Monumental day: I went on a group ride and for the first time did NOT get dropped on the hills. I wasn't the first one up, but I wasn't the last :) Yay! First sign of visible improvement in my cycling!

Also, noticed my lungwort that I got from Wendy last summer is already flowering. What a lovely sight. I have high hopes for my garden this year. However, I experienced quite a jolt when I went to my favorite garden center to buy edging for my native prairie perennial bed, and discovered that they'd gone out of business! Crap. So I drove about 10 miles out of my way to Home Depot instead. I need a new garden center :(

So I was riding my bike the other day and I came upon a family on bikes with a little boy dressed as a superhero. I thought, man, why is it okay for kids to dress like superheroes but adults can't get away with that.

Then I looked down at my cycling kit, and it made me laugh.

I think that's the real reason people love cycling. It's acceptable to dress in brightly colored spandex and speed around the city on flashy gear.

Cycling season has officially started for me. I have 180 miles in for the year. Today I learned how to touch wheels and not (always) fall off the bike. Baby steps.

I'm back on the blog.


















The first few pages of my novel, Dog Days, is now posted at poppyred.com
Don't expect to find anything else there just yet.

Today my cycling friend Jennifer P. brought over an old bike frame that's too big for her. She thought I could have it built up into a fixie or something. It's a Trek 520 from 1984, color: taupe. Apparently this is a frame for a touring bike, so it may make a good commuter or "grocery getter." I'm not sure what to do with it yet.

Here's what it looked like in its heyday.