Back in the 510
Sorry for the low blog rate--not that anyone's been banging down the gates of Lunamania.
I will post something about my tasty travels in Japan, but want to have them accompanied by pictures. So, hold your breath and bookmark this site.
In the meantime, I can update about re-acclimating to my post-vacation life and realization that dude, it's AUGUST? Where did the summer go?
My acclimation to this wrong, wrong country was made easier by Elaine's visit--she was here for a writer's conference in Napa Valley. We drove up, and I got to hear Chang-Rae Lee read at the Copia Food Institute. He's one of my favorite authors, and I was dazed. I think it was part being star-struck in the presence of literary genius and part being perplexed about the Copia Food Institute. Copia is famous in gourmet circles for its exploration of "what brings people around the communal table." Apparently, this entails exhibits on the glorious history of the corkscrew, a kitchen named after Julia Child, and readings by Chang-Rae Lee. It's very Napa Valley.
Other adventures...The AIDS Ride Veteran Monkey somehow talked me into going on the Three Bears Bike Trail with her Hill Cyclists Club. I don't know how I ignored all the red flags--beware of any trail called "three bears", question the mental health of people signed on to a cycling club devoted to hills, I haven't been on a real bike ride in 10 yrs, I'm riding a mountain bike, I hates lactic acid build up.
The first leg took us along a beautiful lake and stretches of that incredible California farmland that always makes me think of the Joads in Grapes of Wrath. There were fun nature sightings including, cows who knew better than to be on a bicycle on a hot day, buzzards picking at a run over racoon, bluejays the size of the buzzards, and lizards the size of subway rats. It was all fun and games until we hit the turn onto Bear Creek Road, home of the 3 hills/bears that are this trail's namesake.
The details are too painful to recount. It sucked, but I made it with only one scraped leg. The scrapes were a result of spilling over a curb and executing some Cirque de Soleil worthy feats in order to avoid a nosedive down a gravelly, brambly, thorny ravine. After much grumbling on my part, I was told to bask in knowledge that I completed this terrible ride--on a mountain bike with no training. My consolation prize was a lunch of cheeseburgers and fries.
I must get back to work and then make time for the important task of figuring out my Olympic viewing schedule. Suggestions?
Comments
A couple of misconceptions to correct: First of all, the Hill Cyclist Club was not created for people devoted to hill climbing, but rather, it was created for a groups of over-the-hill cyclists and me, not quite over-the-hill. Secondly, there was no "talked me into going" -- she wanted to get outside and get some exercise, so I extended the invitation! Third, she was told she should bask in the glory of victory, over Mama Bear, Papa Bear, and Baby Bear, because she really did kick butt! Her bike must have been at least twice as heavy as mine! Finally, her triumph over gravity and death-defying balancing act on the edge of that precipice was even more impressive -- who knew that with only a smidgen of cereal and yogurt, one bottle of water, and a few bites of a granola bar in her tummy, she could actually achieve such physical feats! No wonder she was grumpy! We do hopes that Nation's cheeseburger and fries was sufficient consolation to bring her back to ride the Bears... any other takers?
Posted by: ms. monkey | August 11, 2004 12:04 AM