Happy. Healthy. Heathen.

In my blog yesterday, I made the promise to write more consistently.  Yeah, here we go…

I know I owe a “50 things update” — that’s next, but today is about one of the specific things on the list.  The tattoo thing.

Because I’m a mommy first and always, let me preface this blog by saying that there is a tremendous difference between getting a tattoo when one is 50 and getting one when one is 20.  I cannot think of a tattoo that would have profound meaning to me now that I might have chosen at 20.  You may be more mature, more stable, more impulsive, more daring, more of any number of personality traits, but for me, it would not have been the right thing to do.  You have all heard me stand on my soapbox and preach about growing and changing and developing and learning and the absolute value of all of that; what I don’t share with you because I’d sound like Grandma in her rocker is that we also go through seasons of life.  Getting a tattoo (at any age) reflects a commitment to the symbolism, so to speak, although my tattoo artist pooh-poohs that idea with talk about conversions and cover-ups.  Anyway, you are not the person at 20 or 25 or 30 or even 35 that you are going to be for the most of the remainder of your life.  What a thrilling, exhilarating prospect.

So here’s the bad boy:

As always, crappy camera and crappy operator, but you get the idea.  And because I’m the wordiest person you know, it will take this entire entry to explain the choice.

Shortest version:  It’s a symbol of my affinity for science and of living a life based on science and reason.

Longer version:  It’s a reminder to me that no matter where my future takes me, I intend to live a life based on rationality and reason.  I am not a Vulcan, and I know the value of passion and intuition and emotion and creativity and impulsiveness, but those are internal, personal characteristics and shouldn’t be applied to the figuring out of how our external world functions.

Longest version:  There have been several major events in my life in which I abdicated the responsibility of thinking for myself.  It wasn’t because of carelessness or laziness or lack of intellectual ability – each one can be explained to my own satisfaction, but an explanation is not an excuse, nor is it license to continue the habit.  In each instance I have been astounded at my own complicity, profoundly surprised at myself, astonished at the discovery, and determined Not To Do That Again.  I use this moment to laugh at myself and wonder:  what’s next?  To what area of life will I apply rational, scientific thought instead of dogma, conventional wisdom, societal pressure, and indoctrination?

When I was a young adult and just beginning my married life, the accepted lifestyle was one of credit.  My own father lectured me numerous times on the topic You’ll Always Have a Car Payment.  All of our peers were living this way – buying food, clothes, recreation on credit.  Even our financial adviser taught us how to “manage” our credit cards.  We lived the Credit Lifestyle for a few years, paying for meals long after they were in the sewage system, finishing one car payment and immediately incurring the next.  We were both working, until we had the kids, and we were living beyond our means.  When we finally put on the brakes and really looked at what we were doing, the solution was so very simplistic, and relatively painless.  We did a lot of extra work reinventing the wheel, with constructing a budget, exploring savings options, learning how to buy, but when we discovered more information about this, it just served as confirmation that we were doing it right.  It seems slightly less radical now, in this era of consumer awareness and credit fallout, but at the time it was doing almost exactly the opposite of what our peers in mainstream society were doing.

When I reached my 40th birthday, unhealthy and overweight, I made a decision to regain my health.  I chose to do it by educating myself about exercise and nutrition, with a specific interest in metabolic processes.  What I learned, once again, was contrary to accepted wisdom; in fact, it was almost the USDA Food Pyramid upside down.  6 to 11 servings of grains per day?  2-3 ounces of protein?  Don’t get me started.  I applied what I learned, and had great success, and continue to have success both personally and with clients with the science I have learned.  (For a great layout of this, read Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes)

Lastly, I have examined the faith in which I was raised with a skeptical eye.  Were I have been a child born to Muslim parents in Qatar, or to Buddhist parents in Sri Lanka, or to Mormon parents in Utah, I would likely have been as indoctrinated in those faiths as I was my own.  I have approached my faith with the scrutiny of science, and with the same thorough examining I have to the other endeavors in my life.  What I have learned has been, in an understatement, life-changing.

My tattoo reminds me every day of the joy and responsibility of skepticism.  It reminds me to celebrate my beautiful brain and yours.  It reminds me that there is always something to learn, some way to grow, something new to discover.  And that’s why, every time I see it, it makes me smile.

Thanks for reading!

I don’t know the capability of the blog to handle the pics, so it may take an entry or two or three.  So here goes:

The ride up is most interesting.  We didn’t have Ben and Kirsten, the Colorado duo, for most of the 24 hours because they drove their van to Dubuque, the end town, and got in the bus with us there.  We left Murfreesboro at 4pm Friday, and arrived in Sioux City at around 6pm Saturday.  There were plenty of potty stops, gas stops, and food stops, but even with that factored in, the new engine performed beautifully.  Jesse would love to tell you about it, so ask him if you see him.

After arriving in Sioux City and setting up camp, we all converged on the party deck for the annual Riders’ Meeting.  First rule of Ragbrai, Jesse style:  A Clean Bus Is A Happy Bus.

The next picture needs a little explaining.  We didn’t KILL the roadkill, we just DECORATED the road kill.  And by we I mean the other 20,000 cyclists, not me.  Only because I didn’t have any Team Fly stickers.  I know it’s a little disrespectful, but it’s what we do.

Okay, so I’m going to post this since it’s about the halfway point of the ride, and start another entry.  I’ve got the pictures and write-up spread over the Team Fly Facebook Page, my Facebook page, and here, plus I’m gathering everyone else’s pics, so just keep looking and being patient!

Thanks for reading!

It happens every year.  We just get a good rhythm on Ragbrai, everyone’s hindquarters are beginning to toughen up, and here we find ourselves in the last town =(.

Today was a little challenging, as Ragbrai days go.  We started out today’s 62 miles in a mild drizzle.  That turned into a soft rain.  That turned into a downpour.  That was constant.  I don’t like riding in the heat, so I’ll take the rain (or a headwind – which comes later) over the heat any day, but I will admit that it was a bit on the brisk side with a saturated rain jacket and 30K speeds!  The worst part about bad weather is that the riders tend to put our heads down, leaving the townspeople with those hundreds of pies and rice krispie treats left over.  I stopped in the breakfast town and bought a cinnamon roll I didn’t really want, and 2 slices of lemon pound cake which was the best I’ve ever tasted.

The worst part for me was the first half hour when the rain washed all my sunscreen (I was optimistic) into my eyes and mouth.  About the time I was losing my good humor about the whole thing, the rain stopped, the sky cleared, and it turned into a fabulous day – the high was about 80, and although we had a headwind headed into the town of Manchester, it was just so pretty, it didn’t matter much.  I rode into town with Jesse and Sam, who gave me a boost or two on the last couple of hills (Sam, not Jesse – Sam told me he had been pushing Jesse before they caught up with me!)

In celebration of our last night, Ben and Kirsten cooked dinner – salad, pasta, bread – fabulous after a long day’s ride.  Dustin chimed in with salmon cakes that were out of this world.  We are now hoping to go toward the square for Glenda’s last night of performance.

One more exciting note:  today Aden learned to ride his bike without training wheels!  I’m not suggesting he’s Ragbrai ready, but he did great on his Transformers bike and was really proud of himself.  What a memory to have – I dropped my training wheels on Ragbrai!  He’s also a hula-hooping champion, and works the crowd while Glenda prepares to fire hoop.

All in all, a phenomenal Ragbrai.  We were so glad to have Aden with us, and so look forward to next year!

Check back for pics and as always, thanks for reading!

Charles City, Iowa.  Halfway day.

Weather is flawless.  It got a little warm yesterday, but then a storm front came through last night (soaking the tents), and we woke up to much cooler temps today, with even a low of 57 degrees tonight!

Our resident cook, Dustin, has offered to prepare dinner for us tonight – steak and salmon, fresh Iowa corn, squash, salad, and everyone’s choice of beverage (lemonade/vodka for yours truly).

Today was Amy’s first day to drive the bus, and she did a great job.  We have yet to find a designated driver for that bad boy, so we all take turns.  Gayle on Sunday, Ben on Monday, Sam on Tuesday, Amy on Wednesday, and then it starts over.  (Big Jesse gets to do every mile on the bike since he’s done his bus time in the weeks before the ride).  She did get pulled over by the Iowa State Patrol (on the 75th anniversary day), but I’ll let you ask her about that in person.

Since I last blogged, we have had a great time.  The team is solid with 19, including Aden, but not Uga and Boo – they are their own entities.  They are the bus mascots and garner more than their fair share of attention every evening.  We’ve been incredibly lucky with our “campsites” in each town.  We’ve parked close enough to the square for Glenda to walk in to do her evening shows.  She does about 3 sets (regular hoop, LED hoop, fire hoop), lays open the tip box, and has come home with a high count of $220.  For an hour’s work.  You read that right.  There are 18 of us pimping her to do more, but she’s right when she says it’s exhausting.  She’s been a huge hit, especially with nephew Aden doing his own hooping while she prepares her fire hoop.  O. M. G.  Wait til you see the video.  All to come when I get home the patch cord.

Last night we stayed in Clear Lake, Iowa.  Ring a bell?  It would have to Bobby Moss.  In the history of rock and roll, the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa holds a significant place.  It’s where the music died.  It’s the club where Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens (and the Bopper Richardson, who I don’t know) played their last show on Feb 2, 1959, before boarding an airplane and dying in that plane crash the next day.  The ballroom has been preserved in all its retro glory and we thoroughly enjoyed our tour, touched as it was with bittersweet thoughts of our boy.

I’m sorry I don’t have pics – they’ll all come in a rush when we get home.  Today Aden both fed and rode an elephant (please don’t ask me why there’s an elephant in Central Iowa, because I can’t answer).  Our rookies are killing the ride and except for a little minor road rash, we’ve all stayed safe and healthy.  This morning was team picture morning, which I always dread, but that went particularly well, in part because I dragged out everyone’s team jersey and rode them on my bike to the laundromat and back.

The bus has held up well, considering the abuse we put it through, and not an evening goes by that we don’t do at least one tour through it to show off Jesse’s handiwork.  We think we have the coolest bus here – and we look closely at everyone else’s.

If your significant person told you they would call regularly, it’s not because they are not trying.  These 20,000 cyclists simply overwhelm the network, and it’s so tough to get through.  Know that everyone is well and is having a blast.

Internet is slow and sketchy; I’ve been trying to blog the past 2 days and even now am not confident of the connection.

Sorry about the lack of pics – go to http://www.ragbrai.org for general shots, and I’ll put mine up soon!

Thanks for reading!!