Ride to Eat

New York, Walking, Dancing, Squab and Soujouk

2012-01-17T21:00:00.000-08:00

And so the eating continues.
Just back from a handful of days in New York. Official reason for going was to attend the Golden Festival, an annual overload of Balkan music and dance. But as with most of my travels of late, eating was an important part of the itinerary.

Jerry and I arrived early Wednesday morning after taking the red eye. We knew a nap was in the offing but first there was a task at hand: cooking 40 pounds of soujouk, a Turkish beef sausage.

Last year Paul, our host was the soujouk chef de cuisine, but since he was in Las Vegas for the Consumer Electric Show, the job was left to his wife Nancy, Jerry and me. We hauled out Nancy's crab pot and set to work.

We crammed as much sausage as humanly possible into the pot and waited for it to boil. Once it finally did, we waited the prescribed 10 minutes for it to be done. Then, that batch went into the sink where the next task was to pull off the skin while the next batch cooked.

After the first batch Jerry discovered that if you immediately doused the sausage with cold water the skin practically slid off by itself. It was incredibly satisfying for the casing to just peel off the sausage.

Three batches later we were done, and we loaded the sausages into coolers, topped them off with ice and then Jerry and I headed to our basement room for a nap.

Not sure what the rest of the week would bring, we decided that night would be dinner at our favorite Park Slope restaurant, Al di La. Al di La takes no reservations, so we headed down to 5th Avenue to arrive in time for its 6 pm opening.

We were quickly seated at the same table we sat at last year, and once again, I had no idea what wine to order. I'm pretty good at California wines. I've even expanded my repertoire beyond Napa and Sonoma into Lodi and the central coast, but Italy is still a complete mystery. Nancy suggested a bottle she had tasted during a previous visit, and she picked a good one. It was a nice peppery red with an interesting aftertaste, that admittedly took a bit of getting used to, but after a few sips and a little air, went down easily.

Though on any other day of the year I don't eat beef, I generally make an exception at Al di La and I order the medallions of beef liver. I pretty much assumed I would do so again, but the specials were enticing. One was a squid risotto and the other squab with wild mushrooms. I had never had squab before,and with a little coaxing, I went for it. I was not disappointed. The plate was an orgy of richness: delicious meat surrounded by more rich mushrooms. I don't think I will order squab again because I'm not sure it could live up to the wonderful dish I experienced.

No trip to Al di La would be complete without at least one order of Malfatti-- a Swiss chard dumpling filled with a blend of ricotta and herbs, topped with fried sage. We always order it and are never disappointed. We also shared a farro salad. It was okay, not my favorite, but Nancy loves it.

We decided to skip dessert because I had brought cookies with me. We went home and I brought out my tins of biscotti and brown butter shortbread topped with fleur de sel.

The brown butter shortbread is my current favorite cookie to make and to eat. It is incredibly easy to make and the brown butter gives it a rich nutiness. The fleur de sel makes each bite explode with flavor.

After cookies, Nancy wanted us to try some liqueur called Domaine de Canton. It was a rich, sweet ginger liqueur and was fantastic. We drank way too much and slept incredibly well that night.

The next day brought a light rain, but Jerry and I headed into the city and spent a good chunk of the day at the Museum of Modern Art. Earlier that day we went to the half price ticket booth and got tickets for "Seminar," a play with Alan Rickman. I have loved him since I saw him in "Truly Madly Deeply" in 1990.

Last year before we went to the theater we had found a really good Chinese restaurant, and through a little detective work, we managed to find it again. We were a bit smarter this time and ordered only one entree-- a very nice chicken and vegetables. I found it interesting that the restaurant had no condiments on the table, but in reality, we didn't need any. The seasoning was just right in both the chicken and the hot and sour soup.

Friday was a trip to my favorite Brooklyn store: Sahadi's. A trip to Brooklyn would not be complete without buying some halvah, dried herbs, and maybe a jar of ajvar, or this time, some grapefruit marmalade. After Sahadi's, we had lunch at a diner-y sort of place. I had a smoked salmon scramble and more good coffee.

Friday night, we grazed on cheese, good bread and wine for dinner. Nancy said Paul would never accept something like that for dinner, but Jerry and I do it all the time.

Saturday we made another trip into the city to Soho. We window shopped and had lunch at another Italian restaurant. More wild mushrooms, this time with pasta.

We got home in time to get ready for the Golden Festival. The day before we left for New York I found a pair of gold shoes, so I was all set.

Food at the Golden Festival has not changed in years. People are always reminded that the food is for snacking, not dinner, but since the event starts at 6 pm and people use a lot of energy dancing, there is an incredible amount of food, including several kinds of sausage, feta and kasseri cheese, baba ghanoush, ajvar and hummus, vegetable trays and a hot bean dish. Normally there is a beet salad that I make, but if there was any this year, I didn't see it. There was a cash bar with not very good wine, but the music and dancing more than make up for any shortcomings in the wine.

I remember the days when I not only stayed until the end of the Golden Festival, I helped with clean up and carting things out, but I'm not as young as I used to be so after Slavic Soul Party played at around 12:30, we called a car service and headed back to Nancy and Paul's.

While the "official" festival ends Saturday night, what is perhaps my favorite part of the event is on Sunday. Emerson, whom I've known since I was a teenager, lives in Brooklyn and people start arriving at his house around noon for an all day and well into the evening "brunch." It's the best time to have a good visit with friends, many of whom I don't see from one year to the next. My friend Kathleen, who lived in Montana the same time I did, was in from New Mexico, and we had a great visit.

So it was another day of eating, drinking a little wine and slivovitz, and spending time with great friends.

Now that I'm back home I'm determined to start to have a more healthy diet, although today was the Fancy Food Show, full of great cheeses, salted caramels and basamic ice cream, and later this week I'm going to San Antonio, tagging along with Jerry to a conference.

So maybe next week I'll go back to my two vegan meals a day. But who knows what adventures next week might bring.

Mill Valley, Salmon and South Africa

2012-01-08T16:28:00.001-08:00

Today was a little ride to Mill Valley with the Positive Pedalers. Their AIDS Lifecycle training series started today. Since Jerry and I don't like to cross the Golden Gate Bridge on the tandem, we picked up the ride on the south bridge parking lot. So I'm talking little ride, less than 20 miles. But it was, once again, a nice day for a ride. Sun was shining and not too cold.

We met up with our friends in Mill Valley and it was wonderful to see everyone again after what felt like quite a while. Looking forward to continuing to ride with this group when we are in town, which in the near future, doesn't look like it will be all that often. We are off to New York next week, and a day after we get back we head to San Antonio for a few days.

Our bike rack broke somehow on the way to the ride, so we had to figure out how to get a tandem in a Honda. Thank goodness the back seat folded down and Jerry always has supplies. He pulled rope out the wheel well and we got the frame in sans wheels and back handlebars. We slid it in and drove home carefully.

The ride did have one big climb, or should I say series of climbs. The hill out of Sausalito back to the parking lot does go on and on. But we rode it fairly well. Our average speed was decent and we were happy with the ride.

We were particularly happy because we went out to dinner Saturday night and shared a bottle of wine. There were three of us, so it's not as if we had a huge amount, but any the night before a ride is more than we usually have.

We met Bryan Urbsaitis at Luna Park in the City. Bryan lives in New York and was in town for a couple of days. While I had never met Bryan, we have been Facebook friends for some time because of our love of cycling and our involvement in HIV and AIDS organizations.

Bryan runs AIDS Ride South Africa, a cycling adventure that, in close to three weeks, spans most of South Africa. It has intrigued me but I really wanted to learn more.

And the more I heard the more intrigued, and interested, I became. Because of the expense of getting to South Africa, the ride has been small-- fewer than 10 people-- but it is still a new ride and has the potential to grow. Along with cycling there are stops at animal preserves and a chance to meet local people as well.

While Africa has never been at the top of my "must visit" list, this ride does sound like the ideal way to see it: cycling with a group of like-minded folks who want to raise funds and awareness for the terrible problem of HIV and AIDS in South Africa.

While I have yet to sign on the dotted line, I am seriously thinking of doing this ride, and Jerry is having positive thoughts about it as well. What I will do, ride or not, is try to help Bryan with some PR and possibly see if we can get some bicycles for some young South Africans to accompany us. Mike's Bikes, a northern California bicycle shop, has a program donating bikes to Africa, and I would like to talk to them about the possibility of lending some of those bikes to the ride.

We spent hours at Luna Park, part of which was spent eating. I started with a beet salad, but I have to say I was a bit disappointed. It was quite low on beets, with more mandarin orange slices than beets. But it was okay. I had salmon as a main course and its surface was deliciously grilled with the inside on the rare side, just the way I like it.

We even had dessert. My fruit crisp with a dollop of ice cream was lovely, though it really did gild the lily.

I had several cups of coffee with dinner, but generally, coffee does not keep me away. And I don't believe it did last night. What did keep me up were thoughts of Africa.

Sausalito, Salad and Resolutions

2012-01-01T14:04:00.001-08:00

Jerry and I started out the new year with a short ride. We had not been on the tandem in weeks, so we thought we'd take it easy and not do too many miles. We have thought this in past weeks, but somehow managed not to suit up and hit the road.

Today was different. Neither of us had to talk the other into it, despite drinking wine and staying up past our bedtime last night. We celebrated the new year with our friends Sha and Lora. Sha makes delicious Persian food, and we have taken to celebrating "east coast" new year's with them. Although last night we were having such a good time talking we celebrated east and west coast: unusual for us. We had some really good red wines and the evening, which started at 6 pm, flew by.

Jerry and I did not leap out of bed this morning. We lolled for close to an hour, finally getting up around 9:30. After breakfast and reading part of the New York Times, we donned our Lycra and headed out.

While it was warmer at home, it still wasn't terribly cold and we started out with a tail wind, so we sped down the road. In Sausalito we stopped at a cafe for lunch.

I decided with the new year I was going to make one, and only one resolution: to eat better. Mark Bittman had an article recently about eating vegetarian, or even vegan, two out of three meals. I think this is a fine idea and while I won't commit to doing this every day, I am going to make an effort to do it more often.

Lunch today was a bagel, lox and cream cheese, so definitely not vegan or even vegetarian, but my peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat for breakfast was vegan, and since this is movie night, dinner will be popcorn. So two out of three: done.

Also at lunch we had a Mediterranean salad: full of artichokes, olives, delicious grape tomatoes and a few pieces of fresh mozzarella.

The other thing I plan to do, though I refuse to "resolve" to do it, is lose 10 to 15 pounds. I have really packed it on this fall, and am at the heaviest I have been in more than 10 years. I am going to go back to Weight Watchers this week.

I am also going to start getting a weekly veggie box from a farm in Petaluma. From week to week I won't know what will be in it, but I think that will keep my cooking creative and fresh. I look forward to finding and creating new recipes with the week's bounty.

While not wanting to wish my life away, I couldn't wait for 2011 to end. For both Jerry and me, it was not a great year. We are determined to make 2012 better, and we know that won't happen by itself. We will work to make our life more fun, more meaningful and more joyous.

Colds, Cookies and No CoMotion

2011-12-23T13:06:00.000-08:00

Didn't realize how long it had been since I have blogged. I guess that's partly because we have not been riding.
The last time Jerry and I rode was the World AIDS Day Ride sponsored by the Positive Pedalers. I did the media for the event and we had a great turnout of TV and radio. But I have to say I didn't like this year's route. It was stop sign after stop sign so the ride took much longer than anticipated. It's only a 31 mile ride (for the 31 years of the pandemic) but our average speed was less than 10 mph. I was also starting to get a cold so it made the ride even less fun.

The cold kind of inched up on me and didn't really blossom until the middle of the following week, and then it took hold and didn't want to let go. So no riding the following weekend. As I started to get better, it was Jerry's turn. He is finally getting over it; at least that is what it sounds like on the phone. He has been away all week and was supposed to return tonight but his trip has been extended by another day.

But since I recovered I have spent a good amount of time in the kitchen. I made my annual batch of peppermint bark, which I sell as a fundraiser for my AIDS Lifecycle ride. I made around 12 pounds this year. After the peppermint bark came the endless parade of cookies.

I started with my standard: biscotti. This year I made spicy nut, which is my favorite, followed by cranberry pistachio. Bowing to Jerry, then came toffee bars, which are his favorite. I love making those because I can't eat them. They have chocolate in them, which gives me a migraine. Chocolate may be my favorite ingredient for just that reason. I can enjoy the baking without worry about gaining weight.

And speaking of gaining weight, I'm closing in on a new holiday record. Since October I've gained close to 10 pounds. No kidding. January will see a lot of popcorn and soup.

But, in the meantime, I'm not going to worry about it. I also made a three-ginger cookie. The recipe called for fresh, ground and crystallized ginger. They were good, though I expected more of a zing with that combo. May up the fresh ginger a tad the next time I make them. I finished the baking season with brown butter shortbread topped with fleur de sel. Just from reading the recipe I knew I'd enjoy them, and I was not disappointed.

The neighbors in my cul de sac each got bags of goodies but I still have far too many sweets left in the house. I will come up with more ways of getting rid of them: I did manage to snag the FedEx guys and gave them some goodies; I'll keep an eye out for the mail carrier.

With Jerry being away most of the last two weeks the holiday season has been less than jolly, and in reality, I'm looking forward to it being over. We have some great travel plans in line for winter, and while I don't want to wish my life away, the sooner this year is over, the happier I will be.

Fairfax, the Petalon and Three Wheels

2011-10-24T11:11:00.000-07:00

Nothing much really to report on the food scene. I made a very nice polenta, tomato sauce and mozzarella casserole the other night. No big deal, but good and lots of leftovers.

But more on the cycling front.
What cyclist doesn't want to be out there, pretending to be Levi or George... riding like the wind down the middle of a road, leading the Pelaton? Well, me for one. I'm happy stoking the tandem, making good time, but riding politely and safely.

Maybe it's from all of my AIDS Lifecycle training. Jerry and I stop at stop signs and red lights. We signal; we call out "on your left," and if there is a car coming and someone shouts out "Car Back," we get out of the road.

Yesterday we rode out to Fairfax, which involves climbing Camino Alto and riding down Shady Lane, home of 1,000 stop signs. First, while riding over Camino Alto, we were passed my a passel of FKV-- Full Kit Vermin, as we like to call them. A bunch of guys and gals all kitted out, riding like they were in the aforementioned Tour de France. Three across and really not giving a hoot about anything else. They passed us closely without letting us know they were coming. And they rode down the middle of the road. When I heard a car coming I shouted out "Car back," to let them know. Most of the cyclists heeded the call and moved over. One guy, though, figured he needed to take the lane. After all, he was going at least 7mph up the hill. Or maybe 8. Who knows. But he wasn't giving an inch.

Why do I care so much? Because it makes it bad for the rest of us. I was so hoping there was a patrol car on Shady Lane yesterday to catch these cyclists running stop signs. Cars almost seem shocked when Jerry and I stop. But we are a vehicle on the road. And we want to be able to keep riding on the road. And we want more bike lanes. And we want to be treated respectfully.

Sometimes I feel I'm the Andy Rooney of cycling. First it was helmets; now it's road etiquette. What will I complain about next?

But instead of complaining, I want to talk about my new toy. As most of my friends know, I crashed on my single a couple of years back, and I've been really afraid to ride, except the back of the tandem. So last weekend, Jerry and I went and looked at a used TerraTrike-- a tadpole recumbent. It fit me fine and I liked riding it. So Jerry went to the bank to get money and I went home to get a helmet. Fortunately, the guy selling it was less than a mile from home, so I rode it home. It was fun, and it definitely will give my quads a good workout.

I bought a lock and a cyclometer, so look out San Rafael Trader Joe's, here I come!

Mill Valley, Helmets and Ice Cream

2011-10-15T19:12:00.000-07:00

I have a thing about helmets. Or, I should say, wearing a helmet properly. It stems from the crash I had a couple of years ago. I don't remember what happened before I work up at Marin General. I know I wasn't going very fast, but I sustained a pretty serious injury. Aside from a concussion, I had a very nasty gash above my eyebrow, and damaged the fourth cranial nerve, which left me seeing double. I had to wear prism glasses for six months.

If my helmet had been on properly I may have avoided all of my injuries. But the strap was loose and it was sitting too far back on my head. Thus the gash, and a more serious head injury than I would have sustained.

To this day, I am afraid to ride my single bike. I'm slowly working on it and hope to get back on the single. At some point. But not quite yet. I'm happy on the back of the tandem.

Today was the AIDS Lifecycle Kickoff ride. Jerry and I opted to do the shorter Mill Valley ride. We had ridden Tiburon Loop twice in a row recently, plus we wanted to sleep a little later.

During warm ups I was a bit horrified at what I saw. Helmets, many helmets worn improperly. I even had Russ, one of the Cycle Reps adjust the helmet of a Training Ride Leader. These people are supposed to be our role models and I saw at least three of them with their helmets not adjusted properly.

I saw a couple of young kids wearing helmets, but their straps were either not fasted or WAY too loose.

Maybe I'm a little obsessive about this, but I can't help but think of what happened to me, and how it changed my life for the not better. And I know not all that many people read my blog, but if you do, and if you are a cyclist, please please please make sure your helmet is forward and secure.
Okay. I'm done now.

The ride today was quite pleasant. I opted for shorts and I was perfectly comfortable. Jerry and I usually do the kick off ride as our annual ride across the Golden Gate Bridge. We hate riding across the Golden Gate Bridge. Too many tourists on rental bikes, tight turns and crowded sidewalks. We usually pick up rides north of the bridge, but since today was a "special" occasion, we opted to start in the city with everyone. And since we needed a couple of things at Sports Basement, which was where the ride started, we figured we'd brave the bridge.

The other things we braved were the hills that lead to the north side of the bridge. By picking up rides further north in Sausalito, we avoid those hills. But they really were not as bad as I expected today. We were slow, but we spun right up them. My new knee is behaving well and as long as I don't stress it too hard, I'm fine.

On the way to Mill Valley a rider ahead of us got a flat, and he was not prepared. I'm guessing he was a newbie, so Jerry and I stopped and Jerry gave the guy a lesson in tube changing 101. Jerry's a good teacher and the guy was a quick study, and the tube was changed and pumped up in no time. Then we made our way to Mill Valley, hung out a little while and headed back to Sports Basement.

Sports Basement had lunch for us accompanied by an assortments of sodas and beers. I snagged a fizzy lemonade and was a happy girl.

We arrived back home still kind of hungry, but managed to last until 5 before we made chicken blts. While I don't eat beef, pork has recently started playing a larger part in my diet. The bacon was uncured, so we avoided nitrates, and it was applewood smoked. And it was good.

After the sandwich I swung into my evening routine of ice cream. It is not a good evening routine, and when this container is gone, I really should refrain from buying more. But two of my passions are coffee and ice cream, and I really don't want to give up either. And tonight, I had both. First, a cup of coffee with my sandwich, and then Breyer's vanilla with King Arthur espresso powder sprinkled on top.

Jerry and I say we could either get a Calfee $20,000 tandem or each lose ten pounds. If I keep buying ice cream I will never lose weight, and the Calfee tandem is a wee bit out of our price range.

It may be time for me to make a return visit to Weight Watchers. But I'll wait until I'm finished this container of Breyers.

Tiburon Loop and eggs over easy with a side of Hank

2011-09-18T14:27:00.000-07:00

Jerry and I were back on the tandem today, this time, to ride around Tiburon Loop. It's a really beautiful ride with a lot of rollers. There is one significant climb near the beginning of the ride, and I felt that I was ready for Camino Alto.
We were, in fact, more than ready. We went up Camino Alto a little faster than usual, and it felt just fine. The rest of the ride was delightful, cruising through sun and shade until we got to downtown Tiburon, where we decided it was time for lunch.

There are a couple of places where cyclists usually congregate for snacks or lunch, and we chose neither. Instead, we went to a small place where I usually get a cappucino to go when we are on group rides. This time, though, we checked in for brunch. Jerry had a quesadilla, and I had eggs over easy, sourdough toast and lots of coffee. After brunch, we got back on the tandem to finish the ride.

Riding is a great time to think, and mostly, my mind was filled with thoughts of Hank. Hank was a short, squat tabby that had, as Jerry put it, sneaked in the back door of our emotions six years ago. A rescue group had posted on Craigslist that a foster home was needed immediately for a cat at the Berkeley Animal Shelter who was due to be put down the next day. We had recently lost two cats in rapid succession-- one being my soulmate,Fernando, and another who arrived ill and left us far too soon. So I thought, what the heck; I can save this cat's life until he finds a permanent home.

I went over to Berkeley and the cat they called "Big Guy" climbed into my lap and just kind of stared at me. He was cute and pretty compliant. A worker at the shelter told me that he had some medical problems-- chronic upper respiratory conditions and he had had to have a tooth pulled. He had just been neutered as well. He had been found wandering the streets of Emeryville and he looked pretty much like a street cat. His ears were shredded and he had a couple of scars. But he sure didn't act like a street cat, at least not at that moment.

Jerry had his doubts about bringing another cat into the house so soon, but then he met the cat I named Hank. We initially thought we should isolate him so he could get used to the house as well as used to Jamie, our geriatric calico. But he'd have none of it. He was ready to join the family, so we followed his lead.

I will never forget that first evening. I was sitting on the couch,eating a bowl of beans and rice and he was acting very interested. I thought, okay, I'll show him. I gave him a piece of broccoli. He ate it. So then, I gave him a black bean, and he ate that as well. The street cat in him did show itself, particularly when Jerry and I were having dinner. Hank loved chicken and he would try to bat it out of our hands or off our fork.

Hank came with one more health problem: he had squamous cell carcinoma on his nose, probably from his time living outdoors. It was then that we figured he was pretty much unadoptable and he was going to be part of our family. He had surgery, he was put on pills for his wheezing and itchiness, and that was that.

We have no idea how old Hank was when he came to live with us. Our vet estimated 10, but that's an easy number. He mostly cuddled, ate and slept. He was an incredibly good sleeper and spent all night in our bed with his head on one of our pillows, stretched out between us. When we weren't home, Jerry and I played the game, Where do you think Hank is sleeping now?

When we went out of town, our neighbor Vicki would come over to feed Jamie and Hank, and she absolutely fell in love with Hank. Unfortunately, Jamie, although 19, still has the heart of a feral and doesn't let too many people get close to her. She would come out to say hi to Vicki, but that was about it. On the other hand, Hank would plop himself on the couch with her, and they'd watch Judge Judy together. Vicki told me it was his favorite show.

But a few months ago, our normally stocky cat suddenly didn't look so beefy, so we took him to the vet. She was alarmed at his weight loss and ordered some tests, including an ultrasound. A mass was spotted on his pancreas and surgery was performed. It was a lot for that now little guy.

But he did survive the surgery and came home, with an unclear diagnosis. Maybe pancreatic cancer, and, after some more bloodwork, a definite diagnosis of pancreatic insufficiency. We mixed enzymes into his food but it burned his mouth so we got creative. I stuffed capsules with the enzyme and shoved them down his throat every time he ate, which was around five times a day. If he wanted to eat, we fed him as much as he wanted of high-quality canned food. You can imagine Jamie was in heaven over this, because we fed her at least a little every time we fed Hank,

But as Jamie got plumper, Hank continued to lose weight. For a while he maintained, but then his bones were so visible through his skin. He began eating less and less. Even baby food stopped tempting him, and we knew his time was limited.

We spent as much time as we could with him, and then we knew. We waited for Vicki to come home so she could say goodbye, and then we drove to the emergency vet. They had been so kind when it was time to say goodbye to Fernando, we felt comfortable with our decision to take him there. We wrapped him in a towel and drove the few minutes to the offices.

Just as they had been with Fernando, they were understanding. They put an IV in his back leg so we could continue to hold him. They administered a sedative, and then the medicine to make his heart stop.

They asked if we wanted to stay and hold him for a while but we said no. We knew he was gone and we had spent the days before saying goodbye. We told him how much we loved him and we understood he needed to leave us. We didn't like it, but we understood.

I know he had a wonderful life with us and he loved us very much. We saved him on that day six years ago, and he lived a comfortable happy life with us. I thought about all the things he did, and what we did to him over the past six years. The Santa Outfit, the shower cap. He took all of our "abuse" with good humor, though he wasn't above a bite if we tickled his belly. When we first got him Jerry would have to wear welding gloves to hold him when I trimmed his nails, but that soon gave way to an occasional yowl and the clippers did their job.

People have already asked if we will get another cat. Most likely we will, but not quite yet. We are going out of town next week for a vacation we almost cancelled to stay home with him. We cancelled a trip in August because we didn't want to leave him.

I'll continue to think about him, occasionally think I see him. What I'm waiting for is my first Hank dream. Then I know he is okay, wherever he is.

Pt, Reyes Station and Grilled Cherry Tomatoes

2011-08-14T15:46:00.000-07:00

While my knee is not yet where I want it to be, riding last week really agreed with it, so Jerry and I decided it was time to ride again, maybe even a bit further.

I'm not ready for any long climbs, so we took the tandem up to Nicasio, thus avoiding climbing White's Hill. I remember my first time going up White's Hill. We had to stop at least once for me to catch my breath and gain my composure. While my quads are getting stronger every day, I didn't think they were up to that.

We headed out and rode around the reservoir. There are some short climbs and I handled them well. When we reached the turn to Pt. Reyes Station, I thought, why not? So we continued to ride. There are a couple of climbs and again, everything went well.

So at around 10 miles, we pulled into Pt. Reyes Station, took a little break and then got back on the tandem. I diluted my electrolyte drink and stuck the bottle in Jerry's back pocket. I am tired of using a Camelbak and am looking for ways to avoid it. The bottle cages on the tandem are hard for me to reach, so if Jerry's not wearing a jacket, his back pocket works just fine.

Right out of Pt. Reyes Station there is a climb, and my knee started talking to me-- not too loud, but I definitely felt some new twinges in new places. But I figured if I don't push a bit beyond my limits I'll never get anywhere, so I continued to push hard. Coasting down a stretch was a treat, and the next little climb seemed a bit easier.

So altogether, we rode around 20 miles at about 14 mph. Not bad for the second time out. Next weekend maybe we can conquer something a bit steeper and go for some more miles.

After getting home and showering, we headed to our usual haunt, Theresa and Johnny's Comfort Food Cafe. One of the specials was a scramble with roasted garlic, grilled cherry tomatoes, basil and parmesan. It was full of both grilled and raw cherry tomatoes and it was just what I wanted. I had fruit with it and ate a share of Jerry's french fries. After all, I DID ride.

Mill Valley and Felafel

2011-08-01T16:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had my first almost real bike ride since my knee replacement surgery. Hard to call it a real ride, because it was only seven miles, but at least it was a ride. Jerry and I set out from Mike's Bikes in Sausalito and rode to Mill Valley. It's mostly trail and very quiet flat streets. It was cloudy and a bit on the chilly side which probably made me pedal faster.

As usual, I was on the back of the tandem. I am still not even close to riding my single, though I am thinking about it. At an after-ride potluck last week I spoke to a rider to ask her about coaching me. She's an ALC training ride leader and my gut tells me she'd be a really good coach, helping me get over my fears as well as helping me focus on the road. While I will never be sure, I think the reason I crashed is because I got distracted and was not focusing on what was in front of me. Being a stoker on a tandem I don't actually see the road, so I'm usually looking off to the side or at the cyclometer. Not good habits for riding a half-bike.

But back to the ride. It was not very strenuous, but felt that for the first time out, I didn't want to overdo it. And my knee was a bit achy later in the day, so I think my instinct on that was good. Maybe a bit longer ride next weekend.

I was going to go to the gym today, but somehow the day got away from me. Jerry and I did go out to lunch at Trio, which is in a strip mall not far from where we live. It's really too bad this place is in the location it is: it deserved to be someplace better. The food is wonderful-- some of the usual stuff, but lots of middle-eastern dishes. I frequently get felafel, and Jerry had a lamb and beef burger. The guys that run the place are young and energetic, and I sincerely hope they can make it work.

No riding, some cooking

2011-07-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

Three months post knee replacement and I'm still not riding except for a quick jaunt around the block on the tandem two weeks ago.

I am way behind on my rehab. First there was AIDS Lifecycle where I was a roadie. I was on my feet most of the day for a week, setting up and then serving lunches to riders. Immediately thereafter, I was headed to Oceanside CA to crew for Team4hivhope, a four-man relay team, three of whom are HIV+, competing in Race Across America. To read about our adventures go to our blog on thebody.com at: http://www.thebody.com/content/62386/race-across-america-team4hivhope-cycles-to-raise-a.html

I spent the week mostly sitting on my behind, driving or navigating one of our vehicles. I am proud to say our team came in fourth out of 32 four-person teams. At least two of the racers are planning to do it again next year. I am already working on getting sponsorships.

So now I am working very hard to get my quads strong and my legs in riding shape, and I'm almost there. Jerry and I will soon start on some short rides, but then we will be going to Balkan Music and Dance Camp back east in mid-August, but I am going to take my thera-band and bathing suit with me so I can keep up with my exercises.

I hope to ride in a fundraising ride for brain tumor research in October, and I want to be able to do that. I have known many people who have died from Gliablastoma Multiforme, and have a friend who has really beaten the odds by surviving more than five years. I want her to continue to live and thrive despite this always fatal diagnosis.

We're having a blissfully cool day today and I know how lucky we are. Most of the country is having sweltering temperatures. I'm going to take advantage of this lovely weather by doing some baking. I have a potluck to go to this weekend and my plan is to make a berry custard pie. It's an incredibly simple recipe, using eggs, yogurt, sugar and vanilla, and lots and lots of fruit. I've made this pie with apples, pears, plums and even bananas. I have some figs and I'm thinking of experimenting with a small fig custard pie to go along with the larger blueberry/strawberry pie.

I have done some cooking these past couple of weeks, as well. Nothing extraordinary, though did experiment with making a meat loaf out of ground turkey and chicken sausage. It was quite tasty, but a bit too firm. Next time I'll up the ratio of ground turkey to sausage and I think I'll be happier with the texture.

I've bought cherries with the plan of making a clafouti, but they have been so delicious I haven't wanted to use them for baking. Maybe the next batch.

Crewing for Riders

2011-05-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

I'm not blogging that much these days, or at all, for that matter. At least not at this site. I have become very involved with a Race Across America Team-- Team4HIvHope. The team is a four-man relay team, three of whom are HIV Positive. They want to bring awareness, education, and, of course, hope. Hope for a cure, but awareness that with the right treatment, anything is possible, even racing in a cycling event that spans the United States.

The race begins June 18, but prep has been going on for much longer. The four riders have been training incredibly hard and the crew chief, Sandra, has been doing an amazing amount of organizing. It will take a crew of 12 and three vehicles, including an RV, to keep the team rolling down the road 24 hours a day.

My prep has been involved with getting volunteers to produce our website, writing and distributing press releases and updating a twitter page.

So for now, I probably will not be posting much here. But we will have a team blog on the website: The Body, and our twitter name is, you guessed it--@team4hivhope. We also have a Facebook page and would love it if you'd follow us.

AIDS Lifecycle is only two weeks away and I plan to let as many ALCers know about our team. Because we are not a nonprofit, we can't raise funds, so most of the race expenses are being paid for by two of the racers. It is their dream and they are willing to forgo a lot to make this happen.

I'd love it if you'd follow our progress on our website: www.team4hivhope.com or through Facebook or Twitter.

Sidelined and hot and sour soup

2011-03-31T09:47:00.000-07:00

I don't think I realized how long it had been since I blogged. The last couple of months have been a long slog of dealing with the death of both of Jerry's parents and my own ordeal of having knee replacement.

I had my right knee replaced a little over a week ago and by all accounts, I am doing great. I wish I could convince myself of that. Having knee replacement, or perhaps any surgery, may very well be akin to having a baby. I had the left replaced five years ago and all I can remember is being a superstar-- walking unaided out of the hospital after four days and not taking any heavy-duty pain medication. I forgot all the difficulty which I surely had. I'm once again walking unaided, but I don't remember being in this much pain. Narcotics do not agree with me so I'm toughing it out with Tylenol and Celebrex. I am five years older, but I'm in better shape than I was five years ago. So, we'll see.

I am not doing any cooking, but Jerry is the king of opening packages and take-out. We've had several nights of Tasty-Bite Indian food, and memorable take-out Chinese. The hot and sour soup from our local Chinese place really is wonderful. Just the right combination of heat and pungency. Lots of various mushrooms floating around and strips of tofu. To me, when my stomach is a little off kilter, it is the perfect comfort food. Even better than macaroni and cheese with a crisp crust. Though I do love really good mac and cheese. A week before the surgery Jerry and I went to the City to look at a used Audi TT-- my latest obsession, and we followed that with a trip to Luna Park. Their mac and cheese with broccoli is damn good, though I would have liked a little more crunch. When I'm up to it, I'm going to make some in a shallow pan so there will be lots of top. I'll get out my creme brulee torch and make sure it's perfect.

Being on the couch with the laptop has left me time to work on my latest project. I am crewing for a Race Across America (RAAM) team. It is a four-man relay team with three HIV positive members. Team4HIVHope is a testament to what the right treatment for HIV can do. I have been sending out press releases about them, and my friends Victoria Magbilang and Aaron Calhoun put together a kick-ass website for the team. Check it out: www.team4hivhope.com

Because I can't train for AIDS Lifecycle I am going to be a roadie this year. I am part of the lunch crew. Long days and lots of work, but I couldn't imagine a year without ALC. I love that I will get to see all the riders as they stop by for yet another turkey sandwich. Lunch is by far the most boring meal of the day, but not one to skip, so I'll get to see all my friends. Jerry will be riding his half-bike, and I'm excited that he will get to ride with the big boys. He is a fast and skilled rider, and I know this will be fun for him.

Monday I get the staples out of the knee and I can't wait to be able to get into a swimming pool, though that will not likely be for a bit after that. The wound has to be totally healed before I can submerge it. But the water really is a friend to healing. I will be able to do more exercises and get my stamina up. And taking a shower without wrapping my leg in plastic will be a joy as well.

Poor Pitiful Pearl and Peppermint Bark

2010-12-25T11:59:00.000-08:00

The Mondawmin Mall in Baltimore may have been the first enclosed mall; I think I read that somewhere. Anyway, it was the place we went to when I was a little girl. It had two floors of shops and everything anyone, at that time, could want.

My favorite shop was Roger's Toy Store. It was on the first level, tucked in the back. I can still remember how I felt as we'd approach. Right near the entrance was a life-size stuffed giraffe. There were games, stuffed animals, and my favorite: dolls.

One year, near Channukah, I remember looking longingly at a doll in the window: Poor Pitiful Pearl. Pearl was a woebegone girl: she had a shabby dress and a headscarf. She had big sad eyes, a button nose and no hint of a smile. Every time we went to the mall I had to spend at least a few minutes looking at her. And without fail, my mother would tell me she was too expensive. And my response, without fail, was always, "I'm just looking."

Jerry's mother, Judy, passed away last week. She had survived three lung cancer treatments over the last ten years, so by anyone's estimation, her life was a miracle. Judy was a collector: paintings, first-edition books, Lladro figures and dolls. She had Shirley Temples, Barbies, and a host of rare and collector-coveted specimens.

Several years ago when Judy was at the house, I pulled out my Whimsey Doll. Tillie The Talker certainly showed her age and the effects of a little girl's own whimsy. She had her hair cut and her ears pierced. But I loved her, and I still do. We got to talking about dolls and I told Judy the Poor Pitiful Pearl story.

The next Christmas, we were at Judy's house. She still lived in Dayna Point at the time, and we flew down, hauling presents for the family. Christmases at Judy's were known for their excess. Lots of stuff; not all of it something you really wanted, but the philosophy seemed to be more is more.

We had a nice dinner and then moved on to opening presents. Because of the multitude, we each took turns, opening one present at a time. There were t-shirts and tool kits from trade shows; there were flamingo socks. And then there was a big box for me from Judy.
Poor Pitiful Pearl, in her patched red dress and headscarf looking up at me with those sad eyes.

It may have been the best present I have ever received, and I still get teary thinking about it.

To call this year's Christmas subdued would hardly describe it. Jerry and I are pretty much ignoring the holiday. Four months ago his father in Southern California died, and now, just days ago, his mother, in northeast Texas went to sleep and didn't wake up. Fortunately Jerry had been there just the week before when they could still talk and tell each each other of their mutual love. I had been there in November, so I got to see Judy when she still had hope that she was going to once again, beat this thing. I am so thankful for Hospice coming in and telling her if she didn't feel like getting out of bed that was just fine, and letting her know it was okay to go.

The one holiday tradition I did not give up this year was baking and making candy. Every year I make a couple of batches of peppermint bark and I sell it to raise money for AIDS Lifecycle. I didn't hawk it as heavily as I usually do, but I sold five or six pounds, so raised some money for the cause closest to my heart. I also baked two different kinds of biscotti and as usual, toffee bars, which are Jerry's favorite.

This has been one hell of a year. And I am so looking forward to it being over. Jerry and I plan to make New Year's resolutions for the first time: we resolve to have a happy 2011, full of fun and travel.
God bless us all.

Point Reyes and the Death of Velma and Earl

2010-11-16T10:28:00.000-08:00

The weather here in Marin is what summer was supposed to be like. It's sunny, in the high 60s, low 70s and perfect for cycling.

Jerry and I had not been on our tandem in weeks, so this weekend we ventured out for a short ride-- only about 20 miles-- from Nicasio to Pt. Reyes Station.

Despite having not ridden much lately, the bike felt great and we averaged around 15 mph. Granted, we didn't take on any major hills, but we rode well and it did feel good. Next weekend, maybe we'll ride a little further.

I haven't been on my single bike in a couple of weeks, but I don't think I've lost my nerve. I still need to ride up and down hills; I haven't done that yet, but it will come. I need to be patient. But due to my lack of nerve, I don't get much of a workout on the single, so tandem riding keeps my muscles going and chest heaving, so more tandem, less single until I'm ready.

Velma, my chicken that is strapped to my handlebars lost her cluck some time ago. The stress of all that air pressure was just too much for her. I knew I had to retire her sooner or later, but the later came sooner, as this week, Earl, Jerry's handlebar chicken, almost lost his head. The sun beating on his little rubber neck was just too much, and it finally got the best of him. We are considering burying them in a shoe box in the back yard. For now, they have been freed from the bike and are lying in state on the hood of my car.

My Week of Meat

Part of why we have not ridden much lately was due to our week-long trip to northeast Texas, more specifically, Lone Star, where Jerry's mother lives with her husband.

Judy has not been doing all that well lately, so we thought we'd visit. She has successfully battled lung cancer for longer than anyone I've ever known or even heard of, but it has now spread to her other lung and it has weakened her significantly. She's on oxygen and using a walker, and occasionally a wheel chair.

Judy and Dee have help come in every day and friends and relatives bring over casseroles. Judy is not eating much, so I decided my assignment for the week was to make things she liked in hopes of getting her to eat more. And I know what Judy likes: meat. People who know me know I will eat most anything, but what I don't eat is beef, but that wasn't going to stop me from cooking it, though I knew I had to ease into it.

The first night I made turkey meatloaf, mashed Yukon golds and sauteed zucchini and yellow squash. I folded eggs, mild salsa and breadcrumbs into the loaf. The potatoes were filled with milk and lots of butter, though no garlic. I did use some garlic in the squash, though not a lot. These are two folks in their 80s who are not all that fond of highly spiced foods. I even found out a few days into the visit that Dee does not like garlic or squash, so they weren't in much of the menu for the rest of the week.

Deciding that I had waded in far enough, on night two I took a deep dive with steak. Here's where I admit that I let Jerry grill the steaks. The kitchen has a small GE grill-- sort of like one of the George Foreman type of things, so I marinated the steaks in some oil and vinegar, and yes, garlic (I hadn't received the news about Dee yet) and Jerry grilled them up. I roasted brussel sprouts and potatoes. The potatoes were a hit; the brussel sprouts, not so much. Jerry and I love them, but again, the traditionalists would have rather had them boiled.

Next came boneless pork chops. I took a chance on a mustard sauce, and it indeed, went over well.

I ended the week with beef stew that was also gratefully accepted. I made enough so there were a couple more meals to freeze.

As the week went on, Judy seemed to be eating a little better and got a little stronger. She had a setback when she stumbled and tripped while using her walker, and while she wasn't hurt, it blew a big hole in her confidence.

For me, while it was a big cooking week, it was not an eating highlight for me. It's just not my kind of food, particularly the beef. On those nights I had leftovers of things I did eat.

The highlight of my week, eating-wise, actually came shortly after we arrived in Texas. After we left Love Field in our rental car, we went in search of dinner before our long drive. Not far from the airport, we stumbled upon a little diner. Lucky's looked like your usual greasy spoon, except it had a full bar. And my gaydar immediately went off loudly: the place was full of gay men. And there was fried okra on the menu. So all in all, a wonderful dining experience.

And miles to go...

2010-10-26T16:58:00.000-07:00

before I eat. Actually it's just too early for dinner, but that doesn't stop me from thinking about it.

Jerry and I just took an eeny weeny ride around the neighborhood on our singles. I'm slowly getting the seat to the proper height and every now and then even take a hand off the handlebars to signal. I'm getting there, slowly. But getting there. If the weather holds we'll take the singles to the bike path in Sausalito this weekend, and I will try at least a small hill.

Halloween is Sunday, and I'm looking forward to our cul de sac party. We sit outside with big bowls of candy and eat turkey chili that Vicki makes, cornbread that Joan makes, and drink wine that Rita brings. This year I made bat cookies for dessert.

I found a nice brown sugar cookie recipe on Epicurious. It had nutmeg in it, and I added a little cinnamon. I overdecorated the bats and they are hideously lovely. Lots of sprinkles and black and orange gel. I've never used this gel before and I sure as hell hope it firms up. I'd like to toss the cookies in the freezer so I don't eat them before Sunday.

Tonight we'll probably have beans and rice leftovers that I made in the slow cooker last evening. I sure do love my slow cooker. It's not like I'm making anything different; I just love not having to deal with things like stews and spaghetti sauce. No burning on the bottom: no trying to adjust the flame to low enough to not scorch whatever it is I'm cooking.

And I've already started planning Thanksgiving. For the first time, I may actually stuff the bird. or not. Decisions, decisions.

Half Bike, Noodles and Beer

2010-10-16T16:32:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows me knows I am a tandem rider. What they might not know is why I pretty much stick to the tandem.

Two years ago, I took my newly acquired used single bike, a Bianchi Boardwalk, out for a ride around my neighborhood. I left with my garage door opener in my back pocket. No ID or anything else with me.

The next thing I remember is waking up at Marin General, Jerry by my side, a cut on my head and double vision. Somewhere, somehow, just a few blocks from home I crashed. I don't know what actually happened, though I can surely speculate.

Riding as a stoker on a tandem takes strength, but not much skill other than to be in tune with your captain. I don't steer; I don't shift gears; I sightsee and keep an eye on the cyclometer so I can kick a little harder when our speed is down.

What I think might have happened on that day I crashed is, I was paying far too much attention to my cyclometer and not enough to the road. Crash. I had a concussion and I damaged a cranial nerve, forcing me to wear prism glasses for six months until I'm thankful to say, it fixed itself without surgery.

Since then, I have taken two cycling classes but the fear has not left. But I really did not want to give up. So, once again, I signed up for a class-- this time with the Marin Bicycling Coalition.

The positive part: there were only two students in the class; the downside: the area in which we had to practice was far too small, due to Biketoberfest taking over much of Fairfax. We did run through drills and while I was shaky, I gained a bit of confidence. Then we went for a road ride. We rode for an hour, making our way through Fairfax, San Anselmo and a bit beyond.

And it felt great. I had a few wobbly moments, but I was comfortable in the traffic. I stopped at stop signs, signaled for turns and felt good. I'm not sure of my speed because I took my cyclometer off the bike, so no temptation to look at it.

Jerry had taken out his single, so we met up at Biketoberfest after my class. This event is a combination bike fair and beer tasting. Jerry and I are not much in the way of beer drinkers, but we had fun looking at bicycles, and everything that goes with them. Once again, we drooled over a Calfee tandem and got a kick out of seeing a bicycle powered blender. If you wanted a smoothee, you had to pedal for it.

Knowing we were going to ride today, last evening I thought about making a noodle dish for dinner, though I wasn't feeling particularly inspired. I had made a large pot of spaghetti sauce earlier in the week and we had already had that, so I wanted something different. But what, but what...

I dug in the pantry and found a box of Chinese noodles with black bean sauce. I didn't remember buying it and had never had it before, but that didn't stop me from figuring out an improv dish. I steamed some broccoli and snow peas, sauteed some spring onions and garlic while the noodles were boiling. I also threw some pieces of cooked chicken breast in with the onions and garlic to heat it up. With that, I added some grated ginger and hoped for the best.

While it won't win any prizes, it wasn't bad. Next time I will add some heat with some cayenne and add even more ginger.

So as not to lose my nerve, Jerry and I are going to take our single bikes out again tomorrow. We'll ride around the neighborhood, continuing my progress on the flats, and perhaps sometime soon, I'll actually attempt a bit of a hill.

But as my friend Diane said when I posted on Facebook that I had ridden.. one pedal stroke at a time.

Going Commando and Popcorn

2010-10-11T15:08:00.000-07:00

I have discussed, ad nauseum, about my butt issues on the bicycle. I switched back to an old seat; I used chamois butter by the bucketful; I tried every brand of shorts on the market, but nothing seemed to help.

Jerry and I carted the tandem over to Mike's Bikes the other night and had Jessica, one of the salespeople and a cycling enthusiast, look at my fit. We had had a fit, but the last time we saw Jessica, she told us to bring the bike in and she'd have a look.

Jessica didn't see anything wrong with the fit, but she did have some ideas. First, she suggested I do a short ride with padless shorts. Second, she asked me to put a pad in the shoe of my shorter leg.

So far, I have acted on her first suggestion. Yesterday, Jerry and I did a short 22-mile ride, part of the AIDS Lifecycle kickoff. Even though I'm not riding ALC 10, I'll still do the training rides on the tandem with Jerry. He works even harder on the tandem than on his half-bike, so he figures the training will be really great, and I get to ride.

First thing I noticed was, hmm, yeah, I feel the seat, but it doesn't really feel that bad. At red lights and when we coasted I stood as much as possible, and by the end of the ride I was a little sore, but no real irritation on those spots that get so irritated.

What I'll do on longer rides is still a question. I might try taking the seams out of the pads because maybe it's the thread doing the irritation. I may look for wider or narrower pads. I may try longer rides in padless shorts and see how I do. In any case it was surely wonderful to ride and not want to cry because of the blisters on my butt.

After the ride we had snacks at Sports Basement, I bought a pair of Sugoi padless longs that match my shorts, and we gave our raffle tickets to our friend Gabo, and wished him luck.

We got home and Jerry talked to his mother's husband about her condition. Judy has been very ill and in the hospital. Things continued to be not so great, so we decided that we should partake in our usual Sunday evening activity of popcorn for dinner at the movies.

We saw "Social Network" and enjoyed it more than we thought we would. Who knows if those folks are really such big jerks in real life, and who cares. We got our mind off of troubles for a couple of hours and ate the entire large bag of popcorn.

We did get better news today about Jerry's mom. She's much better and may go home from the hospital in the next couple of days. Made us both much happier.

And in my quest to get back on my single, I'm taking yet another riding class next weekend, this time with the Marin Bicycling Coalition. Maybe the third time's the charm.

It's what I do

2010-08-16T10:32:00.000-07:00

Jerry's father died last week. We knew it was coming, but when it actually happens, there is no way to really predict reactions and feelings. Jerry had been going down to visit him fairly regularly in the past several months; on his last visit I accompanied him. We saw his dad declining pretty rapidly.

This was a man who perhaps less than two years ago was still beating people half his age at racquetball. He had been diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis some time ago, but it seemed the disease was very slow in progressing. I think it may have been to his active lifestyle. Besides racquetball, Don took care of property he owned, doing maintenance and mechanical work.

Don would have celebrated his 88th birthday at the end of this month. So while he lived a long, full and mostly healthy life, it's still not easy to say goodbye to a loved one.

We got the news late Thursday evening, and Jerry left the next morning for Orange County. At the time he said he'd let me know when funeral arrangements were made, and then I would come down. But it didn't take either of us long to realize that just wasn't what felt right, so I flew down on Saturday.

And I started to do what I do. Feed people. I cooked dinner. With Don's wife Carmen and one of her daughters, I went shopping. I began planning what we would have to eat after the funeral.

For me, food is a way I express myself. It is love; it is caring.

The funeral was Wednesday, and I came back to the house after the church service. I didn't like missing the military honors at the cemetery, but I felt I had a job to do at home. I arranged trays; I cut up the brownies I had baked. I arranged chairs. I wanted everything to be ready when Carmen, Jerry and his sister Donna, and the rest of the family arrived.

Carmen has four children and they in so many ways were like Don's children. They, in turn have a bunch of kids, and a few of them have children as well. Don was their grandfather and great-grandfather. At the funeral they spoke so lovingly about him. It was touching and bittersweet.

We sat around after the funeral and basically had a non-alcoholic wake. Stories were told, and we got to know each other all over again.

There is still much to do, so Jerry will be making trips down to Orange County to help Carmen sort through things and help with what needs to be done. When I can, I will go with him. And I'll make dinner.

Blisters and Mustard Sauce

2010-07-25T15:08:00.000-07:00

The last time Jerry and I rode, my seat issues continued, so I changed back to my old saddle-- a Specialized Jett, since in the past it had worked for me.

So, we set out Saturday morning, full of high hopes for a great ride. Initially,everything felt great,and I thought I had solved the problem, but as we climbed Camino Alto, that old "spot" started to nag at me again, and I knew the problem was not solved.

We rode around 40 miles, out to Lagunitas, where we took a break.After having rested my behind a bit, I felt ready to ride off, but it wasn't long before pain and acute discomfort set in. By the time we reached home I once again had a full-fledged blister.

After our ride, we stopped in at Mike's Bikes in San Rafael, where Joyce, a downhill rider, has given me advice before, and I think perhaps she came up with the answer. It's not the saddle, but its position. We will bring the tandem in later this week (and she wants me to bring ALL my shorts) and we'll get to the bottom of my bottom problem. I have confidence that she can figure this out.

The night before the ride, I decided we needed a good dinner; besides, I felt like cooking.

I went to Trader Joe's with a couple of ideas; I settled on some thinly sliced pork loin. I also got some mushrooms and broccoli.

We had some farro at home and my previous attempts at cooking it were not entirely successful. The farro was cooked just fine, but it seemed no matter what I added to it to spice it up, it was just plain bland. This time, I had some other ideas. I soaked some dried chanterelles and porcinis and used the water, along with some chicken broth, to cook the farro. I sauted the reconstituted dried mushrooms with garlic, shallots and some fresh mushrooms in some olive oil. When the farro was almost done, I added that mushroom mixture and sprinkled in perhaps two tablespoons of grated parmesan.

I sauteed the pork and steamed the broccoli, and in the pan I had sauteed the mushrooms, I made my mustard sauce. I sauteed some more garlic, threw in some herb mustard, squeezed in the juice of half a lemon, then whisked in some yogurt. I cooked it gently over low heat.

The meal came together really well, and we really enjoyed it. And even though I was full, I knew there was some home-made ginger fig ice cream in the freezer, so I just had to have a dollop to finish off the meal.

If only the ride had been as pleasant as that dinner!

Finally ready to ride and summer fruit

2010-07-02T10:17:00.000-07:00

Finally, three weeks after the end of AIDS Lifecycle my "parts" have healed. No more bandages, antibiotic creams or moleskin. I can sit on an unpadded chair comfortably, and the next challenge will be a bike seat.

Jerry and I hope to ride on Monday, the 4th of July holiday. The Pos Peds are heading up to Alpine Dam, and while we won't do that climb, we will at least accompany them for part of the ride. I will pick my shorts judiciously. I have two pair of Volers, and their pads seem to be the best, at least for me.

Until this latest bout with the worst saddles sores I have ever had, I never realized the truly personal nature of bike shorts. I always figured, the more expensive the better. At least in my case, that is certainly not true. I've got some very high end shorts and they may be the worst culprits. The Volers are nowhere near as expensive, but I have a feeling they are going to be my spandex of choice for the near future.

Looking a little further into the future, Jerry and I are still undecided about next year's ride. My hunch is, Jerry would like to do it on his single bike, which would leave me two choices: sit out the ride altogether or come along as a roadie. I have to ask myself if I'm prepared physically to work that hard. I may have to discuss options with the roadie captain and see if there is a job that would keep me involved with the cyclists without needing another knee replacement.

The weeks since the ride have seen the grocery and farmers market full of beautiful summer fruit. Strawberries, blueberries, peaches and nectarines. I buy some with the intent of baking some delicious tart or whipping up a batch of sorbet, but I end up eating the fruit with yogurt, ice cream or by itself. Not that that's a bad thing.

Speaking of baking, my friend Leslie, who owns Theresa and Johnny's Comfort Food Cafe, has just opened the Pie Palace, a couple doors down from her eatery. She is producing beautiful sweet and savory individual pies using local ingredients. I stopped by yesterday and the business was brisk during my short visit. I hope she is incredibly successful. She is one of the hardest workers I know, her food is fantastic, and she deserves the success.

The Week of Potato Chips and Crack Bars is Over

2010-06-18T10:44:00.001-07:00

I was going to wait for the blisters on my butt to heal before I wrote about ALC 9, but it seems that might be quite a while. Sitting down is getting a bit easier, but I've still got some hideous sores back there.

Jerry and I once again rode AIDS Lifecycle, a 545-mile bicycle ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise money and awareness for HIV and AIDS.

Our start on Day Zero, Orientation Day was not auspicious. I read the email wrong and we got to orientation just in time to see the last showing of the Safety Video. If a rider or roadie misses the safety video on orientation day, he or she must show up at 4:15 am to watch it on Day One. I am thankful we made it in time. This year's video, while full of important information, also featured cast members of Glee. I learned that the woman who plays Sue Sylvester (cheerleaders coach) did the ride a number of years ago. Way to go!

Because we arrived so late there were no lines and we zipped through Orientation. Jerry had to write a BIG check because he did not raise enough money. We can't really afford it, but without it we couldn't ride. The biggest downer of the day was arriving after the Positive Pedalers had closed up their shop. We had ordered jerseys, but more important, jackets from them, so we had no jackets for Day One. We solved that by getting some inexpensive jackets at Old Navy. Have I mentioned I hate Old Navy's ads.

When we finished Orientation we headed to Pacifica for dinner at Tam's Chinese restaurant. I used to live down the street and it was a favorite of ours. The hot and sour soup was still very good and the salt and pepper squid was just as we remembered it. A comforting end to a hectic day.

We then headed to Thom and Jeff's our annual host for the night before Day One. They live in Daly City, just minutes away from the Cow Palace. I had packed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for breakfast, so we got to their house, and got to bed as early as possible. It was going to be an early morning and a long day of pedaling.

The Cow Palace was its usual chaotic Day One self. Lots of people milling around, riders and roadies delivering their bags to the gear truck. My friend Buffy, who used to work at the AIDS Foundation was volunteering. A bright smiling face was welcome.

Opening ceremonies began and a part of those ceremonies is the Positive Pedalers bringing in the riderless bike, a symbol of those we have lost. This year, the bike belonged to Paul Serchia, whom we recently lost, and seeing his bike without him was bittersweet. He is no longer suffering, but he had hoped to get better and ride this year. It was hard seeing it and I cried as I saw my friends wheel in his bike.

As usual, Day One brings with it fog and a bit of mist, though it was warmer than usual. Jerry and I rode very strong. The route for us at this point is very familiar. We know what to expect and when. But hills that in the past seemed insurmountable were climbed with relative ease.

While I won't bore my readers with a blow-by-blow day to day accounting of the ride, I will say that in some ways the ride seemed easier, in other ways-- mainly because my butt got really ripped up, much harder.

I've decided that the culprit to my woes is my shorts. The chamois seams acted like little saws, wearing away at my flesh, causing horrible pain, irritation, and a couple of the biggest blisters I've ever seen. The key will be to get shorts with a bigger chamois, avoiding the creases where my behind hits my leg. It may mean a bigger size, which could create a new set of problems, but I'm going to give it a try.

The food on the ride was, once again, plentiful. Breakfast for me was the usual oatmeal and yogurt. The vegetarian lunches continue to improve. Good tabouli and feta wraps; bean burritos and caprese sandwich only once. And of course, every day's lunch was accompanied by the real reason I ride: potato chips. This year's choice was salt and vinegar. I showed great restraint by having only one bag a day. I could have easily had another, but didn't want to actually gain weight on the ride, as I did the first year I rode.

The other amazing treat on the ride are the peanut butter and jelly on graham crackers, AKA crack bars. They are the most delicious rest stop food on earth. Better than the pop tarts, Chex Mix, and yes, even better than the Fig Newtons, though I admit having my share of those as well. God knows how many crack bars we go through during the course of the ride. Thousands, without a doubt. The sad thing is, they just don't taste good anywhere but AIDS Lifecycle.

As far as electrolyte drinks go, I steer clear of the Powerade that is mixed up in huge vats. There was a new flavor this year. Blue. I can't tell you what Blue tastes like. But I have my suspicions. I stuck to my Nuun tablets. I drop them in my water bottle, they fizz and make a relatively palatable drink.

The one night we strayed from camp food was our one evening of being Princesses. People who stay in hotels rather than camp take what is known as the Princess Tour. We did that one night, in Paso Robles. It had been a particularly rough day with the afternoon heat making me a little wacky, so the hotel and its air conditioning was particularly welcome. As we did last year, we ordered in pizza and sodas and ate on the bed. We did not take a hot tub this year. The combination of the heat outside and the open sores on my butt made it not quite alluring. The bed on the other hand, was incredibly alluring, and after long showers and pizza, lights went off and we had a great night's sleep.

My experience is still colored by my considerable pain, and also by several friends who got very sick during the ride. There was a GI bug going around and several people I know were laid low by it. Jerry and I escaped it, but their suffering definitely affected us.

Next year is Year 10 of the Ride, being billed as an Alumni Reunion. We haven't signed up, and are still in decision mode. We have to look at our lives, our schedule and our finances before we make a decision.

But what I have decided, ride or not, I will still be involved with these wonderful people, and do what I can to continue to raise money and awareness for HIV and AIDS.

Riding on Hold; Eating, not so much

2010-06-01T10:17:00.000-07:00

It's just a few days until AIDS Lifecycle, so riding, as is the tradition, has been pretty much on hold until rideout on Sunday. Normally, we would have ridden this past weekend, but Jerry headed down to Southern California to visit his dad, and since I'm still not riding my half bike, the only riding I did was maybe a total of an hour on the wind trainer.

But I did do some eating, and even did some cooking.

I worked all day Monday, even though it was Memorial Day, but got home in time to make a nice dinner for Jerry's return. I cooked my standard: roast chicken. I roast a whole organic chicken on a vertical roaster. I really do find that organic chicken tastes better and it's worth the few cents more a pound. I rubbed some olive oil on the skin and then ground some African spices on it. Don't ask me what's in the African spice blend. All I know is, it tastes good and has a bit of a kick to it.

On the tray below the chicken were a combo of cut up red potatoes and halved brussel sprouts. I love roasting brussel sprouts. It's my new favorite way to cook them. I love them in almost any form, but this has got to be my favorite.

I roasted the chicken in my convection oven, starting out at 350, goosing it up to 375 for a little while, and then down to 325. I didn't really time it, but it was more than an hour, and it was done beautifully.

While all that was cooking I made a rhubarb crisp. Mark Bittman has a recipe in the week's (or was it last week) New York Times that looked simple and delicious, as his recipes usually are. I cut up a couple of pounds of rhubarb, added a small amount of sugar, orange juice and zest, then, on top of that the crisp was brown sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon (more than he called for) and walnuts. His recipe called for pecans, but the walnuts were the first bag of nuts easily reachable in my freezer; plus, I like them better.

The crisp was still warm when we ate some, topped with vanilla ice cream. I had a cup of espresso with it. Perfect!

I can't believe the ride is in just a few days. I haven't even thought about packing, and for the first time, I have not raised my minimum. I have sent out a last-minute plea to friends. Let's hope they come through.

The Friday before the ride is a spaghetti dinner the Pos Peds are sponsoring. Looking forward to seeing everyone and grateful Beau's work colleagues, rather than me, are preparing the dinner.

Car Doors and Rides of Silence

2010-05-20T10:02:00.001-07:00

While riding this weekend I saw good riding, lots of it. And I saw bad. Four riders tooling along side by side, oblivious to traffic or anything else. A group of riders drafting us, and then slowing down when passing us. They were the most dangerous riders we saw, and they really rode like idiots.

And then the article in this morning's paper about a cyclist who had to dodge a car door, opened by an oblivious woman. He had to swerve and was killed when he was hit by a bus. I'm sickened and saddened.

Just last night was the ride of silence. Cyclists all over the country riding for cyclists who were killed or injured. The number of ghost bikes is climbing, and through no fault of safe responsible riders. It seems those are the ones who are killed or seriously injured. Not the hot dogs riding on public streets like they are part of the Tour de France pelaton.

Jerry and I have both crashed bad enough to end up in the hospital. His was due to an underinflated tire. I'm not sure why I crashed because I have no memory of the crash. I woke up in the hospital seeing double. It could have been a car door. I don't know.

I ride with a very responsible law-abiding group of cyclists. AIDS Lifecycle demands that we obey traffic laws and ride responsibly, and I for one am thankful for those rules. But like the young man who was killed yesterday, following those rules is not always a guarantee of safety. I mourn for him and my only hope is that it makes drivers who read about him double check that rear view mirror and watch out for those of us on bikes. There are more of us than ever.

Pos Peds and Chicken Tagine

2010-05-07T10:03:00.000-07:00

Last week was a busy week, though it didn't include any riding.
Friday, April 30 was Positive Pedaler Day in San Francisco. While I was disappointed no "mainstream" press attended, perhaps I shouldn't be surprised. After all, what audience would want to see a group of healthy, fit men and women who are HIV positive talk about raising funds and awareness for HIV prevention and education?
Yes, I'm being a bit sarcastic, but it does point to the complacency surrounding HIV and AIDS, and people still continue to get infected and people still die from this disease. And the number of women being infected is climbing. At the event, a woman, Kaya Dzambic, spoke about coming to terms with being HIV positive. She really wants to reach other women who are ashamed and feel like victims. There are a lot of women out there who are in hiding with their status, and that shame and secrecy can't be good for them. Or for their families. She is truly a role model.
The event was wonderful, but my real work began when it ended. After the event, I picked up Jerry and we headed to Restaurant Depot to finish shopping for the Jonathan Pon Memorial Ride weekend, held every year. It's a two day bike ride and for the last several years, I've done the dinner and breakfast for around 150 riders and roadies.

Jerry and I had ridden Jon Pon a few years ago and the food, well, let's just say I thought I could do better, and I felt that the riders deserved it. So with the help of Jerry and a couple of others, I have planned and prepared these meals for the past three years.

I'm happy to say that each year it seems to get a bit easier. This year two of the three ovens in the kitchen worked, and they added another griddle, making the job far more manageable. I also simplified the menu a bit. It seemed a bit risky not marinating the 60 pounds of chicken ahead of time-- I worried a bit about its tenderness and moistness, but it came out great.

I made a chicken tagine, with apricots, chick peas and a melange of spices that included ground coriander, cumin, cinnamon and fresh ginger. Jerry and Hunter cooked the chicken on the griddles, and then the sauce, which also included chicken stock, onions and garlic, was ladled over the boneless breasts. I served it with couscous, roasted zucchini and a Greek pasta salad. For dessert we had brownies and oatmeal bars. I took a standard oatmeal cookie recipe, added a bit more butter and pressed it into pans.

In addition, since riders would be arriving hours before dinner, I set out some munchies. We had hummus and pita, raw vegetables and I made a dip from goat cheese, olives and sun dried tomatoes. In addition, I had frozen pesto palimiers left over from my fundraiser, and they got eaten as well.

For breakfast, we served scrambled eggs with chicken sausage and cheese. For the vegetarians, I sauteed shallots and mushrooms for their eggs. We also had roasted potatoes, buttermilk biscuits and cantaloupe and grapes.

Exhausted but happy, we cleaned the kitchen in record time and were out of Cassini ranch a bit after nine.

The success was do in no small part to all the help. Drew, Hunter, Tracy and Kathy, along with Jerry and me made for a lively, hard-working crew. I think we all enjoyed ourselves, and from the comments we received, our hard work paid off in great food.

Welcome to Heaven, Here's Your Harp

2010-04-25T09:44:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Hell. Here's your route sheet.

Perhaps I doth protest too much, but for me, yesterday's Day on the Ride, other than the rest stop on a windswept mesa, did not have a great resemblance to any day on AIDS Lifecycle.

I thank my lucky stars that no day on the ride will have that much climbing, nor will I get that much sand blown in my eyes, ears and enough to get sand burns on my legs.

The day took its first downturn with a flat barely out of Golden Gate Park. This was our very first flat on an upright tandem. We had several on the recumbent trike, but considering we spent most of the time riding as far to the right as possible to give people room to pass, that was to be expected.

And thank goodness we were back on the Co-Motion. If we were still riding the Greenspeed we'd still be on the course. Well, perhaps I exaggerate a little-- but there's no way we could have finished before the course closed, and likely there would be no sweep vehicle to haul that behemoth.

The ride left me cranky, and I let all that cranky out at the post-ride spaghetti dinner at Sports Basement. And while yes, perhaps moi was over the top just a tad, I do think that a Day on the Ride should not be used to scare the Hell out of new riders. I spoke to more than one newbie who was in a state of shock at the number of climbs we took. And they were indeed reassured that no day on the ride was this hard.

So perhaps, in some way, the ridiculousness of this DOTR served a purpose. More than one rider, after hearing this was harder than the actual ride said, well, if I made it through this, I guess I can make it through the ride.

A real sign to me of the toughness of the day was how it affected Jerry. When he is on his single he is out front with the best of them, but yesterday's ride really took its toll on him. True, we are more than twice the age of a lot of riders, but generally, we are strong riders. But this ride really blew us away and took more than just the wind out of our sails. It really made us think, is this really what we want to do? We had a long talk last night about our future with ALC. Is it time for a break? Is it time to do something else?

Perhaps these thoughts will pass when we are on the actual ride and we are swept up in the euphoria and Utopia of that week.

Bur for now, we are taking this Sunday to loll, laze and go out to lunch.

Mont Fromage and Kurt

2010-04-19T13:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was lots of big hills day.
Once again, we picked up the Cat2 Pos Ped ride in San Anselmo and met up with some of the riders in Fairfax. Since we hadn't ridden very far, our stop was short and then it was off to tackle White's Hill.

Though our stop was short, we did run into Kurt Schade. He runs his own series of rides on Saturdays, but on this ride, he was one of the pack. Not that Kurt could ever really be described as one of the pack. Along the route, Kurt sings, he tells jokes-- he is a one-man entertainment center.

So, as we left Fairfax, Kurt was right behind us. We hadn't spent much time with him lately, so it was a real treat to get to pedal and visit. Kurt had lots of great stories about some of his riders, and as a former DC area resident (he went to Georgetown) we traded east coast stories, and of course, got to talking about John Waters. Kurt did his best Bawlmer Miss Edith voice. We talked about Glee. We sang, we laughed. And before we knew it, we were up White's Hill.

Next came Lagunitas Hill and more of the same. It had never seemed so easy. Last, but hardly least before a break at the Cheese Factory, came, of course, Cheese Factory Hill, which goes by a variety of names, Alp de Fromage, or as I call it, Mont Fromage. It is a toughie, and it is long. But once again, with Kurt riding with us, it was as easy as its ever been.

Another factor making the day's ride so pleasurable was the weather. While there's frequently nothing to complain about regarding Northern California weather, this day was perfect. The hills were lush and green from our frequent deluges of the past few weeks; the air was warm, but not too warm, and the winds were never really awful. Picture perfect postcard day.

After speeding down the Cheese Factory Hill (At one point I clocked us at 48.7 mph) we rode around the reservoir and then on to Pt. Reyes Station. Jerry and I split a sandwich and a bag of chips and we headed out, this time without Kurt as company.

I felt all those miles and Kurt's absence. The hills were harder and I was definitely starting to sag. But once we were up the short and easy side of White's Hill, we sailed back to San Anselmo, drove home, stuffed some more food in our faces and took naps.

That evening we engaged in our usual Sunday night activity-- going to a movie. We saw the Last Station at the Lark. What a wonderful movie! So engaging, so beautifully acted. The only downer was the popcorn. The Lark boasts organic popcorn, and to that I say, Big Whup. I'd prefer the regular stuff popped with whatever carcinogenic oil and "movie additive" that makes it tastes so good. The popcorn at the Lark was full of unpopped pieces and next to no flavor. Sorry, but I'll stick to the crap at the chain theaters. If we go back there, I'll bring truffle salt.

Cook to Ride

2010-04-17T09:28:00.001-07:00

As part of our fundraiser, Taste of Spring, I auctioned off a gourmet dinner, and last night, the winners of that auction item cashed in, so to speak.

The dinner was the highest bid on auction item, so I wanted to do a really great job. The hostess decided upon salmon, which is something I have cooked a lot of, so I felt pretty confident I could pull off a good meal.

I started my prep earlier in the week, starting with making a fresh pea soup. It was a recipe I had not tried before, so I wanted to make sure it was good. The recipe was simple, though time consuming. It was a simple soup of sauteed shallots, water, a potato and peas. I decided to change the water to chicken stock, for starters, and I added a bit more potato. I simmered it, and then it was time to get out the immersion blender to puree it. I probably would have been better off letting it cool and running it through the food mill, and if I make it again that will be my plan of action. But even after a food mill, I'd run it through a sieve, as I did this time, to make sure I get all the "solids" out. I also added just a touch of lemon zest to boost the flavor. It was light, but it was good.

On to hors d'oeuvre prep. I inadvertently bought black olives with pits, so before I could tackle the tapenade, I pitted olives. Glad to have a pitter-- made the job pretty simple.

I make a very simple but flavorful tapenade with black olives, sun dried tomatoes, garlic and a little olive oil. I whipped that up in the Cuisinart in a flash. Delicious. I served that with a goat cheese spread, and it was a hit.

One hors d'oeuvre had to be made at the event, but I think it was worth it. I made little phyllo cups and then filled them with chopped pears, Camemzola cheese, topped with a pecan. They were lovely and I thought delicious. (Yes, I tried one-- quality control.)
I also served some really good aged Gouda, and that constituted the hors d'oeuvres.

As I wrote earlier, first course was the soup. That was followed by a simple salad with Balsamic vinaigrette. I did put a little truffle salt in the dressing, and it added just a hint of a little more depth of flavor. Probably not identifiable to the diners, but I think it added a nice taste.

Dinner was salmon, roasted potatoes and roasted asparagus. I oven poached the salmon. I cut 6-8 ounce servings and wrapped them in foil, topped with some dill, lemon slices and a scallion, and sprinkled them with white wine. I also made a lovely sour cream dill sauce. I ladled a bit of that on the fish after it was plated.

I found the smallest potatoes I could find and initially roasted them in a moderate oven, then turned up the heat. They were crisp on the outside, tender on the inside. Perfect.

Since the oven was small, I roasted the asparagus first, sprinkled with olive oil, a little butter and lemon, and served them cold. Not my first choice, but since this was a home oven, not commercial, it was what had to be done.

My friend Rene contributed the dessert. She made lovely individual lemon pots de creme and lavender creme brulees.

Jerry was my sous chef and waiter, and we worked beautifully together. Since the dinner was for eight, it was relatively low stress and our timing was impeccable. As the guests finished dessert and sipped port, we cleaned up the kitchen, said our good nights, and headed home.

We will see this couple again, as they were also the high bidders on Jerry's aerial tour of the Bay.

Cold toes and Morning Buns

2010-04-04T11:15:00.000-07:00

On our ride out to Pt. Reyes Station yesterday, Jerry and I spent much of the time thinking about the clothes we wished we were wearing-- vests, wind pants, toe condoms...
At least we had worn caps under our helmets and I even opted for an ear-warmer headband.

But it was cold. Grey and cold. My fingers and toes were like blocks of ice. At one point I gave Jerry a real shock by putting one of my hands under his jersey. I am a mean wife, I know. But my God, the warmth of his back felt so good!

Not wanting to ride the bridge, we started our ride in Marin, figuring we'd meet up with riders in Fairfax, at the Coffee Roastery.

And indeed, we found lots of ALC'ers there. I really wanted something warm, but uncharacteristically for me, I did not want coffee. I was having some mild heartburn so I ordered some ginger peach tea. It was vile, but it was hot, so I drank it.

Next was climbing White's Hill. We both looked forward to it in hopes of warming us up. It did, a bit, but the ride down brought the chill back. The ride through Samuel P. Taylor Park was cool, but the trees sheltered us from the wind, and that was a relief.

Climbing Olema Hill did help the circulation a bit, then we cruised into Pt. Reyes Station. I ordered a Chai and a morning bun at Bovine Bakery. I love Morning Buns, but it, like creme brulee, is something I never make at home. It would take the specialness away. And morning buns, to me, are special. The dough is similar to a brioche dough-- yeasty and buttery, and the sprinkling of sugar and cinnamon makes it just about perfect. The counter person handed me a warm bun, and that, with their exceptional chai made me forget about the cold. Jerry had a cup of tea and an Alonzo roll. It looked like a cinnamon roll you'd get from one of those stands at the mall, but since it came from Bovine, I suspect it was far superior.

We sat on the curb and had our snacks, and I was parked next to a guy who is going to do his first ALC. He had not been going on group training rides, and I encouraged him to do so. I also encouraged him to go on the Jon Pon ride, the first weekend in May, to get a taste for the ride and to also meet some of the most wonderful people he could ever know.

After talking about the Jon Pon ride, it got my mind on the menu. Everyone really loved the chicken I did last year, so I'm thinking of a repeat performance, though no doubt with some little tweaks and changes. And if asparagus is still plentiful, I'll serve that as well.

Heading back from Pt. Reyes, a miracle happened. The sun came out and we actually started to thaw out. Not enough to remove our caps, but enough to start to have feeling once again in our fingers and toes. Bliss!

The ride back to the car was oh so much more pleasant. We headed home, did a quick change and went out to lunch.

From there, we checked in on the big sale at the Recyclery at Trips for Kids. They seemed to be doing brisk business, and we had a chat with Marilyn and a few of the other workers and volunteers. Jerry puts high-end items on E-Bay for them, and they had some sure winners waiting in the wings. One is one of Robin Williams's old bikes, but I told Marilyn she really ought to get Robin to autograph the frame and get a picture of him with it; it would surely increase its value. She's shy about asking him for favors, but he's a Trips for Kids fan, so I think he'd have no problem filling the request.

Today is another gray day which is too bad since it's Easter, but my hope is lots of folks in their pastels and florals will brighten the day

Pre-season Potato Chips

2010-03-28T22:28:00.000-07:00

Most people know the only reason I do AIDS Lifecycle is for the potato chips. And most people know I'm kidding.

But in reality, despite my love of French food and smelly cheese, it is almost impossible for me to pass up potato chips. But I know that if I ate them as often as I wanted, I'd need a forklift to get out of bed in the morning. So I save my potato chip eating for lunchtime during the ride.

Except for the last couple of weeks. It all started in Norway. My friend Arna introduced me to Norwegian potato chips, and though her potato chip obsession pales in comparison to mine, even she can't resist them. They truly were wonderful. Exceptionally crisp with just the right amount of salt, which is to say, a bit too much. We went through two bags while I was there, and it must have woken up my potato chip urge, because on my last two cycling rides, I succumbed.

This past weekend was another trip around Tiburon Loop, and as usual, we stopped at Shark's Deli. I'm usually not hungry after what is really not that long a ride, but this Saturday, I was. I'm not really enticed by most of what they have at the Deli, but there they were-- salt and pepper potato chips. I bought a small bag, and no, I did not share them. That and a Luna bar and I was ready for the rest of the ride back to the Presidio and the AIDS Lifecycle Expo.

The Expo is a yearly event with various bike stores selling their wares, Roadie training and a San Francisco AIDS Foundation and Positive Pedaler Booths.

At the Pos Ped Booth I saw my friends and met the newest member-- a young woman who is about to do her first ride. I'm looking forward to spending more time with her and hearing her story.

After a bit we headed north to get to Comfort Food Cafe before it closed. I had breakfast for lunch and lots of coffee.

This coming week we'll ride up to Point Reyes and stop at another Deli for lunch. Jerry and I will split a turkey sandwich and I will use as much willpower as I can muster to stay away from the potato chips.

Unless I'm really hungry.

White's Hill and Truffle Salt

2010-03-15T09:54:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jerry and I rode with the Sunday Cat 2 series to Lagunitas.
It was a gorgeous day, though it did start out chilly. My cap fit snugly over my newly shorn hair under my helmet, and it did much to keep me warm on that first mile out of Mike's Bikes in Sausalito, where we picked up the ride.

But what got me warm in a hurry was the ride up Camino Alto. I was actually looking forward to that climb to get the blood flowing. It worked. We climbed at our usually not-record-breaking speeds, but caught up with lots of folks on the descent. That is where tandems shine-- with all our weight we can take a downhill with the best of them. Jerry has been cautious of late on those downhills, but we still move pretty fast. Ever since his crash he's a tad more timid, but I do see the old confidence returning.

We stopped with everyone in Fairfax for snacks and picture-taking for an article about the Positive Pedalers, which will be published in April. It will be in a magazine about living with HIV -- HIV Plus Magazine. Looking forward to reading the article.

After the stop in Fairfax it was time to climb White's Hill, something we had not done in months. As usual, we weren't going to break any speed records, but considering we had not made the climb in a while we rode it well. Then the speedy downhill and cruise into Lagunitas.

In Lagunitas I once again turned into a huckster for our fundraiser, A Taste of Spring, which happens in Petaluma next Saturday evening. I think I convinced a few people to come, and I asked two other riders to volunteer for the event. They are both unemployed and knew they couldn't buy tickets, but I couldn't imagine the event without Gabo and Stephan, so they will come and volunteer and add to the event's success.

We didn't eat lunch in Lagunitas, decided we would hold off until after we got home, where we went to our usual spot-- Comfort Food Cafe. Leslie, the owner, had some perfectly ripe pears which she gave us to have for dessert, although we ate so much for lunch we decided to take them home to have later.

Because of the big lunch, I didn't really want a real dinner, so I decided popcorn was just the thing.

I love popcorn, but I love it even more with truffle salt. I sprinkled white truffle salt all over the popcorn and accompanied it with a glass of Malbec.

After the wine and the day's exercise, I managed to stay up until 10 pm, and then had one of the best night's of sleep I've had in a long time.

This week will be finishing up work on the fundraiser-- buying ingredients for the hors d'oeuvres, and working with friends who have graciously agreed to help me with prep. I know all the hard work will pay off in a lot of fun and funds raised for HIV and AIDS services.

Scaredy Cars and Roast Chicken

2010-03-08T15:11:00.000-08:00

Jerry and I once again pedaled around Tiburon Loop yesterday. It was an absolutely beautiful day. The sun was shining and it was even verging on warm. Delightful.

Maybe it's just us -- we are on a tandem so it's a bit bigger than a half bike-- but cars seem not only afraid to pass us, but they seem afraid of getting anywhere near us. They stay way back, crawling along until they finally get up the nerve to pass. True, the road around Tiburon is one lane each way and the visibility is not always great, but the cars there-- most of them giant Range Rovers or some other pricey huge SUVs, seem particularly timid.

I suppose that's better than them trying to run us off the road, but it does seem strangely amusing that they seem afraid of us.

Riding the tandem felt wonderful. I had begged off on Saturday, still feeling a bit jet lagged and tired, but the wait was worth it. We rode strong and were not exhausted at the end of the ride.

Once we got home, Jerry headed off to Petaluma to play with his airplane, and I headed to Goodwill. I have a friend in need of jerseys so I went to take a look-see. He's a small, and there was only one jersey that seemed to fit the bill, but I decided to hold off on it. I think I can do better for him, so I'll keep my eyes open for more bargains that are sure to come.

Having not cooked in a while, I decided it was a night for a simple roast chicken, potatoes and broccoli.

I cut red potatoes up small and drizzled olive oil and salt and pepper on them. Yes, I was making "camp potatoes," but with a twist. They went into a pan that held my vertical roaster with the chicken perched on it, so the potatoes got good chicken fat dripped on them, making them even more crisp and delicious. I lightly steamed the broccoli in the microwave, carved the chicken, which I had also seasoned with olive oil, salt and pepper, and that was it.

Sometimes a meal so simple can be so delicious. We had a nice red wine with it-- something I had picked up at Trader Joe's-- and ate dinner while watching the Academy Awards. A simple dinner; a pleasant evening after a delightful ride.

Land of the Midnight Sun. And Cheese

2010-03-04T11:13:00.000-08:00

Just back from a week in Norway. In reality, too late in the season for midnight sun-- there were, in fact quite a few hours of daylight though many of the days I was there were overcast, grey and snowy. I thoroughly enjoyed the snow. It had been many years since I trudged around in snow. The last time was most likely in St. Petersburg, Russia, or maybe a January trip to New York. But in any case, I loved it. I had a thinsulate jacket and my ears were covered, so the cold was not too bad. Also, my friend Arna had me buy a pair of feetless wool tights. Absolutely wonderful and I'm considering wearing them for cold weather cycling.

Aside from the snow, there was, the cheese. Part of the extreme cheese eating was due to the fact that my friend is kosher, and she can't get kosher chicken in Oslo. She did have some chicken she had brought from the states (thank you, Trader Joe's) and we partook of that and some kosher lamb she had also imported. And, we ate a lot of cheese.

I absolutely love cheese but eat it very sparingly at home, mostly due to its monumental fat content, but hey, I was on vacation.
We ate hard cheese, soft cheese, goat cheese, cream cheese. We had it on wonderful thin flatbread flavored with rosemary. We had it on hearty whole grain crackers and wonderful crusty bread.

We also had good Indian food in Oslo and decent Chinese food in Kongsberg. Norway is legendarily expensive, but while these restaurants were pricey by American standards, they were quite reasonable for Norway.

Being a huge cluckaholic, I had chicken at both restaurants. I was relieved that the chicken at the Chinese restaurant was not sweet, as is so often the case. Anyone who knows me knows I have a thing about sweet food. Sweets are for dessert. Not for main course. Do not put orange sauce on my duck; no sweet ginger sauce on my salmon, thank you very much.

And speaking of salmon, we also had lovely salmon one night for dinner. It was not sauced at all and was moist and flavorful.

I drank my share of coffee in Norway, and a lot of it was good. That's partly because I brought a can of Trader Joe's French roast with me and we made coffee in an Aero-Press. In addition, Arna's office had an industrial-sized Nespresso machine, which churned out great cups. But "regular" coffee in Norway is not to my liking. It tends to be not dark roast enough and a bit bitter to my taste. I had vague memories from my last trip there, which was all the more reason to bring some coffee.

In addition to coffee, I brought three or four Aeropresses with me. Arna had one, but wanted another for her office, and being the envy of many friends who loved hers, I brought some more for friends and coworkers. How such a simple little coffee maker can make one of the absolutely best cups of coffee is amazing. By far the most portable coffee maker I've ever had, and in my opinion, far better and neater than French press.

And then there were the Norwegian potato chips. Normally, I reserve potato chip eating for the AIDS ride, but again, I was on vacation. And the potato chips were outrageously crisp and crunchy. We went through two bags while I was there, and if there had been another bag sitting around, it would not have sat around for long. Yum.

What I didn't eat a lot of were sweets. Chocolate gives me migraines and we also had to deal with the meat/milk aspects of meals at Arna's. We did have ice cream one night, but by and large, it was not a dessert-laden week.

Home now, I'm back to a refrigerator with some feta, but no other kinds of cheese, and it will stay that way.

And most definitely no potato chips in the cupboard.

Has it really been that long? and fries

2010-02-21T15:52:00.000-08:00

Jerry and I rode yesterday for the first time since Dec. 6. Between bad weather and traveling, our poor tandem has just been hanging in the garage along with the single bikes and the unicycle.

We took off with just a bit of trepidation yesterday. Could we really climb Camino Alto? Could we get around Tiburon Loop without a nap?

Yes and yes. We actually had a lovely ride, though were more tired than usual after not a very long time on the bike. But it felt great to get out there. My right knee had been achy and it feels so much better today.

Despite it being gray, overcast and a little chilly, there were a lot of ALC'ers out, and we saw quite a few of them.

At Shark's, the stop in Tiburon, I took time to hand out flyers for our March 20 fundraiser. What started out as a crab feed is now wine tasting, hors d'oeuvres and lots of wonderful auction items. You can read all about it at: www.alctasteofspring.org

Working on the fundraiser has consumed an inordinate amount of time, but ultimately, I hope it's worth it. I'm pleased at the generosity of some of our local businesses.

I'm a tad nervous that I won't be able to devote time next week to working on the fundraiser. I'm off to Norway for a week to visit my friend Arna and to maybe do a little cross country skiing and some dancing. While I really can't wait I am a tad apprehensive about not having the week to work on getting more items for A Taste of Spring, but I have a feeling once I get to Oslo, I'll be able to let go a little.

After our ride yesterday, we went to the usual-- Johnny and Theresa's Comfort Food Cafe in San Rafael. and yes, we always have fries with that.

We then headed over to Trips for Kids where Jerry picked up a Trek carbon time trial frame to put on EBay for them. I hope it brings them a bundle of cash!

Truffles and Popcorn

2010-01-20T18:46:00.000-08:00

I haven't written in a month, which also means I haven't ridden in a month, or maybe more.

Listening to the steady hard rain outside gives me a chill and makes me long for the days of sun and riding. But with weather like this, I'm more likely inside, eating.

The last two days there was a lot of that. I went to the Fancy Food Show at the Moscone Center in Downtown San Francisco. Two huge pavilions of cheeses, chocolates, coffee, tea, and yes, lots of popcorn and even more truffles.

I went with my friend and fellow foodie, Renee, and everywhere we turned we were inhaling the heady scent of black truffles. There was truffle salt, truffle cheese, even truffles paired with sweets-- not my favorite. Then there was the truffle popcorn. It was absolutely delicious, and the kettle corn and the plain popcorn. Then there were the olive oil and rosemary potato chips.

And more cheese, and green tea and walnut oil ice cream. And fresh anchovies and smoked trout.

It was a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach. Beautiful tea displays and chefs thinly slicing aged pork.

We tasted numerous salts, olive oils and vinegars. We collected brochures and business cards.

We spoke to people from Italy, Australia, Russia and Renee's home, South Africa. Companies from around the world displayed their wares and were all too happy to answer questions.

And I had at least four espressos each day.

There was at least one company whose main business was giving back, and I, of course gravitated to them. They were young t-shirted guys who represented Project 7-- www.project7.com They sell a variety of products including bottled water, mints and gum, and 50 percent of their profits go to seven different causes, including hunger, homelessness, peace, environmental issues, and "my" cause, health. They are small, their donations are not huge, but they are doing good.

We ran into them near the end of our second day at the show, and I left feeling hopeful, if not bloated from too much of too many good things.

But I did leave inspired to continue to explore new foods and get more creative in the kitchen.

And I also left inspired to get back on the bike if I want to keep exploring new food.

Not One Cookie

2009-12-25T09:55:00.000-08:00

This has been the oddest holiday season yet. I did not bake one single cookie. I did make a couple batches of peppermint bark, with one more to go, but not one cake, not one cookie, went into my oven.

I also haven't been on the bike in weeks. The main reason for both: exhaustion. It's amazing how tired you can get from standing on your feet for six hours and talking about kitchen equipment.

I love Sur La Table; it's my favorite kitchen store and I've been working there for the past couple months, part time to supplement a very slow healthcare pr practice. I look forward to going into the store. I can be having a lousy morning but when I get to Sur La Table, surrounded by baking sheets and good olive oil, my demeanor takes a decidedly turn upward.

By and large the customers are terrific. They want to hear my opinion and they are sincerely interested in cooking and setting a beautiful table. Of course, there are always the ones who don't like anything they are shown and no matter how hard I try, nothing makes them happy. But those folks are few and far between, and I really get a lot of joy from explaining how the Jura Capresso works or finding the perfect gift for a young woman's boss.

I refer to the group I work with as a happily dysfunctional family. They are smart, talented and by and large, energetic men and women. Lively senses of humor abound and we really do have fun. We laugh a lot and the hours really do seem to fly by. There are a few kids working for the holiday season and they are a joy. They don't take themselves or what they are doing too seriously, but they are killer workers. Oh, to have that kind of energy again.

But the job is taking its toll on my legs. When I get home all I want to do is get horizontal. First, the couch, and then some tv watching in bed until I fall asleep, which is generally early. While I might have had the time to bake, I have simply not had the strength or energy.

I am curious to see how riding the bike will feel. While I surely have been using my leg muscles, I haven't exercised them, and my fear is that the first big hill will be torture. But then, my hope is, the muscles will loosen up and remember what they are supposed to do.

Since today is Christmas, my guess is that after my six hour shift in the store tomorrow, I will no longer be working 30-plus hour weeks and I'll have some recovery time between stints selling Cuisinarts, and life will get back to a little more semblance of normal. But it's been fun and I hoped I helped a lot of customers have a little happier holiday.

No Riding, but lots of (talk about) Eating

2009-12-14T09:41:00.000-08:00

It rained most of the weekend so the tandem stayed dry and cozy, hanging in the rafters of the garage.

Sunday is our usual riding day but with the rain and a scheduled meeting, we had a lazy morning reading the paper and then a nice lunch/brunch at Comfort Food Cafe. I had a blackened chicken sandwich with avocado, pepperjack cheese, chipotle mayo and lots of lettuce. It was a bit much, but it was good.

The afternoon took me to Peets in Novato to meet with a group of ALC riders. We are planning a "Crab Feed" to raise funds for AIDS Lifecycle.

Back east we call them "crab feasts" and we have the smaller Chesapeake Bay blue crabs, which will always be my favorite. In all my years in California I've had Dungeness crab only a couple of times. They are good, but I guess my heart belongs to steamed crabs, covered in spicy Old Bay.

That being said, a group of us are hustling to put together a fundraiser in what could be record time. We want to have it late January or first week in February, which, in reality, is not a whole lot of time to find a place, organize it and get lots and lots of silent auction items.

We'll have a live auction as well, but that will have only a few select items. Two already on the list are a house in Tahoe for a week, courtesy of Robin's ex husband, and an aerial tour of the bay, courtesy of my husband. Two down, two or three more to go. Our big hope is to get a chef to do a home dinner, but despite all of our fabulous connections, we discovered we don't know one with a "name." Back to the drawing board on that one.

I discovered there is a traditional menu for a crab feed: crabs (of course), pasta, salad and bread. Easy enough.

Since they seem to be incredibly popular in Sonoma County, my hope is that we will sell out, raise lots of money, all going to my very favorite cause-- helping people with HIV and preventing more people from contracting the virus.

So what could be a better fundraiser! Food, bikes and the AIDS Foundation. A winner all around.

Tiburon Loop and Bread Pudding

2009-12-06T10:17:00.000-08:00

You'd think by now we'd be tired of Tiburon Loop, but we took a different route, at least initially this time-- we headed around Roque Morais, or as I call it, Croque Monsieur. We hadn't ridden that stretch for a while, so it seemed new and fun.

Tib Loop is not the most challenging route we ride, but it was a great day to really stretch out on the flats and rollers. We continue to build speed and Jerry and I felt particularly in synch. It was a brisk, sunny day and getting out in the clean air felt wonderful. We were definitely chilly in the shade, but our speed kept us moving into the sun.

We thought we might meet up with an ALC training ride, but we didn't see anyone until we were actually close to finishing our ride. They probably took a different route-- down Blithedale instead of Croque Monsieur. I like our route better.

Since we weren't riding with ALC'ers, we didn't feel obligated to go to Shark's deli, the usual stopping place for training rides. The stop used to be a coffee shop in downtown Tiburon, but a training ride leader felt dissed by them because they stopped putting out a big crock of water, so she unilaterally changed the stop venue. In reality, I really don't like Shark's. I don't like the food and on a chilly day there is only outside seating, and I wanted to be inside and cozy.

So we stopped at the formerly sanctioned stop whose name I forget. But they have inside seating, great coffee, and I discovered that they have wonderful bread pudding. I think they must make it from leftover cinnamon rolls. It's not too sweet, but it's crusty and has just the right amount of egg and milk. It's served room temperature and it was the perfect snack.

We shared a table with two other cyclists and had a nice chat with them. They were younger and definitely more fit than we are, but they didn't look down their nose at us and seemed to enjoy the chat. It was a time that I wished I had our ALC cards with our donor site on it. We've got to get those made. I have yet to raise a dime and need to get on the stick.

When we arrived home I was in a far better mood than when I had left. I've got lots on my mind and really needed a ride to clear out the negative thoughts and troubles. And the bread pudding didn't hurt, either.

29 Miles; 29 Years

2009-11-30T10:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was one of the more important rides I've been on in a while. It was the World AIDS Day ride-- Nov. 29, 29 miles, for the 29 years of the AIDS pandemic.

More than 100 of us gathered at McLaren Lodge in San Francisco, many of us wearing red. After the usual stretching and safety speech, we joined hands and had a moment of silence to honor and remember those we have lost to this horrible disease. I thought of Jimmy, of Andrew, of Ricardo and many other friends and acquaintances whom we have lost. Some died peacefully, some in terrible pain and anguish. Some surrounded by friends and family; some alone. No one should die alone, and I so look forward to the day when no one dies as a result of HIV and AIDS.

One member of the Positive Pedalers told his story of how the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, through services and support, helped him get sober and healthy. Now he rides and is strong.

Treatment has come a long way in the 29 years since the virus was discovered, but we're not there yet. We have no cure, nor no guarantee that the current drug regimen will continue to work or cause other health problems. And every day, people continue to be infected. Even some people I know, who in their hearts knew better, have become infected in the last few years.

Fewer children are being infected, which is wonderful, but again, through education and medication, we can stop children from being infected. The disease still takes huge tolls in other parts of the world, and it is still killing many many people in the United States.

AIDS can never be an afterthought. It can never be a disease that is forgotten, until there is no more AIDS.

Yesterday's ride was short-- only 29 miles, but next to my 545 mile ride I'll take in June, it's the most important ride I do.

Fairfax and FKV

2009-11-08T15:51:00.000-08:00

Well, this post might cause some consternation among some folks, but I feel it's something that I need to say.

What is it with cyclists wearing kits? Do they really think that the Marin bike path is part of the Tour De France? Or that Camino Alto is closed to cars so they can pedal up the hill in a Pelaton?

Jerry named them Full Kit Vermin today. These men and women may be perfectly nice (or not) when off their bicycles, but something must happen to them when they put on their Dolce Vita jerseys and shorts. Or their Fizik jerseys and shorts. Or whatever. They have never uttered the phrase "on your left," and stop signs and red lights are for other riders, or perhaps just cars. And "car back" means pull out in the lane.

The FKV are the riders who give the rest of us a bad name, and I, for one, am sick of it, but there's not a darn thing I can do, really. True, there are a few of them who are polite. They will say good morning on the way by to let us know they are passing and they don't come back over so close that we are afraid our front wheel is going to get clipped.

We have been dissed by FKV, but that just makes me think they are immature brats, and I don't really care about that. What I care about is their unsafe riding, and their endangering our lives and others.

We saw a sign on the road today that said "Same Road, Same Rules," with a picture of cars and bikes. But I think signs like that just goad them into riding even more impolitely and dangerously.

Jerry and I tend to avoid the Golden Gate Bridge to steer clear of the majority of the rental bike riders. We have had some close calls with them and so we tend to join rides at the north parking lot. But there's really no way to avoid the FKV on a beautiful fall day.

Jerry and I will never ride as fast as those riders. Hell, we don't ride as fast as many of the cyclists we train with. We have our own tandem pace which is slow up hill and fast down, though we try to stay safe on our descents. I've got no problem with people riding as fast as they can safely ride, but it doesn't help any of us when they block vehicles that can outrun any of us. And it surely doesn't help us when they come close to running down pedestrians in crosswalks.

So, all that being said, Jerry and I actually did have a lovely ride up to Fairfax today. The return trip for me was better than the way out because Jerry raised my seat a little. My new saddle is a lot slimmer than my old one, so raising it another quarter inch helped. The saddle is leather and very slippery so I found myself pushing myself up and back even after it was moved, so I might have him tip the nose a trifle up to keep me from sliding down it so much.

Next week will be a longer ride that should give me a chance to really see how the saddle is doing. Looking forward to it.

Tiburon and Pumpkin Muffins

2009-11-01T15:59:00.000-08:00

It was a beautiful day, perfect for riding, so Jerry and I loaded up the tandem and headed for the Golden Gate Bridge parking lot to join up with an ALC training ride. We waited but realized we weren't seeing any bicycles come through the lot. Seemed that the west side of the bridge was closed so we weren't going to see any of the ALC riders. We headed down the Sausalito hill and stopped at Mike's Bikes, hoping to run into one of the training ride leaders. We weren't sure what direction they were doing the loop, so we thought we'd wait to find out.

Turns out they weren't actually doing the whole loop and took a route we normally don't take. So the ride was a good bit shorter than we thought it was going to be. Glad we parked at the bridge instead of Mike's. The Sausalito hill was going to be our only real climb of the day.

The ride was very pleasant, though short, and we joined up with riders at Shark's Deli in Tiburon. The odd thing was, we did not know any of the riders. One of the ride leaders was supposed to be our friend Angelo, but he had to back out last minute. It was kind of strange not knowing one single person in the group, but it also means there are new riders and that's a good sign.

I brought some pumpkin cupcakes I had baked for the annual cul de sac Halloween dinner and wait for the kids to come and trick or treat. They were cute, but I think my toffee bars have gone over better in the past. Live and learn. I had bought Halloween cupcake liners and wanted to use them, and thought pumpkin cup cakes would be just the thing.

I actually like them a lot. They are really pumpkin bread I made into cupcakes. Once, quite by accident I left out the eggs when I was making them so they were vegan (the recipe uses oil) and they were quite good. I haven't repeated the no egg method; I'm too afraid it was a fluke. But the pumpkin cupcake/bread is full of walnuts and to me, very satisfying.

After the stop at Shark's we headed onto the loop but took the Trestle Glen shortcut. The entire ride was only about 30 miles, but a pleasant 30 miles. We averaged close to 14 miles per hour, but I think that's due to not many hills.

In some ways, I feel as if our training is going backwards. We seem to be doing shorter, rather than longer, rides. But in reality that's our choice and we can do longer rides if so inspired.

The World AIDS Day 29-mile ride is coming up at the end of the month, and while that's a short ride, it's an important one. I'm working with the Positive Pedalers to see if we can get some media attention for it. And I'll continue to work with them because 2010 is their 15th anniversary. A big deal and I hope I can tell their story to as many people as possible.

European Chamois Butter and Beer

2009-10-24T15:29:00.000-07:00

I was getting low on Chamois Butter, so while at Sports Basement the other day I thought I'd pick some up. There was the usual tube, but then I saw a container with a screw top lid and it was Chamois Butter, but said it was European style. I wasn't sure what that meant, but I really liked the idea of using a jar rather than a tube. I have two partial tubes of Chamois Butter right now but it's so darned hard to get the last bits out, I thought I'd try something new.

And try I did. Today was the AIDS Lifecycle kick-off ride and I was actually trying lots of new things. Today would be my first ride on my new saddle-- a Selle An Atomica. I was trying new bottoms-- Sugoi knickers in this case that came highly recommended. I initially thought that I shouldn't try out the new knickers and saddle together. After all, if I felt great, how would I know which was working.

But have no fear, it didn't matter. Had I read the label, I would have discovered that "European Style" Chamois Butter has menthol in it. Yes, MENTHOL. The first little rub brought back memories of using Dr. Bronner's soap in the 70s. It might be good for a lot of things, but not on private parts.

The same can be said for this Chamois Butter. That "cooling sensation" made the lips of my vagina feel as if they were on fire. And of course, I had spread some on my chamois as well, so it wasn't coming off easily. I rubbed and wiped, but to no avail.

So I spent today's ride from the Presidio and around Tiburon Loop feeling as if someone had decided to build a campfire in my crotch. Delightful, eh?

But in reality, I think the saddle helped. Since there is a large cut-out right below my private parts, the pressure was less than it would have been so the pain could have been even worse. This new saddle looks a whole lot like an old Brooks saddle with a big old slot in it. No padding, but I don't really think padding helps that much.

For much of the ride I did manage to keep my mind off the pain and enjoy the pedaling and scenery. It was a lovely day for a ride and though Jerry and I had not ridden in a couple of weeks, once we got warmed up we enjoyed ourselves and pedaled somewhat effortlessly.

Back at Sports Basement, there was an array of junk food, soda and beer. I'm not a real big soda fan and while I drink maybe three beers a year, it seemed more appealing than a sweet Coke. I popped the top off of a Sierra Nevada and I admit, it tasted pretty good. I accompanied it with a couple pieces of cheese and way too many potato chips. My standard joke is that I ride for potato chips, and today, it seemed to be true. But after a couple of handfuls in combination with the beer I felt bloated and overfull. Not sure which was to blame-- the beer or the chips-- but I think I'll lay off both for a while.

I chatted with my friend Beau, who is co-president of the Positive Pedalers. This is their 15th year and my hope is to get some really great press for them because they deserve it. I can confidently say that the Pos Peds have saved lives. Being diagnosed HIV positive is not only a physical challenge, but it can be devastating emotionally. The support and encouragement these men and women give each other cannot be overestimated. While they may not have saved my life, they have changed it dramatically. More people need to hear their message of hope and confidence. I will do whatever I can to help them do that.

Fault Lines and Smoked Salmon

2009-10-18T20:01:00.000-07:00

I didn't actually ride fault lines this weekend, but 60 riders participated in Seismic Challenge, a ride that crosses four, I think, fault lines around the Bay area. The ride is a two-day 200 or so mile ride with some lovely vistas and challenging climbs.

Jerry and I joined the Positive Pedalers at the rest stop they were staffing-- Rest Stop 3, in Petaluma. The rest stop was in the yard of a tiny school that looked like something out of Little House on the Prairie. We set up, cut up oranges and bananas and arranged other snacks, including potato chips, Clif Bars and the ALC favorite, peanut butter and jelly on graham crackers. And we waited.

And we waited some more. Beau and I drove into downtown Petaluma and went to Peets to get some coffee and we ran into a couple more people we knew who were putting up road signs for the ride.

Beau bought us all coffee and we headed back to the rest stop, but even in the few minutes we had, Beau and I had a good talk. I feel he is one of my closest friends, even though I don't see him that often. But when I do, I can really tell him anything and he listens and always has a good response. It was wonderful to spend a little time with him today.

Bob, one of the other staffers, brought his dog, Brodie. a little Scottie. He had enough energy for all of us, chasing balls and playing a one-dog game of tether ball. He was adorable and Beau had such a good time playing with him. Beau's wonderful dog, Henry Earl, died a few months ago and he misses him terribly, but I understand he is not ready to get another dog. But I hope Beau decides, sometime, to bring another dog home because it would be a blessing for both of them.

The riders finally arrived looking like they'd been through a war. The day was kind of chilly, they had already ridden quite a few miles with lots of them into a headwind. They snacked, they stretched and some hung out for a while, not looking forward to the climb out of the rest stop. But with any luck, they would be getting some tail winds down the road.

The Seismic Challenge is another fundraiser for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, but in reality, I doubt it raised much money. In its second year, it actually had fewer riders than in its first year. Perhaps it's the economy, but I'm not sure how they went about recruiting riders. I was disappointed that they hadn't tried to tie it into the 20th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake. I wonder if they will do another Seismic Challenge. The AIDS ride is really the best known AIDS-related event, and I do believe they are diluting the brand by doing another cycling event. They have also added at least one marathon, and I think a triathalon, but I think they are viewing fundraising events like these too narrowly. Time to think outside the serious athletic realm and get creative. By doing these athletic events all they are doing is drawing people away from the premiere event and I think it's a mistake. But that's just my opinion and if I'm wrong and they are raising a ton of money through these events I'm thrilled. There is no better cause.

After we broke down the rest stop, Jerry and I didn't really feel like going home, so we stopped in at Rest Stop 4 in San Anselmo. They were grooving to an 80s theme, and Annette, one of the staffers, looked like she stepped right out of Flashdance. We hung out a little then headed to downtown San Anselmo.

After strolling a bit, we stopped in at a cafe we frequently cycle by. Usually, there are a gaggle of cyclists out front, drinking coffee, but this being around 4:30, there were only two bikes in the rack.

We hadn't eaten much lunch, so we wanted a bite, and I wanted more coffee. Jerry got a bowl of clam chowder and I got a bagel with lox and cream cheese. Jerry's soup was full of clams and he enjoyed it. My bagel and lox came with capers, thin sliced red onion and tomato. I hadn't had that treat in quite some time and it tasted great. And the coffee was good too.

We're home now and I'm sorry to say we did not ride at all this weekend. Next weekend is the ALC kickoff ride, and I'm looking forward to getting on the tandem and trying new shorts and a new saddle.

Biketoberfest and French Fries

2009-10-10T13:52:00.000-07:00

Today was Biketoberfest in Fairfax, and a good excuse to take a short ride and look at what the vendors had to offer.

It's so hard for me to get motivated when I'm not riding an organized ride, and Jerry and I dragged our feet getting out of the house this morning. We mostly rode the usual route through downtown San Rafael, then San Anselmo to Fairfax, although at one point we did take a little detour to ride some new back roads. Nice to look at different houses for a change.

When we rode out it was quite chilly so we had on our caps, jackets, long sleeve jerseys and pants, but it didn't take long for the sun to break through and make us wish we weren't quite so bundled up. I did take my cap off at a red light and the ventilation definitely helped.

We rode to Fairfax and the Marin Bike Coalition had bike parking, so we left our tandem in their capable hands and headed across the street.

By far, for me, the most interesting booth was Calfee. First of all, they had a tandem that weighed in at 24 pounds. A real beauty, but at $18,000 we'll stick with our CoMotion and lose weight to make up for the extra poundage.

In addition to that beauty of a tandem, they had Selle Anatomica saddles, which are basically Brooks saddles with a large slot cut into them. The guy at the booth said it's the most comfortable saddle he's ever used. It's definitely on my wish list, and we might see if we can find one used. I am still on that endless quest for the perfect saddle. They all seem to work for the first 40 miles or so, but shortly thereafter the ride turns uncomfortable, and then painful. There's got to be a fix.

We entered Sports Basement's drawing for a gift certificate, and then headed out to our favorite lunch spot-- Theresa and Johnny's Comfort Food Cafe in downtown San Rafael.

We availed ourselves of the bike rack at Mike's Bikes across the street, though we did ask permission first.

While earlier in this post I talked about losing weight, I'm sure not doing anything about it. For lunch I had scrambled eggs and French fries. Yes, French fries. At least I didn't eat the toast. The short ride we took today by no means made up for what I ate for lunch, or for the huge number of tortilla chips I ate yesterday.

You'd think admitting this on the Internet would help me change my ways, but so far, it's not working. I think other things in my life need to change before my eating habits improve, and I'll leave it at that.

Tailwinds, Levi and Paella

2009-10-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

Up before the crack of dawn yesterday to head to Santa Rosa for the Gran Fondo, a ride sponsored by Levi Leipheimer, which raised funds for a couple of groups, including animal rescue.

We had signed up for this ride months ago, and at times it almost became an afterthought, but our Road IDs arrived this week and the ride became more real. I hadn't realized there would be 3500 riders, so we drove to Santa Rosa with at least a bit of trepidation, wondering what a mass start of that size would look like.

We arrived early enough for me to exchange the meal tickets-- they gave us the wrong ones-- and wander around a bit. Ran into some friends, and the next thing you know, it was time to climb on the bike.

And wait. And wait some more. They released the riders slowly, which certainly was a good idea. Although I think perhaps they did it backwards. They had the self-identified slow riders in the back. I know at least one person who had to be swept because he lost time waiting to be released. But I kind of get why they had to do that. The fast riders would have steamrollered over the slow ones. There's probably a solution, but since this was the first year of this ride, there's time to work out the kinks.

Jerry and I pushed off about 45 minutes or so after the "start," but we were not doing the 100 mile ride, just the 62 mile ride, so we knew we'd be fine.

It did seem kind of funny having lots of folks lining the first couple miles of the route to cheer us on. After all, it was just a day's ride, not a week long ride to LA, and while we were raising money, there didn't seem to be anything monumental about the whole thing. But I suppose it's good that the Santa Rosa folks were excited by the ride. I'm sure we caused much havoc on plenty of people's Saturday routines, since there were road closures and cops stationed along the route waving us through stop signs and red lights.

It was a sunny, chilly day in Sonoma, and Jerry and I wore our ALC jackets and we were glad to have them. There was also quite a bit of wind, sometimes making the pedaling difficult.

But the most difficult pedaling came at Coleman Valley Road. We had never ridden that particular stretch of Hell, and until I'm strong and am not coming off of being sick, I don't want to ride it again too soon.I neglected to mention I was pretty sick on Friday and had gotten dehydrated. I decided I would see how I felt Saturday morning. If I still felt crummy, I was going to send Jerry to Santa Rosa on his Bianchi. In many ways it was good that I went. His Bianchi does not have the gears to climb the worst hill we've ever rode. Or walked part of.

Yes, for the first time ever, we walked part of a hill. Never on White's Hill. Never on Quadbuster. But we walked perhaps a couple hundred yards of Coleman Valley. It was just too steep for the tandem. And we certainly weren't alone. There were some riders who appeared to walk the entire hill.

Occasionally, a tail wind would appear and give us a little boost. That was a godsend and we only hoped for more. They were few and far between but oh so welcome when they arrived.

After the worst part of the climb there was still some more climbing, and by then the winds had shifted and we had more cross wind than we would have liked, But we persevered and kept riding while others walked.

Once that was over it was smooth sailing until we hit a gravel path. I figure they took us off roads because the good citizens of Santa Rosa could only take a morning of bicycles taking over their town, but the gravel path was hideous. By then our butts were incredibly sore and the bouncing on the gravel surface made those few miles unbearable. So glad when we got back on pavement.

Shortly after, we arrived at the finish line and could dismount. There was a long line at bike parking, so we decided to risk leaving our bike unattended with no ill consequences.

Then, meal tickets in hand, we headed over to the supper tent. We had three choices: Mexican, Italian and Paella. The Italian seemed too generic, Mexican risky on a recently ravaged gastro system, so we went with the paella. Definitely a good choice. It was fairly bland, which normally I'd complain about, but it was like a big plate of comfort food. There was no sausage, which was fine with me, and the rice was incredibly comforting and filling. We had a coupon for a free beer, which I gladly handed over to a tablemate. We had sparkling lemonade to complete the meal. Just fine by me.

We did a little walking around the festival, visiting with one dog up for adoption and a bunch of bike-related booths. But after just a little while we knew it was time to head home.

Back at the house, we forced ourselves to stay up until almost 9 pm, but justified the early to bed time by remembering we had been up at 5:30 am and had ridden the hardest hill we had ever ridden. Next year on the AIDS ride, Quadbuster will look like a piece of cake. With no chocolate frosting.

Wild Salmon and a Birthday Ride

2009-09-27T15:53:00.000-07:00

This was a nonstop weekend, but what better way to celebrate my birthday.

Celebrating began on Friday with the out of town guests pre-wedding dinner at Thom and Jeff's. Though they couldn't make it legal, my friends decided to go ahead and affirm their love and commitment to each other and they enlisted Jerry and me to prepare dinner the night before their wedding.

A couple of weeks ago, Thom and I got together to discuss the menu, and we decided on things that he and Jeff would like, but would be easy buffet food.

This is how the menu ended up:
Cold poached salmon with sour cream dill sauce
spanakopita triangles
cold pasta with pesto and artichoke hearts
roasted asparagus
roasted potatoes
toffee and butterscotch bars

Everything came out beautifully and Thom's friends were pleased and impressed. Jerry and I really worked well together to make this a great meal. I did the spanakopita triangles earlier and froze them unbaked, and made the toffee bars a couple of days ahead. We bought gorgeous wild salmon fillets that morning.

The trickiest part of the whole meal was transferring these beautiful, large salmon fillets to a platter without breaking them. We had three spatulas, and as gently as we could, we slid the salmon over. We were successful, mostly. One fillet got slightly damaged, but we pieced it back together pretty well.

On Saturday, Thom and Jeff got married at the Cliff House. As we rode across the Golden Gate Bridge into the city, we could see the fog lifting and knew they would have a perfect day.

The wedding was on a patio that overlooked the ocean. The weather was perfect, the guys looked handsome in their matching linen suits and their mothers sat together, proud of their sons.

Friends of theirs sang their song, "Happy Together." I'd forgotten what a great song that is. In addition, another friend, who is a professional singer sang a couple of songs and there were readings. Thom and Jeff exchanged leis and rings. They are both known for being prolific tweeters and Facebook posters, and while they didn't do any posting during the ceremony, the officiant encouraged the attendees to "tweet away," and several did.

The ceremony was followed by lunch. There were three choices, and Jerry and I had salmon, again. It was quite good, though if I may toot my own horn, I thought the salmon I made was moister and more flavorful. The herbed potenta that accompanied the salmon was very nice-- on the soft side and the accompanying vegetables were also okay. Not great, but okay.

Since Thom and Jeff are very into the 50s and Tiki Bars, the cake and decorations reflected the theme. It was a fun, joyful atmosphere. Jerry and I opted to steer clear of the fruity drinks, but I must admit we overindulged in the red wine. Not enough to get drunk, but more than we'd usually drink on a Saturday afternoon.

We felt the overindulgence only slightly on our ride today. Today was the AIDS Lifecycle thank you ride. For the second year running, it has fallen on my birthday, and I like to think of it as my birthday party. We did a short ride to Mill Valley, then headed back to Crissy Field for a barbecue. It was great to see old friends and talk to some new riders.

Jerry felt a little bonky going up Sausalito Hill, but we still made very good time. Not bad for a couple of old farts who drank too much wind and didn't eat dinner the day before.

Tonight, to finish the celebration, we're going to a movie and will have one of our favorite dinners-- popcorn.

A Discombobulated Ride. And Ice Cream

2009-09-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's 60 mile ride was, well, how shall we say, a little odd. Not that the ride was odd, but what happened even before we started kind of set the tone for the day.

This was a Seismic Challenge training ride. Deyon, who is a great leader, was in charge, and she and another ride leader took us through the route, exercises and the safety speech. Just as we were finishing, two riders showed up, clearly not ready to ride. They were too late to be "official," but that didn't stop them from getting Deyon to help them change a tire, and basically, get their bikes ready to ride. Now mind you, Seismic Challenge is in just a couple of weeks, and by now, these riders really should know how to change a tire.

Deyon, being who she is, stayed behind to get them ready to ride, despite them not really being officially on the ride due to their tardiness.

The rest of us rode out on the usual route to Fairfax. I'm happy to say that for the first time in weeks, I didn't get lightheaded and a little nauseated on the way up Camino Alto. It only proves that my head was ruling my sweat glands and stomach. We rode up at a pretty good pace and got to Fairfax and headed to Fat Angel for a bathroom and muffin break.

At Fairfax, Mary, another TRL reported that one of the tardy riders had almost crashed, and she wasn't sure if he was going to continue, and she was going to go back to see what was going on.

Turns out they didn't continue, but this was only part of the story. The troubled rider was riding very erratically, almost crashed, and on top of it all, he had a radio strapped to his handlebars and had it on. All very big no-nos for an official ride, and pretty much a no-no in general, particularly for a guy who is not a very good rider.

Deyon finally caught up to us and we continued on to Nicasio. White's Hill had its usual difficulties. We did make one stop to rest our behinds but got up it at a pretty good clip. We sailed down the other side hitting a top speed just over 40 mph. We do fly down those hills! I really dreaded climbing Nicasio Valley Road, but that, too was more mind than matter. It has its moments, but it really wasn't that bad. After a short Portapotty break at Rancho Nicasio, we headed to Pt. Reyes Station.

With the Underachiever Rider no longer with us, this leg of the ride was pretty good. We all got to Pt. Reyes at around the same time and had a nice lunch under some trees. We climbed back on the bikes to head back.

Temperatures had climbed significantly during the ride, so I did get a little concerned. I tend not to sweat very much and I can get really overheated, but many of my sweat glands seemed to be cooperating and did okay.

The route back takes us through Samuel Taylor Park, and the entrance is easy to miss, as is the turn to head to the park. If you go straight, you end up at Stinson Beach. Which is exactly what one rider, Dinesh, did. This caused Deyon more angst and kept her on her IPhone more than she would have liked. But she did get hold of Dinesh and he figured out how to get back to Sausalito.

I don't know the Stinson route, but one thing Dinesh missed was Olema Hill. Not a steep climb but a very loooong one. It did seem to go on forever and when we finally finished it, we got to do some coasting, which felt great.

When we got to Fairfax, Jerry and I both had sore bottoms and decided we needed a break. There's a little ice cream shop that makes a handful of flavors and they had two of my favorites-- coffee and rum raisin. It brought back some very old memories of my days in Helena, Montana. When they first started carrying Haagen Daz it was a big deal, and I'd buy two containers-- one coffee, one rum raising and would manage to finish them both in a matter of days. Fortunately I didn't do that too often.

We sat on a bench and I ate my coffee and rum raisin and Jerry had a dish of cookies and cream. Other riders went ahead because they were going to stop at Peets.

Ice cream finished, we got back on the tandem and headed back. The last climb, Camino Alto was more uncomfortable than difficult. Once again, I'm having saddle issues. I had hoped the Selle San Marino was the answer, but I think I'm going to go back to the Specialized Jett.

When we got back, we saw on the sign out sheet that Dinesh had returned, along with a couple of other riders. I'm sure Deyon was relieved to see Dinesh's signature on the sheet when she returned as well.

At home I took a tepid shower, then hit the quads with a roller to try to break up the lactic acid. I really felt my quads working on this ride.

Jerry whipped up a large pot of beans and rice with some chicken sausage tossed in. A good after ride recovery meal, I think, though it's an area I want to do more research in.

Next week is a very short ride and I'm kind of looking forward to fewer miles.

Birds, Cows and Spanakopita

2009-09-15T13:50:00.000-07:00

A couple times a year, our friend John Hershey sponsors a ride that leaves from his and Ted's house in Bodega Bay, with a mandatory stop at Wildflour Bakery. After the ride, there is a potluck at his house.

And it seems that no matter when he schedules this ride, it rains, and this past Sunday was no exception. Jerry and I cut the ride short, so didn't get caught in the downpour that some of the other riders experienced. We skipped the big climb that even without rain, I wasn't up for doing.

The ride was short but nice. Jerry and I continue to pick up speed on the tandem. The ride had lots of rolling hills, some steeper than others, with a very steep climb right before returning to John's. It really took our average speed down, but we still did pretty well for a couple of old geezers on a tandem.

Ted was glad to see us return a little early because he wasn't sure if it was time to take the spanakopita I had made out of the oven. I looked at it, and indeed it was at the perfect golden brown it should be, and out it came. I had put the dish together the day before and froze it. It was part of a spanakopita triangle frenzy I was working on. I am catering the out of town guest dinner for friends who are getting married on Sept. 26 and I made about 100 spanakopita triangles to serve at that Friday night dinner. I plan to have cold poached salmon with dill sauce, marinated green beans, pasta and pesto and I'm not quite sure what else at this point. But knowing how long the spanakopita can take, I wanted to get it out of the way and frozen. With that done, the rest won't take long.

The potluck at John's was lovely. Lots of good food and great people. John had put his photos from this past year's ALC ride on a disk with music, and we watched that while we ate. He and Ted had two house guests and they made two lovely gallettes-- one with pears and one with plums. The crust was a pate sucre that was delicious-- almost like a butter cookie. I need to make one soon. I want to try one without peeling pears. I figure if I slice than thinly, leaving the peel on should work. We'll see. I really hate to peel fruit. I love the texture the peel gives, and I feel it's such a waste to not leave it on.

After the potluck we headed to Jerry's sister's house. His mom and her husband were there and we had a light dinner. That was fine, because we had certainly eaten enough at John's.

Jerry came home and we went out to lunch today, to a new place in the little shopping center near our home that houses Trader Joe's. The place, Cafe Trio, occupies a spot that has seen a succession of failed restaurants. I think part of it is location, though there is a Pasta Pomodoro at one end that seems to do fine. This nice little place is run by a Palestinian and Yemini, and their influence is seen on the menu. I had a wonderful asparagus lemon soup and felafel. The felafel is worth commenting on: it was cooked really nicely, not too long, which can sometimes result in the little garbanzo balls turning into hockey pucks. Also, the sauce was a light mint yogurt, with a dollop of hummus on the plate itself. So often, the sauce on a felafel can soak through the pita, making it difficult and messy to eat. That was definitely not the case. It was delicious and reasonably priced, and to top it all off, the coffee was very good. I think Jerry and I will be returning.

I just started working a few hours a week at Sur La Table, a cooking supply store. I have to wait to see if I am scheduled for Sunday. If I'm not, Jerry and I will be riding once again to Pt. Reyes. If I'm scheduled to work, he'll make the trip out there on his single, and he'll get to ride with the Big Boys.

Fruit Cobbler and Bees in Pt. Reyes

2009-09-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jerry and I joined a small group of riders for the longest ride we have taken in some time. We did a 60-miler from Mike's Bikes in Sausalito out to Pt. Reyes. Beau, a Pos Ped, had organized the ride, and last minute he got eight cancellations, but six of us rode out and it was a great little group.

For some reason, for the last couple of times we have climbed Camino Alto, around half way up I start getting queasy. I think it's just nerves and anticipation of something much worse than it is. I never get these feeling when climbing tougher hills; I think it's because it comes right at the beginning of a ride, I'm not warmed up and again, the anticipation is worse than the reality.

But once we were sailing down the other side, all was right with the world and we pedaled on. After a brief stop in Fairfax to share a muffin with Jerry, we tackled White's Hill. We were slow but steady and it felt just fine.

We were doing the counter-clockwise route to Pt. Reyes, which is my favorite way to go. For some reason, I hate climbing Nicasio Valley Road right after White's Hill, and counter-clockwise takes us through Lagunitas and through Samuel Taylor Park, with its magic bike path. I swear, that path is downhill no matter which way you are going. I love it. I also love the beautiful trees and greenery that surrounds you as you ride that path. On a hot day it is welcome, and on a lovely, breezy day like yesterday, it was simply beautiful to look at.

After the park, we headed up Olema Hill. We hadn't ridden up that hill in a couple of years, and while it was no picnic, without the construction of a couple of years ago, it wasn't bad at all. From there Pt. Reyes Station was just around the corner.

Secret plans were in the work at Pt. Reyes Station. Grady, another Pos Ped who was supposed to join us yesterday but was running a fever, had ordered a fruit cobbler in celebration of Beau's birthday, which was Saturday. Shawn and Mark sneaked off to Cowgirl Creamery to pick it up. They had even gotten "gay" (rainbow) candles. Though it was too windy to light them, Beau, happily surprised, pretended to blow them out, and we dug in. The cobbler was huge, but we managed to devour almost the whole thing. We shared it with some other cyclists who were perched on the ledge with us, eating lunch.

The cobbler was delicious. Very simple, with a few late summer fruits-- berries and pears mostly-- in a very light sauce not overly sugared. The streusel on top was also not overly sweet and we all appreciated its crunch. It was just the way a cobbler should be.

There was no question I didn't need a second helping, but I had one anyway and was sorry once we rode out. Too much food in my stomach coupled with bike riding is not a happy combo for me.

We stopped at the local park which has rest rooms and for the first time, there were actually separate lines for the boys and girls. Usually, people just get in one line, and since the bathrooms are all single-seaters, the next in line just takes whatever is available. A couple of the guys I was riding with told me to get in line with them, but I felt that with all those other women waiting, it just wouldn't be fair, and I dutifully waited my turn in the longer line. I should have listened to the guys, because while I stood in the longer line a yellow jacket must have thought my calf looked delicious and he came for a little snack, and decided he should sting me before he left. It's been years since I've had a bee sting and I've forgotten they can really hurt! With no ice to numb the pain I just had to be stoic.

I'm convinced riding after a bee sting is good therapy. I figure that all that motion gets the blood, and in turn, the toxin, moving, so it's not concentrated in that one spot. Today it itches like crazy, but it's not really swollen, and it's just a tiny red dot.

The last 10 miles or so Jerry and I were riding with spaghetti legs. We were really worn out. Not bonky in the least, just muscle-tired and overworked. The last climb up Camino Alto seemed like it took forever, but once we were coasting down the other side we knew we were almost home. Getting off the saddle at Mike's never felt so good. My new Selle San Marco saddle is doing a pretty good job, but I'm convinced that no saddle, no matter how good, really does a good job after around 40 miles.

Next weekend is a 30-mile ride and a potluck afterwards. Sounds very good indeed.

Hot Ride and Cold Dinner

2009-08-30T09:33:00.001-07:00

Since it was predicted to be hot yesterday, Jerry and I carted the tandem up to Nicasio and took off from there to Pt. Reyes. But even up in the usually cool and breezy West Marin, the temperatures soared. We rode only 20 miles, and while our average speed was good (no real hills to speak of) it was a painful ride because of the heat.

Jerry doesn't suffer from the heat as much as I do, so I would periodically ask, "the next time you spot some shade, stop." We'd rest for a minute just so I could get my body temperature down a degree or two. I also discovered what a good insulator my Camelbak is. Ice I had put in it hours earlier had not melted, so I needed to add water to it. My biggest problem is, I don't sweat very much. The only two places I seem to perspire appreciably are my scalp and under my boobs. No underarm sweat, and certainly none on my extremities, thus, no cooling evaporation to lower my body temperature. While some folks would consider no sweating an asset, I look at it as a major cycling hindrance. Going to have to do some research to see if I there is anything I can do to rectify the situation.

When we got home, we took tepid showers, and then I hit the kitchen to prepare a cool dinner. Beau, Grady and Buz were coming to dinner before a party, and since it was still quite warm, I thought a cool dinner would be just the thing.

But that didn't stop me from heating up the kitchen to prepare stuff. I baked bread, which had the oven set at 450, and I sauteed chicken breasts and boiled pasta for pesto. But once everything was cooked, it went into the refrigerator. I also made a salad of tomatoes, basil and fresh mozzarella, topped with balsamic vinegar and a little olive oil.

It was great to have the guys over. I'm really close to Beau, and I hadn't seen him in ages. We talked a little bit about strategies for doing some publicity for the Positive Pedalers' 15th anniversary, and I'll follow up with him later to develop a plan. This group, HIV positive riders and roadies on ALC, are really the face of the AIDS ride, and their cause is perhaps the most important to me.

But back to dinner. For dessert, I took a carrot cake out of the freezer. I had made two a few weeks back. The interesting thing about this recipe is that it uses olive oil, resulting in a light, not too sweet cake. I really like it. I accompanied it with lemon sorbet I made two days ago. It was really delicious and for me, hit the spot with its tartness and coldness.

After cleaning up, we met up with the guys at a fundraiser, birthday party held my two of the Seismic Challenge riders. Seismic Challenge is a mini-AIDS ride: a two-day 200 mile ride in the Bay area that is a fundraiser for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. Saw lots of friends, but didn't stay long. I felt that despite the heat, I was ready for a good night's sleep.

Today is much cooler, but no plans to heat up the kitchen. We've got way too many leftovers to think about cooking for the next day or two.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Legs

2009-08-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

Jerry and I took a little ride this morning. We left from our house-- an unusual occurrence, rode through the Canal, onto the freeway for one exit, and around China Camp. It was only 16 miles, but I really felt it.

Not sure what the cause was, but we did put a new seat on the tandem this morning. A Selle San Marco that is supposed to be wonderful. I'm willing to give it some more time, but we raised it a bit and I was still feeling sore in my you know where parts and my shoulders. It might need some more adjusting, though I'm not convinced that a seat exists that will make me comfortable.

Around five miles from home I felt like I had really run out of steam. I had two pieces of toast with peanut butter and jelly, so there's no reason I would have run out of fuel, but the last couple of climbs-- and they are not very big climbs-- felt really difficult.

It was also a coldish, clammy day. I was wearing new-to-me Sugoi long bike pants and a new-to-me yellow and black long-sleeved, fairly heavy weight Pearl Izumi jersey. I'm proud to say the total cost for both was around 10 bucks. I do love Goodwill! Both looked as if they'd never been worn, though I did throw them in the wash before I wore them.

After the ride when I was stripping off my bike gear, it was obvious from my sports bra that I had sweat! This is a big deal for me and made me extremely happy. Sometimes, even on the hottest days, I barely perspire. I think there's something a little wacky about my internal thermostat. It almost caused heat stroke on a hot ride to Petaluma. So I was more than pleased to see the wet spots on my bra.

Sharing my joy, I hopped in the shower with Jerry, who was already lathering up. We made sure all our parts were squeaky clean, then I got out so he could shave.

I believe the answer for me, to increase my stamina, is cross training. I have a Pilates dvd I should find and use.

What I will be doing the rest of the day is baking two loaves of bread and roasting a chicken for dinner. I made a batch of pesto the other day, and I'm thinking of pesto mashed potatoes, or more simply, throwing it on some orzo as a side dish. We've got lovely cherry tomatoes, and I thought I'd cut them in half, toss them with balsamic vinegar and maybe some garlic, as a side.

Did I Earn that Turkey Reuben?

2009-08-23T09:54:00.001-07:00

Probably not. The eating is still dominating the riding. and something's got to change.

Yesterday, Jerry and I rode for the first time in probably a month. We started at Mike's Bikes in Sausalito and rode out to Lagunitas. We intersected a Seismic Challenge ride, and chatted with that small group at the Coffee Roastery in Fairfax. They had only about six riders. Not much of a showing considering their ride is coming up in October.

Our average speed was down a bit, but in general, we did pretty well. The first climb, up Camino Alto, was actually welcome. It was really cold out and even a little drizzly, so raising the body temperature felt pretty good. As we headed north it got more sunny and a little warmer-- that was welcome as well.

The climb up White's Hill felt pretty draggy. Neither of us was anywhere close to our peak. I pushed hard, trying to get some of that quad strength back. It felt like a long slog and the descent on the other side was glorious, particularly when we took time to coast and stand a bit to relieve our seats and other chafing parts.

Speaking of chafing parts, while my Specialized Jett seat is pretty good, I have one more in waiting to try. Can't recall the make, but it's a pricey women's seat that I got on Freecycle. While I know there is no perfect seat, I'm looking forward to trying out this one. I use chamois butter and that helps up to a point, but I really am striving for more comfort.

After the descent, we stopped at the market in Lagunitas and split a small container of tabouli. While the food is good, I'm generally getting a bit fed up with the Lagunitas market when it comes to their bathroom. The latest is, it's locked and is not available to the public. What gives? We go there and spend money and after riding and hydrating, I need a rest room!

But I think I've found an alternative to the Lagunitas Market. A new cafe has opened in the little strip mall next door. The woman there was happy to let me use her rest room even though I hadn't purchased anything, and next time, we're going to stop there for lunch or a snack. While it's true you can't buy Gatorade there, you can get a snack and yes, they have a lovely rest room and I filled my Camelbak there. I'm sure if I had asked her for ice she would have been happy to oblige. So between the Nuun tablets in the trunk of the tandem and the sink in the rest room and what looks like a very nice menu, we are set. I recommend it to other cyclists who are looking for a change. And "facilities."

Jerry and I both realize we are out of shape and need to work on it. Since we are both grossly underemployed we've got time, so we are going to ride on Wednesday, after he gets back from visiting his Dad in SoCal. Jerry left this morning on Air Mooney, our little four-seater that's hangared at the Petaluma Airport.

I considered going, but have enough around here to do to keep my pretty busy. One thing I want to investigate is a new espresso chocolate cookie. The ones I made at Balkan Camp were not to my liking-- not that I tasted them. But the way they look and spread was not acceptable to me. I think it was one of those recipes that on a small scale is fine, but when you go to make more than 300 of them, something doesn't work well. I also want to get a quart of pure lemon juice-- not that "realemon" crap, and experiment with lemon-thyme sorbet. Lisa had some when we went out to lunch when we were back east, and I'm anxious to give it a try.

Whaddayamean, no peanuts???

2009-08-17T16:49:00.000-07:00

So Jerry and I flew back to the bay area today. We were so ready to be home. We got up at what was the equivalent of 3 am California time. Knowing there would be no "real" food on the plane, I raided Len and Lisa's refrigerator so I could fix us peanut butter and jelly on bagels.

No sooner are we seated than we hear an announcement that someone on the flight is allergic to peanuts, so anyone who has nut products with them-- you're out of luck. So, we had Doritos munch mix and persevered. We ate our bagels as we waited for our luggage.

This was an interesting trip for me. Interesting is part euphemism, part, I can't think of the word for how I really feel about it, mostly because I feel so differently about different aspects of the trip.

I am now pretty sure I don't want to move back east. I really hate summers there, and on a more difficult note, I'm not really sure I have a home there any more. True, I own a condo in Baltimore, but I'm just not sure the area means to me what, at least in my mind, it has meant for many years.

That being said, there are some people there I truly love and wish I saw more of. But perhaps those stretches of time between seeing people has really changed my relationships with them. I'm going to give this a little more time to percolate, but right now, I'm just not all that sure where home is.

My time baking for 300 hungry Balkan music and dance students and teachers generally went pretty well, though in the heat it felt more tiring this year. At least once I skipped lunch just so I could get horizontal for a while before returning to the kitchen. But most of the desserts were quite successful. No failures, but nothing much new either. And one of the new desserts-- a blueberry cobbler with a biscuit top was far more work than what it yielded, in addition to it not making enough, despite producing 12 hotel pans' worth. If I do go back next year, I'd like to come up with some new desserts that challenge me and delight the recipients.

This year's recipes, as usual, were heavy on chocolate. If people don't get chocolate at least once a day, they threaten to riot. So, I made brownies, blondies with chocolate chips, chocolate espresso cookies, chocolate peanut-butter fudge, chocolate chip cookies and a few other things I'm forgetting. Non-chocolate desserts included my favorite ginger cookies, almond crescents and apple crisp.

My consistent help in the kitchen was Barbara, a camper who volunteers most afternoons for a couple of hours. I've known Barbara since we were kids, so it's fun to talk and also wonderful to have someone who knows what she was doing.

The kitchen was full of kids who come from other places for summer jobs, the majority being from Turkey, with a few from South American and one from Hungary thrown in. They were enthusiastic, hard working, and the Turks and the Hungarian were thrilled to hear music from home.

Now I'm home with a kitty on my lap, and so glad to be here. I'll figure out the future another time.

Eating and talking about riding

2009-08-03T07:17:00.000-07:00

Last night was "bridge" at Loretta and Tony's house. There actually was a hand or two of bridge played by a few people, but mostly it was a wonderful excuse to get together, eat great food, drink great wine and talk to friends.

Tony is Italian and he loves to cook. We started with several very good Italian red wines and some good cheeses. Dinner started with a lovely soup full of vegetables and grains. It had basil in it, but the underlying hint of rosemary made it really special. We then had a delicate poached cod, corn and a salad full of colorful peppers and tomatoes. Dessert was ice cream and blueberries. The coffee, though decaf, was full bodied and strong.

Grey, who I haven't known all that long, lives with my friend Leslie. He likes to bike just about as much as he likes small-brewery beers. It was great to have someone to talk about the Tour with. We're both interested to see what kind of team Lance builds. He was more forgiving of Contador than I was, and he made some good points. I worked hard to talk him into coming out for a visit. Leslie said we could all go cycling and she'd stay home and pet the cats.

My friend Arna is in town as well, and she'll join us for dinner tonight at Janet's. Janet runs the kitchen at Balkan Camp and we'll talk menu and particularly, what I'll be baking. We usually do a little bit of shuffling at this point to make sure my work flow goes well, while also making sure the desserts work well with that particular dinner. This will be the last evening I'll see Arna. She heads back north to her daughter's in Cambridge, and then she heads back to Norway. She's been here all summer, and while she has loved seeing friends and her new grand daughter, there really is no place like home and sleeping in one's own bed.

Today, once I get my act together, I'm going to do a little second hand store shopping, and maybe make some ice cream to take to Janet's tonight.

Flying, but Always Thinking About Riding

2009-07-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

Last night, I flew JetBlue from Oakland to Dulles. The flight was delayed taking off about an hour, but I really didn't mind that much. It just meant the flight would get in at around 7 am, instead of 6.

I dosed myself with Benadryl and miracle of miracles, I slept for a solid four hours. My two seatmates were in awe and were envious. The plane had not one empty seat, so that made it even more of a miracle that I slept so well. I brought a little pillow with me and had a window seat. I think those were the two deciding factors. Having a comfy perch for my head made all the difference.

When I woke up at around 6 am, the young man in the middle seat told me of his admiration, and jealousy. He said he'd look over at me periodically, and wished he were the one sleeping so soundly. We both talked about how we were not all that fond of the travel part of traveling, though we both loved to go places. He then mentioned how he had recently driven to LA from Oakland, and kind of enjoyed it. That was my entree into saying how I hated driving to LA but loved riding my bike there. His eyes got wide and the talk moved to ALC.

Talk about someone who was intrigued, I have a feeling I may see this young dreadlocked man on either training rides, or maybe as a roadie on next year's ride. The thought of raising $3,000 seemed a bit intimidating, but I assured him, no matter how he became a part of ALC, he was in for the experience of a lifetime, and that no matter how many times one participates, the thrill never dissipates. I didn't get contact information to follow up, but my hope is, he will do that on his own.

So, now, I am comfortably ensconced at Len and Lisa's house in Silver Spring. Lisa is home sick today. She wasn't feeling all that well last night, and needed to catch up on sleep today. I too, caught up on even more sleep, and then she made us quesadillas for lunch. Lisa is now on the computer, caching up on work emails. Lisa works for Search for Common Ground, an amazing NGO that has offices all over the world promoting peaceful dialogue and interaction. She's just back from a recent trip to their offices in Morocco and Guinea, to help them with offices practices== filing, record keeping and the like. Those things sound so mundane to an organisation like "Search," but is honestly the backbone to keep them going and successful. People like Lisa are the unsung heroes of NGOs.

Alas, I won't be riding for the next couple of weeks, but the ride is never far from me. I hope to finally finish up all my thank-you notes for my donations from this year's ride, and have brought all my ALC t-shirts with the hopes of striking up conversation about the importance of what we do when we ride from San Francisco to LA.

A Week of Sausage and China Camp

2009-07-26T10:11:00.000-07:00

I ate sausage three times this week. One chicken and two pork. That's three more times than I usually eat sausage in a month and about a gazillion more times than I ever eat pork of any kind.

What possessed me? Well, the sandwich special at Theresa and Johnny's Comfort Food Cafe sounded too good to pass up. Crumbled spicy sausage, a couple different kinds of greens, mushrooms, a smattering of good parmigiana on an Italian roll. The second time I ordered it I got smart and cut it in half and had the second part for dinner.

Does this mean my eating habits are changing? I don't think so, and I certainly hope not. I'm normally a chicken and fish-atarian. Other than skim milk in my cappuccino and some occasional feta in my salad I don't eat much in the way of dairy, and I'm heavy on the fruit and vegetables. And, oh yes, bread. If it were nutritionally sound I could live on good bread, olive oil and red wine. But it isn't so I don't.

But it was an odd week, I suppose. I made a really wonderful pasta sauce with crumbled chicken sausage, lots of onion and garlic, oregano, tomatoes, and a bit of red wine. Cooked it slow and easy for a good while and it was delicious.

Jerry had some leftover pasta with sauce for breakfast yesterday so he wouldn't bonk on our 45-mile ride that meandered around our neighborhood and out to Fairfax. A small group started at Mike's Bikes in Sausalito. We rode through San Rafael, around China Camp and then out to Fairfax and back. We were both in not great moods (so what else is new?) and the ride made us feel much better. A little of the strength I had seen waning last week returned yesterday. We're still dragging up hills, but we are starting really fly on the flats, and, of course, on the downhills. As I've thought before, the only thing that's going to help us on climbs in losing weight. And eating sausage isn't going to do much for that.

But yesterday, I didn't really overeat, though I'm not sure what is is they put on movie-theater popcorn, even with no butter added. Why does it taste so good? I'm sure it's full of some sort of hideous artificial flavoring full of calories and carcinogens. And it's what I had for dinner.

With our friends Sha and Lora, we saw (500) Days of Summer last night. It was my kind of movie, quirky, sweet, with a bit of an edge. Not a profound movie, but fun and not entirely predictable, though perhaps partially so. But that's not altogether bad.

After the movie we went to Aroma cafe and I had a ginger biscotti (or would that be biscotto?) and yet another cappuccino.

Today, maybe a little ride on our singles and more coffee and the Sunday Times crossword puzzle.

Tough riding; Too Much Eating

2009-07-19T10:18:00.000-07:00

Though the scale hasn't changed, I am feeling really blobby lately. Could it be all those fresh blueberries. Probably not, but it could be the homemade ice cream beneath those fresh blueberries. And that tuna melt I needed after having a really crummy day.

By and large, I eat a very healthy diet, but of late I know I have been eating a bit too much of those healthy foods. Life, and the stuff that goes with it, has not been all that cheery, so to make up for that, I seek comfort in comfort foods. I haven't gotten out the blow torch to make the top of macaroni and cheese crisp yet, but believe me, I've been thinking about it. I haven't said no to fries at lunch, though I split the order with Jerry and we always have fruit at Comfort Food Cafe. But we've been eating too much cheese and I haven't resisted the tortilla chips (albeit with no salt) at Trader Joe's.

Something's got to change. We rode out of the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge yesterday and headed up to Woodacre Market, just the other side of White's Hill. The ride there was not too bad, though I was far more short of breath than I can remember being in a long time. I blame part of that on "that damn trike." (Its official name.) I never got winded on the trike because I didn't use my whole body to ride. Just my legs, pumping and pumping and pumping. Back on the upright, I'm getting a much better workout, which is great, but I'm feeling it.

And Jerry and I were both feeling it on the way back to the bridge. Though I felt as if I had eaten enough, I really felt like I was bonking at a couple of points. I also ran out of water, which didn't help, though I did still have some Nuun solution in my bottle. I ate some dried fruit and nuts and we kept going. But neither of us was our perky selves. I partially blamed it for not having done a real ride in two weeks. But there's more to it. Other than cycling once a week, I'm doing not much more than sitting at a computer all week. The little jaunts around the neighborhood on a half bike don't count.

So time for a change. I love my new ice cream maker and I love ice cream, so I'm going to look for recipes that are lower in fat and calories. And on warm days I'm going to hit the pool. I'm not much of a swimmer, but it's something. And gotta work that core.

I'll start baking with more chocolate and giving it away as well. I love to bake too much to give it up.

Confidence and Ice Cream

2009-07-13T14:19:00.000-07:00

The How to Ride a Bike class I took from REI on Saturday did wonders for my confidence, if not my riding.

They started the class by taking the pedals off our bikes and lowering the seat. We duck walked around a loop at the Corte Madera DMV, then slalomed in and out of mini traffic cones. They took us around front and we coasted down a small incline and learned to slow our selves down feathering our brakes.

After I'm not sure how many times going down that incline, I was able to do it without touching the ground, propelling myself about halfway back up on the other side. I was ready for pedals.

The pedals went on and we made rode a small circuit; our seats still low and our concentration as steadfast as a neurosurgeon's. Finally, the seat was lifted in increments and I knew I was ready for the incline.

For the next-- oh I don't know-- maybe hour, I rode around the parking lot, gaining speed and confidence as I went. I felt great.

When Jerry got home from his ride to Lagunitas, I couldn't wait to share my excitement. We decided that on Sunday we'd ride around the neighborhood.

We crawled into bed fairly early and watched the film of the stage version of Rent. It was so wonderful, but trying not to cry too hard gave me a headache. That show will never cease to make me cry.

Sunday started with going out to brunch at Comfort Food Cafe and a trip to the Goodwill, where I got a Krups ice cream maker. I don't think it had ever been used. Thought it was a pretty good $9 investment. I made ice cream with it today and while it probably costs more to make ice cream at home, who cares! It was fun.

But back to yesterday. When we got home, Jerry and I took our bikes out for a little jaunt around the neighborhood. He said he could see a real difference in my skill and confidence. I didn't start out so slowly that I was in danger of falling over, and I kept up my speed. I even signaled for turns and for slowing down. I still have a ways to go, but at least now I feel that I'm on my way.

Yesterday was Jerry's birthday and we went to Katia's Russian Tea Room in the City. It was our first time there and I think we'll return. Jerry loved his pelmeni and my blini were very good. When the server heard it was Jerry's birthday my espresso was free and Jerry got poured another glass of wine. Needless to say, I drove home.

So right now, homemade vanilla ice cream is in the freezer getting firmer, and there is aged gouda I bought as a birthday treat for Jerry. That, and a bottle of Cabernet Franc is on the counter. I think I know what's for dinner.

Fear, Trepidation and Fruit

2009-07-10T10:50:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I get on a single bike for the first time in more than a year. I am taking a How to Ride a Bike Class at REI in Corte Madera. Intellectually, and probably physically, I know how to ride a bike. So what is keeping me from riding? Mostly fear.

I took a bike skills class from Velogirls more than a year ago and did really well. But then I didn't get on the single for more than a week and all the fear and unsteadiness came right back.

It's been two years since I crashed, but it's still fresh, somehow. I ended up at Marin General with stitches and a damaged cranial nerve that left me seeing double for six months. I have no idea what happened. I don't remember being put in an ambulance and taken to the Emergency Department. I don't remember giving them Jerry's cell number. I don't remember being taken to a room. The first thing I remember is seeing Jerry hovering over me, asking me if I was okay.

So, yes, I'm scared. But I rode a bike when I was a kid, and when I lived in Montana, I took hail storm money and bought a really great Trek. We had a killer hail storm in 1980, or maybe 81. My little Honda looked like someone had gone beserk with a ballpeen hammer. I got insurance money, paid off some bills and plopped down $400 for a really great bike. That was a lot of money for a bike in 1980. But it was a great bike. I rode all over Helena, and then when I moved to Missoula to go back to school, I didn't get a parking permit for campus. I either rode my bike, or if there was too much snow or ice, I walked.

It's true I was younger than, but in reality I wasn't a kid. So why is riding a bike so scary now? Besides the crash, it's becoming accustomed to being a stoker on a tandem. All I have to do is pedal. I look around, side to side. I don't have to steer; I don't have to shift gears; I just pedal. It's mindless. I joke and say Jerry's the brains and I'm the brawn. He, in reality is both, but I kick in as much as I can. And I love it. But it would be great to get out there on a single every now and then, if for no other reason than to see what I can do on my own.

Along with cycling on my mind, so is the abundance of wonderful fruit this season brings. I have yet to overdose on strawberries, blueberries and cherries, though it seems I have been eating them nonstop. I bought a large container of blueberries the other day, thinking I would bake a gallette or pie with them. But I'm enjoying them so much just as they are. I can always bake a blueberry something with frozen ones after the season is over. For now, I just want to enjoy their unadulterated goodness.

Fairfax, Tiburon Loop and Meat Loaf

2009-07-03T19:45:00.000-07:00

Seismic Challenge is beginning its training rides, and Jerry and I have been riding with them. Today we did a 45-mile ride-- first out to Fairfax, and then Tiburon Loop on the way back.

The quads are still strong and our speed is still up, though we started to drag on the way back. We lost a lot of our zip on Sausalito Hill. Jerry jokes that we should have kept the trike to ride a month before AIDS Lifecycle. It did get us in great shape.

I hope the couple that bought it really enjoys it. I, for one, was not sorry to see it go.

But, as far as today's ride went, it was great to do, but we were both happy when it was over. It did tire us out. At our stop in Tiburon, I wasn't really hungry, but I had a Luna Bar. That being said, when I got home, I was ready to eat.

I had made a turkey meatloaf the other day, so I had leftovers for lunch. To the turkey, I added an egg, garlic some matzoh meal and some pinjur, which is similar to ajvar. It gave the meatloaf some zip. I heated the leftovers in the microwave and wrapped it in a tortilla. I had some tortilla chips with it, and I ate too many. There wasn't enough to save but I really ate too many. I'm feeling it now.

I hope Jerry and I can keep riding at least once a week. Our quads are strong and I'd like to keep them that way.

Mill Valley and Guacamole

2009-06-27T14:09:00.000-07:00

Today, we once again rode to Mill Valley, but this time we started from Sports Basement. We rode the Seismic Challenge Kick-Off Training Ride, even though we are not going to be riding Seismic Challenge. The thought of asking friends to donate money again, just on the heels of AIDS Lifecycle is unthinkable.

Seismic Challenge is a two-day, 100 mile a day ride tracing fault lines. It looks like a fun ride, but I don't see it in our future. But, their training rides will be every weekend, so it's a chance for Jerry and me to ride with an organized group.

Today's ride was not very long, but it did have some climbing, so it was a good way to see how Jerry's shoulder would do going up hills. And I'm happy to report his shoulder, and the rest of us, did great. We rode faster than we generally ride. I think this is due to the incredible workout our quads got on the trike. We are strong, and I really hope we stay that way. I think if we continue to ride at least once a week, we'll be in the best shape ever.

At the end of the ride there was a burrito, guacamole and salsa lunch back at Sports Basement. Jerry had started to get hungry just as we were climbing the Sausalito hills, so it was definitely a welcome site. We had a nice lunch, visited with friends then headed home.

The ride today did so much to raise our spirits. Both Jerry and I had hard weeks, and cycling cleared our minds, got our endorphins flowing and made all those troubles float away.

A Ride, A Wedding and Beets

2009-06-22T09:18:00.000-07:00

I know a lot of people don't like beets, and I really think that's a shame. They are beautiful, they are good for you and I think they are delicious.

They played a part in a wedding buffet I worked on this weekend. I got called last minute by a caterer I met recently who asked if I could help out with a wedding on Saturday. The wedding was at Dunsmuir Estate in Oakland, in the carriage house. It had been pushed up a year because the bride's mother was recently diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer and had gone down quickly. They weren't even sure she'd make the wedding, but she was there, albeit in a wheelchair.

The buffet was all cold foods, most of it prepped ahead of time. Three of us were there to basically, assemble. Not the most creative job in the world, but still fun. I diced tomatoes and onions and arranged trays.

The beets were part of a green bean vinaigrette. I think I detected sesame oil in the dressing. Besides the beets, the beans were dressed with goat cheese. A pretty successful dish, I'd say.

The main dishes were beef, chicken and salmon. The salmon had a corn relish, which was not really to my liking, but the chicken had a nice dressing with capers. The beef had an onion and mushroom sauce, but I can't really comment on that because I don't eat beef.

Earlier Saturday, Jerry took our first ride since his crash on our Co-Motion tandem. It was a little-bitty ride-- just around 10 miles from Sausalito to Mill Valley. But it felt great. Jerry's arm and shoulder ached a bit, so I was glad we did a short ride. He has yet to make a physical therapy appointment, and I have been nagging him a bit about that. But I think in weeks to come he will get stronger and our rides will get longer. I can't wait.

Post-Partum De(com)pression

2009-06-16T16:16:00.001-07:00

The ride has been over now for more than a week, but its spirit is still dancing around inside of me.

I haven't had any work to speak of since I've been back, so it's given me lots of time to reflect and think about what to do next.

With the economy the way it is, and with California's budget in crisis, it's clear funding for organizations that do HIV/AIDS prevention and education services, as well as those that provide direct services to people with HIV/AIDS, are going to take big hits. So, I'm starting to think about creative ways to raise more money for next year.

It's ironic, because, of course, everyone has less money, so it makes it all the harder to raise. But I'm not about to roll over and give up. While I have the time, I'm going to research and try to come up with new ideas. We don't have our rider numbers yet-- we won't have them until sometime this fall-- but as soon as we do, I'll get a page up and start the ball rolling.

I've also started on my thank-you notes to send to my donors. It's really hard to express in a couple of sentences, without sounding overly dramatic, how important those donations are. There are so many good causes out there, but somehow I've attached myself to this one, and I think my friends realize how important it is to me, and for that I'm grateful.

Also, while I have the time, I'm going to do a little experimenting in the kitchen. Friends have asked me to cook for the dinner they are having for out of town guests the day before they get married, so I'm going to play around with some recipes. They are not expecting a huge crowd for that dinner-- maybe 20 or 30-- so it should be relatively easy, but I want to make it very special. Thom and Jeff are very special people, and they deserve nothing less.

Tonight, I'm going to make beans and rice with chicken sausage for dinner. Not exactly a low-cal meal, but it's healthy and certainly better than grazing on snack food. We do that way too much and we're trying to turn over a new leaf. If we can each lose 15 pounds in the next year, it will make cycling up steep hills so much easier.

The End of the Road

2009-06-13T17:28:00.000-07:00

Day Seven

While the Ride for me is almost a spiritual event, this year I was actually looking forward to it being over. Though I knew I would miss the community, the not-the-real-worldness, I knew I really wanted to get off that trike.

It's ironic, because in some ways, the trike is easier to ride. No sore butt, never having to stop on hills, and oddly enough, easier to park; that's because, when we'd pull into a rest stop, the roadie at the entrance would look at it, look at us and invariably say, "put that thing anywhere you want."

But I hated its weight, its slowness, its ungainliness. Perhaps when Jerry and I are octogenarians we might want a trike to tool around, but for now, as soon as Jerry is ready, we are climbing back on the Co-Motion.

We discussed that today, and we decided the best way to make the ride even better, would be for us to lose weight. We're seriously investigating Weight Watchers. While we can get stronger, the easiest way for us to climb hills better is to get lighter.

But back to Day Seven.

As usual, we were up early and hit the road somewhere around 7 am. Our plan was to get moving and get close to the ride finish and stop for lunch.

Much of the last day is spent riding on the Coast Highway. The ocean is beautiful, but most of the time Jerry and I are on the lookout for car doors, surfboards and cars making u-turns to zip into a parking space. It's a pretty stressful ride.

We stopped at the lunch spot to use the Port-a-Potties, but ultimately got trapped there. There were not one, but two bike accidents on PCH, so we were held until helicopters could land and take the cyclists to medical facilities. That ruled out lunch elsewhere, so we collected our sack lunches and parked ourselves on a bench. The lunch stop was on a ball field, so we were behind a fence. Our friend Duncan joined us. We ate, we chatted and waited to be freed.

Finally, we were allowed to continue. We got to the Va Center, with the road lined with well-wishers, cheering our arrival. Rather than taking our bike to the corral to wait for closing ceremonies, we took it straight to shipping. We had decided to skip closing ceremonies this year. We had to catch a shuttle by 5, but we thought that we might even be able to get on an earlier flight.

After we dropped off the bike, we went and picked up our "victory" shirts. We were deciding what colors we wanted this year, but discovered, due to budget constraints, all the shirts were white. Then, we discovered the typo on the back. The website reads: aids lifeycycle. If it was the printer's fault, I hope they get the shirts for free, or at least for a substantial discount, and I hope they lay claim to that website!

Shirts in hand, we headed to the gear trucks, and then to the shuttles. We caught a shuttle pretty quickly, and arrived at LAX much earlier than our flight. Southwest wanted to charge us an exorbitant amount to change flights, so, we headed to the Food Court instead.

The Food Court quickly turned into an ALC reunion. There was quite a crowd of us there. We drank cappucinos, beers, and I even had a lemon drop, graciously bestowed on me by a rider I didn't even know.

When we finally got on our flight, there was a host of white victory shirts. Our friend John Hershey sat with us, which made the flight home wonderful.

We got home that night to yowling kitties and a real bed.

Despite what I have said about this not being the ALC of my dreams, Jerry and I are signed up for next year. To rejigger a cliche-- the worst week on ALC is closer to Utopia than the best week anywhere else.

And there still is no cure for AIDS, there are horrendous budget cuts coming to AIDS programs, so we'll keep riding and doing whatever we can until there's a cure.

I want my HIV positive friends to die of old age.

I See Red People

2009-06-12T18:10:00.000-07:00

Day Five

The famous "Red Dress Day." A sea of red. A sea of glitter, platform shoes with cleats, tutus, men with dresses, men with skirts, men with boobs and hairy chests. A gloriously spectacularly photogenic day.

Jerry and I were kind of toned down this year. No tutus on the recumbent, and Jerry didn't want to wear his spangly top because the spangles would dig into his back. He did wear a skirt, and we both wore fishnets and elbow length red opera gloves with the fingers cut out. The fishnets stood out nicely over our black legwarmers. But otherwise, we were pretty invisible.

The route changed this year, so it was 20 miles longer and a lot hillier. Wouldn't have been a big deal on another year, but on the trike, as always those hills were time killers.

Also, we did not go through Casmalia, a town that generally has a barbecue fundraiser and we dance in the street. The combo of the additional hilly miles and no dancing in the street made this, for me, not the Red Dress Day of my dreams. My understanding is, it was Casmalia's decision not to have us. I heard a couple of version as to why, and perhaps none is true. I heard they had a new principal at the school and he didn't want all those homos in his town; I also heard that school was still in session so the principal didn't want an event to disrupt the school day. Whatever the reason, I really missed Casmalia.

So, instead of dancing in the streets in Casmalia, we dined under a tent on a dusty field in Solvang. Nope. Not the same.

The afternoon was long, although we did get back to camp at a decent time. This year, perhaps there were more shower trucks, but I never had to wait in line more than five or 10 minutes for a shower. That was a real plus. But as the week went on I became more and more tired of my long hair, counting the days to get home and cut off about a foot. I can still put it in a ponytail, but it's so so much easier to deal with... But I digress.

So while Red Dress Day was fun and some people preferred the route, I heard more grumbling than not about the longer length and more hills, and no chance for a lot of stuff strutting as there always was in Casmalia.

So, as usual, we got back to camp, showered, had dinner and retired early. Except this was the first night in many years it rained, and many people woke to find most of their possessions floating on

Day Six

We were on a fairly thick air mattress, so we stayed dry and our suitcases are water tight, so we did pretty well, But our bedding was wet, or mattress was wet, and the tent was definitely soggy.

What to do, what to do, when we began to stir at a little before 5 am. The rain was coming down fairly steadily, easing up a bit, then coming down a little heavier. Jerry and I realized all 2100 riders couldn't possibly be sagged, plus we were riding the Behemoth, a very difficult cycle to move. So we got up, put on our bike clothes and headed to breakfast. One of our wheels was out of true, so it was at Bike Tech and it had not been covered with the thin ponchos we had been using. They were still in the trike's trunk, which was actually fortunate. We put them on, and at about 7:30, we rode out.

As we left, we noticed a lot of tents were still up, and we weren't exactly sure what the day would bring. But we soldiered on.

After riding around 10 miles, Robert, one of ALC's biggest cheerleaders, drove by in his truck, pulled over and waved at us. We stopped, and he told us that there had been a big accident (cars, not bikes), the route was closing and we should head back to camp.

By now the rain had almost stopped. We had, as usual, climbed some big hills, but we took it easy riding down them as the roads were still pretty slick. And the rain must have washed up a lot of debris, because we, along with probably 30 or 40 other cyclists that day, got a flat. We had a spare tire and tube with us, and Jerry, my hero, changed the flat.

The roadies and staff who figured out the logistics of transporting 2100 riders, their bikes and 500 roadies did an amazing job. As we waited for buses, our lunch was delivered, our bikes were loaded on gear trucks and hauled to the next campsite. Considering nothing like this had ever happened before, it was nothing short of a miracle.

And while the rain stopped and the sun came out, no one faulted staff for deciding not to let us ride. We only had to think back to Day One, when it was misting and roads were wet. There were several accidents, and one very serious one. David is still as SF General and we are all praying for his recovery. We just heard that while he still cannot speak nor is he fully conscious, he can respond to some commands. That is very very good news.

What we were sorry to miss was Paradise Pit in Santa Barbara. Volunteers serve us ice cream, have massage tables set up and last year, beside porta-potties, they even had sinks! While we didn't get ice cream, they did send home made cookies to the camp.

We got to the campsite in Ventura around 4, so we had plenty of time to dry out our mattress, sleeping bag and assorted other soggy items.

Ventura is where we have the candlelight vigil on the beach, but I decided that I was going to skip it this year. I was trying to make the ride this year much more about life, and while I realize the vigil, in memory of all of those whom we've lost to AIDS is important, I just felt like it was not where I wanted to put my focus.

Evil Twins, More Pizza and Janine

2009-06-11T06:47:00.000-07:00

Day Four has a couple of highlights, both positive and negative. It is the day of the Evil Twins, two back-to=back hills, the halfway point, and a very long sweeping descent.

Again, the hills were not hard, just long and tedious. We cranked and cranked and cranked until we got up them.

Then to the halfway point. This is a pull-off on the left side of the road, where people climb a pile of rocks, hold their bikes above their head above a sign. At one point we thought it might be fun to get a half dozen folks to hoist our trike, but decided that we'd forgo the halfway point and sail down the hill.

And sail we did. We swooped past everyone as we rolled down the decline. The road was not nearly as twisty and turny as what we have experienced in the bay area, so no worries about leaning into turns, and very little braking. I didn't check the cyclometer, but I'm sure we approached 50 mph at times.

We continued the ride until we were a couple of miles from the lunch stop, and we decided though we had had pizza the night before, can anyone really get too much pizza? So we stopped at the same pizza place as we had last year. There were riders already there, and a few more trickled in as we ate.

But I suppose I discovered you CAN have too much pizza and spent the rest of the afternoon with a bit of an upset stomach. I have what Jerry calls "the dotted line." I'll try not to get too graphic. But basically, if too much goes in, or goes above the "dotted line" some of it has got to come out. And it did in fits and starts as we rolled down the road. Not the most pleasant thing, but I made every effort to make sure no one was too close behind us.

Because of the way I was feeling, we also skipped the Cinnamon Bun stop in Pismo Beach. So we got to our next climb a little sooner. Agony hill, Pismo Bitch... it goes by many names. It is not that long, but it is ridiculously steep. Cyclists were falling over because they were riding so slow. It was almost too steep to walk; besides, there was no shoulder. But once again, the trike made it up. We cranked and cranked and cranked some more. My quads and calves were screaming at me, but we made it.

Oh, and this was also the day I was not Carol. I was Janine. Seems that the daily newsletter, the Daily Spin, had an article about a pair of tandem riders, Clark and Janine. We hadn't seen it, since we had princessed, but we heard all about it. While the article was all about them, the photo that accompanied it was a picture of Jerry and me from last year. Not wanting to miss such an opportunity, I went to the medical tent at Rest Stop 1, got a piece of tape and a pen, and changed our license plate for the day so that it read "Jerry and Janine." The next day I went back to Carol. Had I seen it and known, I would have changed Jerry's name to Clark. The folks who told us about it couldn't remember his name.

Potato Chips, Oatmeal and Flat Tires, Continued

2009-06-09T09:44:00.001-07:00

I would be remiss if for my Day Two post I did not mention the Ugly Mug in Soquel. Every year, they give free coffee and tea to the riders. Jerry and I had never stopped, but this year we were on the road early enough for there not to be a crowd. I had three cups of their wonderful French Roast, which is part of why the day, until the dreaded flat, was going so well. Thank you, Ugly Mug!!!

Day Three

Oh, the more time from the ride, the harder it is to remember. But what I do remember is, that Day 3 is relatively short. It is the day of Quadbuster, the infamous hill that in reality, is a chance to get your photo taken by Brian Hodes. Brian is a cyclist, but on this ride he uses his skills as a professional photographer. He shot God knows how many thousands of photos on the ride. He then sells them with the profits going to ALC. I worked with Brian on World AIDS Day, helping him with publicity, particularly for his 24-hour bike ride. Yup, that's the kind of guy he is.

For us, Quadbuster was long and tedious, but on the trike, immensely doable, just as all the hills are. We are heavy, slow and we work our quads to their limits, but we truly can do any hill. And we "did" Quadbuster. Robert-- anyone who does the ride knows Robert-- pushed us a little near the top, and it was fun to get above two miles an hour for a couple of seconds.

The other side of Quadbuster is not that steep, so we sailed down without braking much. Much of the day is not very difficult, so we were back to camp fairly early. A real treat in many ways, because this was the night on the ride we were staying in a hotel, otherwise known as princessing. We were staying at the Hotel Adelaide, which was walking distance from the ALC Camp. We grabbed what we needed for the next day so we didn't have to lug our suitcases and hoofed it over to the Adelaide.

The Adelaide was the sister hotel to the Best Western next door. It was small and very pleasant. Jerry and I brought swimwear and headed to the hot tub. The trike was really doing a number on our legs, and the swirling hot water felt wonderful. We relaxed a while, then headed back to the room, got naked and ordered in pizza.

Pizza never tasted so good. There was a small refrigerator in the room, so we stashed the leftovers for breakfast.

The best part of the hotel experience, beside not having to schlep our gear and set up a tent, was not having to use a headlamp to get to the bathroom. I think I got up three times that night. Peeing was never so luxurious.

We got up at our usual 5 am, threw on our bike clothes and headed out. There was a Starbucks next door to the hotel, and I joined the line with all the other princesses and got myself a giganto cappuccino. Or whatever Starbucks calls it. Why do they have those ridiculous names. Starbucks; get over yourself. Starbucks is never my favorite coffee, but it tasted great that morning.

Time for

Day Four

The Week of Potato Chips Part II

2009-06-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

Before I have to start organizing for a trip to Boston, leaving later today, I thought I'd try to jot down some more notes and memories, before they become even more of a blur. In any case, I'll probably get days and events confused as it is.

But back to Day I

Being slow, Jerry and I got into camp a good bit later than others. The good part about that is being able to see the Tent Grid take shape. It's always fun coming into camp on that first day and seeing the Tent City, along with the myriad other service tents-- medicine, massage, chiro, Camp Store, Media, Pos Peds. It really is a moving city. The Roadies who get that built are nothing short of Iron Men and Women. Cheryl, who I met when I spoke at a fundraiser for her and her husband Lee, was on my Gear Truck, Truck F. They hung a blow-up monkey on the truck and gave us monkey bracelets. The monkey was cute and it really did make finding the gear truck easier. Several roadies on our truck were female. More power to them, and I mean that in both the literal and figurative sense!

Our bags weighed just under 50 pounds, but I heard from other roadies that there were people who went over the 70 pound limit. I had a hard enough time with our bags; I can't imagine hoisting those 70-plus pound bags onto the truck. I think weight limits and perhaps even sanctions for overweight bags needs to be considered.

Anyway, we got back to camp, showered and had dinner. I sign up for vegetarian, and I'm generally glad I do. There isn't that much red meat during the week, but for those few occasions it's a safer bet. Plus, the vegetarian food on the ride is really good. Even dreaded lunch, which is day after day of sandwiches, is a little better. This year at lunch vegetarian options included hummus, rice and bean wrap and tabouli and feta wrap. They only served the mozzarella and basil sandwich once, and yes, the dreaded peanut butter on walnut bread was back. I love peanut butter, but I really do NOT like that sandwich.

Bedtime on the first night, and generally every night was about 8:30. It was a bit odd going to sleep before it was totally dark, but not all that difficult, especially since we were getting up at around 4:45. Since we were riding slowly, we wanted to hit the route by 6:30, and on most days we made our schedule.

After we set up our tent the next step was setting up the Maryland flag. The flag served a couple of purposes. First-- it draws the Marylanders to us, and on occasion, I even get to talk Bawlmer. But the most important reason is the ease in which it allowed us to find our tent. After dinner-- there was our flag flying above our tent, and even better, there it was after those 3 am port-a-potty trips. Our neighbors loved it as well.

Day Two

Day Two is the longest day on the ride, so we were up bright and early and ready to tackle the more than 100 miles. In reality, Day Two isn't anywhere near the most difficult day. A lot of it is flat, rolling through fields of strawberries that smell heavenly.

We rode well and felt really great until... we had a flat. And not just any flat. The gravel on the side of the road-- we tended to ride way to the right so others could pass--- really ate up our tire, so it wasn't just the tube that needed replacing. We tried to put a "boot" in the tire, but to no avail. We did have a spare, but it was back at camp. So, for our very first time, and at about 60 miles, we had to get sagged back to camp.

We tried to look at it philosophically. We didn't give out; our bike did. The most interesting and difficult part of it all was how the roadies were going to get the trike back to camp. Ultimately, they loaded it on the large truck on TOP of the other bikes that were padded with blankets. It took a crew of them to hoist the behemoth up there. Again, we were so grateful to those roadies for taking care of us.

Back at camp, Jerry put a new tire on the bike and figured out a way to hook a spare tire onto the trike-- I know I alternate between calling the machine a bike and a trike. It really is a trike, but my fingers almost automatically type bike. Old habits die hard. Forgive me. We looked a little like Grapes of Wrath with the tired on the back of our trike, but fortunately, we didn't need it until Day 6, but that's another story, which I promise I'll tell later.

The week of potato chips is over

2009-06-07T16:08:00.000-07:00

I joke that I do the AIDS ride for the potato chips. Of course, that's just a joke, but it is the only week of the year that I eat potato chips almost every single day.

I'm still a little brain dead from the ordeal, but over the next few days I will try to gather my thoughts and write about this most amazing week.

Day Zero
Last Saturday seems like a lifetime ago. It's the day Jerry and I hauled our Tandem Trike-- our friend Hunter named it Jack Triker, after a porn star (guess it has something to do with the trike's huge size)-- to the Cow Palace to park it and then get in endless lines to watch a safety video, get a tent assignment, turn in the rest of our donations, pick up Pos Ped Supporter jerseys and to kiss and hug numerous friends.

After a couple of hours of getting wrist bands and our tent number on a disk on a chain to hang around our neck, we headed home to finish packing. We totally geek out on the ride. We dress alike every day; that's not unusual for tandem riders, but it is pretty unusual on the AIDS ride, especially considering there were only five tandems this year. We packed two-gallon plastic bags and then sat on them to squeeze out as much air as possible, then stacked them vertically in the suitcase in order of days. It's amazing how much easier that makes camp life. Grab a bag and go.

After we packed and had dinner, we headed over to our friends Tom and Jeff's, who live in Daly City, just minutes from the Cow Palace. This is the second year they have hosted us, and it makes a world of difference getting to sleep until 4:45, as opposed to 2:30 a.m., especially considering we will be riding lots of miles and climbing lots of hills the next day.

We chatted a bit, but went to bed quite early, filled with anticipation.

Day 1
I think no matter how many times I do this ride, I will never get over the thrill of rideout. We do some stretching, eat some banana bread, and then the Positive Pedalers carry banners, followed by the Riderless Bike, symbolizing all of those we have lost to AIDS. This year, one of the people who accompanied the bicycle was Joe, a rider who would not be riding this year because he broke his kneecap. I did that years ago, and it's painful, but I know it was even more painful for Joe because he raised a lot of money, is very active in the community and was so looking forward to the ride.

After the ceremony, we headed to our bikes. The Positive Pedalers rode out first and then the rest of us followed. The adrenaline that takes over is incredible, egged on by the friends who line the beginning of the route, cheering, ringing cow bells and holding signs. Despite the cold and dense fog, I couldn't stop smiling. At least for the first mile or so.

Then we began to climb. and climb. and climb. On a 60-pound trike that will only go so fast up hills. The frustration with the trike began on that day when all we had were our quads and calves to get us up those hills. No upper body at all. No standing to use body weight. Just those quads pumping and pumping and pumping. Ironically, it wasn't difficult; just slow and tedious and tiring.
More later. Jerry and I are going to the movies.

12 Baggies, all in a row

2009-05-29T11:57:00.001-07:00

I just finished most of the packing for Jerry and me. 12 two-gallon plastic bags, labeled for each day of the ride. Of course, except Day 1, because we will be wearing those.

It was a fun mix and match effort. Since we ride a tandem, Jerry and I geek out with matching jerseys. I even tried to match our shorts for a lot of days. We even have matching socks for a couple of days. We're so cute it could make you throw up.

Jerry is just back from visiting his mom in Texas. Her lung cancer is back for the third time, and she will head to Houston or Dallas-- I forget which-- for Cyberknife treatment. She had that a couple of years ago at UCSF when I was working there, and it kept her cancer at bay for a while. Her husband underwent chemo for his cancer and she hated what it did to him, so she's trying to avoid that. But while Jerry was there, his mom gave him a substantial donation for the ride. With our other checks in hand, he will climb over the top of the $3000 mark.

A far cry from last year and the year before when we raised close to double that amount. And it's too bad. No, not because we won't get the "special" jersey. But because with budget cuts this is a real life or death ride. The more we raise, the more people will get services. The more people living with HIV will continue to live. My hope is that as we cycle down the coast, the message will ring loud and clear with people and more folks will get donations and more money will pour into organizations who are keeping people alive.

So tomorrow, we once again see the safety video, get our tent assignment and spend the night with Thom and Jeff in Daly City, trying to sleep, but kept awake with anticipation, excitement and adrenalin pulsing through our bodies.

Forever Young

2009-05-24T11:10:00.000-07:00

I was riding down 101 yesterday, flipping stations on the radio. On came Rod Stewart singing "Forever Young," and I started to cry. Initially, I wasn't even sure why. I figured, I always get emotional right before the ride, so maybe that's it.

But then I thought about that song. I started thinking about the friends I have lost to AIDS. They will be forever young, because they were so young when they died. I thought of Jimmy, Andrew, Ricardo and too many others. I saw their handsome faces. I remembered them before they got sick. They will remain forever young.

The ride, though, for me, is not about who we've lost. It's about who we won't lose because of the funds we raise. It is a positive event-- full of hope, excitement and promise.

But every now and then, something triggers those old memories. They aren't bad, really. I don't ever want to forget those friends.

What a Difference

2009-05-22T20:51:00.000-07:00

a week and about 20 degrees make. Jerry and I rode today and yesterday. We were going to ride tomorrow but he's going out of town on Sunday and really needs to get stuff done before he hits the road.

Thursday was our usual China Camp ride and we are really working well through its twists and turns. Our average speed was up and we had a great time.

Today we did reverse Tiburon Loop. It was downright cold when we left, but I definitely prefer that to the scorching temperatures of last weekend. We did pretty well all day, though the last climb out of Ft. Baker did both of us in, pretty much. No lunch might have had something to do with it.

So, we are finished training before we leave on The Ride next Sunday. I really do think we are ready. The trike is slow, but it's steady and we can climb just about anything on it. It will be interesting to see whether we love it or hate it after a week and more than 500 miles of day-in, day-out riding. And we'll do our best. We've done the hard part, which is raise the money, although in reality we are not quite there. Jerry needs about another $500, but I think we'll get there.

Jerry is off to Texas on Sunday to see his mom, and he's taking several projects with him. He's got fabric to make the Team Tandemonium flag for the trike, and we also bought some fabric for him to make a couple of small bags to hang on the back of our seat for jackets, leg warmers and the like.

So for the next week I'll go out and get the little things we need-- travel-size toiletries, a new set of cleats, brake pads, and whatever else strikes me as I roam through Sports Basement.

We Made the Newspapers

2009-05-20T16:33:00.001-07:00

I sent a release to Marinscope Newspapers and they printed it
http://tiny.cc/Rk9p9
The only problem is, the blog address is wrong, so people who go to it will end up at the wrong blog...
Sigh.

Carol and Jerry's Ride through Hell

2009-05-17T08:54:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure I believe in heaven or hell, but if hell means a lot of heat, I don't want to go there.

Yesterday, we rode the Bride of Cat 2 ride to Petaluma. We started out early on a lovely, clear day. But somehow you know that if you don't need a jacket or arm warmers at 7 am, you've got some serious heat in store, particularly if you're riding to Petaluma.

The ride up had its moments, but generally it was okay, save the moment going over insanely bumpy roads on the way into Petaluma that jarred Jerry's mirror so badly it flew off.

But we got to the Apple Box for lunch. Then I waited. Seems they forgot my order, but once I reminded them, they got me my sandwich. In the heat, I couldn't eat a lot, so had half and a big lemonade.

Then-- cue ominous music-- the ride back. The climb out of Petaluma is long, but on a day with intense sunshine and heat, not only was it interminable, it was crazy-making.

Yes, I got a little wacky. Dehydration and body temperature climbing into the stratosphere did me in. It was hard to tell, really, if I was dehydrated, because I don't sweat. No, I'm not kidding. I don't sweat. Oh, maybe a little on the face, but heck, even my pits stay dry, and no I wasn't using anti-perspirant. Truly, I WANT to sweat. So my body was not relieving itself of the intense heat and I got to the point where we had to stop under every bit of shade.

But even the riders less than half my age were having to do the same thing, though perhaps not to the extent I had to. Jerry and I were both getting a little worried about me. I could barely stand and I was on the verge of chills. To make matters worse, I left one of my water bottles under one of those shady trees. I was just too out of it to remember to put it back in the cage, so our quickly diminishing supply of water diminished all the more quickly. And despite being short of water, Jerry liberally doused my head and back with what little he had left.

That helped enough for us to slowly crawl back to the Cheese Factory. On the road we had pretty well decided that we would figure out a way for him to get the car and come back and fetch me and the trike.

But then the miracle. Lots of water, shade and a rest saved me. Also knowing the worst was behind us got us back on the trike to finish the ride.

When we pulled into Fairfax there was much cheering from the riders who had done Marshall Wall. Duncan, a friend of ours who had done Marshall said he thought Petaluma, on a day like we were having, was worse than Marshall Wall. Silly me-- I thought I was picking the easier ride.

After a lemonade at the Fairfax Roastery, it was time to hit the final stretch. We pedaled slowly, but finally got back to the car and trailer. We loaded up the trike and headed home.

After stripping quickly I headed for a tepid shower. It was glorious. A small dinner of chicken Caesar salad with REAL, not low-fat, dressing, a little reading and then a fitful night of sleep in the heat.

We had ridden Thursday and Friday, building up our miles, and we really felt ready for a longer ride. But nothing could have made me ready for that heat. Sunday's ride was more difficult than anything we will face on the AIDS ride, which gives me a small modicum of comfort knowing I'm ready for almost anything.

Three Days of Riding and More Tabbouli

2009-05-11T10:21:00.001-07:00

except this time, it's not the food, but the song. Yes, the tabbouli song.
A friend sent a music video to me from YouTube with the Tabbouli song. The first verse begins-- Tabouli Tabouli makes me shake shake shake my bootie. Eat it with lots of felafel, eat it on top of a camel.

It just gets better from there. Plans are for a group of us to sing it at Balkan Camp.
But in the meantime, it has been my hill-climbing song. I have gone through many songs to keep a steady rhythm and keep my mind off what I'm doing. I've sung everything from "I'm a Hill-Climbing Bitch" to "What Have You Done Today to Make You Feel Proud," an AIDS Lifecycle standard and hit video.

But the tabbouli song seems to be working well. It's the right speed and rhythm and makes me smile. What more could anyone want?

Jerry and I ramped up our riding this week. On Friday, we started with a short 20-mile jaunt around China Camp. Then Saturday we rode Tiburon Loop to the tune of 30 miles. Yesterday we doubled that with a ride to Point Reyes Station.

At Pt. Reyes we ran into the Positive Pedalers weekend retreat ride. What a treat to see a whole bunch of friends. We sat on the curb and ate sandwiches. Lovely day.
We averaged 11 mph which is slow, and if that is our speed on the ride there's no doubt we will get swept, so we're going to work this week at getting our speed up a bit. We are becoming more confident on the downhills and Jerry is letting off the brakes a bit more. That's really where we can make up some time. I don't have very high hopes for getting our climbing much faster. But maybe a little. As Jerry says, riding the recumbent is like riding a barcolounger, and it climbs hills like a barcolounger.

I ended the day yesterday by speaking at a fundraiser in Berkeley. Alvin and Jenny are first-time riders, doing the ride as their college graduation rite of passage. It was a small group-- everyone forgot it was Mother's Day until the last minute-- but I think they were receptive. And as I told Alvin and Jenny-- if I helped them raise an extra $10, it was worth it.

Pretty zonked, I had a good night sleep. It's going to be a good week.

Wet Bikers and Chicken Marbella

2009-05-04T14:42:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was the annual Jonathan Pon Memorial Ride. Jonathan was the founder of the Positive Pedalers, a group of HIV positive bicycle riders who are the face of the AIDS Lifecycle. Their mission is to raise awareness and funds for HIV services.

Jerry and I rode the two-day 150-mile ride two years ago, but this is the second year we have been providing dinner and breakfast for the ride. It's my opportunity to do what I love for a group of people I love. In the past, meals were barbecue and over-mayonnaised potato salad. I wanted to take it up a notch or two. Last year was good; this year I think it was even better.

And if any a group deserved a good dinner, it was this group of 125 wet riders and roadies. The rain was fairly steady on Saturday, but the riders slogged on through it all.

Jerry, Rich and Paul and I started prep Friday night in a rented kitchen. The facilities were adequate, but it was a tad funkier than I expected. Not exactly pristeen and the chaos level was a little high. But the four of us brought a bit of calm and humor to the other groups working there, and I think they appreciated it. We got quite a bit done ahead of time because the kitchen facilities at the campsite are abysmal. We completed the chicken marinade, the green bean vinaigrette and some other assorted chopping.

Earlier in the day Rich, Paul and I hit the wholesale food market, which was loads of fun. We found everything we needed so we didn't have to make any other stops, except to pick up donated coffee. Tom and Dave's Coffee, in San Rafael, didn't know me at all, but when I called them to see if I could buy wholesale and I told them what it was for, they donated the coffee. And I'm happy to say the coffee was very good.

After packing the van and Paul's car on Saturday morning, we made one stop to pick up bagels then we headed to Cassini Ranch in Duncan's Mills, just outside Occidental. Having gotten a lot of prep done the evening before we felt pretty confident about getting dinner done in time.

The first riders came in around 3 or so, drenched and cold. We got appetizers of hummus, feta-pepper dip and pita and carrots out, as well as an array of hot drinks-- coffee, tea and cocoa, for them.

Riders trickled in and we got busy in earnest. Rich was the grill man, and he grilled 50 pounds of chicken breast. Some of the pieces were thick, so we worked together to butterfly them.

I took the marinade and turned it into a sauce. It contained olive oil, vinegar, oregano, a lot of garlic, capers, olives and prunes. It was astounding. I added some alcohol-free white wine and just a little wondra flour to give it a little more body.

We made couscous and stirred in Kalamata olives and parsley into it. We had a green salad and the green beans with it.

For dessert, Robin, another rider made brownies and I had made butterscotch bars.

We got out of the kitchen around 8 pm and Jerry and I went straight to bed, which was an air mattress in the now-empty borrowed van. Wasn't the best night of sleep I've had, but not the worst, either.

We were up a little before 5 am to start breakfast. We had great volunteers with Nathan, Beau and John helping us slice bagels and canteloupe and trim strawberries. Rich again was grill man, making scrambled eggs filled with chicken sausage, cheese and mushrooms. I had baked pumpkin breads as well to go along with the eggs and bagels and cream cheese.

It had rained all night and it looked as if there was no sign of it letting up, so Beau, who works for a bus company, got on the phone and ordered up a couple of busses to take the riders back to the start. The bikes were loaded onto the gear truck and a group of riders, still soggy from sleeping on wet ground in a rain storm were happy to see the buses pull up. From the photos I've seen posted, it looked like a lot of riders slept on the bus on the way back to Sausalito.

I am so sorry it rained on this ride, but I think people still had a good time. It's the best group of folks I can imagine spending a couple of days with, so despite the weather, I think most everyone had a good time. I know I did, but then I only had to cook, not ride.

I'm still tired today, but I've already started thinking about next year's Jon Pon ride.

Tiburon Loop and Wet Tuna

2009-04-29T17:26:00.000-07:00

Wet tuna sounds like something one of my cats would eat, but it was actually the name of the sandwich I had for lunch at Comfort Food Cafe. Jerry and I went to lunch there after riding around Tiburon Loop. It was a very pleasant ride. The more we ride the trike, the more we are becoming comfortable with it.

But the wet tuna sandwich. It was on a foccacia roll that was toasted and had olive oil on it. The tuna was mixed with a light vinaigrette, capers, tomatoes, olives and roasted red peppers. It was wonderful. I'm sure I could replicate it at home.

Jerry and I won't be riding this weekend because we are cooking for the Jon Pon Memorial Ride. There will be around 150 to cook for. I've rented a kitchen for eight hours prior to the ride so I can get as much prep done as possible. The kitchen at Cassini Ranch, where the campers spend the night, is a disaster. The ovens don't work properly and there are no pots and pans to use. But we make due and turn out two great meals. Looking forward to it, and looking forward to finishing up early enough on Sunday to get in a ride.

Numb Toes and Tabouli

2009-04-25T16:15:00.000-07:00

Today was Day On the Ride-- a day that is supposed to simulate what a day on the "real" AIDS ride is like. Except the ride was kinda short for that. And ours was even shorter.

We did not want to ride across the Golden Gate Bridge, plus we were still getting used to the new trike, so we opted to start our ride in Sausalito and ride to Lagunitas. Part of our ride was with DOTR riders, which was fun.

We stopped at the first rest stop, which was staffed by the Positive Pedalers, so got to see lots of friends. Rich Prendes took a couple great pictures of us in action, which are great to have.

After we hung around the rest stop for about a half an hour, we got back on the trike and pedaled up White's Hill, our longest, steepest climb yet. Funny to say yet-- it's only our third time on the trike, but we are doing incredibly well.

White's Hill was slow, but very doable. Our biggest difficulty with climbing is having our feet fall asleep. They are up above our hearts, so the blood is leaving them and not being pumped hard enough. What we will probably do is take breaks to get our circulation back. We didn't do that today; I think we wanted to do White's Hill without a stop, which felt great.

We then pedaled down to Lagunitas and stopped at the market. They have delicious organic French roast coffee, so I had a cup, accompanied by a small cup of tabouli. I really do like their tabouli. It's mostly bulgar with a smattering of parsley and tomato, but maybe it was the ride, but it tasted great. Jerry had some chili, then we got back on the bike.

We rode back to our car and trailer, which was coincidentally where the next rest stop was. We saw Stephan Gaudreau, who, with his wife, Lilli, runs a trapeze school. This is his first year riding. He rarely can ride on Saturday because of work, so it was great to see him. He is strong and will be one of the leaders on the ride, I suspect. He's raised more than $5000 so I look forward to seeing him in his jersey.

Not so sure Jerry and I will earn jerseys this year. Neither of us have even raised our minimum. But we'll get there.

Not as bad as flavored coffee

2009-04-22T18:54:00.000-07:00

But flavored iced tea ranks not far behind. Why do people insist on putting mangoes and flowers in iced tea? Okay, they can put it in BUT WARN ME. Jerry and I rode our trike up to Fairfax today. Yes, that means we rode over Camino Alto, and we stopped at the Coffee Roastery in Fairfax. Jerry does not drink coffee of any sort, so I agreed to split an iced tea with him.

I like iced tea with maybe some lemon, but nothing else. But this had flowers or mango or some other such thing in it. And there was no warning. But I drank some of it but got to eat most of the ice on the ride back to Sausalito. The beauty of the trike is that I can hold a drink and still ride. I could sit in that lounge chair of a bike seat and have a cappucino if I wanted to. Or a cocktail. It's just grand.

Well, almost just grand. I tend to slide down in the seat and have to shinny my way back up. We are going to look at the lacing in the back to see if we can adjust the seat so I don't continue to sink down toward the pedals.

Friday we are riding with a group around Tiburon Loop. That will mean Camino Alto and Sausalito Hill. We are ready.

Spinning with the Oldies

2009-04-21T12:23:00.000-07:00

By oldies I mean the stuff that I dvr'd from TV, or maybe I just mean me, and by spinning, I mean the big ol trike on rollers in the family room.

Too bad no one took a video of Jerry and me getting that thing in the house. Jerry's using one hand, and I'm my usually klutzy self. We backed in, we backed out. Finally, we took off the headrest and wrestled the behemoth into the family room.

We figure since we won't get out every day to ride, we better at least get used to sitting in that weird position (for us) and get in some pedal time.

I took a turn in it yesterday while I watched the "ER Retrospective" on the dvr. I discovered that alone, it takes more effort to pedal from the stoker seat than the captain, but the captain is just a tad too long for me to pedal comfortably, so I geared down and went at it.

I pedaled for about an hour, and probably would have stayed on longer but it was getting so hot in the house I had to stop.

Whether it's global warming or just a short memory, I really don't remember it being this hot in April. San Francisco was really hot yesterday as well, so I can't blame Marin for this.

Jerry and I are going to take the Big Bike, or should I say Trike, on the road again tomorrow. We're contemplating attacking Camino Alto and cruising into Fairfax. No matter how strong we get, I suspect we will never be speed demons on hills. We're going to have to just live with that and as I continue to say, do the best we can, and that will have to suffice. You've got to give us an A for effort, though.

Sore Knees and Fried Kale

2009-04-19T18:08:00.000-07:00

Jerry and I took our first real ride on the trike, and I'm feeling it now. It will take a while to get used to the new position and the use of different muscles. My replaced knee was a little sore after the ride so I iced it. I realize how ridiculous that sounds-- how can a prosthetic knee hurt? I should clarify it's all the real muscles around that prosthetic knee that are aching.

We took off from home because the trailer we plan to haul the trike around in had a flat. We headed down a pretty narrow frontage road and then turned on to 2nd to head out to China Camp. At least that was the plan. Turns out most of China Camp was closed to traffic because of a run. But we did get in some hills and they were damn hard. Perhaps I shouldn't say hard, but we were cranking away and going 2 to 4 miles per hour. And these hills were nothing like what we are going to face on the ride. So, we've got lots of training to do.

After we got home, showered and had lunch, I headed over to Berkeley to speak at a fundraiser. Lee and Cheryl are roadies. Lee will be driving a supply truck and Cheryl works gear and tent. It was a small gathering, but I think the message hit home. First I showed John Hershey's slide/video of last year's ride, then talked. I tried to keep the talk upbeat. Sometimes I think ALC is a bit too morose, dwelling too much on those we have lost. I want to celebrate the lives of those living with HIV and who are being helped by the AIDS Foundation. That was the message I tried to impart. Then I went in for the kill. I really tried to ratchet up donations. Lee seems to think I succeeded.

It's funny how easy it is to raise funds for someone else. I'm behind on my own fundraising, but I could never make that kind of presentation to my own friends. I asked these people to donate $200 or $300, larger than any donation I have received. It's hard for me to ask for ANY amount, and I know I have friends who could afford to give more.

Lee and Cheryl had quite a spread of food, but what I zeroed in on was the crisp fried kale. It wasn't oily at all. It reminded me of the little fried sage leaves that sometimes decorate dishes in Italian restaurants. The kale was salty, crunchy and addictive. I'm going to have to make some soon.

Laughing All the Way

2009-04-17T21:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but I laughed the entire time Jerry and I were on the trike. We only rode a couple of blocks, but there is something about it that just made me laugh. Maybe I can't believe we're actually doing it. I'm so happy.

Our friends George and Nancy came over. George and Jerry finished putting the trike together then Jerry and I took it out for a spin. But something was wrong with the way the chain was on and Jerry had to pedal backwards to go forward. That was part of what made me laugh. We came back, George fixed it, then the two of them took it out for a spin. Then Jerry and Nancy. Nancy couldn't reach the pedals, so Jerry chaufeurred her.

George and Nancy know their tandems, and they were pretty impressed with this one. It was lighter and it handled better than they thought it would. Their endorsement meant a lot.

After we finished playing with the trike we came in for dinner. The appetizer was barely touched-- a feta cheese dip. I blend feta with some yogurt and garlic, a splash of olive oil, then I pulse in some sun dried tomatoes.

Dinner was a layered dish of polenta, sauteed chicken sausage with onion, garlic and mushrooms, and topped with fresh mozzarella. I made a dressing for the salad with some good dijon mustard, not very aged balsamic, some basil, rice vinegar and some apple cider vinegar.

We taste tested the coffee cake for dessert. All was good.

Tomorrow, we ride.

A Big Crate and More Coffee Cake

2009-04-16T20:05:00.000-07:00

I didn't hear the door bell ring, or the knocking, but thank goodness I heard the phone. Jerry called to tell me to open the garage. The delivery person had his number, so he called him when no one answered. Gotta have that doorbell, or my hearing, checked.

With a great deal of difficulty, the guy put the huge wooden crate on the lift and lowered it to the street. He pushed it into the garage. I ripped off one end of the plywood, and there it was. In two pieces and odds and ends tied down. But there it was.

When Jerry got home I crawled in the crate and unclipped the ties holding it down. We ripped off the other end of the plywood and slid out the two pieces. Without too much difficulty, we threaded the two pieces together.

It is not 11 feet long, as Jerry had claimed, but it IS long. We both took turns sitting in it, and yes, I will admit, it's comfy.

We took some photos and had some beans and rice I had cooked, and some coffee cake. I changed the recipe I had used just a few days ago. I added more cinnamon, less white sugar, more brown sugar, and I made it in a half sheet pan. It worked well and it's good.

Jerry is in the garage fiddling with the bike. Knowing him, he is getting the chain on without taking the bike apart-- probably splitting the chain to get it on.

I cannot wait to ride it.

No Trike and Cheap Indian Food

2009-04-15T10:46:00.000-07:00

Well, it's Wednesday and still no trike. I'm home, and I keep waiting for a truck to pull up to unload the behemoth that will take us down the coast to LA. Jerry and I are getting quite impatient about its arrival. When, when, when.

Jerry saw his orthopaedist this week who took out the stitches and gave him some very gentle exercises to do. He's still in the sling 24 hours a day,though he got to remove the bolster that sat between his sore ribs and his arm, so he's a bit more comfortable. He can also take it off when he drives, which he's just been allowed to do, so my chauffeur duties have ended.

This past weekend, as we were out in our car and saw some ALC cyclists on their way to China Camp, our pain and longing to be with them was almost palpable. I cannot wait to get back on a tandem-- any tandem. Some day, after I train again with Lorri Lee Lown of Velo Girls, I might even long to get back on a single bike.

I have cooked next to nothing, except for baking a couple of loaves of bread this week. Last night I was queen of the microwave. I recently got a boxed set of Indian food at Trader Joe's. It had rice, Dal and a peas and potato dish. I threw in some chicken and it really was not bad. It was good one-handed food for Jerry, so for the first time in a while, we had an actual dinner.

I'm still obsessing about Jon Pon. I'm not worried-- I just keep running recipe ideas through my head. I'm really looking forward to it. It's such a great weekend. Once it's over, though, I'll start obsessing about the ride, and that will involve some worry. But I keep reminding myself, we'll try as hard as we can, and that's what it's all about.

Encouragement and Coffee Cake

2009-04-12T11:49:00.000-07:00

It's hard for Jerry and me to keep our spirits up, but we certainly are trying. Not being able to ride in this beautiful weather is taking its toll,but today we are going to the beach for a barbecue with friends. I've got a coffee cake cooling on a rack downstairs. Making it was a bit of a comedy of errors. It's a new recipe, and I had gone out specifically to get buttermilk for it. So I was sure all was a go.

But first I couldn't find oil. It did finally turn up in the garage, where a lot of my larger-container items live. But then, where was the baking powder? I always have baking powder. What baker doesn't have baking powder.
Fortunately, I am taking care of Satchmo, our neighbor's cat, so I had the keys to their house. I went over, fed Satch, and borrowed a teaspoon of baking powder. Baking emergency averted.

The cake smells wonderful. This is a test batch for the Jon Pon ride the first week in May. If it's a success here, I'll make it for breakfast for the ride.

Encouragement came in the form of an email from the owners of a company called Reverse Gear (www.reversegearinc.com). They sell everything to meet the needs of riders of "bent" bikes, as many call recumbents, and they ride a Greenspeed recumbent tandem. I emailed them to ask about their experience with riding their tandem trike all over the world. The email I received was friendly and reassuring. Sure, we won't be the fastest bike on Quadbuster, but we'll make it.

I feel as if we have some wonderful support out there. It feels great.

Three wheels and 11 feet

2009-04-09T15:45:00.000-07:00

We did it. In one week, Jerry and I will take delivery on a Greenspeed Tandem Trike. It is 11 feet long and probably weighs as much as we do. But it is the only way we can do the AIDS ride, so that's that. Initially, we will put it on a wind trainer and pedal in our family room. Once Jerry is deemed road ready, we'll take it out. It's exciting and scary. But mostly exciting.

Jerry has been in considerable discomfort but at least most of his pain has subsided. I took him to his office today, and he is working away on a few things, including a neon sign from the Comfort Food Cafe that is on the blink, literally. It's blinking and Jerry can probably fix it.

Leslie, the owner of the cafe is going to lend me large pots for the Jon Pon ride. What a relief that I don't have to buy one. The manager at the ranch where the event is sent me a nasty email about not using any of their stuff, so I won't. Thank goodness I have a friend who owns a well-equipped restaurant.

Not much cooking or baking lately. I think Jerry and I have both been kind of down. We were initially worried we wouldn't be able to do the AIDS ride, now we're worried that it's going to be incredibly difficult. But we will do what we can.

Fundraising has been particularly hard this year. There was an article in today's New York Times that everyone, including those who have jobs, are afraid to spend. I think that's what's happening to me. Most of my friends are still employed, but they don't seem to be coming through with donations. It's the ones, though, you least expect, who do come through. I have a friend who is grossly underemployed, but he made a donation of $10. It meant so much.

Elevators, Steps and Subways

2009-04-03T17:50:00.000-07:00

This morning was Jerry's surgery on his clavicle. He slept much better than I did last night. I think that's because I've had more surgeries so I was more nervous.

We got to UCSF and parked in the public garage-- a massive structure that's expensive and gets filled way too quickly. We then took the elevator up and then had to go down a flight of stairs to the ambulatory surgery suite. The orthopods who do joint replacement are down there too. It strikes me as just a tad ironic that it is difficult to get to that floor by elevator. You can do it, but it's difficult.

I stayed with Jerry the two hours until they took him to the OR. I figured I had some time so I went and gave blood. I'm happy to say my iron was high enough-- it isn't always-- and giving the unit was a breeze.

Then I visited with Eleanor, another AIDS Lifecyclist who works at UCSF. Her grandmother recently died and we had a wonderful talk about her grandmother, her spirit, and all that Eleanor has learned from her.

Afterwards, I wasn't hungry, but I was a little light-headed so I thought I'd better get something to eat. UCSF has several choices besides the hospital cafeteria. In Millberry Union, there is a food court with pizza, Chinese, Mexican and something else. There is also an overpriced go through a line and get a pannini restaurant as well.

So what did I choose? I went to the basement to Subway and got a chicken breast sub. I had the server put lettuce, tomato, onion, pepperoncini and salt and pepper on it. I got the foot long, but ate half. It was really good. Maybe I'm lowbrow, but I like the Subway chicken subs. They are simple, unpretentious food. And inexpensive.

I then went back and waited for Jerry to come out of anesthesia. The surgery went very well and Jerry should have a good recovery.

When we got home, I heated up some leftover spaghetti for Jerry and I ate the second half of my sub.

Life, for now, is okay.

Recumbent trikes and Mediterranean Chicken

2009-04-01T20:08:00.000-07:00

I think Jerry and I have solved our AIDS Lifecycle problem. We will do the ride on a recumbent tandem, either two-wheeler or trike. We are leaning toward a trike because of its stability-- it would be pretty awful if Jerry landed on his newly plated and screwed shoulder.

Now the task is finding one that won't bankrupt us. We are hoping to track down a used one, but even if we don't, we figure we can sell it after the ride. Unless of course, we fall in love with it, but somehow I think we will want to go back to our Co-motion.

And tonight, I did a trial run of the chicken dish I am going to make for the Jon Pon ride. It's marinated boneless chicken breasts with olives, prunes, capers, red wine vinegar, oregano, garlic and olive oil. I served it with couscous. I need to up the spices-- more red wine vinegar and more garlic. I also need to do something to dress up the couscous. At the very least, parsley. But maybe toasted pine nuts.

When the going gets tough...

2009-03-31T11:09:00.001-07:00

the not so tough bake bread. I made two loaves yesterday. The house was filled with a delicious aroma, but that did only so much to make us feel better.

Jerry will have surgery on his clavicle on Friday. I feel pretty good about that part. The surgeon has good credentials and I spoke to another orthopaedist friend who knows him, and he said he's a good guy.

But it's the recovery that is troubling. I know the AIDS ride is just "a ride," but it means so much to us. We will be a part of it, no matter what, but it's hard for me to imagine not riding. My ortho friend said Jerry might be able to ride on the back of the tandem, but I don't know if I have the strength or confidence to be the one in the front. I have contacted Lorri Lee Lown of Velogirls to see if I can get some coaching.

So much is in the air. We are both pretty depressed. Maybe I better go make some coffee cake.

Good Advice and Peanut Butter Candy

2009-03-28T17:14:00.001-07:00

Jerry and I went to the ALC Expo today. It was great to be surrounded by cyclists, even if we aren't riding. I had peanut butter candy to deliver and a wind trainer to pick up, so I had to go, but since Jerry felt good enough to go, that was encouraging.

I dropped him off and parked the car a few blocks away, toting my cooler of candy. I had three pounds ordered, but brought along some extra just in case. That was good because I sold all I brought with me. The peanut butter candy was really messy and more difficult to make than the peppermint bark, so I'm not making any more, but it did raise a little money for the ride.

We really don't know what Jerry's ultimate ride prognosis will be, but Russ, our cycle buddy had good advice-- if Jerry can ride by that time, no matter how much or little we have trained, we ought to go. We'll ride as much as we can and enjoy Utopia for a week. We'll be amongst friends and get back to camp early. We have ridden every single mile the last two years, so we don't really have anything to prove.

As long as Jerry is able to ride by then, we'll do it. If he's able to ride a couple weeks before the ride, we'll train, and who knows, we may be able to do more than we think we can.

So for now, I'll concentrate on raising funds for the ride and keeping Jerry's spirits up and making sure he doesn't overdo.

Clavicles and Chinese food

2009-03-27T19:55:00.000-07:00

Jerry has not been having such great luck lately. Just a few weeks ago he crashed his car, and yesterday, he crashed on one of his bikes. The first crash totaled the car. The bike crash did more of a number on him than the bike. He came home last night barely able to walk, battered and bruised. I put him to bed with ice packs and red wine.

He was not much better this morning so I got him in to see a doctor at UCSF. They did x-rays, and he broke a rib and worse, he broke his collarbone. It being Cesar Chavez Day, we could not get in to see an orthopedist, so we headed north. I bought him a sling to keep his arm and shoulder immobile, and then we had Chinese food. Lots of garlic, basil and spices. It was comforting, though neither of us could eat very much.

I'm not sure how much this will change our future, but it could make some significant changes. I am supposed to start a culinary program on Monday, and if I don't show up, I'll lose my seat and have to wait eight weeks. But depending upon how Jerry is, I may wait the eight weeks and stay with him.

The bigger if is how it will affect our training for AIDS Lifecycle. Right now he cannot ride at all, but we do wonder if in the near future he could ride as stoker on the tandem. That would mean me being captain, which scares me. But if it is a choice between not training together at all or being captain, I will at least give it a try.

My hope is we will get in to see an orthopedist on Monday or Tuesday and figure out what is going on. But to say this has thrown a wrench into our plans is definitively an understatement.

We are not a happy pair right now.

Riding and Coffee

2009-03-22T11:43:00.000-07:00

I think Aeropress ought to give me a kickback. I praised them to Thanksgiving Coffee and they now sell them. I've also told numerous riders about the Aeropress, so my guess is I won't be the only one with an Aeropress on the ride this year.

And speaking of riding, we got in two days of riding-- Friday and Saturday. Friday was a ride out of the parking lot at Golden Gate Bridge to the Tiburon Loop. Jerry and I rode pretty strong and we felt great. Our average speed was Cat2-3 and we climbed Camino Alto faster than I think we've ever climbed it.

After the ride was the usual stop at Comfort Food Cafe where I of course, ordered coffee. But it actually tasted kind of funny. I don't think it was the coffee, but residue from the washing-- maybe a little detergent or even bleach.

Saturday's ride was not as strong as Friday's, which is to be expected. It was our first back to back in some time. Also, it was colder and we did not escape the rain.
This ride was to Lagunitas, which meant a climb over White's Hill. I'm proud to say that we didn't stop on White's Hill, which is another first for the season. But it was about time for us to take it in a single ride. But it was slow. We're not kids and it was our first back to back, so I'll cut us a little slack.
We got to the Lagunitas Market and I had some tabouli and Jerry had a cup of chili. I had also brought some butterscotch bars to share, mostly so I could get them out of the house and not eat them all myself. They were appreciated. I also had a cup of their really good French roast coffee. It definitely helped warm me up for the cold ride ahead.

It started to rain while we were there, but just a little sprinkle. We thought we better head out before a downpour--after all, we were 20 miles or so from our starting point.

But the rain was faster than we were and we were pretty cold and wet by the time we got back to the car. It was great to get home and peel off the wet bike clothes.

On another topic, but definitely related, I got a wonderful present this week. It was a photo of my friend, Jimmy, who died from AIDS several years ago. Serendipitously, his sister is a friend of a friend on Facebook, so I sent her a message. I wasn't really sure how she would react, but it was extremely positive. I am so happy to have his photo. Jerry and I will carry it with us on the ride. I've written about Jimmy before. His birthday was February 29, so the joke was he only had to have a birthday every four years. If he had had only had the opportunity to grow old.

I have lost other friends to AIDS, but no one as close as Jimmy. Even though we only spoke every couple of years, I still miss him. He will be in my thoughts every day on the ride this year.

It's so easy for me

2009-03-18T09:22:00.000-07:00

All I have to do is pedal and raise some money and I get to do the AIDS ride. It's that simple.
It really struck me this morning how lucky I am as I read a posting on the ALC discussion board. It was a posting from a Positive guy who will be a roadie on the ride. He has several medications to juggle-- one on an empty stomach, one on a full stomach-- you get the idea, and with the crazy schedule roadies keep he had questions about adjust times of taking meds and was looking for advice from other Positive riders and roadies.

I do have some legitimate worries in my life--money is tight and I worry about making ends meet. But none of my worries is life and death. I have it so good, so easy compared to so many people in this world.

But it's so easy to take all that for granted. The world is in pretty much of a big mess right now. The US financial problems have created ripples, if not tsunamis, on every continent. Death and disease are around the corner in so many countries.

We bitch and moan about the economy, about the state of our healthcare. And I'm not saying we should stop the bitching and moaning. It should be much much better in a country as wealthy as ours.

But we are damn lucky. Even folks who are HIV positive in the US are far better off than in some parts of the world. And that's because we have places like the SF AIDS Foundation and the LA Lesbian and Gay Center.

So, all I need to do is keep pedaling, keep raising money for SFAF, keep looking in nooks and crannies for freelance and contract work, and go to sleep at night counting my blessings.

Only in Marin

2009-03-14T17:14:00.000-07:00

would two tandem riders almost get run over by a Prius. Well, actually, one would hope that Prius drivers in Marin would be more politically correct than to go after cyclists.
Jerry and I were riding through Corte Madera on our way to Woodacre. We were on the side of the road, as we should be. We are very courteous, law abiding cyclists. We stop at stop signs; we stop for people in crosswalks; we always use hand signals and call out "on your left." Maybe this Prius driver didn't realize what nice people we were, but he veered inches away from us and laid on his horn. Jerry said if I had been thinking more quickly, I could have unclipped and put a gouge in his lovely hybrid with one of my cleats. But as I said before, I'm really very nice. But that did make me a little angry.
And so do cyclists who whizz through stops signs and red lights. Saw way too many of those today, though they were not people on the ALC training ride. But it gives us all a bad name.
The ride today was pretty nice. We did stop once on White's Hill, but then, I continue to remind myself, it's a ride, not a race. As usual, we screamed down the other side, passing all the cyclists who passed us on the way up.
We had a snack at the Woodacre Market, then headed back. We did stop at the bike shop to see if our broken hub was fixed. No such luck. We're going to have to do some digging to find a replacement hub, unless we want to spend $500 on a Phil Woods. Not this week.
After we got home and changed, we headed to Comfort Food Cafe. Jerry had a fried pork chop sandwich, which he pronounced "okay." He had garlic mashed potatoes as a side, and I tasted them. They were pretty good. I went the scrambled eggs, french fries and coffee route. I asked for the fries to be extra crisp, and they were. I ate more of them than I usually do and I'm feeling it now.
If the forecast is wrong and it doesn't rain tomorrow, we're heading out on a Cat 2 ride around China Camp and Tiburon Loop.
Besides a good day for riding, it was a good week for fundraising. I sent out emails to almost everyone I know. This year is tough, so it's going to have to be an ain't too proud to beg season. Don't know if a $5000 jersey is in my future, but I'd sure like to hit my minimum. People have been incredibly generous despite these hard times. But I've got to keep doing this. I hope in my lifetime we see a cure for AIDS and my friends live long, happy lives.

White's Hill on a Fixie Tandem

2009-03-08T15:26:00.000-07:00

is not something I recommend and I hope I never have to do it again.
It was a lovely weekend for riding, finally, so we took advantage of it.
Yesterday, we rode in northwest Marin, out to Inverness. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. We stopped at the Busy Bee Bakery in Inverness Park for a cinnamon bun and for me, coffee. I liked the bun, though it had either been around a while or had been overbaked. The outer edges were quite dry, but what I did like about it was its lack of stickiness. I am not a fan of gooey buns covered in glop and pecans. This was a nice, dry bun, but maybe just a little too dry. I had an Americano to go along with it, and Jerry had hot chocolate.
We went to the usual for lunch-- Comfort Food Cafe, then were home for the evening.
We finally watched a Netflix DVD that has been around the house for weeks. Young@Heart is a documentary about a chorus in Northampton Mass. made up of "older" people. They were all, in fact, older than me. I think the youngest was in her 70s and the oldest was 92. This was not your normal run of the mill chorus. This group of seniors sang songs by Sonic Youth, Talking Heads and Coldplay. The doc was full of interviews and some very fun "music videos." I highly recommend it.

Today we joined up with a training ride that was headed to Lagunitas. We rode to Lagunitas last weekend, so we knew what we were in for. Or so we thought.
Something happened on our way up White's Hill. The chain was sagging and we thought it had slipped off the gear cassette. But no, it was nothing that simple. Jerry thought it might be the derailleur out of tune, so he opened the gear bag and got out his wrenches and started fiddling. But no matter what he did, it would not get better. He then thought it might be the freewheel, and we figured out that if we didn't coast, we would be okay.
Do you know what not coasting down a hill is like on a tandem? It is a battle of wills and brakes. On the less steep side, Jerry performed admirably by keeping the speed down. We got to the Lagunitas Market and he flipped the bike over to see if he could fix it. No such luck. It was not in need of a minor adjustment. He figured we needed a new cassette.

We got back on the bike. The steep side of White's Hill was more of a challenge, but Jerry did keep our speeds down. We kept over to the side and now have more of an understanding of why people crash going down White's Hill. The side is full of gravel and it's easy to slip. We never ride down the side; we are usually going at least as fast as cars; they in fact, usually slow us down.

We stopped at a bike shop in Larkspur to get a new cassette, but when it was removed, we noticed the hub was shot. The guy there couldn't get off the old one, so Jerry's taking the bike back over there in a bit.

So we did Camino Alto with no coasting as well. I really notice a difference in my legs and how tired I am. Even when we weren't putting pressure on the pedals, all that pedaling really wears a person out.

When we got home, all we wanted to do was eat, and it was nothing memorable. But tonight we'll have one of our favorite dinners: movie popcorn. Not sure what we're going to go see, but we do know what we'll eat.

Finally, a day with no rain

2009-02-28T18:33:00.000-08:00

So we took advantage of it and hooked up with the Cat 2 training ride to Lagunitas. We started at Mike's Bikes in Sausalito. Our "new" Honda doesn't have a trailer hitch on it yet, so we borrowed a friend's van to haul our bike. Now, of course, we have van envy. It would be so great to have a van. No taking the wheels off the tandem to transport it, and it would be so great for catering events like the Jonathan Pon Memorial Ride Jerry and I cook for later this spring. We could haul all the stuff and sleep in the van, like we did last year with a rental van.

But I digress. It was so great to ride today, though I will admit it took a lot out of us. We most certainly did not sail up White's Hill. We, in fact, stopped twice on the way. But once we got to the top we roared down the other side coasting at more than 40 mph.

We saw friends at the stop in Lagunitas and split a turkey sandwich. It was kind of chilly so we didn't linger. We made it over the easy side of White's without stopping, but by now our legs were rubber. This was one heck of a ride for us. Our quads really wore out and we had to stop once on Camino Alto-- something I don't recall doing over the last two years.

But we made it, and we headed home, showered and went to our favorite lunch place-- Comfort Food Cafe. Good coffee, perfectly poached eggs and a comfy seat. What else could anyone want?

We're home now, relaxing, having a little wine. Maybe a dvd tonight. Maybe not.

Next weekend promises sun. Can't wait!

Why are Hills So Hard?

2009-02-22T09:59:00.000-08:00

Perhaps because Jerry and I hadn't ridden in weeks, even small hills seemed difficult yesterday. Lacking a way to transport the tandem, we set out from home to ride China Camp yesterday. It really is a beautiful, albeit short loop, rolling hills and beautiful scenery, and mountain bikes digging up the turf on the hills.

Despite being relatively out of shape we averaged about 13 miles per hour. That, though, is the result of the downhills where we really take off. At one point I clocked our speed in the 40s. That's the beauty of tandem riding-- inertia and momentum. We did a 20 mile ride then headed for home as temperatures started to drop.

Glad for many reasons we rode yesterday. Today, the rain is back.

After our ride and afternoon activities, we headed to the city for a pot luck for the ALC Training Ride Leaders. We are not TRL's, but Angelo, who was hosting the event, invited us. That was awfully nice.

Angelo lives in a beautiful, huge house in the city-- so different from most of my city-dwelling friends who live in glorified walk-in closets. We really had a lovely time. So nice to get together with riders in a place other than the Sausalito bike path.

This week looks like rain and more rain. At this point I'm not really concerned about our training. We'll get there in time for the ride. What I am concerned is our avoidance of getting going on our fundraising. Avoiding it won't make it any easier. It's going to be a very tough year to raise money, and with the minimum raised to $3000 it's even tougher.

So time to get to it.

Not where I'd want to end up after a ride...

2009-02-20T11:01:00.000-08:00

But so good to know it's there. Yesterday was the grand opening/ribbon cutting for the UCSF Orthopaedic Trauma Center at SF General. The event started with some speeches-- Bevan Dufty, Mitch Katz, proclamations from the Mayor and various and sundry elected officals. Gene O'Connell, head of SFGH emceed and gave remarks. She is one remarkable woman. Ted Miclau, who is chief of the center spoke. For I'm not sure how many years, he has poured his heart, soul and more hours than anyone can guess to make this center a reality. And, oh yeah, money as well. He and the other surgeons didn't take bonuses, some patient fees and who knows what else to fold back into the center.
And it's a beauty. State of the art labs, offices, libraries and the centerpiece-- the Surgical Training Facility. They had two demos going on there yesterday-- cadavers tastefully draped while Dr.Matityahu demonstrated the use of 3-d imaging and minimally invasive surgery to repair a hip. At the other station was the biomechanic lab's McGyver-like tools to test bone stress. Not everyone was enamored of the hand with the finger bending back and forth-- yes it was a real hand that once belonged to someone-- but I thought it was really cool.

I've been working with the center for the last couple of months to get them publicity in the press, and while I haven't been able to get them ink on one of their missions-- to bring basic trauma care to underdeveloped nations-- we did hit a home run on the opening. Three tv stations, a couple of newspapers, and the SF Chronicle is over there today to do a story on the Biomechanics Lab.

In simple terms, I love SF General. I've worked at a couple of hospitals and with more than my share of surgeons and physicians, but I have never met a group like the docs at the General. They are passionate, compassionate and play as a team. NO watching your back with these guys.

I hope the Bay Area knows what a gift they have in SF General. While I hope I never have to avail myself of their services, it really is comforting to know the kind of care I or any of my friends would get if they needed it.

My favorite ex-president

2009-02-13T10:29:00.001-08:00

I stood outside for more than an hour in cold-for-California weather to get Jimmy Carter's latest book signed by, you guessed it, Jimmy Carter.
I know some people are having a little difficulty with him right now because they believe he is "too" pro-Palestinian. I haven't taken a stand on what he's saying yet because I need to read his latest book. But whatever opinion I have, I believe that his feelings are because he is not pro-Palestinian or pro-Israeli. He is pro-humanity. The work he has done since leaving the presidency is nothing short of astounding. Habitat for Humanity, and his work with elections and peacemaking around the world will leave him with a greater legacy than any president in my lifetime.
I'm not big on hero worship; we're all just human, after all, but to be face to face with him was more than I could have hoped for.

But, back to food. I came home with cramps in my legs and numb toes. I quickly changed into sweats and made myself a bowl of hot multi-grain cereal to warm myself. Jimmy Carter and hot cereal. Who could ask for more?

Sam's Log Cabin

2009-02-06T10:09:00.000-08:00

I had to take Jerry to the airport this morning for an 8 am flight in Oakland, so I decided to skip breakfast at home and go to an old favorite I hadn't been to in more than a year-- Sam's Log Cabin, on San Pablo near Solano in Albany.

The place looked and sounded just the same-- Scott behind the counter, small wooden tables and chairs and Brazilian music playing.

I settled in with the New York Times, but was relegated to headline reading because I had forgotten my glasses. Just as well. I relaxed and recovered from getting up at 6 am and driving in the rain. I drank really good Thanksgiving coffee and waited for my standard Sam's breakfast-- two eggs, potatoes and coffee cake.

The coffee cake at Sam's is your usual cowboy coffee cake; brown sugar cake with cinnamon streusel on top. But it never fails to satisfy. I ate it as dessert with another cup of coffee.

Before I left I had to make a visit to the bathroom. It too, was the same, though I had forgotten about the photo of "Fred, the Kooky Cockatoo" on the wall. Hadn't forgotten about the ballerina cowgirl, though.

I had a chat with Scott before I left. His son Sam is at Emerson in Boston and his daughter Julie is in med school at Georgetown. They went to the inauguration and the MTV ball. Both are doing extremely well, though that doesn't surprise me. They were always great kids.

Sam's is more expensive that Comfort Food Cafe and it's not my regular breakfast place any more, but amazingly, as soon as I walked in I felt completely at home, as if I'd never left.

It's good to revisit old friends every now and then.

My other ride It's gone

2009-02-04T21:15:00.001-08:00

I really hate to drive. I try it avoid it at all costs. But of the two cars we own, I don't mind driving the Honda. It is a 1995 Civic, and it came to California with me from Baltimore. It's a five-speed, white, four door, with assorted dings and dents.

I had stopped driving the Honda a couple of years ago before my knee replacement. The pain in my left knee was so bad I could no longer depress the clutch, so we hustled out and got me a Toyota Corolla. I really hate that car. It gets lousy mileage, at least compared to the Honda, and it just doesn't feel like it has any character. It's not as comfortable as the Honda, and let's face it, I just do not like that car.

Whenever Jerry and I go anywhere, it's in the Honda. It's got the bike rack on it, it gets better mileage, and we both just like it better.

But now, it is no more. Yesterday, Jerry totaled it. Not exactly sure what happened, but he ran into another car. Fortunately, he wasn't hurt, though the woman in the other car is claiming neck and back pain. But we've got insurance to cover that, so no worries.

But damn, I will miss that car. Jerry is searching for a 2002 Civic. And I'm sure it will be a great car. But it just won't be the same.

Anyone who knows me at all knows I'm terribly homesick for the east coast. Well, at least for my friends who live back there. And that car was a tie to the east coast for me.

I know it's ridiculous to be so sad over a car. But damn, I miss that car.