bikelovejones

I'm bummed because I took a bunch of nice pictures with my pen-cam and when I got home and plugged the camera in to upload, all the pictures just vaporized. This happens sometimes and there doesn't seem to be anything I can do about it. Frustrating, but probably predictable with a 4-dollar pen-cam.

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Going on today's ride was a calculated risk for me. I went, knowing that my knee might give me trouble. I do not know why my knee has been twinge-ing on and off occasionally since March -- it first began at Snoozeville but I got over it within a few days of that ride. It flared up again a little at the Memorial Day populaire and again the day after the July grab-Bag ride. Three days ago, after feeling fine for weeks, my knee twinged again just as I stood up from a sitting position. It has continued to bother me ever since, causing me great concern.

What to do? Rest, and it seems to grow stiffer. Ride and it sort of warms up a little but still twinges uncomfortably. Ibuprofen helps, but not enough to make the pain totally disappear. Riding seems to be slightly better than just sitting around, but that's not saying much.

So I went and did this short ride, planning to take it easy and just spin the cranks gently. Of course, that plan fell by the wayside as soon as I decided it would be easier for me to get over the steep Bybee Street bridge by standing up on the pedals and honking a bit. It was easier -- although my knee twinged my legs felt strong overall -- but tonight my knee is in a small amount of, well, not exactly pain but discomfort.

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I got to OMSI and found just one other person there. Larry and I chatted until just before 5:30, then took off. When we stopped on the Springwater to stare in wonder at a nesting Osprey (near Oaks Bottom wildlife refuge), Ian pulled up and joined us. Only a few minutes late, he had decided to sprint from OMSI and catch up with us, and I'm glad he did. We had a lovely neighborhood circut through inner SE and ended up at Lucky Lab for dinner, A few more friends showed up, and thanks to the secret inner workings of my pen-cam I can't share the photos I took of them (or of the Osprey's nest, or of the sectacular sunset from the Hawthorne Bridge. I'm SO bummed!)

(I am taking along two cheapo recycleable cameras for GYGIG. I like my chances better of actually salvaging photos from them. Perhaps someday I'll have to get a better digital camera.)

Tonight's weather was a real treat, one of those delicious midsummer evenings with a good breeze and late afternoon sunlight slanting through fully-leafy trees. The Osprey was magnificent, black with a white chest and proud head that she tilted from side to side. The nest was perched atop a telephone tower and we could only see the adult bird, though we could definitely hear the voices of babies coming from the nest. The Willamette River sparkled as geese swam near its banks and rowers sliced the water with their oars. The ride back alongside the Reed College campus made me think of my father; we had attended Chambe Music NW concerts at Reed several years before he died, and I smiled at the memory of the two of us sitting on the lawn having pre-concert boxed dinner together.

It was a lovely ride, and a fun dinner afterwards, with friends from several parts of my personal history meeting for the first time and getting along fabulously. I talked a little about the ride, why I was doing it and what I hoped to accomplish. I also passed the hat for donations and everyone chipped in a few bucks, so we now have enough gas money for Sweetie to drive me to Edmonds and get herself home again. Everything is covered and as ready as it can be.

My knee still troubles me and makes me uneasy. So does the fact that my period may well start the day my ride begins. The last time I attempted an important bike ride and my period began at the same time, I pressed on, to my regret; I didn't enjoy the ride as much because my was SO drained, and I lay awake in my tent cramping madly the whole night. I hope and pray that either my period starts tomorrow (so the worst will be done by Thursday), or it waits until next Monday. Please.

Bedtime. An early day tomorrow, and a long one too.