Acclimating

It was another cold and breezy morning and I had to dip into my diminishing reserve of self-discipline just to get out from under the covers.  This is the time of year when just getting out the door in the morning becomes a laudable goal.  Really, though, there is no point to skipping rides when the temperature is still, however barely, in the 40s, unless of course you happen to be one of those people who seek winter refuge in air-conditioned fitness centers, returning to the roads only when the first hints of spring appear.  I'm not one of those.  Although I have been known to attend winter Spin classes and have even ventured into the Reily Center's weight room on occasion, I would in general prefer to be riding an actual moving bike on actual roads in the actual weather, assuming conditions aren't overwhelmingly dangerous.  So there I was riding up to the meeting spot on the levee this morning at precisely 6:40 am wondering why I was again the only person there.  A minute later Big Rich rode up and, knowing there would be no others, we headed off down the road.  A couple of miles later we spotted Donald and Mignon coming toward us and waited as Donald, whose knees were bare, turned around to join us. We did the usual Wednesday ride at a moderate pace as I dreamt of hot coffee and hid from the wind behind Richard. On the way back we saw Ben who turned around and rode with us for a while looking all toasty warm in his Assos winter jersey. 

Yesterday afternoon we had the dedication ceremony for Flower Hall, a science/engineering research building that our office worked on just over a year ago as part of a grant from the Economic Development Administration.  While I was standing there I heard someone say, "Hey Randy."  I looked over and saw Brett Reagan, all dressed up in a nice suit looking like quite the executive (which technically he is).  It turns out he is on a Board with the building's major donor, Paul Flower.  Small world.  I still had work to do, so I passed on the free wine, which took quite a bit of willpower, checked out the finished 4th floor and its spectacular view, and headed back to work.

It wasn't too long after I got home this morning that the workmen started to arrive.  The kitchen demo is essentially done and we're entering the sheetrock and electrician phase now. I wrote another check to the contractor and hopped on the bike to work.