Conflui

Yow! We leave for the TRAM in just a few days. My lack of sharing news here is directly proportionate to my lack of riding. I have only been on my bike once in the past 10 days, and that involved a short ride to the bike shop and back. 

Why no riding, you ask? Life.

Instead of riding, I:

• Hung out with my nephews for two afternoons, supervised their whittling activities, and learned how to play Exploding Kittens (it's a card game; no real kittens are involved) and clean bunny hutches (real bunnies are involved). 
• Used some time outside of the traditional workday hours to catch up on some grant writing and reporting activities that hopefully will keep our funders funding us.
• Went to a pool party hosted by one of our MS150 riders. (I am still surprised at how much fun it was to just horse around in a pool. The food was good, and Andy made some good margaritas, too, which didn't hurt.)
• Took my bike to the shop for a tune-up.
• Met with our TRAM riders to discuss our essential gear for the ride (coffee, foam roller, jerkey, screen tent). 
• Went to Pittsburgh for a work meeting.

My cool, historic Pittsburgh hotel.

The confluence of the three rivers, with a new Steelers stadium presumably on the site of the former Three Rivers Stadium, and the Pirates stadium just beyond that. I question whether these really are three rivers - - - isn't it just one flowing into the other? I think it demonstrates someone's refusal to compromise.

We rode up "the Incline" in this little car. It's a commuter
tram built in the 1920s to help people get up and down
the hill. If you go, pay the extra 50 cents to go into
the mechanical room. It was pretty fascinating.

I saw this sticker on the bathroom stall door upon my return to the MSP airport and it totally made my day. It's the little things that keep me engaged, sometimes.

I need to pick up my bike and hope to get some rides in this weekend, since my general cycling physical state has deteriorated - - as best demonstrated by this past week's theme song by G Love and Special Sauce:

I like cold beverages

Give me frosty mug

Filled with a&w

If you got ice cream

Make it a double scoop

Milkshake at the fountain

Really good sounding

Chocolate egg cream

All of these life things have kept me from sending out my MS150 thank you notes, but that doesn't mean that I'm not grateful, or that they aren't coming. (Stay tuned!) I lowered my goal for that ride this year (and met it - thanks!) and raised my goal for the TRAM. I am at 78% of my TRAM goal (thanks!), and hopefully will close that gap in the next few day (more thanks!). 

http://main.nationalmssociety.org/goto/MaggieTRAM2017