Thursday, February 25, 2010



Priorities Straight
(But Not Narrow)


This week I decided to get on my bike in a serious way. My plan was to ride to school (2 hour round-trip) every day. I woke up Monday ready to get right on track. I was running late (I'll tell you why in a minute) I ran out the door, then it happened (I just like using that phrase, it makes whatever I'm about to say sound really exciting, even though it rarely is), I got up to the light at the end of my block, went to take my foot out of my pedal, and...nothing. Well something--my foot pivoted outward without releasing. I eventually managed to wrestle my foot out of the pedal and found that one of my cleat bolts had fallen out. Although I generally loctite my cleat bolts, I'd recently been making some cleat-position changes, it was only a matter of time before I got bit in the ass by my tinkering and fidgeting.

I sped back up the house, scrambled for a bolt in what I often think of as my "box of wonders," (the tool box I bring to races, that always seems to have whatever I, or anyone else happens to need inside, however unlikely.), but no luck. I scoured my work benches and bins and drawers...nothing. I grabbed my old pair of shoes, but the bolt heads were ground down to flats, they weren't coming out without a Dremel and more time than I had available. I was already running so late that it didn't seem like a total cop out to hop in the car and drive to school. So I tore off my clothes (sorry no photos), threw them in a pile, and dug out my car keys.

Of course I hadn't started the car since before M and I left for Mexico. It didn't start. I mean it really didn't start. It's an automatic, there was no clutch-popping potential and calling AAA was still not going to get me to class on time. So back in the house I went. Luckily I remembered that I had another pair of old shoes in the basement, and with some effort I was able to remove a cleat from one of them and install it on my shoe. My normal-person-clothes were thrown in a heap and the heap that was my cycling clothes was replaced onto my body. Then I realized that with all the contortions I'd gone through, there was no way that I'd be able to make it to class anywhere near on time...so I relaxed and had another cup of coffee and read some blogs for a while in my lycra and wool and Goretex.

You wanna know why I was running late? That's OK, I'm going to tell you anyway.

I was running late because I had to fill my ipod. Had to.

Not only did I have to fill it, but I had to fill it with songs of the correct duration and tempo to fit my very dogmatic workout plan. So I laid down some Juana Molina for warm up, then took it up notches gradually from (if you're an audio elitist you might want to cover your eyes now or you will surely be vomiting on your vintage vinyl collection momentarily) Bronski Beat (if you click on one link, this would be it), and Talking Heads. Then I cranked the knob a little further up to C for "The Cult" and D for "Danzig." (OK, if you're going to click on two links, this would be the second one, but if you're not a Danzig fan or a fan of hating Danzig it will be bemusing not amusing). I followed that with some Judas Priest ("Turbo Lover"), Sabbath, The Jesus Lizard, Kyuss, and then cooled it back down with some mellow Zeppelin, and some The Smiths.

That sounded awkward, "and some THE Smiths."

Of course that was just the ride to school, I needed a return mix (remember, this was the essential crap I had to do that caused me to run late. And they wonder why I'm never on time to the work). I warmed it back up, re-heated it, with some Laura Veirs, The Pixies, and The Velvet Underground. Then The Nuge (wicked old school with The Amboy Dukes) stoked the coals, along with Devo, The Dirtbombs, Run D.M.C., The Clash, Van Halen, The Avengers, Soulside, Turbonegro, and finally I turned the ipod all the way up to...however far up it goes when you swirl your finger in a very manly fashion around that dial thing until it virtually bottoms out, with some Amon Amarth (it's what Odin would listen to) and Ministry. And then cooled it all the way back down some chill Guided By Voices tunes and some who else? Gram Parsons.

And...I just spent all the time I'd allotted for writing a brilliant conclusion looking up videos to link to on The You-tubes. But man it was fun.









2 comments:

CB2 said...

quite the hot tub time machine flashback.

The Ghost of Jerry Reed said...

GBV and Bronski? You sho' know how to live up there! Oddly enough I'm listening to Boston Spaceships as I type THESE VERY WORDZ!

wv:literses