my "vacation"

Well, my trip to the Great Allegheny Passage/C&O never happened, so I stayed at home this week to help my wife and take care of the kids.  My wife still isn't 100%, still with the concussion and x-rays determined a slight AC joint sprain.  She's getting better, but its slow.  Here's how the week went down:

Monday - Drove wife to work, went to The North Face store, bought the wrong shirt.  Came home, took a nap while Josies was sleeping, took Owen to karate, found out didn't have to pick wife up from work, and made kids dinner.  Ate some Chipotle and went to bed.  No bike riding.

Tuesday - Wife drove to work (shouldn't have, but couldn't take off work), rode bike to  Josie's music class, ate some lunch, took a nap, went to Owen's very muddy soccer game, dinner, bed.

Wednesday - Took Julie's car to get estimate at the body shop, $4900 for the door, had to wait to get a rental car, so decided to go for a bike ride.  See this:

This the 6mm wrench I need to take off my rear KISS OFF Phil Woods hub.  It is NOT in my bag, I have lost it somewhere, and didn't know it was gone until I got a flat.  Rear tire feeling weird, pulled over to see if I could nurse it back with a little air until I find someone with a tool, and it is totally gone.  Oh well, had to call for a ride, and went home and ate some lunch.  No nap, went and got my rental car, picked the kids up, got some pizza and had dinner.  Julie fell asleep at 7:30, did the trash and read for a few hours.  Pretty damn exciting, right?  Still haven't found the 6mm, have to get one at work.

Thursday - Owen to school, Josie and I to run some errands.  Jumped on the Transport with Burley and rode through the park to the supermarket. 


After the market, stopped off at the playground before some lunch.

This little place is the Prehistoric Pit on the Lake to Lake trail through the Cleveland Metroparks.   The biggest part is a full size reconstruction of a mammoth skeleton the kids can "dig" up and climb on.  Day isn't done, but it been the most constructive so far....

Back to work tomorrow, kind of dreading it, kind of welcoming it.  More soon.....

i'm supposed to be......

In Pennsylvania right now, getting into Confluence on the my bike by the Great Allegheny Passage.  But I'm not.  I'm sitting in front of a computer writing this.  Why you ask?  Because I got a phone call at work around 5:00 on Saturday, to tell me this happened:

 

My wife was t-boned by mail truck (sick joke here).  She is OK, a little concussion, a sore left side, and ticked off about the whole thing.  So I stayed at home for a few days to take care of her and the kids.  Oh well, life is always changing and throwing things in your way.

This is what my bike looked like while it was getting ready for the trip:

The Stubby in all her glory,  minus the clothing bag on the rear rack and the handlebar bag.  The front panniers had my sleeping bag, tent, sleeping pad, raingear, and a warmer jacket in it.   Not a good looking ride, but one that would have hopefully made it to D.C. in one piece.  I say hopefully because on Sunday, I rode out to a local part of the Metroparks for a quick run (hadn't run in a few years, but it was something I'm starting back up), and this happens:

The fender mount on my rear rack pops at the weld.  A mile away from my house, on a freshly paved road.  I would hate to see what the bike would have been like at the end of 330 miles of unpaved trails, it might not have made it.  I guess it really wasn't meant to be this  time around.

I hopefully will have some good news coming around the bend, I could use some......

yesterday's ride in