Weather & Warm Toes

This morning, i left the house for a bike ride at 7am. The temp was between 40-50 the whole time & I just about froze my toes off. (Time to invest in shoe covers, I think).

A mere four hours later, it is 68*F. The projected high is 75*F.

Out of curiousity, I checked the Englewood weather records for today...

Avg high: 52*
Record high: 90*F (1962)
Avg low: 35*
Record low: 2*F (1969)

The record high for the month of October is apparently 96*F (Oct 18, 1977), and the record low is apparently -2*F (Oct 13, 1969).

Yet more proof that Denver weather does whatever the heck it wants. :-) I'm just glad we aren't setting another record today either way!!

Now that my toes are toasty again, it's time to study...

Breathe in...

Lunch under a clear Colorado sky
during a long bike ride,
mountains in view from afar...
yeah, that's definitely one of my "happy places."
:-)

More to come later from this year's Colorado BikeMS ride.

J. & Silent Liz

Oh, goodness... I haven't watched any of those movies in years. Maybe I should remedy that this weekend while Jeromie's away at a weekend class. :-)

I admit, I've been silent around here lately. Some weeks the ol' blog is just not at the top of my priority list or, alternatively, I have nothing of substance to say. Sometimes I just feel like being quiet, and I'm alright with that.

The last few weeks have been a jumble. A combination of under-the-weather or injured, stressed, and busy has dominated Casa del Rand, but we're alive.

We're alive, and actually laughing quite a bit. :-) Sometimes we get so busy that we forget how to be light-hearted with each other. No more of that... my newfound goal for this next year is to find plenty of (healthy) opportunities to laugh and smile and invite others to do the same. I discovered it in the middle of last night's Fishes meeting, but it makes sense in hindsight... I've become quite the fan of "comic interludes" lately.

Aside from laughing, meetings, paper-writing and internship, I've finally hit a good pattern for training. Like I mentioned a few posts back, I'm training for the CO Bike MS ride in June. I'm also hoping to run the Denver Marathon in October. Right now, barring injury, they both look doable. Either way, it's so good to get out and move around.

Anyway... just felt like checking in.

Got anything to add to my barrel of laughs?

Looking forward

Oh, life's a jumble... as usual. A strange, lovely mess.

This week has been one of getting rest, of getting organized, of getting excited.

Originally, Jer and I had planned on taking a January term class this week. We were really looking forward to the class, but we ended up dropping it just before Christmas, sensing that we needed rest (not more books and papers to fill up all the empty space). Seems God knew what we needed.

In about a week, we'll be heading to Dallas (unexpectedly) to spend some time with my mom. Mom has had multiple sclerosis for MANY years and it's become steadily more restrictive for her in a lot of ways. It's a wretched disease, and I'm realizing that I haven't really grieved well over all the moments and memories that it has stolen from my family. Now that I'm aware of that, I intend to listen closely to the Holy Spirit, to my heart, to my family, and to my (several, amazing, wise) companions.

I also intend to not sit on my rear any longer.

Bike riding (for more than fun) has been a part of my life since I was about 12 or 13, though there have been extended seasons where I haven't ridden as much. I'd intended for it to be a major part of my marathon training, as riding become the best prevention for injury. This week, it occurred to me that riding is perhaps the most natural way for me to be more actively involved in the life of my mom, even though we live hundreds of miles apart.

Enter the MS 150.

The MS 150 is not a new event; it's been going on for years - I've just never been in a good place to participate in it. Despite the fact that I've been planning on running a marathon this fall for more than a year now, I'm willing to let that go if need be. Perhaps I'll manage to do both... if not, the riding wins out because it's about more than just my interests.

It's one small way that I can fight for my mom, so here goes...

For the love...

Most of the time I *love* being a bike commuter. The part of Denver I live, work, & go to school in is conducive to decent-length commutes & it clears my head.

I do NOT like having 2 flats in 2 days.

There's nothing stuck in my tires.
I'm careful not to pinch the tubes when I replace them.
I avoid pot-holes & jumpy sidewalks & broken glass.

I was okay with one, but two?!?! Apparently I'm making up for lost time. :-p

Okay, I'm done venting. The past few days have been frustrating & I guess a 2nd flat just punched my last button. I'm done.

Two Nerds Shopping

A few days ago, Justin posted the following amusing web-comic with the conclusion that he and Erin are nerds...



Well, it appears that Jeromie and I are nerds as well.

In addition to riding our bikes to Target/the grocery store with a mass amount of carrying capacity, we spent probably an hour debating over the best organizing strategy for Jeromie (in lieu of the options he's already picked out, which turned out to be unnecessarily expensive). Then we pedaled over to Sunflower Market (which is awesome) and proceeded to make a usually quick grocery trip take nearly twice as long. See web comic.

The moral of this story: I should probably go grocery shopping alone if time is ever an issue.

But, I shall embrace my nerd-dom and share with you my new favorite toothbrush. That's right, I said toothbrush.

the wild toothbrush in its natural habitat!

I'm notoriously hard on toothbrushes, so it came as no surprise to look at it this morning and decide I needed a new one. I read somewhere a few weeks ago about toothbrushes with removeable/replaceable heads & figured I'd see if the environmentally-conscious Sunflower had any. They did... and the price was competitive with the sorts of toothbrushes I normally get... especially when you take into account the cost of the heads you replace them with!

So, I have a new toothbrush.

Yay!

Itteh Bitteh Mad-Typin' Committeh

Yes, that is a spoof on the LOLcats. It's also an apt description of my new laptop, but more on that later... I've got a bike to ride!!

Hello, my name is...

Old-School Fred... or well on my way there,
i've got one pant-leg rolled up... the other down

* * * * * * *

Yesterday on a quick bike errand to feed the BenninKitties, Jeromie made a comment that I didn't quite understand.

(in a valley-girl-ish voice): "Liz, you are such a Fred"

A Fred?! What the heck is a Fred?!

So I asked, and he showed me when we got home... and I'm down with my Fredness. I'm less of a Fred now than I used to be, but who knows? We're about to be a two-student family.

According to the Dictionary of Bicycling Slang, a Fred is:
1) n. a person who spends a lot of money on his bike and clothing, but still can't ride. "What a fred -- too much Lycra and titanium and not enough skill." Synonym for poser. Occasionally called a "barney". (I am NOT this one. For one thing, I don't have the money... for another thing, I've been biking for a loooooong time.)

2) n. a person who has a mishmash of old gear, does't care at all about technology or fashion, didn't race or follow racing, etc. Often identified by chainring marks on white calf socks. Used by "serious" roadies to disparage utility cyclists and touring riders, especially after these totally unfashionable "freds" drop the "serious" roadies on hills because the "serious" guys were really posers. This term is from road touring and, according to popular myth, "Fred" was a well-known grumpy old touring rider, who really was named Fred.

Another definition found on the bike forums is someone who is functional with no regard to fashion, i.e. milk-crate on the back-rack... or one pant leg rolled up.

We looked a bit further and found some information about the guy who was the original Fred and, in my opinion, he's freakin' awesome. Look up Fred Birchmore of Athens, GA, or start with this article: Oldest living Dog has unique tale.

I think I could only aspire to be that kind of Fred. :-)

Off to this morning's adventure: the Anderson Jockey Lot. I was told I couldn't move away without going at least once.

Inspired.

LottaJansdotter.bikes.katieherzig.buttons

* * * * * * *

Lotta Jansdotter - After hearing much buzz in the general sewing community about her various fabric designs (which are quite cool!), I came across a book at work that she'd published about printing. I borrowed the book for a few days, then purchased it because I'd pretty much fallen in love with the printing process. I'm now eyeing some of the sketchy potatoes in our pantry in a more friendly manner. :-)

Bikes - I *love* my bicycle. I've had it for about 10 years now, though I've sorely neglected it in favor of the mountain variety (or other pursuits) for most of college & post-college. Well, the bike is back, and the Liz is all the happier for it! I think I'm addicted... which could be a good thing, since it'll be my primary source of transportation in Denver. :-D

Katie Herzig - So, I got an email from the Derek Webb mailing list about NoiseTrade, headed over to check it out, and found out about this phenomenal and fun singer/songwriter. Her Apple Tree album has been constantly spinning in my head & cd player, and I'd like to listen to more of her work.

Buttons - I would just like to take this opportunity to tell the world that I like buttons. In the semi-words of my lovely friend Jen: it's my blog, i do what i want. :-D Seriously though, there are some very cool buttons floating around, and I'd like to find a use for them. Even if it's just to make my own 'pieces of flair' board with buttons. But I'd rather knit sweaters. Which reminds me that I need to block the one I finished last week. I should get on that.

Giddy-Up!

(slightly sweaty Rands)
I am one happy girl right now.

Not only did I spend a fantastic Saturday with Jero... I spent a fantastic Saturday with Jero on BICYCLES. I have lately rediscovered the thrill of road riding, and now I get to share the experience with my husband! (Thanks, of course, to a lot of time on CraigsList and BikeAthens.)

We headed out for Athens between 8-8:30am, grabbed some breakfast & yummy coffee at Jittery Joe's (Clemson), before heading to Jittery Joe's hometown. I tell you what, I think I just rediscovered bagels too. Anyhow, we had a good time talking on the way there and made good time to meet a cool dude named Mike at the BikeAthens homebase.

BikeAthens is a non-profit organization that advocates for the improvement of the Athens/Clarke County area in such a way as to encourage alternative forms of transportation (pedestrian/bus/bike). They also do bike recycling: folks donate their old bikes to BikeAthens, whose members fix and/or tune them up and give them to folks in the area who need a reliable form of transportation. Sometimes they get some fairly nice bikes that need some love and are still worth a pretty good amount - in this case, they tweak 'em & sell 'em to raise money for their mission. And that's how Jeromie found his bike - a Novara Randonee (REI-brand touring bike)! I also scored some sweet, gently-used SPD pedals, which should make my bike-commuting life just a little easier.

le vélo


In anticipation of a potential bike purchase, we'd brought my bike & a picnic lunch, so we pounced on the opportunity to ride around and see the town. We rode out and back on the Oconee River Greenway, then into town to poke around a vintage store I'd spotted on the way in. It's sad... I've never spent much time in Athens - maybe one show at the 40-Watt - but it's a really cool town. The downtown is beautiful & it looks like they have a wide variety of shops & restaurants. I wish we could've spent more time there, but the sky just about dumped on us & we needed to get back anyhow. We completed the trip with a stop at SweeTreats, which I will sorely miss when we move away.

I am so giddy about riding right now. I did a lot of riding when I was younger, but sort of fell away from it during college. Having a car and a too-busy schedule will do that to you. Well, now the car is gone, and partially because the bike's got the better of me (and riding the bike just makes me feel better). I also realize now that it's a good alternative to running... which I always seem to get injured doing. Maybe the bike'll balance me out! :-)

We rode in to church this morning, then home again after lunch and I didn't want to stop. Unfortunately, housework called. (Shedding season in the Rand house doesn't bode well for other activities.)

Well, you guys get the point. I'm excited.

(and a picture of my Jero because I think he's pretty swell.
and manly enough to drink out of a butterfly-laden Sigg.)

Shifty... in more ways than one.

This week, we unofficially became a one-car family.

Jeromie and I have been discussing this shift for about a year, and finally stopped procrastinating over the past month or so. It took a little preparation to switch off to one car:

* a solid carpooling schedule,
* a workable errand-running routine,
* a knee that decided to stop being busted,
* a working coolant fan motor
* an actual proficiency at driving a manual vehicle, and
* the willingness to give up a little bit of freedom.

The transition had a few hitches, such as said coolant fan motor... but that was actually a long-existing hitch that I'd assumed was normal for my car. Long story. :-)

The other hitch was my grocery trip this week... I raced the CATbus from our house to the Clemson Bi-Lo and thought I'd won until the CATbus pulled up already loaded with two bikes. I suppose it's a safety rule, but the bus driver wouldn't let me bring my bike on board, so I had to call Jero for a ride. To me, that defeated the purpose of using the bike for that errand in the first place, but I'm hoping to make a few adjustments to my bike that would allow for toting things if need be.

I'd kinda like to see if I can ride my bike more miles than I drive a car in the next year. Excluding, of course, the miles between here and Denver. :-) I'd have to do quite a bit of riding to make up for that one.


P.S. It's official! Jeromie's been accepted to Denver Seminary as well! God-willing & the creek don't rise, we'll be living a mile higher in August!

yarn cakes & happy tires

(the title is for you, Jeromie; appetizing, isn't it?)

So, for the past year, Tuesdays have been my favorite day. Two reasons: house church in the evening, and it's one of my two consistent days off (Sunday being the other). It seems that other days off are always cram-packed full of people to hang out with and/or things that need doing. Not that I don't want to hang out with people - I actually thoroughly enjoy it now - but being a Liz, and still introverted at my core, I need a day to myself sometimes.

Tuesdays tend to be that day.

So, yesterday I:

* slept late to make sure my migraine was really gone
* read a little in A Separate Peace
* changed a flat on my road bike (happy tires!)
* set up the swift & winder I got for my birthday from WEBS, thanks to Darla
* set to work on making yarn cakes out of my huge bag o' yard-sale yarn, and
* made sausage-lentil soup from the More-with-Less cookbook!

Let me tell you, that bag o' yarn is going to take a bit of work to make knittable.

The story behind it is as follows... My friend Melissa and I were responsible for coordinating the DCF Yard Sale at the beginning of May, and it went off quite well. (I just want to say that God had everything to do with that.) It just so happened that the nearby Lutheran church was having a yardsale the same day. Jeromie paid a visit and spotted the yarn - sprawled on the table and strangely tied. Well, he sent me up to look at it and it appeared to be wool and at least hand-dyed, so I spent the $5 I had to get a few bundles. Well, while we were tearing down in the afternoon, a volunteer from the other yardsale walked down and asked one of my friends if I wanted to just have the rest of the (garbage-sized) bag for free. Knowing me, my friend said yes. :-D

A month & a half later, with swift & ball winder in my possession:

I sat down this morning, cracked open the bag & loaded the first bundle onto the swift. The winding went swimmingly at first, then I started getting to tangles & loose ends. It took 45 minutes to an hour to get that first bundle all caked up, complete with much patient untangling. It's definitely wool, and it's almost certainly handspun. There are lots of planty-looking fibers throughout the yarn, almost as if it was born in a barn. (Wait a minute, it probably was born in a barn literally. You know what I mean.) I've now affectionately dubbed it "the quintessential itchy-scratchy," because it is!

But I'm still excited about coming up with some good projects for it. Perhaps some mad felting?

Meet:

Quintessential Itchy-Scratchy.


Rather furzy, but practically free!