilet tank.

I guess I made the bad situation worse.  Now, I didn't even want to use the bathroom as it was way too much trouble.  This plan involved me drinking less water and pop when I was at home.

As I was driving to work I decided that the situation warranted a second call to brother L.  This time my whining and ignorance worked and he agreed to come over and fix it for me.  However, it took some coaxing and begging.  A few days later I procured a third handle and a complete toilet repair kit.  I wanted to be prepared for any problem when L came by.  He installed the new handle in 5 minutes, shoved the water feeding tubes in their hole and lowered the tank water level.  The funniest part was L was wearing a blue and white stripe shirt that looked like a repairman work shirt.  All it needed was a patch for his name.  It cracked me up.

The reason I couldn't get the second lever to work was because I should have bent it out and not cut it off into a tiny stump.  So I believe in the future I could install a new handle.  Woo Hoo....but I am not guaranteeing that I could fix anything else inside there.  It is complicated!

Breaking Away

I had a rather heated debate with a friend a few weeks ago.  I wanted to write about it right away but I thought it should wait until I was cool headed and clear minded before I gave forth my points.

It all started when we were riding in the final leg of the B&O ride last weekend.  Em asked our friend E the following question, "What speed should you ride with a group of riders of various speeds?"  Ok...I may be paraphrasing her but I think that was the gist of the question.  Should you ride to the fastest, to the slowest or compromise in the middle?

Apparently this topic got me all fired up and I couldn't let it go until I felt I had my say.  I adamantly feel that we should ride to the ability of the slowest person in the group.  I think the slowest people cannot possibly ride fast enough to keep up the the speedy riders.  I also don't think compromising in the middle will work well because you may be asking too much from the slowest riders and the fastest riders will also be unsatisfied with the slower pace.  I feel that if the faster riders are not happy at a slower pace then they should find other fast riders to accompany them. 

This doesn't mean that I don't want to be challenged.  I feel comfortable at a pace of 10mph.  I am working more in my cardio zone at 11- 12 and I am at the high end of my cardio zone at 13 and above (unless I am going downhill).  When I am talking and having fun I like to ride about 11.  When I am trying to challenge myself I try to ride about 12.5 but above that I am unable to hold a conversation.

This means that when I am biking with my friends for fun I don't really like to go above 12 because part of the fun of biking for me involves talking and socialization.  I like the combination of exercise endorphins and great conversation.  It always makes me happy.  What doesn't make me happy?  When I feel I have to ride faster than I am comfortable in a given situation.  This is a sticky and floating speed because if someone doesn't make me go faster how will I challenge myself.

I think part if this comes from my insecurity. I feel that most of the people who I ride with can go faster than me and sometimes I feel like I have a hard time keeping up.  Then I feel bad that I don't have the same abilities that other people do.  I know that sounds dumb and the rational part of my brain tells me that we all cannot have the same abilities but that doesn't change how I feel.

So loyal readers what do you think? What speed would you choose?

PS...I feel the right answer is Candy's pace;)

PSS...I realize I have a one track mind.  Biking=Summer

B&O Bicycle Tour

I had an interesting experience on Saturday.  My new friend E suggested that we attend a group bike ride with the B&O Trail Association.  When it was first suggested I immediately said NO because the ride was to commence in the middle of the night.  Ok...9am isn't the middle of the night for most people, but I really covet my Saturday morning sleep and this type of event would really cut into weekend ritual.  But when I was asked for a second or third time I caved and I decided I would participate.

Ems suggested that we sign up together because "couples" got a price break.  Um...the price break was only $2 and it was a bit weird to sign up as a couple with my friend. I have decided that for future events perhaps I should just go ahead and sign up on my own.  We decided to meet at 8:30am at the event location in Brownsburg.  Do you know what time I need to get up to be in Brownsburg at 8:30am.  Ding...Ding...Ding...If you guessed 6:30am you would be right.  Seriously 6:30am.  I am pretty sure that this biking thing isn't a passing phase if I am actually willing to get up at 6:30am on the weekend.  I don't even get up that early during the week for work.  Sigh!

I  got up on time (OK...close to on time but who is counting).  I was almost ready to leave I get an email from E asking if we are still going to the ride due to the impending rain in the forecast.  After a 15 minute discussion we all decide to forge ahead.  I had decided since I was already up, dressed and awake there wasn't going to be much to stop me from moving forward with my plans.  This 15 minute discussion put me behind and I had to drive a bit faster than than I originally anticipated. 

As I was driving to the event I get a text that says, "I don't look like I fit in here."  Ugg...I immediately got all nervous and twitchy.  I was already a bit apprehensive about going to this event because I don't consider myself a real "cyclist" and I knew that this event would be a mecca for them.  I wasn't wrong.  When I arrived there were hundreds of people in their cycling shirts and shorts.  Yea...I don't have a cycling shirt and my cycling shorts are covered up with my regular biking pants.  I shook off those self doubting thoughts and found my friends.

Since we are talking about cycling shorts I should mention that I was a bit distracted by the plethora of men in their tight shorts.  Um...these shorts leave little to the imagination.  Seriously...little to the imagination.   I was contently reminding myself to look at the guys faces and not at their shorts but it was very difficult.  I donned my sunglasses rather quickly as to obscure my wondering eyes.  Just last week I read this blog post about a similar topic and it cracked me up.

When our group was ready we headed out.  This event was designed to allow people to depart on their own time schedule so there wasn't a mass shotgun start that lumped everyone together.  There were five of us that started together but we soon broke off into a faster and slower group.  Unfortunately, I wasn't part of the fast group.  Boo!!!!  We chose the 25 mile ride and the beginning of the course was very difficult.  The ride took us through the country side of Hendrick County and there was a series of 4 hills that kicked my ass.  They were very very hard.  It wasn't that a single one of them was too hard it was that there were too many so close together. 

I usually ride up and down the Monon trail so riding out on the open road was a totally different experience.  Even though the hills were not gigantic by most standards they were tough for me because I almost always ride on flat and even ground.  After we finished the hilly section the terrain flattened out but then we were riding right into the wind. The wind was blowing at about 10 to 15 mph because we were expecting a spring storm.  Then the rain started.  It was disconcerting at first.  I mean usually when it rains I run for cover but we just decided to push through it.  After the first five minutes of rain I got used it it and learned to live with the uncomfortableness.   It rained the rest of the morning and it stopped when we reached the end of the course.  It looks like we timed that just right.

The event has a SAG stop in the middle of the course that had drinks and snacks for us.  I was appreciative of the orange Gatorade and brownies.  Yea sugar.  I needed that boost of energy for the rest of the ride.  We stayed there for about 10 minutes and then we headed back out.  The funny part was when we were there we kept trying to stand under the trees and under the roof to stay out of the rain.  Um...we were just riding in the rain and completely soaked.  I guess it is human nature to try and stay as dry as possible.

We finished our 25 miles in about 2.5 hours and my average speed was 11.8.  That is really high for me and I pushed myself on this ride.  I usually ride at about 10mph but I guess the rain and the competition of the real cyclists spurred us on.  When we got back to the park the B&O organization had lunch ready for us.  There was pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw, and fruit salad.  It tasted good after that long ride.

It was a good day and I am glad that I participated in this event. It allowed me to get over my nervousness of this new experience and hopefully enjoy future events.  The next scheduled group ride is at the end of June and is the Nite Ride.  See this link for the info on that event.

Speling

What do you think of my new t-shirt?

Biking Mis-Adventure(s)

I had a four day weekend scheduled and all I could think about was flying down the road on my bike.  I had several rides scheduled and and executed but there were a few funny moments.
Ems was going to meet me at my house on Friday afternoon for a ride to the Fishers library and back with a pit stop to feed some hungry felines.  We left my house and fairly quickly I began to lag behind.  Usually Ems and I ride at a similar pace but I just had a hard time keeping up.  I kept yelling at my body for failing me but it never occurred to me that the problem could be with my bike.  We were crossing the street about 2.5 miles from my house when my bike skidded to the side as I was making a turn.  It did it a second time.  Weird! 

When I crossed the street Ems noticed that my back tire was flat.  F-L-A-T!  Hm....that had never happened to me before.  I just looked at it with a dumbfounded expression on my face.  I looked at Em and she looked at me.  I began to process the various options through my head. 

I could walk my bike back to my house.  I could call Lou.  I could do nothing and see what happens.  None of these options seemed like a terribly good idea.  We finally decided the best option was to send Ems back to my house and for her to come back and pick me up.  I gave her my car keys, garage door opener and I sent her off to my house to get my car. 

I then sat on the ground like a princess.  It felt pretty good to have someone take care of me.  I sat there relaxing and texting my friends and entertaining myself with my phone.  I felt like I got the long end of the proverbial stick.  Yea me.

While I was waiting I encountered two very friendly and helpful citizens.  The first person was a guy in a white truck.  I saw him looking at me so I gave him a big friendly smile in return.  He asked me if I needed any help and I told him I was good and I had a friend on her way to pick me up.  The second person to stop was a lady on a giant yellow school bus.  Really, an empty school bus.  I gave her the same answer but I was very amused when I thought about putting my bike on the bus and catching a ride home.

When I saw my green car coming towards me on the road I began picking up my stuff and shoving it back in my bag.  I had to carry my bag and push my bike so I thought the best option for my helmet was to put it back on my head.  But why did I find it necessary to buckle it back on.  Really it could have sat there.  But no, I wanted to make sure it was securely fastened to my head for the 20 foot walk to my car.  Duh!

I loaded up my bike and we headed off to the bike repair shop.  They fixed the problem in 10 minutes for a mere $17.  $10 for the labor and $7 for the tube.  DONE!  I was so happy as I really didn't want to learn how to make this particular repair.  I was (am) perfectly OK letting someone else take care of this problem.  It turns out that it wasn't a hole in the tube but a faulty valve stem.

My total mileage on Friday was 2.5 miles.  O well, I made up for that on Sunday.

Sunday dawned with a new biking adventure.  We decided to try some new trails in Plainfield and they were very nice.  There are about 12 miles of paved and connected trails.  It was a very enjoyable and relaxing ride.  The funny part happened when we arrived.  I had picked up Ems so we were together in the car when I arrived at the meeting spot in Plainfield.  I decided to get the lay of the land and drive all the way around the parking lot.  Um...Twice.  Yes twice.  What I didn't realized was our other friend E was following me.  We thought we were early so I wasn't concerned with the time or my actions.  When I finally parked I noticed a "real" biker emerging from the car across the parking lot.  He had on a official biking shirt and he had a very nice bike on his rack.  I started making fun of this "stranger" to Ems.  Then I realized that this "real" biker was our friend E.  Oops!  I could not stop giggling.  I mean for like five minutes.

It was a good day!

I LOVE biking season!!!!!