Today was the shortest day of the year, the latest sunrise and earliest sunset.  No matter, it was a nasty cold and dreary day.  Jen and I slept in a bit, then had a late breakfast of chocolate chip banana pancakes.  It was nice to relax and read the NY Times for a while.

Before work I headed over to Stef and Erik’s and rode the trainer for a bit.  45 minutes of steady-state spinning, high cadence in a moderate gear, just a little burn to make it fun.  My iPod died out 5 minutes in, so I just let my thoughts wander for the next 40.  Good exercise for the mind.  I kept thinking about writing and how long it has been since I wrote more than a blog entry.  Tonight I need my sleep more than I need to express myself, so writing all night is unlikely to happen.  A symphony of words is an improbable occurrence.

So today is a turning point.  While winter is just beginning, the days will now start to grow longer.  The sun will rest on the horizon just a moment longer each evening, lingering, looking back as if watching a lover walk away.

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Riding the trainer is a necessary evil.  I decided to end my month of sloth and join Erik for a session on the trainer.  He put in a Carmichael dvd, the hill power workout one with Manny and Andy and the cross-eyed guy we used to call Opie in it.  The first thing I noticed about that dvd is that no one in it ever smiles. It’s a tough one, made tougher by the lack of ventilation in Erik’s mud room.  We’ll be cracking open the windows next time and putting a fan on the floor.

Doing an intense hill workout was probably not the best way to get started again, although I did just fine.  A shock to the system.  We’ll be back at it again tomorrow morning, if I have anything left after shoveling the driveway . . . again.  More snow and sleet on the way.

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A glimpse of sunlight.  Although cold, today was gorgeous.  In the overheated terrarium of a showroom at Jay’s Cycle, I was roasting in solar hell all day.  After a restless and short night, I was strung out on caffeine and nervous energy, which I put to use most efficiently . . . selling bikes, preaching the gospel of 2 wheels.

A big storm is on the way.  Jen is banking on having a snow day tomorrow.  If not, she’s going to hangover hell.  I might just get in a workout . . . shoveling snow.

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Damn, another 3 weeks have slipped by without me writing a single post.  I’m not sure why, because my mind has been a swirl of ideas and emotions.  But most of those I haven’t felt like shouting out into the world yet.  If you don’t already think I’m insane, those things might change your mind.

The cold and rain and lack of daylight hasn’t helped things at all.  I miss my bike.  But even when things have been nice, I haven’t had the time to get in any real training.  A run here and there, that’s about it.  The Thanksgiving Day ride was the last time my feet turned in circles.  I don’t work tomorrow, so even though it’s supposed to snow, I might take my cross bike out for a trail ride, of course with a stop at Gourmet Expressions for hot chocolate on the way back.

We had freaky warm weather yesterday, and I couldn’t resist a run in the morning, so even though it was raining I took Winston out for a 4 mile trot.  He wasn’t quite as enthusiastic after a fast first mile, but he loves that final kick.  It’s beautiful to see him run, especially when he’s so tired that I can match him stride for stride in a full sprint.  Winston isn’t an endurance dog, more of a middle distance runner.  Not quite a greyhound, but he can go much further at top speed.  He sprints with pure exuberant joy.  The look on his face when we raced those last 100 meters back to the house was the highlight of a long, dark day.
A torrent of Facebook friend requests came my way today, so I visited the site for the first time in months.  I have a sneaking suspicion that it was a bad idea, and that spam will be flowing into my inbox like the Ocoee at 20,000 cfs.  (And that’s big flow . . . see photo below.)  But it’s intriguing to see who else is caught in the web.  I came across people I hadn’t even thought about in 20 years.  Perhaps they won’t find me!

The reality of my last couple of weeks has been that I’ve been partying way too much.  Hosting 2 huge parties in two nights, one at Jay’s Cycle on Friday and one at our house on Saturday, really kicked my butt.  Then Jenn’s parents came over for dinner and drinks on Sunday night; I had drinks with friends at the shop after work on Monday; some crazy dirty dancing with Jenn, Maria, and Rick on Tuesday night after 5? bottles of wine between us; the Jolly Trolley with Sam and Marc for beers on Wednesday night; Star of India with Jenn tonight meant a bottle of white; dinner at Theresa’s in Westfield with Jenn’s parents again Friday, to celebrate Phyllis’ birthday; dinner at Jeff and Craige’s on Saturday, which always means excellent beer.  Maybe THAT is big flow.  Thank god for antioxidants and good hydration.  And the occasional 8-hour night of sleep.

I need a road trip.  Badly.

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