Entries this day: Chillin Lake Monica Walk blue_crush

Chillin

11:14am CDT Saturday 17 August 2002

Outside now on the front porch; had been talking with Janette and now talking with Katherine (sp) and Tara as well. K is getting married soon to a guy her age (43) which apparently is statistically rare.

11:56am

"Hey Jack, may I call you Jizack?"

"If there's no way to avoid it."

Lake

4:38pm CDT Saturday 17 August 2002

Yay! Meg Cusack buzzed her hair! Fuzzy fuzzy fuzzy.

I just rode my bike for a couple hours. Rode to the lake to the park where Sean and I first rode bikes around the lake. Rolled up and over the teeter totter just to see if I could do it with less fear this time. Did it. Discovered that the weird wall thing down by the lake is like the facing of some public baths, except the baths are just concrete sidewalks on top of the lake water, so the lake water is splashing all around the shore as it does, except there were sidewalks and a roof above it. I rolled through one of the many doors in the wall, out onto a sidewalk with water lapping all around and then rode out. Hmmm.

Rode to the nearby Dallas Waterworks building, and then rode along the slanted concrete of the lake side of a wall designed to keep people and bikes on the non-lake side. It was a bit trickier than last time I rode it due to vegetation growing down the wall. I didn't want to ride across it because it would almost certainly provide less traction than the concrete and possibly send me sliding down into the water, and I didn't want to get wet.

Picked my bike up over the wall and rode down the other side of the incline along the non-forbidden side of the fence guarding the forbidden spillway. Around the spillway and then up the hill. At the top of the hill I turned around and zipped down as quickly as I could, just to see quite how fast I could go down. Okay fast, maybe even pretty fast, but not crazy fast.

Back up the hill again, and this time I waited for a break in traffic on the six lane road beside the lake. Got the break then dropped off the curb into the street to buzz down the hill, but bang the traffic light was allowing traffic out of some neighborhood so it was red, so I aborted the mission. Rode back up to the top of the hill and when I got my break in traffic, the light stayed green for me, and it was all good. But still not crazy fast.

Back up the hill again and then along the lake a little bit and when the sidewalk turned left along the lake, I turned right across the six lane street and rolled into a relatively nice neighborhood with tall trees and limited traffic.

Slow slow riding through the neighborhood and discovered a little alley way type thing that seemed to run forever behind some of the houses, a long shared driveway with backyards of houses all along it. Rolled a few blocks down this alley, greeted by boistrous dogs with barks less like "have a nice day," and more like "get your ass out of my alley."

Reached a big puddle in the alley, but it was near a street with a house under construction, so I rode through the yard so as not to get wet. Soon thereafter, I reached the end of the alley, and turned right toward the lake.

The alley let me rest my legs, so I was pretty much hauling bootay as I left the neighborhood, especially considering I was going downhill toward the lake. I looked up and that same traffic light that had been green for the neighborhood traffic was again green for the neighborhood traffic, about 5 cars of which were entering the intersection in front of me. I hauled ass to make the light and was pretty much at top speed pedaling in my top gear (3-8) as I hauled ass turning left through the yellow light across the six lane street and down the hill. Almost super fast, but not crazy fast as I felt fully in control at all times. Just pump pump pump pump through the intersection head down butt up turning on pavement clean and dry, nothing to let me slip. Fantastic timing. Wonderful.

I slowed and re-engaged the lake bike path, saw a female rider in front of me also on a mountain bike. Considered talking to her, but I had to just catch up to her first. She took the gentle incline up to the wall, and I tried to muscle my way straight up the incline, but gravel strewn all over it kept me from making it. She also took the gentle incline down the sidewalk near the waterworks, and I dared myself to go raargh down the steeper dangerouser grass and gravel incline at an angle to beat her to the bottom.

I chickened out for a while, but then did it straight down the incline and not at an angle, which was certainly easier in some ways. I found myself on the wrong side of some holly at the bottom and had to pick my bike up over that to get over to the sidewalk again. Back on the sidewalk, I lost track of the girl.

I guessed she was going around the lake, so I continued that way, back to the park where Sean and I first rode around, and where I started my adventure today. I saw her a hundred meters or so in front of me, so I set off to catch her.

Tired tired tired, ride ride ride, but I had a goal in mind, to catch up to this girl, which after not tooo long I did. And I just swooshed on past her because I had gotten up some good speed. My legs felt pretty strong, and I was breathing slowly, completely filling my chest with each breath. Just in the moment, riding my bike really fast around a lake.

Should I go all the way around? Hmmm. I didn't really have a way to guess which way would be closer to get back if I decided to turn around. I kept going. Riding riding riding, passing some people, getting passed by some road bikes on the road, with their thin tall tires and spandex shorts.

Caught up with the road bikes when they slowed down to stop or turn around and then I headed up an incline and then along another roadway along the lake, presumably on the opposite side of the lake from the first one. Down a steep incline to get back to the lake level, past some people fishing and such.

I wondered if this boat launch area would be where Janette had her kayak lesson scheduled for later today. Riding slowly, looking, and there she was, with Richard Fine, who make money teaching kayaking. I said HI to them just as they were putting the kayak into the water. Perfect exquisite timing. Amazing.

They were busy kayaking and such so I began my ride again, looked up and the girl had just ridden past me. Amazing timing. Again.

Nearly caught up with her again and then she took off toward the left away from the lake. I chose not to follow her, but continued my trek around the lake and stopped at a building right on the lake that Sean and I had visited and looked through the free binocular telescope thing. I aimed it back at Janette and Richard, but they were in a bay with trees blocking my view of them. I scanned along the shoreline of the lake and discovered the water works building way over on the left of straight across the lake, meaning I had gone well more than 1/2 way around the lake at this point. I was inspired that my adventure was close to completion. I was tired!

Back on bike path again, riding slowly then carefully gaining speed, and saw in front of me.. the girl on the bike. Caught up with her and said HI as I passed her, and then realized hey, she's probably going around the entire lake; I wonder if she knows how big around it is. So I slowed down and asked her as she caught up to me. She didn't know. But she did say that she had walked around it once, and it took her 3 hours 20 minutes. At 3 miles per hour, that makes it 10 miles around. At 4 miles per hour, that makes it a tad over 13 miles around. I'm guessing she was closer to 4 than 3 since she is obviously in relatively good shape, so it probably close to 13 miles around. Cool. She added, "that was the last time I ever walked around it."

I rode sort of beside her kinda, but not for much longer as she lifted her fingers off her handle grip to wave as she turned left toward her vehicle. "See you later," I said.

Made it around the lake back to the first hill I had hauled down a couple of times and this time more bike and foot traffic clogged the area so it was a bit dangerous to go way fast, but I still went pretty darn fast considering how tired I was.

Down the hill, across the bridge, up the small hill (using a 2 lane street as a U-turn braking area to slow my descent) and then back onto the bike path. Now I was way tired. And though this section of sidewalk is flat and almost level, it's a slight grade going up, and I certainly felt it. Push push push, past a girl walking in the middle of the path while wearing headphones to block the outside world. Made it past the sidewalk, and then barrelled up the grassy slightly rough and rocky field to the street and back into the neighborhood near the Bibby's house.

Low gear like 2-2 going up a steep hill, but I kept my legs moving and my bike rolling. No time to give up yet. Push push push up the hill, down a slight hill, up another hill, down a slight hill, up a slight hill and now I was in 2-1 or lower maybe 1-3 or 1-4. Rolled to a stop in the shade of a big tree. Gloves off, helmet off, backpack off, water in. Drink rest drink rest.

Tired, but rested, I re-engaged my equipment and bike, rode the remaining six or seven blocks home.

- - - -

Fantastically, Rick saw me coming up and opened the door for me. Excellent welcome back to home base. Then more pleasant surprises to find Paul Andrews and Meg Cusack playing Wahoo with Joey! HI to them and rubbed Meg's fuzzy head and then again two more times after asking permission.

Joey needed to go to the train(?) station to go see Laura, so Rick was here to pick her up. I finished out Joey's position in the game of Wahoo and knocked one of Meg's balls back home and then Paul won, and I (as Joey) came in second. Meg mocked a single tear.

Game over, they were ready to head back to Tyler, and then Meg was going to Houston. I wish them safe travels!

5:41pm

1 hour 3 minutes to type all the above.

I'm going to take a shower and then at 6:30 Cris is supposed to be here with Marta and we're going to Jenae's party at Monica's restaurant, and then Marta is staying here tonight and I'll take her to Plano church tomorrow and then drop her off in Denton (her car has recently died; seems to be electrical problems.)

Monica

9:46pm CDT Saturday 17 August 2002

Cris and Laura brought Marta to the Bibby's and we caravanned to Monica's Aca y Alla restaurant for Jenae's birthday party. Jenae had had so much fun at Marta's 10000th day party last week that she wanted to do it again...

This time the party was 16 people and I was sitting next to and across from stinky smokers except for Marta and Jenae. It was still fun though.

Jenae, being the birthday girl, got a shot of tequila poured right into her mouth (out of a bottle from the bar) by the cute hostess person who was there again tonight. I didn't get a picture; I didn't have my camera; pooh.

Katy, a friend of Marta's who attended Marta's 10000th day celebration at Monica's (the restaurant), was there again tonight, which is ironic since she (Katy) was with a different group. Marta had considered bringing her (Katy's) Vagina Monologues T-shirt to the restaurant and then calling Katy to say, "hey come get your shirt," (since she (Katy) lives really close to the restaurant (Monica's)) but decided it was too presumptious to think Katy would have nothing else planned for tonight. Funny.

As we were leaving, Katy shouted to me, "Take care of my Marta!" which is the same thing she pleaded to me last week (over and over). Alcohol seems to have given her a one track mind.

Walk

3:34am CDT Sunday 18 August 2002

After Monica's Marta and I arrived at the Bibby's and Janette was all cleaning the kitchen and such and then was all, "you wanna go for a walk?" So we went to see the house where Marta used to be a nanny for four kids back some years ago.

But first we crept inside a three story house being built a block down the street from Janette's. The wood frame and floor and everything was all built, but no walls were up yet. Maggie called while we were inside, and I was all giddy and laughing at the funniness of the situation and how fun it was to be all climbing around in the dark and such.

I was wearing no shoes, so I trod carefully in the darkness, but it seemed relatively safe and flat everywhere. I climbed out onto the makeshift scaffolding on the edge of the house that was apparently being used to let the worker guys do outside-house building stuff up around the roof. It was stable, but seemed a bit risky to Marta and Janette, silly girls.

It turns out though, they had been daring one another to walk on it while I was in a different part of the house. That's funny. I wonder if I subconsiously heard their dare. I think I just did it as a self-dare-challenge thing.

I also climbed up through the unfinished roof and saw something vertical that looked like a chimney in a way, but had no opening in the roof to let smoke/etc out. Weird. I don't know what it was.

blue crush

2:59am CDT Sunday 18 August 2002

Janette, Marta and I just got back from watching (I just lost at Wahoo again) the 12:30am showing of Blue Crush, starring some cute surfer girl(s) and one cute and some fat football players. I cried at the end when the other local girls were all, "can I have your autograph?" Ah, the simple things are beautiful.

Everytime they showed the underwater cracking head on coral scene I was all cringing and had to remind myself that I was safe, in a theater, watching a movie, Oww fuck that hurts! oh, I'm safe, in a theater, watching a movie..

It was good. XXX was better.

"You're going to surf wearing that?"

"Naw, I'm going to surf wearing my dudantada."

"Your what?"

"My," rips off shorts revealing a speedo, "Dudan Tada!!!"

"heehee you're wearing a nut hugger!"

- - - -

So much fun going out so late on a church night! Whooo!