"Safe and Perfect Bores Me to Death"

***This is a bumper sticker on my car. It is from a magical song.***

I just laughed. I pulled up this blog and saw my last post, from April, titled #30DaysofBust, referring to the endless winter and my relative refusal to get on my bike although it was April. It was winter for about another two weeks after that post. Winter is gone now.

Summer it is, of course. I write my blog daily, while I bike. Really, I do, though you can't read my head, for better or worse. Clever secrets are what you are missing. The myriad observations from that perspective--the one where you're less-than-200-pound self (bike weight included) is booking amongst thousand pound vehicles, environmental terrorists behind the wheels focused on nothing but . . . their cell phones. It's true. However rampant you think texting and driving is, multiply it times 100, no doubt. Men, women, younger, older. Everyone is doing it. I swear up and down if I ever see someone texting--and it's easy to see someone texting in their car when you're on a bike--and they hit me, I will summon every morsel of strength I have to scrape myself off the pavement and . . . punch them in the face. That's not what I sat down to write about though.

I'm selling my house. Yeah that's right, I'm selling my house. It will be on the market in about a month. I had a "stager" over last night, and that was hilarious. She's a shark. Once you start bleeding willingness to do as she suggests, she opens her jaws and takes a big bite. I did say no eventually. I'm looking to balance ease in process and maximum sale price. That's an art in and of itself, saying no.

Not enough people know how to do that. Professionally, personally . . . just say no sometimes. Unless you're a sucker. Speaking of suckers, when I ride my bike home from work, I cross over I-94, and I look down, literally and figuratively, at it. "Little boxes, on the freeway, and they all look the same," stopped and aligned perfectly in four lanes. And I say, "Suckers." Every time.

I told you here awhile ago that I was going to sell my house. Now I'm doing it. I'll still be around, don't you worry. How I'm getting to where I'm going, where I am going, and what I'll be doing when I get there is, well, fodder for other days. 

On one of those other days, I'll even share what Metric line I'm going to slip in at my board meeting on Thursday, unbeknownst to all. Hint: It's not the bumper sticker up top.

I will share this little bite as I bid you goodnight, that the title of this post, "Safe and Perfect Bores Me to Death", comes from Permission, by Aby Wolf. She is so right.

#30DaysofBust

***The snowy view from my upstairs window tonight.***

Ten days or so ago, I wrote about #30daysofbiking A simple enough premise, #30days of biking is a locally created movement to get more people--adults, specifically--back on a bike. You sign up, and in doing so pledge to ride your bike each day in April. Then you ride your bike each day in April. Pretty fucking simple. 

The mission, paraphrased, of #30daysofbiking is for people who don't necessarily ride their bike anymore to get back on the saddle, and in the process remember the sheer, raw joy of riding a bike. Then you want more, more, more, and as a result perhaps you at least partially hang-up your environmental terrorist leanings, which probably are the result of American consumerism brainwashing more than anything, and view and utilize your bike as a source of fun, exercise, and transportation. 

That's a lot to chew on, but basically just get on your bike and ride, love it, and repeat. That's #30daysofbiking.

There's been one major roadblock to this otherwise simple equation here in these parts this year: It's still winter. In fact, we're "enjoying" pretty much a blizzard today and tonight (see pic). I wrote here at the beginning of the month that I had pledged and I would ride. Truth be told, I've ridden maybe four out of 18 days. I feel no guilt though. I run, taking care of the exercise part; I take transit often, taking care of the save the Earth angle; but I do miss the fun. While biking in cool, or even coldness, does have it's fun side and appeal, I'm not there right now. I want some sunshine banging on my back, warm sunshine. I want it now and will settle for nothing less.

So I am busted, in that #30daysofbiking is #30daysofbust for me.

#30daysofbiking - Intro

crappy photo of a nifty spoke card

I'm in. It started Monday, April 1. What is #30daysofbiking? The offset text below, from the #30days website, explains it best. Take a second to click-through to the site. #30days is pretty simple. It is pretty cool. It pretty much spans the globe.

This is the first time I have formally pledged and participated. I will chronicle my biking exploits, and probably other stuff too, on a regular basis this month. Perhaps you can pledge to #30daysofreading Bernie's Blog. I hope you do!

* * *

30 Days of Biking, whose fourth year begins April 1, has one rule: Bike somewhere every day for 30 days—around the block, 20 miles to work, whatever suits you—then share your adventures online. We advocate daily bicycling because we believe it enriches lives and preserves the Earth. A worldwide, thousands-strong community of joyful cyclists has been forming around that idea since April 2010—and will further amass in 2013! We ride our bikes every day.

The Best Dog

Well my beautiful friend, it has been four years to the day since you went to Puppy Heaven. You are still my puppy, just like the day I took this photo--I want to say in 1994--when you were just the craziest dog ever! I can look at that pic and remember exactly how your fur felt on my hand. Short and tickly on your snout, long and luxurious on your back. I remember how your ears smell, how your paws smell, and how your stinky breath smells! I remember how you sing to me. You are hilarious.

I cleaned off the pond the other day at Mom and Dad's and thought about how you used to play on the ice while I skated around. You loved it over there, and I loved you being there. I still love you being here with me.

You're the best dog. Goodnight Bernie. :)