errands deserve coffee.

miles: 5 or so

the weather is insane. it does not get any nice or more pleasant than this, honestly. having had the day off i spent most of it catching up on breaking bad, but then it was time to get out and get stuff done. a trip to the store for virgil's rootbeer, a mighty haul of 5 pairs of wool socks, and the post office to mail a campy record BB to some lucky ebay buyer and i was all set with errands.

i stopped by the town green to check out some monuments. i'd say i do this about once a year. today was the day because i was in no rush to go back inside. the grass was lush... and i mean lush. the only time i've ever felt grass thicker than this was on a ranch in colombia owned by a guy who i could only describe as a mix between pablo escobar and panama jack. linen, and lots of it.

after i pedaled about town i head off for some coffee and a nice walk on some sort of greenway trail. it's nice gesture, but hardly what it should be. i thought about the potential of a bike path that would run along the shoreline away from traffic and how bad-ass it would be... and then i thought about how that would never happen here and it bummed me out.

oh well, i guess i'll have to find more dirt roads instead.

crispiness.

miles: some

another rough day at work and a race home to have enough time to go camping. this time i thought ahead and packed the day before so as not to forget anything crucial. 20 minutes after i got home i was already out the door again and on my way. a late-summer mugginess had ruined the almost-autumn vibe that everyone had been enjoying for the past week and today it persisted. on my way a few clouds and sprinkles were interrupted by an intense evening sun.

the dirt road i rode out on was in particularly bad shape today from an earlier rainstorm. i had a funny idea of doing a photo of michelangelo's "creation of adam" with me and a bike... honestly i'll probably do that at some point, but it thought about that quite a bit while riding around path-wide puddles. i found a trail that head off to the right that i don't ever recall seeing before and decided that would be the direction i would head today. along the way i spotted a small ridge off in the woods that i decided would be a good spot to set up camp for the evening. a nice rock outcropping made for a nice backdrop to camp.

i very much enjoy riding a bike with luggage... especially a bike that's designed for carrying luggage. my 24-year-old cannondale st400 is such a pleasure with 20 extra pounds strapped to the rack. [small digression: 20lbs is what i lost in chubbiness this past year. donuts and pizza or a full set of camping gear. crazy.] the bike feels so sturdy with the extra weight and tracks like it's on a rail. delightful.

15 minutes worth of setting up and i was all set for the night. i had a bit of light left so i decided to go for a bit of a walk and see what i could see. i saw more woods. i headed back to camp, made my dinner and crawled into the hammock just in time for a passing shower. i read some of Death,  The High Cost of Living and then dozed off. i awoke to an autumn wonderland... oh my stars, what a wonderland! a brisk 50 degrees and dry as a bone. that was one hell of a morning in the woods, for sure. i got dressed, made my coffee, and sat up on the outcropping just enjoying the insanely amazing morning it was. the coffee was bitchin' too. i packed up and head back to town.

bicycle, you complete me.