Cyclocross

Jesse leaps over the barrier and into the puddle

When Jesse first started talking about Cyclocross, I didn't know what it was. Then he went and watched a couple of races and came home with absurd descriptions of muddy racers, fans with cowbells, beer consumption, and costumes.

It wasn't until I went to his first race, at a rock quarry outside of town, that I really understood what he was talking about. There were cowbells enough to make Cristopher Walken sing for joy. There were unicycles, braving the gravel and mud. Spectators wandered around in galoshes and rain gear, shouting to cheer on the racers.

The atmosphere is friendly, silly, and welcoming. Sadly, my camera battery died, so I don't have any photos from Jesse's first race. I did, however, take some photos at the second race, which was out at a farm on Sauvie Island. Due to the cold weather and Jesse's extreme muddiness after his race, we did not stay for the dog or Kiddie races, which involved children, dogs, mud, and undoubtedly much laughter.

More photos can be found on Flickr.

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Sock!

I think I mentioned sometime in the past that I was working on knitting a sock. I finished it, so I now have one sock that looks like this:

I've started Sock 2, and will hopefully be able to wear them soon. Or, you know, I could just go around with one sock on. It's a bold fashion statement, but I think I can pull it off.

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New RSS feed

I finally got around to writing a valid RSS feed, and completely automating it. It is now here: http://www.nerdygirl.com/rss/rss.php.

By "valid," I mean that it passes validation here, although I didn't take them up on all their recommendations. Because I am lazy and tired.

If you are reading this on the old RSS feed, it will soon be defunct, so you should update it. All one of you.

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Neat writing tricks

In the writing workshop I'm taking, some of the focus lately has been on revising things we've already written. One technique we used was to go back to a previous story, underline all the words and phrases that stuck out to us, make a list of them, and use that list to write a new story. I sort of got the wrong end of the stick and tried not to underline words that would cause me to write another version of the same story, so my example wasn't a great one. But it was neat to hear the stories other people wrote; it made me think of using a filter or a distilling process on a story. Very cool.

Last night, I got into a conversation about this technique with one of the other women in the workshop. I can't remember her exact words, but she mentioned that sometimes when she's writing, it feels like the words on the page aren't exactly the story she's trying to tell, and this seems like a good way to figure out what that story might be. It occurred to me that it would be interesting to go through a series of writing (like everything we've written for the workshop so far) and do the same exercise with a bunch of stories, rather than just one. Since we read everything out loud in the workshop, it would be interesting to find out what story we've been telling over the last couple of months.

If I had a million hours at my disposal, I might even try doing that with this blog, or parts of it. I wonder what kind of story I have been telling you all along.

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Thank yous are nice

In the elevator on the way up to my office this morning, I was surprised by a simple thank you. A delivery driver was in the elevator with me. I vaguely noticed in the periphery that he was taking in my bright yellow jacket, helmet, and bike bag. Usually this draws some kind of comment like, "Isn't it cold out there?" or "How far do you ride?" But in this case, he asked if I commute to work and then said, "Thanks."

He said, "Every car I don't have to compete with when I drive my delivery route downtown makes my job easier."

I'd never thought of riding my bike as something anybody would thank me for, but his argument makes sense. I certainly like the lower emissions of riding a bike, and the fact that it causes less car traffic. But I will confess that it's mostly the sheer practicality of bicycle transportation that has won me over. Pragmatism is what gets me on my bike 3-5 days a week.

A list for my KFR friend. Benefits of cycling:

• Riding the bus takes longer.
• Cycling makes me less likely to get sick than riding the bus because:
  1. On my bike, I have less exposure to viruses
  2. Exercise is good for my immune system (see below)
  3. Check out this list within a list!
• Standing still at a bus stop is significantly colder than riding a bicycle.
• Driving shaves 5 or so minutes off my commute. However, it costs $11 to park, unless I park farther away and then there is no time saved.
• Portland is beautiful, especially in autumn, and I get to see more of it when I'm on my bike.
• If I don't ride my bike, I most likely won't be getting exercise that day. Exercise is good for me. It also makes me crave healthier foods, which is a giant bonus. (Can I get a "hell yeah" for kale here? I love kale!)
• Riding in the rain is actually quite lovely. The streets are emptier, and it allows for some quiet contemplation I might not otherwise get in my day. Plus, it makes me feel like a badass.
• Now I can add to my list the fact that one delivery driver might have an easier day because I take up less space on the road. Maybe even more than one. Neat!

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Ouch

Dark days for Church of Scientology. They lost one of their prominent members, some French Scientologists were convicted of fraud, and their website was hacked. I guess that doesn't upset me too much.

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Battle bats

Thanks to Clumsy Girl, I do have a photo.

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Spookiness abounded on All Hallows Eve

Actually, there wasn't a lot of spookiness. Except for a decoration I made for B&C's annual Halloween bash. It was of two bats sword fighting and it was equal parts awesome and spooky. I do not have a photo.

The triplings made it over for trick-or-treating fun. We played tag and screamed a lot, due to a combination of the sugar and them being up past their bedtime. It was loads of fun, though, and didn't even end in tears (that I know of). I feel it is my job to get kids super wound up and then send them home with their parents. It's a great job, if you can get it. The hours are good, excellent benefits, and you get a really good workout running around and around your house while the grown ups talk and drink beer in the kitchen.

After the house quieted down and Theo came out of hiding, Jesse finished cooking an awesome dinner involving chicken, romaine lettuce, kalamata olives and cherry tomatoes. It was hard to get back off the couch to head to B&C's Halloween shindig after that, but of course we had to. It's a not-to-be-missed affair. I love the costumes and the silliness. The theme was "Things That Go Bump In the Night," so Jesse went as a headboard and I was Hester Prynne. The evening wound down with a "Who's Line Is It, Anyway?" style game of props using Jesse's headboard, which was no longer attached to his head. A good weekend should always involve lots of laughter, so long as everyone's laughing with you.

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