A Disturbing Dream and 2018 By The Numbers

I've been having some wild dreams lately. I had a recurring dream last night, a dream I haven't had in several years, and each time I experience it, I'm left wondering if there's something in my life that I'm neglecting. It started out with me standing by the side of our home, looking up at an airplane that had lost its wings. It was using an engine on its tail to thrust it forward in an erratic way. I watched as it flew out of control, certain it would crash at any moment. A helicopter appeared next to the doomed aircraft and hovered overhead. My neighbor, Tom, a pilot for Delta was watching with me.

But then something else caught my attention. I noticed a trap door in our front flower garden that led to a lighted room beneath the garage. I realized then that my dog Sparky was down there and that I had forgotten about him. I last said goodbye to Sparky (in real life) in 1983 when I moved to Huron, SD and I couldn't take him with me. In my dream, it had been months since I'd checked on him and I felt terrible that he'd been neglected for so long. The dream always leaves me feeling profoundly sad that I could do such a thing and that a being so dependent on me was left to suffer.

I took a week off from stained glass work during the holidays but I'm back at it again. I finished this piece last night. It's been a while since I've done a similar panel and I wanted one to add to my inventory. It's a little on the spendy side for a sun-catcher but I'm happy leaving it to sit on my site until the right person comes along. I think I'll work on some lesser expensive pieces over the next week.

I was pleased with my miles both down in our basement and out on the road in 2018. By the numbers:

Cycling: 5138 (8269 km)
Walking: 398 (641 km)
Walking with our pups: 268 (431 km)
Golfing miles: 229 (369 km)
Elliptical: 34 (55)
Rower: 8 (13)

I neglected both my elliptical and my rower but I hope to improve on those numbers in 2019. Strava puts together a nifty year-end summary. Click!

I've been riding indoors during the winter months for nearly 39 years. I never could've imagined when I was riding my first set of rollers after returning home from my enlistment in the Navy what indoor riding would one day become. I love it! And it's great training!

I lined up with 2269 others this morning on the island of Watopia for the first stage of the Tour de Zwift challenge. I gave it all I had for a little over an hour and it left me with an endorphin high that lasted for hours after the race (it's technically just a ride but tell that to the vast majority of us pushing as hard as we can). That was my first experience taking part in any sort of group ride on Zwift. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and I also pushed harder than I otherwise would have. Win-win!!

That's all I've got.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

David Crowder Concert, NWA188 and Photo Review

Image
I got up from laying down after the all-night shift Thursday morning and figured I'd better get a ride in while I could because the forecast wasn't looking so good. The temp was just above 40 with a northeast wind steady at 15 mph under overcast skies. 40 degrees is very reasonable cycling weather but the key is to be somewhat chilled when you start out. Being warm and toasty at the beginning leads to being sweaty, cold and clammy before the ride is over. While putting air in my tires before leaving I could tell that I needed a lighter top layer. I'm glad I made the switch. I loved the ride  ( Strava link ) and would like to have gone further but David Crowder was playing at our church and I didn't want to be late getting in line for some good seats as it was general admission. I considered a quick detour by Hosanna on the way home to get a pic of their tour bus but I figured I should really act my age. The concert was worth every penny and better than any of the o...
Read more

Riding, Retirement and a Home Revisited

Image
I skipped out of work a couple hours early today to take advantage of some mild weather. I took the pups for a walk then headed west on my bike putting my heart, lungs, and quads through some paces. It felt so nice to be out there. I'd have stayed out longer but I had to be back to take Rachel to dance class for 5:00. It's possible that today will be the last time I'll have to take her to class if she passes her road test this Thursday. I'd like to have taken some time to hose down my bike. It's full of road salt and that can't be a good thing. Every large vehicle that went past me had a cloud of salt dust trailing in its wake and settling on me. I'll spend some time cleaning it tomorrow and have it ready for a ride on Wednesday after work. Speaking of work—I've been kicking around the idea of bidding on a staff job. Believe me, it's not something I want to do. It's about self-preservation. I want to work another five years to get Rachel thr...
Read more

My Bicycle Ride to Babbitt

Image
Wow, what a trip. In planning for this ride, I figured I’d have only two weekends this summer when our schedules could come together to give it a go. The first of those two times came and went two weeks ago when a steady north wind kept me grounded. There’s no way I could have gone the distance into the wind, and what I was really hoping for was a stiff southwesterly breeze, but that wasn’t in the cards either. After looking at the wind forecast on Wednesday, I told Tammy that it looked as though we were looking at another no-go. I’d been watching the forecast the previous 5 days, and they consistently said to expect a light wind from the southeast. It wouldn’t be a headwind but wouldn’t be much help either. I came home from work on Thursday morning and looked at the forecast again, but it hadn’t changed. I got a couple hours of sleep, then woke up to work in the yard. Then, I decided I wouldn’t let the lack of a tailwind keep me from going…just so long as it wasn’t a headwind. I tol...
Read more