Keep track

After a beautiful ride this morning, the Flight Deck on my bicycle shows over 500 miles in 2 months. Reminded me that I have to do the same distance in 7 days at the end of Sept. It also show the gears (small front ring and 4th ring in back) for against the wind ride. I thought I will never ride on the road with no bike lane and/or car passes you in 60 mph. Somehow, I managed to over come the fear. On the other hand, A1A and Jupiter Island is an exception during the weekend morning. Hundreds of cyclist train there. They ride in pack, like what you see in Tour de france, even the Islander doesn't like it. Traffic police watch us carefully. Every times when the pack pass me, it feel like a swarm of bees just flew by........

Mediation on the bike II

I read about this 'divergence test' the other day in 'Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell'. Instead of using logic to converge to one right answer, it requires to use your imagination and take your mind in as many different directions as possible. Give yourself a minute and come up with as many different possible uses of 1. brick and 2. blanket. I took way more than a minute but come up with the following:

Brick can be used to build a kiln, to make more bricks

to build building and path

to build wall, to keep people in and/or people out

to throw at window, to stop more building and path

to kill someone and sink the dead body

to build a tomb to keep the dead body

to be a memory/ proof of love (楊度）

to save water in the toilet tank

to stop a wheel from rolling or door from closing

to build a dam to hold back water

to carve on to make sculpture

to be as the subject of a test.......

Blanket can be used to keep warm, cool, or from the sun

to hide behind or under

to put on ground for picnic, sleep on, make love

to kill someone and wrap the body in

as a sail to catch wind

as a net to catch things/ people/ animals

as a cover/ dress

as a parachute, to drop something like a brick down a building

as a toy for a child

as a memory/ proof of love

Handle bar bag

For the Cycle North Carolina ride at the end of Sept., we don't need to worry about luggage transportation between campsite. But, I still have to carry a few personal items to defend myself from the elements. Here's my old Timbuk2 modified by my in-house master sewer to become a handle bar bag. Big enough to hold a set of change out long sleeve jersey / pants, raincoat, wallet, sun block, flash light, cellphone, a pump and a map..........

Meditation on the bike

Long ride gives my thought a lot of time to wonder, since there's no traffic, no turn, no decision needed to be made. I normally start with feeling my breath; too short? too hard? Then is my legs, it feel good to pedal fast, but is the gear too low? Then I remembered something I said the day before, and how I could have said it differently, and it might make a different or most probably not....... A old friend moved in a nursing home after her husband left us last week; I was thinking about my last visit, her almost 60 years marriage....... Yes, it is going to be the 60th year for PRC in a couple of months. It's some articles on the news lately. BTW, what's "inciting subversion of the state" really mean? or it's just a new term for "counter-revolutionary" or anyone who dared to challenge? 60 years is a big circle in the chinese calendar and a long time for no change....... I could feel my breath become harder...... my legs trying to keep up with the pace mindlessly. But, there is still miles to go......