Its the little things

You've heard the phrase... "Its the little things that count."

Yes, its true. Some of the little things really DO matter.

Exhibit 1: Coworker wanted to "just catch-up" today. This isn't a usual behavior. However, it counted.

Exhibit 2: Friend gave me 4 beers and a puzzle christmas. Why only 4 beers? Well, despite the fact there were originally 6, two were missing...because he wanted to try them. I'm glad he took 2 and gave me four. It counted.

Exhibit 3: I got a weird package in the mail at work today- Global Express Mail from Japan (WTF). Enclosed was a card- Thank you Dr. Maria Stewart, we think you're great, a CD of photos, and most importantly a scrap book. This was a Christmas/thank you gift from the exchange students I taught this summer. Each page of the scrap book has a student's photo on the front side and a personal message on broken English on the back. Wow. I though my thank you poster from the 1st graders was something. This is a totally different category of "little things." This was way better than any purchased item they could have sent me from Japan. Its the little things that count.

Exhibit 4: I was baking up a storm in preparation for the holiday- Gingerbread cookies, pie, tortillas. Baking of this nature requires serious music, so I turned on the record player. Records jammin'. Then I put on Guero by Beck. This is a 45. I set the record player to 45 in preparation for more jammin'. Record starts while I"m in the middle of managing melting cookie dough (this is what gingerbread cookies do when you're kitchen is 95 degrees, prior to baking) and burning cookies. Gee something sounds weird, did I forget to switch it to 45? Wash hands. Check record player. Record player is at 45rmp. Ok, scientist in action. Get a crayon and make a mark on the record label. Timer. Go. 1, 2, 3, 4.... 42 rpms on a 45. Hmmm... lets abort Guero and switch to Leo Kottke (a 33). What? Leo Kotke just woke up? 31 on a 33rpm. Uh oh. I'll roll with it. Then it starts getting all won wooon woooooooooon won won woooon on me. Consult with the 'rents yields a suitable plan- dust and lube. Dismantle record player. No dust, lube still intact. Figure I was on crack. Put on Jack Johnson, To The Sea- I have this on my iPod also. Oh Dear. Jack is singing in 2 totally different keys- one key on my record, a totally different, higher key on my iPod. Record player is on the outs. Almost cried. Then I decided it didn't matter. So I put Jack on, head phones in. Life is good. Long story short... Record player is obviously a member of the fam, but its just a material object. Time to think about what really matters, like the little things... and make 'em count.

Merry Christmas.

This is why I don't have any patience at the end of the day.

This is an email I received from a student today:

Student: Hello. So I register for classes tomorrow and I was wondering how I could get instructor approval for FSHN 181 and Lab.

Me: You need to contact the instructor.

Its been too long since you last surfed if...

(1) You elect not to rewax your board because its too dusty
(2) As you're leaving, you can't decide if you have all of your "gear"
(3) You can't remember which leg you leash belongs on

Haven't surfed since August. Caught every wave I went for. My rides weren't necessarily pretty, but it was fun!

And then there were 15

I few weeks ago, I took my lil' Kona (aka 24 inches of love) to a downhill race. The lil' Kona is a hardtail dirt jumper that rides down hills better than my XC bike, but its not a DH bike. I haven't raced my bike just down a hill in years. It was a little intimidating, especially since I knew I needed to keep my shoulder where it belonged. Despite my apprehensions, I had a great race and a really fun time. Mountain bikers way more awesome than triathletes. Then I got to thinking... maybe I need a downhill bike. I had recently been toying with the idea of a full suspension XC bike, but ruled that one out because I really like to stand when I climb, and my Orbea is the jamm. A DH bike seemed like a good idea for several reasons: (1) I actually live somewhere I can ride it on trails (2) I don't have one (3) Sideburnz has one that he doesn't ride much, but he should ride it more (4) Riding down hills is awesome.

Since we have a large quiver of bikes, I didn't see the sense in being hasty, so I made a strategic plan. I would have to ride my lil Kona on a regular basis to demonstrate that a DH bike would get used. I would also have to show that my lil Kona was inadequate for the terrain I wanted to ride (not sure how I was going to do that, but hopefully it wouldn't involve any ER trips). Then after several months of saving, I could buy a DH bike.

I was feeling quite logical for about 8 hours until Sideburnz starting looking on the internet for tiny DH bikes. Low and behold, someone was selling a DH bike in Honolulu, size small. The ad was about a month old, but I contacted the seller anyhow. He emailed back right away- yes the bike was still available, would I like to check it out. **Warning** Warning** This is a dangerous situation, there is a high probability of exchanging dollar bills for bicycles if you get to test ride a bike. So I went down to check it out, with the expectation that the bike would be huge like the Straight 8 and I"d never be able to ride it.

The seller was a guy not much bigger than me who had the suspension dialed for 140 lbs. This is the first time I've ever sat on a FS bike and had it sag! I took it for a test ride in downtown and rode off a bunch of cement planters. Sweet. This bike was going to be at my house in no time. Monday this week, it finally made it home and yesterday I took it to the trails next to my house. So now there are 15. The Orange was so much fun- I finally rode a few segments of trail that I can't ride on my XC bike. I thought the hike-a-bike would get old, but it didn't (note to self: bring water next time). I even launched off some rocks on my first outing. Here's number 15:



So now, all I want to do is ride downhill bikes.

This is how (un)exciting my life is

Our 25 cent toaster from the Punahou carnival white elephant tent has finally died. It lasted nearly 2 years- not bad for a garage sale find. The toasting sensor thinks that frozen bread is toasted. No matter what degree of doneness I select, the toaster pops up after about 30 seconds. I fought with the old toaster for a few weeks, cleaning it out, turning the toast around and restarting, doing a little toasting dance, yelling at it... nothing worked. Sideburnz and I discussed the prospects of replacing the toaster with a toaster oven. It was unclear when or if a toaster oven would get purchased, since someone would need to go to the mall.

Well, yesterday, the old toaster tipped me over the edge, and I treked to the mall to buy a replacement. (This trip was also motivated by 2 victoria's secret coupons and the fact that I desperately need to retire 3 of my bras that I purchased 8 or 9 years ago.) Macy's pulled through- not only was the toaster oven on sale for nearly 50% off (retail 69.99, sale price 39.99), but I still had 2 gift cards from our wedding! Pretty sweet to get a wedding gift almost 2 years after you got married.

Here she is:


http://www1.macys.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=328107&CategoryID=17664

Last night I investigated the "bake" function. In 7 minutes I had a delicious openfaced turkey-cheese melt. Wow, this thing is great!

This morning was the moment of truth... how would it handle my bagel bar (a bagel like item in the shape of a rectangle). This was one item the old toaster always rejected. The toast mode has 12 different settings: 6 levels of doneness x frozen or room temp. I set it for T-2 (room temp, light/medium toastiness). Once I pressed "start," the display showed a timer count down... this is too cool... I know that my bagel bar will be done toasting in 3 minutes! Wow. So I let the toaster oven do its thing, and when it beeped, I took my bagel bar out. Golden brown. Awesome. It was warmed all the way through so it melted my peanut butter just a little bit. I've been longing for melty peanut butter on my toast. I maybe would set it for T-3 next time, but T-2 was still a huge improvement over the old toaster. I can tell that the toaster oven and I are beginning a long, wonderful friendship.

Weekend plans

Today I'll be able to check off yet another neighbor island from my list: Kauai. The Hawaii Tropical Fruit Growers Association Annual Meeting is on Kauai this weekend. When I submitted my travel documents for this trip, my fiscal officer said, "You didn't list a rental car, how are you getting to the hotel?" I just shrugged my shoulders. I knew it was less than 10 miles from the airport to the hotel. I figured I could take a cab or see if someone else was going to the hotel, maybe find a hotel shuttle. A rental car seemed ridiculous. I didn't have a plan, but I didn't care. This week my plan has fully developed: Travelers Check + knobbies + minimal luggage (1 backpack) = I should be able to ride the 5.6 miles from Lihue Airport to the Aston Aloha Beach. This is reminiscent of Finland and I'm totally digging it. I fully expect some challenges along the way. More updates to come.

A continuation of my bike breaking saga

The new (rebuilt) FOX arrived a few weeks ago. I missed it. I liked being fully rigid for a variety of reasons: the principle of it, awesome cornering, amazing climbing, bike was a tough lighter. But then there's the lava rock... my rigid fork and I didn't agree on that topic. Maybe I'm getting old, but the lava rock was too hard on my upper body. I don't know how sideburnz does it- except maybe its his 2-9er set up. I recently found out that others of my stature ride 29ers.

Even with my new frame and new fork, I had a nagging creak. Thought it might be the seat or the handlebars... nope. My egg beaters had 1/2 cm of lateral play. I'm shocked that my pedal hadn't ejected itself. Now I have brand, spanking new pedals. They also don't click anymore. The next replacement item is my saddle. Unfortunately, my SDG saddle came from the Madison Swap (I think), and its no longer in production. What to do... might try the WTB Rocket V. It fits my primary requirements- narrow, sweeps up in the back, nothin fancy. Sideburnz also recommended new handle bars since I guess they have an expiration date. Pretty soon this Orbea will be all new (and my checking acct will be drained).

Recent items

When we returned from our mountain bike-beach activities today, we found a campaign flyer for Eric Marshall attached to our doorknob. Eric is running for the state senate. Normally, I glance at these flyers and they put them in the recycling pile. This one was different. In addition to the usual, "If you elect me, I will do all these great things..." garbage, it also included a wedding photo of Eric and his wife, Yuri:


Also, we now have an interesting recipe for Sesame Marinaded Spinach.

To top everything off, the flyer included the University of Hawaii Football Team's 2010 schedule. AWESOME!
So, I suppose I need to make the spinach to see if this guy is worth voting for... bad recipe would = no vote. Stay tuned.

In other news, Sideburnz suggested an awesome remedy for my leaky hydration bladder. My Nalgene bladder has only been used occasionally, and has not yet grown mold. I was quite disappointed to find most of my water spilling on to my butt last time we rode mountain bikes. This bladder is way too new for being broken. The leak was where the drink tube attached to the bladder.

What was the remedy for a leaky hose-bladder joint, you ask? Waxed dental floss. Yup, wrapped that baby up and, wha-la! No more leaky bladder, no more wet butt! The drink hose doesn't rotate anymore, but I'll survive.

Our labor day weekend didn't include much labor, mostly riding bikes. However, we helped out with a little trail maintenance today on the Windward side and scoped out some (new to us) trails. I would have enjoyed the beach more, both today and yesterday, if I didn't have 4 stiches in my calf. Yup, bike crash. Saturday, stopped at a stop light, swung my messenger bag around to adjust the strap, fell over, cut a nice little pocket in the top of my calf. Since I was in my big ring, I ruled out my chain ring. Most probably culprit is my front derailleur. Yuck- blunt metal gouging my flesh. Enough gory stuff.

A great way to lose motivation

Sideburnz made me a hammock this week (his first homemade hammock). He insisted on testing it this morning. The hammock works great- too great maybe. I should not lay in hammocks after swimming and before going to work. It makes me want to stay in the hammock. Alas... Next time I set it up, I'll take some photos. This hammock will be 100% TSA approved. The TSA does not like carabiners. Sideburnz rigged up a great non-metal carabiner alternative. This may be the birth of a serious cottage industry. More to come...

Asserting myself as "that girl"

Starting jumproping today in the parking lot. I sure got some looks. CX season is upon us.

what haven't i broken

In May my mountain bike frame bit the dust.  Got a darn good replacement- I might even be happier with my new Orbea than I was with my Kona.  Things were going well.  Then the creak started.  Seemed like my bottom bracket, so I reinstalled it with new grease and teflon tape.  That should have fixed it- I had ridden on some gnarly muddy trails over 4th of July- probably got some water or dirt inside my frame. 

My creak still persisted, so Sideburnz took my bike to the shop for a more thorough inspection.  Then I got the dreaded phone call.... "Welllllllll seems like the creak is coming from your fork, and the FOX guys gave me an RA number so I can send it in.  What do you want me to do? " "Could it fail catastrophically?" "I spose so."  Hmmm. Tough decision.  It might be nothing.  I'm going to Maui in 4 days to ride mountain bikes.  I need a fork.  I'm racing the Xterra qualifier in 10 days.  I need a fork.  I don't need to be hurt.  drrrrrrrrrrrr

I had to whip out some logic to solve this issue.  My gut instinct was to wait 2 weeks- ride on Maui, race Mountain Man, then send it in.  but...... There's a little bit of bad mana in Makawao Forest Reserve.  That's where the Kona to her last ride. That's where we're riding this weekend on Maui.  Undoubtably, Makawao Forest Reserve would do my fork in.  And even if I wanted to throw out the bad mana idea, logic continued to prove that the fork had to go.  If a 125lb girl can bust an aluminum frame, she can probably kill any bike part, including a fork.  Logic won 2-0, my fork is on its way to FOX.  The rigid fork is supposed to be for Eye of the Tiger, whenever I get around to building it.  So how much is Maui going to suck now that I'm fully rigid?  

Thought I'd better give it a test drive tonight so I have an idea.  Theo Wirth and Elk River are great for rigid forks, but I was skeptical about lava rocks and thousands of feet of elevation change.  My test ride at St. Louis had lava, roots, loose gravel and cinder, berms, jumps, and ~1000 ft of elevation.  The rigid fork passed, almost with flying colors.  I just have to remember to keep my weight back.  I also remember how lazy suspension makes you.  I can only imagine how little skill one must have to ride a double-boinger bike.  I think my lil' rigid Orbea is going to rock it for the next few weeks, but I'll enjoy getting a suspension fork back on my bike.  This weekend will be a major upper body work out.  I'll probably develop some man hands from hanging on to my handle bars.

Things I saw this weekend

Saturday

North Shore Cattle Company, Haleiwa, HI

At my house

Sunday

Dillingham Airfield

Where's the pot of gold?

Peacock Flats, over looking Makua Valley

A hot ascent 

Lahaina Noon

Today, the sun was directly overhead at 12:37pm. The Bishop Museum explains a little bit about this. Note that my shadow is directly below me. This is how we have fun at work.

Eye of the Tiger

My size frame was "out of stock" a month ago at the Kona warehouse.  Magically, it became "in stock" this week.  My warranty frame arrived yesterday.  Haven't decided what to do about it.  Seems like rigid single speed is its future, at least for now.

This bike definitely has potential.  Especially since this is what the head badge looks like.

Rrarrh!  Go get 'em tiger!

Things I've been doing

About a month ago I went to Maui with my mountain bike.  Little did I know it would be my last ride on my tiny Kona XC bike.  I logged 6 hours of riding and 9000 ft of climbing on day 1 (which apparently did my frame in) and 1 hour of careful riding in the rain on day 2, avoiding a catastrophic frame failure.   Makawao forest reserve now has the esteemed title of "My Favorite Trail in Hawaii."  6 miles of multiuse trail traverse the slopes of Haleakala.  I later found out that this trail was actually designed for bikes, and that's why it flows SOOOOO well.  On Oahu I have only found flow once- at Royal Summit.  The rest of the Oahu trails climb and descend scary lava rocks.  Admittedly, I like the lava rocks a lot, but that style of trail is very taxing on both the mind and body.  In addition to flow, Makawao also offers trails with serious climbing, neat vistas, fast descents, dirt jumps (which I elected not to try), and berms like you wouldn't believe.  Here are some photos from the trip:

Verifying that I was there.

Buff Trails

BRRRRAAPPP

New Friends

A view from the top- still another 5000 ft of possible climbing

Nap time

Now here's the irony of  this trip: Makawao Forest Reserve is ~ 3 miles (as the crow flies) from the town of Kula.  My Kona bike was a Kula Lisa model.  I think my bike was just waiting to go to its name sake so it could die.  You know... like elephants go to the elephant graveyard to die.

Prior to learning the fate of my frame, I decided to re-retire from road cycling.  I did this once in 2006, but some how got dooped into thinking road bikes were fun when I moved to Hawaii.  Mountain biking is way to fun to waste time on road bikes.  I must have been drugged.  In fact, in the past year, my poor mountain bike saw less than 1/3 of the ride time that my road bike saw.  Anyway, the broken frame was quite the ordeal.  It involved all of the stages of grieving: during my day 2 ride on Maui, I kept telling myself it was cosmetic (however, the unbelievable creaking when I stood up was very telling of the crack).  Then I was angry- how could my bike do this to me?  I just gave up road cycling!  I'm not quite sure if the bargaining stage fully developed- this might have been when I was considering my other options if a warranty frame wasn't available.  Then the depression... this included several bouts of crying and being in a really sour mood for about 4 days.  The moment of acceptance finally arrived after I took my 24 inches of love Kona (dirt jumper) our for a short evening ride and Sideburnz's coworker clued me in to an Orbea closeout hardtail frame.  I conceded that I still had a mountain bike- 24 inches of love- and then felt quite guilty that it had sat in pieces since we moved.  My optimism improved once my new Orbea frame was on order.

Sideburnz was supportive, but he kept reminding me that it was time.  I have ridden mountain bikes for over 10 years and never broken a frame.  I ride aggressively, and even with my minimal body weight, this was inevitable.  I'm glad that my Kona's last ride was on Maui.  It was an epic weekend.

Now I have a new member of my fleet.  My raspberry colored Orbea.  Its officially a 2007 D'ella, but there's no model name on the frame.  I like being stealth like that.

Sideburnz built my Orbea while I was on the mainland.  The best way to get back on Hawaii time is to ride for 2+ hours at Royal Summit. She really proved her worth last weekend.  I never thought I could replace my Kona... the Orbea might even be an improvement!  

As if I don't have enough ways to have fun on a bike, I visited the Sand Box for the first time, this morning.  Its been a long time since I rode at the BMX track.  This was a phenomenal exercise in body temperature regulation.  Per ABA regs, I was wearing my BMX pants, long sleeve jersey, and full face helmet.  Yowzers.  I think "sweating profusely" might be an understatement.  I later found out that shorts are permitted with knee and shin pads and and short sleeves are permitted with elbow pads.  The track riding was fun.  I really got into the rhythm section.  Its slightly down hill, so if I had enough speed coming out of the berm, I could pump the whole thing without pedaling.  FUN! Good thing Sideburnz has a BMX bike!

As part of my BMX recovery this morning, I'm enjoying the Twins vs Phillies game (Twins just tied it).  Next up is a trail run in preparation for an off-road triathlon in July 4.  This evening, I'll meet Sideburnz at the beach for a short swim.  I might complete a triathlon today!  Can't wait for more awesomeness.

Things that make a Saturday great

1. Liliha Bakery (diner for breakfast, bakery treats to-go for tomorrow)

2. Freshly overhauled Xtracycle (no more rodents!) to cruise town

3. Browsing Macy's 1-day sale and buying a new pillow

4. Sampling fancy cheese and proscuitto at Whole Foods

5. Finding the beer jackpot- Deschutes Mirror-mirror and The Abyss

6. Maui range fed beef for dinner tonight (also a Whole Foods find)

7. Getting total respect from the guys at NAPA auto parts

and its only 1:15!

How to be super awesome

I had forgotten how to be awesome for about 6 weeks (hence, no blog updates).  Yesterday and today I pulled awesome out of storage, and it actually turned out to be super awesome.

Yesterday started with a super productive day at work (new grad student signed on to work in my lab, made the kids laugh in class, planned our new curriculum for Fall) and then I donned the Red Arrow dress (also here) for Art After Dark.  This month's theme was "Camelot," referring to the Kennedy clan, so I thought the Red Arrow Dress was appropriate.  It definitely was.

This morning Sideburnz suggested that we eat breakfast at Bogart's.  I think starting with a Bogart's breakfast guarantees an awesome day.  My breakfast bagel with ham fueled an hour long swim at Kaimana beach.  My swimming is going the same way my running went- I can hammer out a run in the neighborhood, but its not fun.  I prefer running in the woods.  I haven't swam in the ocean for nearly a month, but I've been logging serious hours in the pool.  Its going to be tough to return to the pool... no currents, no waves, no coral, no fish, sighting is virtually pointless... alas.  After my killer swim, I felt this strange urge to be more triathletic, so I went for a run.  75 minutes on the Tantalus trail system was awesome.  I finally ran all of Pauoa Flats trail.  The view point at the end was incredible- I'll have to bring my camera next time.  I could see the Windward side and the South shore.  Loved it!

Next I'm prepping for a "clothes swap" party at a friends house.  

Now that's how to be super awesome!  

New Record

I used to be a "runner."  Then my left knee went bad, I found other fun sports, and running just became a ski coaching and CX conditioning activity.  I ran enough in the great white north so I could do the Milk Run, but nothing more than that.

With my knee's history, I never expected to be a runner again.  However, all it took was a change of location and climate.  A series of events has transpired in the past 12 months that resulted in increased running activities...

running trails within 1 mile of my house

Sideburnz is now a runner (and a darn good one, as long as he's on trails)

Xterra trail running world championships is 40 miles from my house

I tried triathloning, and it was ok

My coworker introduced me to a masters running group that does intervals on the track once a week (and I join them frequently)

So now, I guess I'm a runner again, and with that I now compete in running events.

Yesterday, I ran the Straub/Kapiolani Women's 10K with 1798 other women.  I made the mistake of seeding myself where I actually belonged (between the 8 min/mile and 10 min/mile signs).  I spent the first mile dodging the walkers- who in their right mind thinks they can walk a 9 min mile?  Then I got my run on.  With the assistance of my new Garmin Forerunner 310XT (yes, its the hot one), I learned that I can still max out my heart while running.  I thought that I was still in bad enough running shape that I couldn't reach max capacity.  I finished the race 56th, 49:03 total time, 7:54 min/mile average pace. 

Now here are my records for the event:

1st 10k race

1st race longer than 5k where I've broken the 8 min/mile barrier since 2000

1st time since who knows when that I've seen 202 bpm as my max HR

I can still walk today (although I'm a little slow)

Photo credits to Sideburnz 

Weirdness, regret, surprise, resolve.

Today started off weird with a tsunami warning at 5am.  I knew something was up when Sideburnz's phone rang, and immediately afterwards, I got a text message.  I helped Capt. Richard get his boat out of the harbor, and then waited for the tsunami.  It was sort of like watching paint dry (which I'm thankful for).  I ended up napping through the entire 4-wave set.  Oh well.

In an effort to make my day productive, I decided to put a new chain on my mtb.  Tomorrow's plan involves a TT and then a mountain bike ride- better be ready.  So I took the chain off my mtb, found another chain laying around, and then decided that perhaps this random chain in the bike room, wasn't actually for me.  Still waiting to hear back from Sideburnz.  With that project on hold, I decided to take my egg beaters off my CX race bike and put them on my mtb.  I took my CX bike down from the hook, and then felt really bad for it.  I haven't ridden it since October.  Its a sweet bike.  I should totally ride my CX race bike this afternoon.  Problem is... my Aksium wheels (former CX training wheels) are on my travelers check and 2 speeded.  Ok, this is an easy fix, I'll take my wheels off my cross check.  There's no tires on them anyway.  So I pull that bike off the hook (presently, there are 3 strewn about the bike room in various states of disrepair + 1 bike on the futon-don't know how that ended up there), and consider my options.   I actually need commuter tires on my crosscheck, not knobbies.   My only geared commuter bike, the xtracycle, is really sick (ill, in need of dire repair) .  Maybe the crosscheck wheels aren't the best answer.  How much do I want to put knobbies on, change cassettes, adjust my brakes, and do who knows what else before my ride?  Not very much.

My road bike, which I don't think needs any repairing would be the easy ride option.  I could even leave the entire mess, ride for an hour, and return to ponder my options.  But road bikes aren't very fun.

So I made some coffee.  And turned on the Killers.  And thought about how stupid it would be to ride my tubulars on the road and on mtb trails... but they just need air.  I looked at the disaster I created in a matter of 15 minutes and sighed.  Maybe I should go running.  I was feeling immensely sorry for myself, and really regretted the mess I created.

As I turned to leave the bike room, I caught a glimpse of my wheel bags.  Wait a minute!  They are holding their shape while propped on top of Sideburnz DH bike...there's something inside them!   I crawled under the bike on the repair stand, moved another bike to the side and carefully leaned over the remaining pile of bikes.  I felt knobbies inside.  Could it be?  Do I have another pair of wheels?

I do, but I'm only 50% closer to solving my problem.  These are my wheels from my 1 speed CX race bike (regular front wheel and ENO rear wheel).  Well, I guess this solves my problem enough to justify changing cassettes and just putting 1 new tire on the crosscheck rear wheel.  So now I'm done blogging, and ready to wrench.

How can someone who has so much bike stuff, not have the right bike stuff?

Sigh.

7 bikes in the quiver.  2.5 are functional (xtracycle is only 1/2 functioning).  If only I knew  a bike mechanic.

Oh... to be a triathlete

Here's a first for me... running in bibshorts and a longsleeve jersey at noon in Hawaii.  No, I didn't have a mechanical problem on my bike.  I was actually pretending to be a triathlete.  Today was my first day coaching a triathlon training group.  I'm officially a bike coach, but I "get" to participate in the entire workout.  Today's 38 mile ride, which I expected to take ~2.5 hours, lasted 4 hours (due to mechanical issues and overall slowness).  I anticipated that I'd be home by 10am, so I didn't put on full sunscreen.  Nevermind... my options were to burn or to sweat.  I sweated... by the way, what is the past tense of "to sweat"?

Other news includes the rediscovery of Superpretzels.  The last time I had a Superpretzel was definitely in the 20th century.  I slightly improved the Superpretzel by buttering it before applying the salt.  Much better than the suggested "sprinkle" of water.

Last week, I reinvented my Traveler's Check.  Now its a 2 (manually switched) speed with comfortable, upright positioning.  I feel very European when I ride this bike.  Sideburnz and I tested it out in Portland last weekend- winnah!

Upcoming funness?  Uh... a time trial tomorrow?  I'm registered and plan to compete in the TT tomorrow, but I'm questioning its funness.  Lately, I've been really into suffering while working out, so maybe I'll really enjoy myself!

Now that its after 2, and I obviously will not get to work before my dinner engagement, I should nap.

All in a day's work

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of helping Captain Richard pilot is boat home from the dry dock.  Over the past 4 days, The Salty Dog received a new coat of bottom paint and had other mechanical issues resolved.  

Look at that nice, shiny bottom paint!

 

The Captain and his boat.

The dry dock was a strange place. In the harbor, I admired several sunken boats.

We motored past several squatter homes that are completely off the grid.  I guess every so often, the city bulldozes the buildings, and then ignores the area, so the buildings reappear.

It was one of the best boating days I've experienced.  The vog was pretty well gone, so the shoreline was really clear.

Top: The usual view of Diamond Head, Bottom: Front view of Diamond Head

We didn't catch any fish, but we spotted some whales.

Top: Whale spouting.  Bottom: Whale backs- two of 'em-just below the horizon line, a little left of center, trust me.

It was a great way to end my Thursday!

Things accomplished in the past 4 days

1. purchased and installed a new stereo in the Jeep.
2. looked for whales, didn't find any
3. ate pot roast
4. changed oil in the Jeep
5. rode mountain bikes
6. observed local fauna- albatrosses, seals, whales (finally found 'em)
7. found 2 geocaches
8. explored a creepy tunnel
9. went to the beach
10. had a breakfast picnic
11. went snorkeling
12. watched people walk in flippers on the beach
13. went to Hank's Haute Dogs
14. bought Harry Potter 2 at Jelly's
15. enjoyed Kaka'ako waterfront park
16. glued decking on Richard's boat
17. grilled pizza

Its good to be home.