Thunder And Lightning And Babies

My coworker is very pregnant. Yes, there are degrees of being pregnant. We all thought she would pop when they forecasted thunder storms last week, but then there was no thunder and she didn't pop.

I read over one of my previous blog posts - more specifically this one, and I realize that it was a bit vague, so I want to clarify that nothing happened other than meeting and talking. After all, I don't jump into things carelessly or without consideration. The only reason I'm not using Matt's real name is because I've chosen to keep my writings at least somewhat anonymous. Protect the innocent and such. Notice how I say the innocent and not asshat drivers who attempt to take out any and every cyclist on the road.

Jesus, take the wheel - or something...

I considered not writing anything about changing my route in case the asshat had found my blog, seen his picture, and is now cyber stalking me as well as in real life. But judging by his use of a proper old-timey camera, I doubt he even knows what the internet is. Maybe they didn't have technology past 1980 in the hole he climbed out from like a god damned angry mole.

I biked the new route last night but not this morning. I thought about it but decided against it because, 1) if he wants to take photos of me, then be my guest - and 2) if I see him again, I'll offer a truce. Maybe he had a terrible day or maybe he hates his life. And since I generally don't hate mine, I can afford to look the other way this time.

Anywho, I'm over it now. Biking is just too good and so is life in general.

This weekend I'm doing my first long ride of the year. Most likely south to Puyallup or thereabouts.

Eighty degrees today! Holy guacamole!

Photo Ambush

This thing from yesterday is getting weirder and weirder. As I was biking on SE 36th St, I heard a car slow down next to me and I thought it was the asshat from yesterday. Sure enough, he turned right over the I-90 bridge. As I'm biking passed some fencing by where he parked (I saw his car), he steps out from the fence and takes my photo. WTF?!?!?

It's all kinds of ridiculous, but also a little creepy, because this means he's thought about it enough to bring an old-timey camera - no smartphone - drive to work early enough to attempt to intercept me, and to take my photo for some reason. Oh, well. Should I get run over by a silver colored SUV one of these mornings, you know who it is.

This is where he parks

Smile - to the not so candid camera

I'm posting his photo again, so y'all know who took out Bike Chick.


Apart from this little thing, my commute in was awesome! My legs, for some reason, were super strong and I biked in on record time. Probably fueled by asshat.

Edit:
After giving it some thought, I have decided to bike another route to work for a while. That's not me backing down or admitting to defeat, but simply being sensible. Why poke the crazy bear. After all, he has yet again proven that he's not operating in the same universe as the rest of us.

What Is With Everybody Today?

It's not raining. The weather has been spectacular the last few days. It's Tuesday, which means it's one day closer to Friday than it was yesterday. Not that the last sentence is of particular importance, just worth mentioning. What I'm trying to say is that life can suck a whole lot more than it did this morning.

This is asshat edition.

I was yelled at by a driver by Bellevue College for being to his right at the stop sign - I was there first. He pulled up next to me. Had I known that's what he was yelling at me for, I probably would have thought twice about attempting a conversation with him - because that just means that he's fucking nuts. Which it turned out he was.

Aerial view of intersection

Street view

Where the red car is, is the stop sign in question. I was standing at the sign, waiting for a car that was coming from my left. It's a four way stop. The car to my left was at the intersection first and was heading straight through. As I'm standing at the sign, the asshat below pulls up next to me. When it's my turn, I take a right and an immediate left, which I signal.

Then the asshat zooms by and yells something which isn't "Good morning". He also almost runs over a pedestrian further up ahead, but then pulls into one of the Bellevue College parking lots.

Long story short: I happen to bike passed the parking lot he's in as he's coming out of his car, so I decided that this is too serendipitous to pass up and pull in next to him. I ask him what he was yelling at me for. He yells I cannot turn right. Say what? His English isn't very good, so I respond by asking him to repeat what he just said. From what I can gather, what he really means is I cannot turn right when there's a car next to me at a stop sign. Again - say what?

I exited the conversation after a couple of minutes of being yelled at in broken English. There was just no reasoning with him. Either because I don't speak Yell or because his command of the English language wasn't great. So I left after snapping these award winning shots.

Just taking a photo of his license plate in case he decided to run me over next time
By the way, probably NOT coffee in that thermos

Wait, what! Are you taking a photo of me?

You bet I am, you motherfucker!

Notice how he has the hood covered. My guess is that it is to protect the car from blood splatter when he's taking out bicyclists with his extremely flawed rhetoric - which it really wasn't.
I am so confused. But maybe I shouldn't be. Can't reason with insanity.

Anyway, if you see this guy or his car, stay the fuck away. He is clearly a few light bulbs short of a Christmas tree.

Then, a bit later on, I was yelled at by a pedestrian I passed ON THE ROAD next to him on the sidewalk. I have no fucking clue. He said something about giving him room. You're on the SIDEWALK and I'm on the STREET. What room are you talking about?

Clearly it is crazy day today and I can't wait to bike home.

But I want to end on a positive note, because that's just how I roll.

It was crazy day, indeed, but it turned out to kinda sorta work in my favor a little later on. A homeless guy who was walking in front of me on the sidewalk, steps into the road so I can pass. I yell at him that he needs to get back on the sidewalk BECAUSE HE WILL GET RUN OVER. Where he's standing there's a curve in the road so the drivers wouldn't see him until it is too late. He insists on standing there while I keep saying that he needs to get off the road. I even dismount my bike to get my point across. But no - homeless guy refuses to budge, and it was just pure luck that he didn't get run over.

Oh, Baby, Baby, It's A Wild World

First - I didn't do the Emerald City Bike Ride. Hubby threw away the registration so between that and having to get up at 5 am to do a less than 100 mile ride, I decided against it and instead bike around the lake - twice. Just so I wouldn't kill my husband.

Second - this really isn't about biking, so if you're expecting a sweeping tale about languid biking along Lake Washington, this isn't it.


Because though biking this weekend was spectacular, that's not what made this weekend a wild one. All I can say is, "WOW!" Mind blown. This weekend was absolutely FANTASTIC. It was everything I needed and more.

I had the opportunity to spend some quality time with, let's call him Matt, this weekend. Twice. And there really aren't words to describe my sentiments properly, at least not here on this blog. So maybe that should be another blog. Because this is a blog mainly about biking and I think it ought to remain as such. Let's just say that by the end of this, I will probably have enough material to write an entire book of reviews about places to meet when one is up to no good.

So with that in mind, I think I need to go on a long, hard ride sometime soon. I'm thinking Puyallup. Or Canada. Potato - potatoe.

No Bike Friday

Well, that really isn't a thing, but this week it is. I didn't bike in today because I have things to do and people to see right after work. Any occasion is a spandex occasion, you say? Believe it or not, there are times when spandex - especially sweaty spandex - wouldn't fit the dress code. Really, you say? Try to get into a black tie event in spandex and you'll see, I say. Even in Seattle, where showing up in jeans and Hawaiian shirts seem like the logical thing to do when the invite say black tie/tux.

This I guess is a good compromise?

While I'm not attending anything of that degree of fancy, I am doing something that I hope will be fun and rewarding. Tell you about it after because I don't want to jinx it.

I kind of take back what I said about sunshine. I think I'm allergic. At least while biking. The last couple of days I've probably lost half my body weight in sweat. Maybe it's just an acclimation kind of thing and my body just has to get used to temperatures above freezing, or maybe I'm like my bike - collecting all kinds of crud during the winter months and all I need is a good cleanse.


Come Sunday, I'll probably be done biking in all the wrong places by this time. I'll take photos - even though it's against my nature.