Things have such a magical way of working out. So much planning went into this trip...and it wasn't until it started that I realized there was so much I could have NEVER planned for...but in some mysterious way, I planned for perfectly. Not sure how it all works out, or unfolds...but it does, just as it is suppose to...and I'm not sure about a lot of things, but this I am. I've logged just under 400 miles and experienced things I never dreamed of experiencing. Some days were hard and when I thought my legs were broke and couldn't find the strength to unclip, I figured it out...and some days were easy, filled with flat roads, no wind and two mechanical motors (a left and a right) that just kept going. Like Gump did...except on a blue bike.
I experienced just how tightly I held to my comfort zone...and just how afraid I was of being on the outside. But almost immediately I experienced just how uncomfortable I was living within its confines and how I tried relentlessly to fit within its bounds. But I didn't know until I let myself explore...
And how I planned this ride within the confines of that same comfort zone...silly me.
Somewhere in-between the place where curse words become commas (this I am not proud of - and will blame the 9000 lbs I am cranking uphill) and the place where it all just clicks...I understand...each minute only comes once...love them each.
Week 1 is in the books...can't wait to explore week 2!!
Some of my fun, hard, and inspirational minutes from week 1:
-I wear Lycra (aka activewear) everyday...all day...and this is another thing I know to be true...swamp ass is real. Calluses are too...and not the kind dancers get on their feet. Anyway, back to that Lycra thing...the trip to the laundromat became an event...how cool is that!? And if you don't plan just right you are guaranteed to be left sitting around in your laundromat outfit for the remainder of the day while those Lycra outfits dry...cute, Amber, real cute. But the saving grace is, in just the way it was suppose to be, my laundromat also served drinks...so not only was I unaware of packing a laundromat outfit, I was equally unaware that I had a pub outfit too!
Official do everything outfit...swim bottoms and a wool coat(-:
-It was the hardest ride so far and my legs just didn't have anymore strength...the same trembling fatigue we get sometimes in dance class when we do petite allegro over and over and over and over...so fatigued that all I could do was keep pedaling because I couldn't muster the strength to unclip...unclip or fall over, unclip or fall over, unclip or fall over...well, I deliberately fell over. Resting is resting....no matter if you unclip or stay clipped in! And since it was a planned fall there were no purple casts involved this time! I laid there, clipped in for a brief period until I found some inspiration from my 3 year old ballerinas...I laughed hysterically at the thought of them reaching down with their hands to assist their feet into a perfect 1st position....it was brilliant! I call it the rider assist unclip...it made me smile at the less than desirable situation.
Squares of motivation that keep me moving! Thank you Lorna, Rory, Jasmine, Taliah, Kallie, Amy, Ruth and The Skidmore's!!
-There is not enough food!!! I don't get up to an alarm clock, but I get up to a grumbling belly. I am soooo hungry all the time. I eat my meal and go back for 3 more tacos. 6000 calories meals 6x a day just isn't cutting it. But thank you friends that sent me on my way with gift cards to fast food chains that I haven't been to since high school...food is food and your kindness is sooooo appreciated in moments of hunger! I think the sauce packet summed it up nicely...
-when we stand on the surface of a planet...the true surface, not the pavement, or concrete, or sod...we realize just how incredibly small we are in the grand scheme of things...outfits and waiting and falling over and schedules don't really matter to the universe. It's just us...BEING!
-and when you connect with another human being - not a doctor or lawyer or stay at home mom, or Audi, or a degree, or the biggest house on the block - and you see that person, and they see you, for who you are at the very core. That is the epitome of being human.
-there was a full moon, in Capricorn, this week, July 19th to be specific. I am not into astrology but there is something to be said about the stars and comets, and moon, and them aligning in a peculiar way with our life's path. A full moon allows us to cast our intentions out to the universe and watch them manifest...beautiful minutes of letting go and refocusing and attracting energy that allows us to achieve our desired outcomes.
Rory is so excited to read about your adventures! She wanted me to tell you "that's a picture of a bush so you remember to not crash into them because sometimes I do." She's missing you...keep having fun!
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