ruminations of the day

or maybe it should be a random title, maybe someone should write a title widget for days like today...

Bhutto's death was a shock, in a way. But not really. I sort of feel that she knew going back that it was a quest for martyrdom. How could she expect to stay safe in that environment? How could she expect to compete against the military regime. Very sad. Shocking, but i feel deeply that she knew the risks, and if she naively thought she would be safe, i don't know what emotion to express.

Topic switch. As i think about dayville (yall go register already m'kay?). Thinking about have i haven't been on a bike since the 9th of december. Thinking about how the only intense physical exertion was climbing up a 2-300 foot muddy slope carrying my tank of a 3 year old chasing the almost running 7 year old. Wondering if the saddle will hurt, wondering if i have any fitness left at all. None the less, i'm gonna go race. why? because, cross is just too damn much fun to let only those who are heading to europe to race in CX worlds, masters or elites. Southern NE ain't the arctic wasteland that NH and VT turn into. It ain't no rainy wet cold Portland/Seattle/Belgium/Netherlands. But it is close enough. The rumor continues that on the 12th or 13th there will be a gathering of cross folks somewhere in Providence, not at roger williams park though. Something closer to the coffee shops of the city, somewhere very very easy to get to from the highway. RFLCS stay tuned.

Another topic switch. Calories. My little bro has a big thing about calories in and calories out. Now a season hanging out with these twiggy cross racers has my perspective skewed a bit. Then couple that with the quality of food. Consumption of good quality food can make you healthy but it can still make you fat. But all i can say is i am so grateful of my commute. Instead of sitting every day on my ass in a car for 2-3 hours (like they do down here in suburban DC) i get to ride my bike. Now what i see in pantries is loads of "reduced" fat foods. Why? All these reduced fat foods still have tons of high fructose corn syrup and sugars. Sure the reduced fat is a part but what kind of fat is still there? Fake fat. How do you make a lean peanut? I realize how much i rely on simple clean pure ingredient. How much i am thankful for being able to stop my pantry and my fridge with foods with no complex ingredients. the most complex are the 6 active cultures in Yogurt Boy's brand. I find the quest for the best quality beer and wine counter to buying complex processed foods. And am overwhelmed by the acceptance of high quantities of sugar in diets of young and old a like. On both coasts. But the whole high sugar debate is a whole post alone. Esp when i start ruminating on the anti-sugar stance my mother had relative to the ever presence of cookies and jams and syrups in the house growing up.

Personally i will eschew sugars long before fats. But i drink black coffee.

Speaking of black coffee, my green apron wearing sister gave me a pound of 4BUX mexican (shade grown) coffee. I had mentioned my experience at the Pine Street Pro shop one morning after consuming a grande COD of the mexican stuff and being unable to wrench because my hands were so shaky. And, well, lemme tell ya. HOLY CRAP. yeah that stuff is high test. i'm amped after 1 french press. Amped. This is race test brew. WHOOO HOOO!!!

okay - enough hiding away... time alone with my thoughts and a change to get them out of my head has been dramatically lacking. I often forget how much time i have to think and meditate and focus on my commute to work. Even with a trailer load, it is a time when i can focus on a task but still let things cascade and process in my head waiting for a coffee break or a system to stabilize to dump them out of my head.

peace
-g