Back Then I Might Not Of Got It Either

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It started out gray again. There was a fine mist in the air. It was just enough to show up on my visor but not enough to get me wet. It was another one of those mornings when I hungered for more miles.

Speaking of miles, a deputy asked me this morning how long was my commute. I told him it was a little over 9mi/14km to work and about 15mi/24km home. When he asked how come there was a difference in the two lengths I figured it best to simply say, "I go home a different way." I suspected if he had to ask he probably wouldn't understand my answer. However, it does once again point to the difference between when I commuted by car and now. Back then I might not of got it either.

We had a visitor in the parking area today. When I went out for my walk during my morning break I noticed him. Notice the weather lightening up. By lunch time it was a much lighter shade of gray then in the morning.

By evening there was a glimpse of light blue.

But there were still lots of clouds and the sun was playing peek-a-boo.

• 72F/22C and gray for the ride to work.
• 80F/27C with plenty of clouds for the home ride.

Gray Day

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It was another gray day. It looked like this in the morning.

It rained pretty hard before I left for work, but once again took a break long enough for me to ride in dry.

The temperatures have been rather cool for July. This is a very different summer than last year for sure. I could have well thought I was back in Michigan today.

For the ride home it looked pretty much the same.

This time I did ride through some light rain, but not enough to take the gear off outside before tracking into the kitchen.

All in all, another great day to ride. I really feel blest to live in a place where I can ride pretty much year around.

• 66F/19C for the morning commute with light rain everywhere it seems except where I was.
• 75F/24C and light rain for the home ride.

Perspective

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

I've had better mornings. For years after the head injury I pretty much kept the same schedule on the weekends as during the week. Actually, I rather dreaded the weekend for the extra challenges it presented.

Now this is changed. I have weekends and this is good news.

I actually look forward to weekends. I enjoy them and I'm very busy, but there is a shadow lucking just beyond this joy. I now have Mondays. I'm not complaining. Mondays are an adjustment for most folks.

This morning my schedule got upset by a missing key. Of course, I found it and still had time for breakfast and made it to work early. Having a head that often has a mind of its own I've learned to build lots of buffer in my schedule. I hope you can imagine how little amused I was to find the door to my work area locked. Me and a growing number of co-workers could only wait for someone to show up with a key. Eventually, we were let in and my work day began. Eventually I even became productive. Oh well.

At afternoon break I walked over to near the Cupples No.7.

The pace is picking up. There is nothing but bad Mondays left for this old building. Ah, perspective.

• 65F/18C and cloudy for the ride to work.
• 76F/24C and overcast for the ride home.

Other Than The Direction

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

This is what it looked like for the ride to work.

This is what it looked like for the ride home.

Not much changed other then the direction I was headed. It was a gray day with a couple of sprinkles, but no real rain. Once again great temperatures for riding.

• 68F/20F and mostly cloudy for the morning commute.
• 72F/22C and mostly cloudy for the home ride.

Superb Weather

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

The moon greeted me this morning.

While the sun played on a mimosa tree.

I can go weeks without seeing a Vespa, but today I saw two.

One during my afternoon walk.

The other one on the ride home.

Once again the clouds put on a show for me.

Tonight the winds were calm and the fountain didn't seem nearly as excited as it did last evening.

• 68F with a few clouds for the ride to work.
• 81F and plenty of clouds playing with the sun for the ride home.

Yep, there isn't a much better weather day to be had.

Oh Well, It Is The Way Of It

Yes, I rode to work today.

But . . .

I didn't ride to work at the normal time. The car is up for renewal of its license plates and needed to get its Emissions Test. Since it was nearly time for its normal service I decided to go ahead with that as well. Good plan, except normal service turned into major money. And it wasn't anything major. Oh well, it is the way of it.

It was a half day for me. I always have trouble getting my head on track when I go in after lunch. Today was no exception. Today the good news was by mid-afternoon I was back to being fully engaged.

It was fairly breezy for the ride home.

This fountain was displaying which direction the wind was blowing.

Today I heard no one complaining about the weather which is a near miracle for July in St. Louis. Actually, tomorrow is supposed to be even nicer. Sweet.

• 76F/24C with a few clouds for the ride into work.
• 80F/27C and maybe a couple more clouds for the ride home.

A Long Day

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

After work Heather and I went to a party to launch my friends new CD, The Book of Healing.

The project was a bit of a departure for my friend Jim. I didn't know how to describe it. Heather said it was House Rap. Perhaps. It was definitely reaching  for the Reaching.

It was wonderful and it made for a long day.

• 80F/27C with some clouds for the ride to work.
• 90F/32C with a few less clouds for the ride home.

Eventually

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It was nice and cool for the ride in this morning. North of here there was dense fog. We didn't see any of that. It was just a little on the cloudy side.

It was warm for the ride home, but that's pretty typical July weather. I ain't complaining. Actually after tomorrow the temperatures are supposed to be very moderate for this time of year. We'll see.

I did take the usually Monday morning photo. It is missing because I left the camera on my desk at work. I tend to get forgetful when there are lots of changes going on. It's just the way its going to be for a while at work. It will all be fine . . . eventually.

• 73F/23C and a little cloudy for the ride to work.
• 93F/34C with fewer clouds for the ride home. 

Question of the Day

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

Thirst is everywhere . . .

And so are those who bring water.

Question of the day:

Was it too hot for most riders today? Or, was it just a case of it being Friday afternoon?

Have a safe weekend.

• 80F/27C with few clouds for the ride to work.
• 97F/36C with some clouds and a heat index of 103F/39C for the ride home.

What A Hot Sky Looks Like

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

I wasn't alone.

I had expected there to be fewer bikes today, but I was wrong. At least, I got there early enough to get a good parking spot.

Although it was warm, it didn't get as hot as some thought it would. The heat index didn't make triple digit Fahrenheit, but it got as close as it could without going there.

On the way to work I saw a custom convertible.

I noticed it first in my review mirror and hoped to get a shot of it as it past.

There is that damn delay between pushing the button and the picture being taken. I tried to allow for it.

And I didn't do too bad. I'd say he fixed the leak in the roof for at least now.

After work I spied this pickup truck.

The tag line written on the tailgate read, "Making the world greener one garden at a time."

I was riding when it was the hottest.

This is pretty much what a hot sky looks like.

It's suppose to be hotter tomorrow. We'll see.

• 81F/27C and fair for the ride to work.
• 91F/33C with a heat index of  99F/37C, yes it was humid and hazy for my errands and ride home.

It Was Warm

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It was warm, but not as warm as it is going to be. Still it wasn't as difficult to find a parking spot at work.

Tomorrow we're expecting heat indexes into the triple digits Fahrenheit. The parking should be easy.

• 81F/27C with a few clouds for the ride to work.
• 91F/33C calm with lots of clouds for the ride home.

The End Is Near

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

I had to take another photo of the old Cupples Warehouse No. 7

The sign still proclaims the lost hopes of a developer. The roof appears to be mostly gone as well.

And I noticed there is a crane moving into position. The end is near. Sad.

• 79F/26C with a few clouds and less bikes in the lot for the morning.
• 92F/33C with fewer clouds for the home ride.

Not Dead Eye Blue

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It was another gorgeous day in the neighborhood.

0710CDT

The skies were blue all day, but not dead eye blue. There were enough clouds to keep it interesting.

By home ride time there was even a touch of threat in the air.

But the rain stayed to the South and the West of us.

Which was just fine by me.

• 76F/24C with blue sky and no place to park when I got to work.
• 90F/32C and mostly cloudy for the home ride.

A Full Day

No I didn't ride to work today.

I spent the day in Illinois packing boxes. Heather's Grandmother needed to be out of her apartment by Monday which means the movers are coming tomorrow morning at 0830 to pick up her stuff. This was a rush deal necessitated by the quirks of our elder care and Medicare. The bottomline is this: Since it is doubtful she will be able to return to living in an apartment after sometime in rehab she must leave her apartment. Of course, it is more complex than that, and at the same time it is just that simple. Time will tell if she ends up moving into a skilled nursing facility or if she will be able to return to an assisted living situation. Until we know her things go into storage and we wait.

We didn't make our way home until after rush hour.

The Mississippi from the Poplar Bridge.

It was a full day. We go back tomorrow for round number two. It shouldn't be as long.

Nothing But Blue

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It was a beautiful. There wasn't more than a few clouds in the sky at any given time, and most of the time there was nothing but blue.

I stretched the morning ride a bit which gave me time to take a couple of photos.

I've been seeing this bike from time to time. It is usually parked by a HHR painted in the same matte grayish green color. I wonder if it is an image thing, or if this beast travels.

A number of neighborhoods have garden areas open to the community.  This one is in Tower Grove East. There is an area above for vegetables.

As you might have expected the parking area looked a little different today.

I noticed the Vulcan wasn't there. Could it be he started his experiment today?

This ones for you Sonja.

I'd not seen this red bike before. Later at break time when I was taking my usual walk around the perimeter of the Courthouse I saw a man on the other side of the street waiting to cross. He was wearing a suit and tie and looking very lawyer-ish, while carrying a white full-face helmet. I slowed my pace and managed to meet him just as he finished his jaywalk. I asked him if he owned the Thruxton. He did. When I told him which bike was mine, he had to tell me about his Honda Dream 350. It seems he has a whole stable of bikes and pretty much carried on a monologue about them as we walked together toward the parking area. I had to break off to go back inside or we might still be there. He is obviously very proud of his bikes.

• 69F/21C and sunny for the ride to work.
• 83F/28C with a few clouds for the ride home.

A Few Sprinkles

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

The rain pretty much missed me again.

I rode through a few sprinkles. I wouldn't have even needed the raingear, but I was glad for it.

Near Downtown the streets were nearly dry, but the sky looked plenty wet.

The tale of the parking lot indicated rain was expected and that's what happened. It rained pretty hard most of the morning. By afternoon the rains had moved on.

Recently I chatted with the Vulcan rider. He told me he was thinking of switching up and starting to ride his bicycle to the Metro Station near where he lives and taking the train in. If he follows through I suspect on rainy days the lot is going to be a very lonely place indeed.

• 75F/24C with a sprinkle or three for the ride to work.
• 88F/31C and partly cloudy for the ride home.

Even So

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

It was a really warm day. The temperature reached 95F/35C and the heat index went into triple digits. Ironically this meant I had to wear a fleece jacket all day at work and still got chilled. Actually, I was just thawing out after a 35min ride home in gear. Oh well.

• 81F/27C and hot hazy with some clouds for the ride to work.
• 93F/34C with a heat index of 100F/38C and still slightly cloudy for the home ride.

Miss Billie Is Back

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

I think you can tell by looking at the number of bikes and scooters in the lot rain wasn't much in the forecast.

This was Miss Billie's first day back in service and she is sporting a new windscreen.

I used to have a windscreen but one of the brackets which clipped onto the handlebars broke. One of the problems with the type on mounting it used was it ruled out the use of HippoHands. I'm hopeful, but not positive this new setup will work. I was going to wait until Autumn to put on the screen, but since we had to take off the one of the mirrors to work out the starting issue, which by the way was a relay, it just seemed easiest to go ahead and do it now. To my surprise, little Miss Billie is running faster than before. I hadn't expected that.

• 77F/25C with some clouds for the ride to work.
• 92F/33C still with some clouds for the home ride.

You Biker Types Are All The Same

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

A woman who I used to see regularly at the cafe in the mornings, but lately not so much, was exiting the cafe as I was entering. She gave me the biggest smile I ever remember seeing on her face. "Did you see my new ride?"

"No," I said, "Where is it?" She pointed over to the corner of the parking lot near the bicycle rack. "Is that your white Buddy?" She nodded. "Is it a 125cc?"

"No," She replied, "It's just a 50."

This is where in my mind's eye I would have imagined me saying, "Cool." Instead I said, "I think you should have gotten the 125."

"Oh, you biker types are all the same. I'll upgrade to bigger one when the time comes and if I want to."

At least I was graceful enough not to get defensive and point out to her my daily ride is only a 100cc and that I am hardly a "biker type"; and I was discerning enough to notice I was doing what I myself hate when some riders disparage me for the size of my rides. As it was, we chatted on about where she got her Buddy and how much she was loving having it in her life.She got a big laugh out of me sharing how a certain blogger friend (you know who you are) had pointed out to me the front end of the Buddy looks much like a codpiece. Happily our conversation ended well and hopefully I will hear marvelous things about her further adventures.

Speaking of my daily ride, Mike came and hauled Billie to his shop. Ironically, he was able to get it kickstarted. Oh well, I don't feel badly about that. We figure it is the start button itself that's not working and the oil change should take care of the clutch slippage that was making her difficult for me to kickstart. There's a decent chance I may have her back by Monday. It has been a nice change riding Isabelle, but I will be happy to be reunited with my little gas miser.

• 69F/ and clear for the start of the ride to work, but foggy Downtown.
• 84F/ with some clouds for the home ride.

Couldn't Make Up Its Mind

Yes I rode to work today.

And . . .

It couldn't figure out if it wanted to rain or let the sun shine.

And so, it did both. By the time I got Downtown it had decided to let the sun shine.

It was sunny all day. A pleasant change from the last few days.

After work I stopped by Mike's new location. We'd talked about him coming out and picking Billie up this evening, but it didn't work out. We'll try again Friday.

Mike's new place is near St. Francis De Sales Catholic Church. It is a landmark in South City. I've never been inside but if you click here you can take a virtual tour of the inside if you'd like. The Church's campus covers a whole city block. The neighborhood is but a shadow of its once self. At its height the area around this church would have been a teeming mass of humanity. Now it is rather more a mess of humanity, but its trying.

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July, a national holiday. Normally I take some time off and head up to Michigan, but with the big change over to E-filing happening at the Courts, I'm sticking around town. I'm hoping for a nice restful weekend, which is always a challenge with this particular holiday's connection with fireworks.

• 65F/18C with a light rain and sunshine for the ride to work.
• 79F/26C with a few clouds and plenty of sunshine for the home ride.

I'm Still Here

Yes, I rode to work today.

And . . .

I rode to work yesterday.

I didn't post because my computer was being healed by a computer engineer based in Costa Rica. It is all better now. It didn't have a virus, but for some reason my computer had stopped deleting temporary files. This meant I was critically close to running out of memory. I suppose I could have seized the opportunity to try blogging on my phone, but I didn't.

Today the computer is amazingly fast.

Last evening as I left work it began to rain. While I was waiting for my light to change I saw this group of "suits", I'm guessing they were a team of attorneys leaving the Federal Courthouse. They refused to run or even walk fast to get to their cars.

This morning it rained for the ride Downtown.

It was a nearly perfect rain. It was light and steady. The rain was steady enough to keep the oil washed off the streets, yet light enough not to present a hydroplaning hazard. The temperature was just right for my rain gear. It wasn't too hot nor was I chilled. All one had to do was not get grabby with the front brake and watch out for the painted lines and all was good.

Even though it was raining I wanted to get a photo of Cupples Warehouse No. 7. It will soon be demolished. Some of the old warehouses have been converted to Lofts, apartments, offices or condos. This one was going to be condos, but it didn't happen. Soon it will be just a memory.

The conditions for the ride home were pretty much the same as in the morning.

The temperature was nearly the same and the rain a little lighter. Still it was a nice ride home. I'll admit the ride home took a little longer than usual.

I'm told on this date a year ago it was 108F/42C with lots of sunshine. I have no doubt I enjoyed my commutes much more today.

• 65F/18C with a perfect rain for the ride to work.
• 64F/18C with a nearly perfect rain for the ride home.