Kickball & Bar-B-Q

So the day started off OK, as the weather was co-operative, except my mood was not. Thus I did not get up til after noon. With the shortened time available to do stuff, I prioretised. 1. Improve spirits by checking my bike out (needed some air in the tires) and riding around a bit just outside the house. Then did the same for the mini. Felt better. Next was to attend to the cheapo trailer. I tightened the spokes up a bit while making sure they were close to true (the tires still seem a little suspect). Then I put them on the trailer, bolted on two pieces of tubing, and popped it into shape. Now to attatch it! #@*&^$*@!? thingy! Had to play around with the clamp to get it to work. Stupid thing. At last for a test ride. Wasn't too bad. Didn't have time to do a disassemly to remove the nylon kiddie-carrying capacity. I suppose that will follow soon though. With the prospect of rain forecast, I then tackled the lawn. Finished it in the nick of time, just as the first few droplets arrived. Then I moved a bunch of the firewood (put it in big buckets) to under the sundeck. I left the twiggy bits still in heaps. Have to tend to them later. So into the house for a quick clean-up and dash off to catch the bus to town. OK, to Surrey Central, as time-, schedule- & weather-wise it would be better to do that and then the SkyTrain rather than 351 & ride east.
I was a couple mins behind so I raced off in hopes it wouldn't be too far ahead. As I crossed 152nd on KGH I saw the bus I wanted off in the distance, just approaching 148th/32nd Div with the Black Forest on the far side. Now I knew I had just barely a chance of catching it. I would need a little bit of luck. So I crouched and hammered it. After I passed Fi's old Starbucks and came to the trailer park, the bus had just passed Crescent Rd, and was heading for the Bailley bridge, nobody at the stop to slow it down, eeek! My only hope now was for the Park & Ride to have people to catch him there. Racing along, the light changed against me at Crescent Rd, so I nipped off to the side by the golf driving range entranced, arround a car stopped to leave the Range, hop the curb back onto the road, accross the bridge's "sidewalk" (in quotes because it really isn't what one thinks of as a sidewalk. The width is barely 6" wider than my handle-bars), but oh no! as I'm about 5 seconds from turning into the Park & Ride, the bus is just starting to pull out, so quick plan B, keep on going on KGH to the stop @ 40th Ave and hope that traffic slows its exit from the P&R. Frequent shoulder checks AOK. No bus yet. When it comes into view on the overpass I'm mere seconds from the stop. Almost out of breath, I board the bus.
The rest of the bus/skytrain was just the typical "scum run" riff-raff nonsense/banality.
I get off at Nanaimo Station, it is really raining now. In my hurry to leave, I left my rain-pants behind and had no leggings, but at least I had my booties. I put them on and headed for Trout Lake. Got there, crossed through to the other side by the rec centre, and there, by the tennis courts under a tree is Kim, with the barbeque. So I approach, the time is about 1845, I'm theoretically 15 mins "late" PDT, but about 90 mins early VBT. Simon was aldeady there, but not in sight at the moment. A few minutes later Andrew (I think his name is) showed up with the ball. A bouncy rubber one, pink, with "Girls Rule" printed on it. Just purchased for the occassion. Over the next 40 mins a few more people show up, it is raining more, so we decide to head to the east side of the lake where ther is a shelter. Simon leaves a note on a found kids mini-bike telling any more arrivals of the relocation. The barbeque tank was severly lacking in plenitude. After another while and more arrivals, a C3H8 party headed by Simon left for said same gaseous substance. Of course all the while people are quenching their thirsts.
(running out of time at work, very busy today, the nerve!). Anyhoo, almost no solid food was brought, so afew, including myself, went to Safeway for supplies. When I got back, eventhough is was really dark, the kickball game was in progress (the rain stopped while on the way to Safeway). (ARRRGHHH! Renée Fleming problems! The stage door is locked and the Diva can't get in to rehearse!)(shift over, gotta go)

I started this "yesterday", so HBD2RESM,ILU!

Darn funny colours! The scanner wouldn't detect the fluorescent orange.

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Click on pix to view full size. All paper used was the back of a junk fax.

Last Thursday's MM

So I went to the Midnight Mass ride Thurs. 10th, and it was a "Themed" ride. "Dressed for Success" it was called, meaning dresses for all & sundry riders was de rigeur (OK, so a few didn't wear dresses, but most did). On the grounds of self incrimination I can't go into full details of my garb, but it was 54% angora. I wanted to be at the meet-up for a bit of socialising 1st, so I left on the 22:30 321 &c. and arrived Grandview Park 23:45 (the slight delay due to "dressing" after I got off the SkyTrain and a shooting necessitated detour @ Commercial Dr & Gravely St). The "founder" of Vancouver MM, MidnightSimon, is of to cycle parts of Europe soon, so this ride was one of his send-offs. Be sure to check his progress via the lynx (Midnight Miles) to the right. http://picasaweb.google.com/bikingpenguin
to see my pictures of the ride & more.(and click on this picture to see it full size.)

After the usual pre-ride fortifications (mine was rum which had a huge cinnamon stick macerating in it for 5 days. Mmmmm, sssinnymon.), we went to QE park, rode around there a bit in the parking lot (it has some fun features for urban skilz, inebriated style), chilled, conversed &c. Some people left sooner than others, and I left with the last group. The gate to the parking lot was open when we went in, but locked when we went to leave. A bit of a surprise, but in a way funny that nobody tried to kick us out when they went to lock the gate. Its not like we would not have been noticed, and we could hardly have been confused as a threatening group, but I digress.

As we were going back along the Ontario bike route, I was contemplating whether to go straight downtown to catch the Night Bus to scurvy central, or risk 2-bikedom rackage when it arrives Kingsway & Broadway. Then I noticed, when we were nearing 12th ave, that Simon Was still with us. I thought he had peeled of the pack sooner as I hadn't seen him when we left QEP. So I decided to go with the pack to The Naam. Wouldn't be much of a send-off to be one of the early departers, 'cuz the others would probably have way more opportunities to say adios amigo.

Eventually the 10 or 12 of us left the Naam, heading E on Broadway. The last of the other riders finally peeled off to their respective locales, Bob of You Never Bike Alone, at Nanaimo St. The time was 04:08. I went straight east, stayed on Lougheed all the way to Gagliardi, south to Cariboo rd, and carried on through Bby, NW, Sry &c like before. I had made such good time getting to scurvy central that I didn't wait for the 1st 321 S-bound (which would have been faster) but carried on home to see what my time would be. Arrived home 06:02. Ride time 1hr 56 mins. It was a great ride. Only had to stop twice (KGH @ 88th, & KGH & #10).