Tired and Sore

I have really put this out of shape body through too much in the past week. Monday was one of the most sore days that I've had in several years. Today isn't a lot better, to be honest. I'm not really old enough yet to sit here an enumerate all of my aches and pains. (Although I could see getting to that point in 20 years or so. Won't that be exciting!)

Let's take a look at just the first half of last weekend:

Sat around all day. Made plans to go cycling (that's a bicycle, which you pedal rather than a motorcycle which is easier, but noisier) Saturday morning. Drank a little bit too much beer after work.

Woke up at 3:00 AM. Thanked Heaven that I had more time to sleep.

Woke up again at 5:30. Cursed the clock that it was time to get up.

From 6:00 to 9:30, I went with Steve. It was a really nice morning, especially for August. It was almost a little bit cool when we first left. After a half hour or less, the sun was up a little, we were on River Road, and hot air balloons started floating up over a distant tree line, providing some scenery. The ride felt good. I even pedaled right through a nosebleed, although I breathed and swallowed about a gallon of blood. On the up side, I did get a really cool blood smear on my glove.

At 7:00 or so, we decided to press on around the River Road loop rather than turn around. Before a whole lot of time passed, I realized that the loop is longer than I remembered. At any rate, it was a better ride than boring old River Road going back toward campus. But, by the time we had completed the whole loop, I was ready to be done.

Trudging back against the wind, we got to see a lot of the hot air balloons landing right up close to the road. Some of them had very smooth landings, and others looked like they were struggling. They are huge and fascinating right up close. The scene was quite unusual. A desolate, mostly deserted area suddenly filled with people, colors, police, and chase cars. I wish I had brought a camera. It was certainly a welcome break.

After I got home, we had to go to Mandeville and put the motor back on the boat. Our motor is a small engine, but it is a four-stroke, and it weighs a freaking ton. To make it harder to lift, it had been overfilled with oil for the transit, and some had leaked out. So that made my job to hover and then slowly lower this slippery, massive hunk of metal out over the water in a controlled fashion. I don't mind telling you that it was very, very, very close to going in the drink. Had I had one less calorie of energy, I would have lost it.

Then, of course, the carburetor was flooded with oil and wouldn't start. (I write this as if I understand what a carburetor is. I really don't.) By now, the sun was high, and the heat in the boat's cockpit was blazing. I pulled and pulled and pulled and pulled the start cord to no avail. Finally, it coughed and smoked and somehow started. I let it run for 5 minutes or so until the emissions cleared a bit. From there, it wasn't too much of a struggle getting to the place that is currently painting the bottom.

After this adventure Mrs. theskinnyonbenny and I, went to Lowes, and spent two hours purchasing concrete supplies, including 15 80 pound bags of concrete (that's 1200 pounds, in case you were reaching for your calculator). Due to earlier cycling, lacked leg strength to push around the store for long.

Finally, near the register, I even let Mrs. theskinnyonbenny push the buggy a minute. Of course, the appearance of me walking alongside my wife, who is pushing an overloaded cart full of concrete got some attention. Yes, I got made fun of by strangers. But heck, it won't be the last time. And did they ride 48 miles that morning? I think not.

Just writing this has brought back enough fatigue that I won't continue on to Sunday, but it was no less exhausting.