At Long Last ...

Well, what a great day out there! It's about 75 degrees and, for the first time in a very long time, there was just a slight breeze. So I left on my usual bicycle ride and didn't think too much about it but realized at the end I was close to breaking through the magic "50 minute" barrier. This is something I've only done once before (somehow did 48:46 or so). So I keep spinning those pedals and got in at 49:26 for 17.2 mph. Not even really terribly exerted today. It's just nice to not be fighting that wind all the way.

I suppose I should go out and hit some golf balls ... but I did get my hair trimmed and now I'm a bit hungry, so I guess golf might have to wait awhile. Larry and I are playing in another little 2-man best shot on Sunday so we'll see how that goes. He's got a pulled muscle in his leg that is hampering him quite a bit. I think it's also going to impact his long drive contest results unless he takes it easy there for awhile ... but that's not really Larry's way of doing things. Well, we'll see how we do.

There's probably no better reason to smile than weather like this ... and, everyone should know that today is the 2nd full moon in the month of May ... so it's called a "blue moon". H-mmm ... I'll have to see about singing that song tonight.

It's A Good Day For Golf

No, I didn't have a very good golf game today ... but it was still much better than being at work ;-) ...

Anyway, I had a few good shots and Larry eagled a hole with a chip-in so there were moments. Then I stopped at the bike shop to talk about the chain rubbing on the front derailleur in the top two gears. I said it felt like the cable was stretching and gradually letting the shifter move *in* so that it could touch the chain. And today I was talking to a new guy at the bike shop named Culley. That's because my regular mechanic, Matt, apparently up and moved to Madison, WI. The nerve! He absolutely never cleared that with me at all (he-he)! Anyway, Culley said it was probably cable stretch and he showed me the easiest place to do minor adjustments. I tried it and it did get better for today's ride. Just another little tweak and it should be perfect (again).

I tell you folks, I've seriously been thinking about RAGBRAI this year but I just cannot seem to get excited about riding with 10-20,000 other people for 5 straight days. I don't know what it is, but it just doesn't grab me. Well, if I come across some local yokels like me that are going I might reconsider, but I'm not getting that good "gotta do it" feeling right now. Maybe I'll settle for getting a good feel for century rides by taking the trail up to Waterloo a few times this summer. It will be interesting to make sure of hydrating properly and getting the right amount of "fuel" before during and after the ride(s). Now where are those panniers of mine? Wonder if they're up top in the garage ... h-mmm.

Think I'll try a new place to sing tonight ... based for sure on today's game, it's gotta be true that I'll do better at that than I did at golf! And that, at long last, will really make me smile.

Memorial Day

Quiet day today. I actually went in to work for a few hours. Then had a bicycle workout. Kinda dozed off for awhile this afternoon but then drove out to Waubeek as the Blue Band was scheduled to play there this evening. But that place was just a zoo so I stopped over to the driving range to hit some golf balls with Larry. He showed me the new radar detection system. It's pretty interesting. It determines ball spin, club speed and ball launch speed as well as launch angle. Then it gives an estimate of the distance for the ball flight. That was pretty consistent and seemed to be fairly accurate, especially when I hit it straight. Also, when I hit a ball "easier" on purpose, it consistently showed lower speeds, distance, etc. The current software in the radar system is in the beta test stage and it did not identify the direction of ball spin/flight (i.e., what degree of hook or slice is present). Fun to try though.

Well, City Beat is closed today so no karaoke this evening. And I didn't fire up the grill but did stop over to Sammy's to play a few video games and have a hamburger (they make the best hamburger in town, bar none, IMHO). I actually have a gas grill up on the shelf in my garage (still in the box) that I got for my 30th anniversary at work. Guess I should put that together someday (and get a tank of propane). Maybe if I had that going I'd grill fresh chicken a bit more often (very tasty, very lean and high in protein and niacin).

And going to Sammy's really wasn't like grilling out on Memorial Day (for that, I typically feel like I need family or someone special, I guess), but it did put a smile on my face ... and it was a yummy burger!

Memorial Day Eve ...

Wonderful weather here in Cedar Rapids today. It's 72 now with light winds and low humidity ... very nice. Played golf with Larry and a couple other guys this morning. Average day ... had a few blowup holes on the back nine, but what's new!

Then this afternoon I got the lawn mowed and got in a bike ride (almost 800 miles so far this spring). Went out to Biaggi's for a new (to me) drink and some italian bread dipped in olive oil (with ground pepper and parmesan cheese). The drink is Raspberry Vodka with lemonade ... very good stuff and highly recommended for any Memorial Day parties you are planning. Tweaked the bicycle up a little and lubed the chain and derailleurs. Also, my friend Adam (from Biaggi's) is interested in buying my old Giant bicycle for his wife (the frame size might be better for her, at 5'7" than it was for me as it was somewhat too small for me). Anyway, I sent him pics of the bike and he might bring his wife over to ride it one of these days (no rush, of course).

Then I stopped at Target on the way home and got a few DVD's along with Spiderman and South Park tee-shirts (a lark, but should be fun). Just wanted to have a few party shirts (yes, you never know when you'll be invited to a party!)

Went up to a 50's "sock hop" dance at Electric Park for an hour or so last night. Had to get home though as I needed to get up pretty early to play golf this morning. Ditto for next Sunday (6/3/07) as Larry and I are playing in a 2-person best shot at Ellis golf course again. It's a "red tee" tournament ... so everyone hits from the ladies tees (pink tee shirts are optional ... he-he). Should be a fun time.

That reminds me that I need to get over to collect my winnings from the 5/20/07 best shot that we finished 2nd in our flight in. That was a good deal!

As John Denver said "If I had a day that I could give to you, I'd give to you a day just like today" and "I'd tell a tale sure to make you smile" ... good evening everyone!

Good Day Today ... Question Ladies ...

Hi all. Well, nice ride today despite the wind. Hope we get a few calmer days soon. This makes my 27th straight day of workouts on the bicycle ... and it feels good. Weight is at 165 which is 3 pounds less than I weighed when I graduated from college.

Now, ladies, here's my question for you (and maybe someone will comment) ... on a first date do you prefer to go dutch or would you prefer the guy pay or does it matter at all? My experience with this is that different women have vastly different perspectives on it and so it makes for an interesting question. And guys, not to leave you out, have you had any strange or interesting reactions on this from your first date ladies? And, as I've counted, I've only ever received one comment on any of my blogs (I know, they're pretty boring) so I won't hold my breath on getting anything here either ... but hope springs eternal .

Anyway, I'm hungry and need to get going to have time to eat and then get to my salsa lesson ... singing later, but always with a smile!

Quiet Day

Laid back day today. Had an option to do a group bicycle ride this evening but I ended up riding the trail and decided not to go with the group. I really would've but they didn't even plan to start until 5:45 and I was done with my ride by about 4:15. I just enjoy getting done early and then having the evening for "whatever". Well, maybe some other day. I'm looking forward to Thursday and the long weekend. Don't know what I'll do on Monday but it's nice to have a holiday. Maybe a motorcycle ride would be in order.

Well, it's a good day for a slow, long-lasting smile ... so just do it!

Winners! ... Kind Of ...

Well, Larry called me this evening. Said he called the golf course about the Sunday best shot we played in and turns out we won 2nd place in the 1st flight (that's the one below the championship flight) ... and it was worth $58. Good deal (even though it's a gift certificate and not cash) as we only paid $25 to enter.

Larry's laid up today as he pulled muscles in both his back and leg when he slipped on a golf ball at the driving range yesterday. With little sympathy (of course) I declared it an "old man's injury" and said it'd get better very quickly. Anyway, guess I'll wait up on playing league golf (normally tomorrow, Tuesday) to see if he will be able to play later in the week.

Easy bike ride today and I only sang one song down at City Beat ... a new one (for me) called "I Loved Her First" by Heartland. I resist doing too many (or exclusively) country songs but it's a nice ballad and no doubt one that will be played/sung at many upcoming weddings. Turned out pretty good for a first effort ... but I admit I practiced it a bit this afternoon.

And note that the waxing crescent moon (an obvious smile) will be near Saturn tomorrow night (Tuesday) ... that should bring a smile to everyone's face.

Sunday Sunshine Golf

Well, great day for golf today. A bit of a breeze but nothing wild and crazy. Larry and I played a 2-man best shot at Twin Pines. We really missed several easy putts on the back for birdies and I was not hitting very well for the most part ... but we compensated pretty well and made quite a few putts. So we finished at -5 but it's anyone's guess if we'll win any money (the tourney is flighted). Typically -9 to -12 will win the championship flight, but maybe we'll get something in the 2nd flight.

At about 80 degrees this afternoon I then decided it was a good day to ride up to Center Point ... and I was right. Not too many crazies on the trail and I worked hard so made the 27 mile round trip in 1:36. That's pretty close to my best time. It was about 45 minutes going north and 51 minutes coming back ... with a breeze from the south.

Dancing was fun this past weekend. I ended up at Walford but was late getting there (9:30) so I stayed pretty late and had a good time. Then Saturday went to Walford again to swing dance with the Good Time Oldies band. They're pretty good. Had many dances and stayed there until 11pm. Otherwise, same old, same old ... got my laundry done and the lawn mowed. Well, better get out there and wash the trail dust off the bike. Then I need to get something to eat ... that's worth a big smile!

Good Day Sunshine

Lots of Vitamin D out there today! Tried out my second pair of SPD shoes for the new clipless pedals and got down to almost 50 minutes on my 14.2 mile ride. Felt pretty good ... and it's nice to not be having wind to fight at every turn (for a change).

Well, tomorrow will be most of the day off for a golf tournament ... but I'll go in to work in the morning for a few hours. Last year I was late for our team's tee time as I ended up lolly-gagging around at Home Depot looking for "cool" stuff. Well, they're going to put guards up to keep me out of there this year (hello! have you heard of Lowe's? ... you can't stop me everywhere! ha-ha). Seriously, f0lks, I plan to get down there by 9:15-9:30 for the 10:00 tee time. Should be fun as it's supposed to be sunny and 75 with light winds.

Makes me smile too ...

Good Week for Golf?

Well, I think I mentioned that I'm playing 3 times this week. 1st time was today (Wednesday) and, although the par 72 course is pretty easy, I did shoot a 79. For some reason my driving *and* putting were both working and so it was good. Now I'm looking forward to the tournaments on Friday and Sunday.

Got some new clipless (SPD) pedals for the bike (and associated shoes). This all happened after the bike shop looked at my crank problem and determined it was only a problem with a washer on the pedal. But that got me thinkin' ... and so I bought the new stuff. They are pretty cool and I'm already used to them after only 2 rides (yesterday and today). Actually I got a second pair of shoes today as I felt like it might be good to have a spare in case one pair gets wet or something and needs to dry out. These are what's called Mountain Bike shoes and you can walk comfortably in them since the clips on the shoes are recessed underneath. That's not true (I'm told) for Road Bike shoes (which have different hardware for pedals as well). Wish I'd done this a long time ago ... oh, well, live and learn!

Gotta get outta here to go to Salsa lessons tonight and I'm looking forward to dancing both Friday and Saturday nights this weekend (two different venues). That's one of the things that makes me smile. Still haven't sold my other bike yet (Giant-Nutra about 10 years old, runs good) ... so if you're interested, send a comment or an email.

... later.

Something to be "Cranky" About ...

Ha-ha. Interesting subject line, eh? Well, what happened today is that I was trying a new route (pretty good one, total of 22.7 miles and only 7 miles on the trail when mud must be avoided) today and about 5 miles out, I started hearing/feeling a slight "clunk" noise from the crank (left side pedal). About 5 miles later it was a much more obvious "clunk-clunk" sound and subsequently it became fairly loud. My theory was that the pedal was loosening up on the crank and so, not having any tools for this, I called and then took it in to Northtowne to get the 25 hour checkup done (have almost 300 miles on it already). They said they'd have it ready tomorrow (Tuesday) by 5 or 5:30 so I can pick it up after golf and still get my late afternoon ride in. That'll be good.

This promises to be a busy golf week as Larry and I play league tomorrow then have a department tournament on Friday and a 2-person best shot tournament at Twin Pines on Sunday. Well, I suppose I should also go to the driving range once or twice ... h-mmm ... naaaa ... think I'll just wing it.

For those of you keeping track (hope you didn't think I'd forgotten), today marks the 18th straight riding day on the new bike ... yet another new "record" (ha-ha).

Went down to City Beat and sang tonight (couple of George Strait songs) and then picked up some fruit at Target. Of course, as you all probably know, it's time for the postage rate increase again. I still have stamps from when it was $.37 and now some at the $.39 rate (and I hate trying to get extra 2 cent stamps to add on). Now they have this remarkable new stamp called the "Forever" stamp that will continue to be good even after they (as "they" surely will) raise rates the next time. This is a good deal for me. I probably use about 10 stamps (or less) a year as I do everything with online payments (and, as you have figured out) almost no Christmas/Birthday cards. But I do send a few things out now and again (thank you's, etc.) so I'm not a total cretin .

In insect and arachnid news, I gunned down some wasps and a spider that were making their homes in my front entryway. I like spiders ... but sometimes I just have to put my foot down (ouch!). And, once again (smooth segway here), I endorse Spiderman 3 ... great flick. Almost went to "300" at the cheap seats but talked myself out of it and stopped over at Biaggi's for a Myer's and Diet Coke instead (good trade). And speaking of golf, how 'bout Lefty this past weekend?

Finally (I know, this seems particularly long-winded, even to me) my Aunt Elaine called me yesterday (Sunday) afternoon. She was in Iowa City with several of my cousins (including Val, but I didn't catch all the names). Seems one of my 2nd cousins (Elaine's granddaughter ... and Elaine is my mom's sister) just graduated from medical school and they were helping her get stuff together for a move. Well, I lost all the details in my head somewhere but I wanted to run down to Iowa City to see them quick but they were virtually going out the door. Knowing how tough it is to drive a long way (from Fargo/Mpls), pack stuff and then want to get on the road home, I didn't press the issue. But it was nice of her to call and I gave her my website address ... so maybe she'll pick up a bit more info that way (indirectly, of course, as they don't have a PC at their house).

Hope everyone smiled a lot on Mother's Day ... and a special hello to Dorothy (you know who you are). Good night ...

Strawberries ... M-mmm Good

I cut up some fresh strawberries for my cereal today ... boy is that good. I highly recommend it. Plans were to go out tonight to see/use an 11" Celestron telescope that a co-worker bought last winter but it looks like it will be a bit cloudy around here so that's a "no-go" for this weekend. Have to get it accomplished while the upcoming new moon does *not* dominate the night skies. It should be fun ... I'll let you know how that goes.

Took another ride up to Center Point (only the 2nd this year) on the trail today (27 miles, roundtrip). It was so much better, even discounting the fact that I'm on a new bike, than the last ride that it's almost impossible to compare. About 74 degrees outside with a light breeze. Seems like I could've kept on riding all day. Besides the nicer weather I can say for sure the my butt is now in much better shape (and get your minds out of the gutter, ladies ... or ... not, ha-ha) than 2 months ago when I last tried this. Plus I had on my favorite (spiderweb, sleeveless, blue) riding shirt and new LG helmet. The thing about this helmet (which just came in the mail today) is that it has a patented and very cool adjustment doowidgie called a "Spiderlock" (or something like that). So if it's cold and you need something on your head under the helmet there's quite a bit of (easy to do) latitude in adjusting it quickly. But it's gray and red and I like the color scheme a lot. Made by a Canadian company (just like my Tilley hat!). Those boys do make some neat stuff now and again, eh? .

And, big news here, the bartlett pears I bought on Wednesday *finally* were ripe enough to eat this morning! I'll tell you this, it was just yummy.

Smile and the world smiles with you.

15 Days & Counting

Yes, 15 straight days of workouts on the bike. Don't know what I'll do when winter gets here ... may have to make like a snowbird ... ha-ha. Well, Specialized sent me a new cycle computer set and I installed that today but, alas, no joy. It still misses cadence counts (about 5-10%). They figure it might be a bad reed switch batch ... anything, the good news is that it's not a major deal, so I can live with it for awhile, and they're going to send me a new 2008 Elite model (before anyone else can even buy one) as compensation for my aggravation (I guess). Well, we'll see if that works ... and I think it will. But that will be another few weeks. Maybe it will get here about the same time as my (puncture-proof) Armadillo Elite tires. Had one flat already this spring and I don't like the hassle of changing tires so it will be worth it to pay what it takes to prevent that.

Gotta get ready to go to the annual fish-fry/picnic that my broker holds every year ... and then out singing at Tom & Wilma's show in Shellsburg (well, I hope I get there ...).

Great weather and worthy of an extra smile!

Nice Weather, Eh?

Wow! Wotta nice day today. 'Bout 80 degrees here and light westerly winds. Good bicycle workout and then I went to Salsa lessons at 7pm. Well, after that I decided it was time to sing so I went down to Eddy's show at Magu's (on 2nd Avenue). I don't get there very often because that place has terrible ventilation and the smoke builds up early. But with the nice weather I figured there probably wouldn't be a big crowd and that was true. So it worked out ... because I really wanted to sing "Lost In The Fifties" again (been practicing it) ... it's a Ronnie Milsap song that I used to do quite regularly but haven't done it for several years now. Anyway, that worked out well and then on the way home I stopped at Sammy's and had one of their great 1/4 pound burgers. They had a live musician there but he was struggling with a cold ... gotta hand it to him, he was tuffin' it out pretty well.

In news on the bike, the bike shop left me a message that my replacement cyclo-computer is in so I'll check that out tomorrow after golf (and after I get my Thursday ride in) as I have to remove the old one completely and turn it in when I get the new one. Hopefully the cadence counter will work right after the switch.

About golf ... well, we're playing on Thursday (rather than Tuesday) this week because Larry (my partner, see links to his website on my website) was traveling on Tuesday. It should be fun and, hopefully, the weather will still be nice (never too sure with global warming though). Sure wish I had a gal to play golf in the couples league this year. That was always so much fun ... but doesn't look like it's going to happen.

Well, I was planning on going out to Walford to dance this Friday but it seems they don't have a dance this week (on Friday anyway). So I'll either have to give up on that idea or head up to Electric Park in Waterloo. But I'm going to the annual cookout/picnic at Coralville Lake this Friday early (6pm) so don't know if I want to scurry up to Waterloo to make it there by 8:00 (would have to leave the picnic by about 6:45 ... ugh). Maybe I'll just go to the picnic and then stop and see Lynne Rothrock perform here at a coffee shop in Cedar Rapids.

Keep smilin' ... and stay away from anyone that espouses "Intelligent Design" ... just recognize how difficult it is to embrace ignorance and dogma instead of fact and an honest search for observable truth.

Spiderman 3

OK, so I went to the movie at 10am last Sunday (May 6, 2007). It was really pretty good ... the theater was only about 25% full (of course the people that chose to bring their 2 1/2 year old to the movie also chose to sit right in front of me ... fortunately it was easy to find another seat!).

I liked this movie a lot (of course, it's Spiderman) ... but it has more of a "slow" dark side combined with a tremendous amount of action so it keeps you guessing and wondering about events from the prior movies (especially about when Pete's uncle was killed in the first movie). Anyone raised on Marvel comic book heroes will really like this ... and it seems there will soon be another Fantastic Four movie out (according to the previews) ... so I'll probably go see that (or else rent the video).

Overall, though, it's still more fun to go to the movies with somebody rather than going alone ... well, if that changes one of these days, I'll be sure to update it here (like there's more than about 2 people in the world that read this ... ha-ha!).

Had a good workout yesterday (5/7/07) as I made it around in just over 51 minutes (averaging about 16.5 mph). I know that's probably not too fast for those "road bike" guys ... but it's OK for me ... especially given that it was still a bit windy out. That's 12 straight days of bike workouts now ... which might just be a record for me (so ... every day is a new record!).

Took rides on the motorcycle yesterday and today as it was just gorgeous out here in Cedar Rapids. In fact, I was out singing and just did one song (Lost In The Fifties Tonight) before I bugged out to zip around on the bike for awhile before dark.

Well, E (pronounced "A"), the manager at Pei's China Bistro here on the NE side of Cedar Rapids had his last day there last Saturday (May 5) and will be taking management training for 8 weeks as he starts working at Lowe's here in Cedar Rapids. Good fellow ... I'm gonna miss him, but he has my number(s) if he wants to play some golf. Odds are that he'll be transferred out of Cedar Rapids after his training is complete. He's OK with that as his family has quite a bit of allergy problems with ragweed, etc., here in Iowa and another place (Arizona, California maybe) would suit them better from that perspective.

Take care and keep on smilin' ...

Ken

Cadence Counter ... Latest

The cadence counter on my latest (Specialized, Elite) cyclo-computer still misses a count (at a rate of about 2-3 per minute). Not a big deal but still annoying. I've entered an issue at the Specialized website and have been back to the dealer swapping pickup sensors and computers to see if something works. Well, nothing does. My best guess is that they probably have a bad batch of reed switches in the cadence pickups. So Friday I went back in to my Local Bike Shop (Northtowne Cyclery here in Cedar Rapids) and they contacted Specialized. To the company's credit they admitted that the unit was fairly new and that probably not many people actually mounted the cadence counter (it is wired but the speed sensor pickup is wireless and very quick to get going ... so probably most people stop there). Therefore, they said, it is possible that there is a problem but this is the first they've heard of it. So, on the theory that a bad batch of parts went out to some customers, they've got a new unit on its way to me, for which I give them credit. Now if they could only get the wind to die down around here a little ;-) ...

Then yesterday (5/5/07) I went out to the garage to get the bike out for a ride and the rear tire was flat! I quickly mounted the bike on the repair stand, pumped some air in the tire and spun it with my ear up close to see if I could quickly pick up the leak. No joy there and a quick visual examination revealed nothing. Then I thought "well, what if I put on my glasses? Maybe I could see something then." <-- doh. So I did and, about 1/2 way around the wheel I say a *very* tiny little mark on the tire. Sure enough a bit of saliva revealed a slow leak. I removed the wheel and dug out what must be the tiniest piece of glass that could possibly cause a tire leak. Anyway, knowing I had some spare tubes I was not too worried about getting on with my ride. Then I realized that the new wheels are drilled for Presta valves and my (old) spare tubes are Schraeder's (which are wider in diameter). Not wanting to drill out the rims, I decided to make a run to the bike shop to get new tubes and some Armadillo tires (from Specialized). Reviews on the Armadillo indicate that they definitely prevent punctures but there is concern that the sidewalls fray much quicker than should be expected (concern is a blowout at 40mph downhill). But I think I'll give them a try. In the meantime I'll review other options for the next set of tires. It's just a pain to have to repair flats and I don't want to go there very often.

Finally, I notice that the local theaters have morning showings of Spiderman 3 (including 10am today, Sunday). Now that's something I've never done before and, although I don't really like going to movies alone (but what's a guy to do if it's not out on DVD yet and there's no gal even on the horizon for a date?), I think I might go today, just in the spirit of adventure. Hopefully most folks (especially kids) will be in church or something and the theater won't be too crowded.

Keep smilin'

Workouts Progressing ...

The new bike is working just great. The only problem I've had is that the cadence counter actually seems to miss a count or two every 30 seconds or so. So what it looks like is I'm seeing 80 RPM for pedal speed and all the sudden it goes to 38 or 40 and then back to 80. The computer is a Specialized Turbo Elite model and it's mystifying how this can happen. My experience with cadence counters is that they work or they don't (binary operation) and there's no in-between. Anyway, I've send in a question to Specialized on this and if anyone out there reads this and has had a similar problem, please write a comment or email me (see my profile).

Anyway, the TriCross Sport bike has a nice 50/11 upper gear and it's very nice for downhill runs. I've brought my time for my normal workout ride down to 52 minutes and will probably start working up to double the distance over the next few weeks. This bike is much lighter than my old one *and* I may have a buyer for the old bike (although I really care most that it goes to someone who will use it well and treat it right ... even if I give it away). Other than that, all I can say is that I'm (still) getting older ... so that's a plus!

Keep smilin' ...