Animals, animals, galore

Well, hello, it's been a while. This is due to a pretty potent combination of rain, my languishment (is that a word?), and working and dogging a lot. In other words, I've been riding, but when I've done something interesting to tell ya'll about, either I'm feeling uninspired or I'm legitimately busy with being responsible for a 45-pound, hairy ball of energy and/or trying to catch up on some work and think, "I'll do it tomorrow." 

It takes a village. My brother Matt and S-I-L,
Ahnna (taking the photo, I'm in the mask), are just two of many
people involved in "The Great Haley Socialization
Effort of 2021."

Haley, looking like she's going into battle.
She's muscular, but a lot smaller
and less intimidating than she appears here.
We were actually in the drug store
drive-thru lane after running 
errands related to my BikeMS 
team captain role.

So let's go over some highlights and key details, shall we? First of all, people have donated $2,225 so far for my BikeMS rides this year (I'm waiting for the MS Society to consolidate my donations and put them toward one ride, which is how I like to do it). This is really exciting! The May ride, the Twin Cities Ride, has been cancelled due to some logistical challenges related to COVID. I will still ride the same distance that same day. The MS150, normally a two-day ride of 150 miles (hence the name), will be a one-day, 75-mile ride in June. I for sure will ride 75 miles, solo or as part of the event. I may try to do 150 miles that weekend, nonetheless, like I did on my own last year. The Ride Across MN, normally a 5-day, 300-mile ride, will be a three-day ride of 50 miles per day. I'm still figuring out how far I'll ride this year.

A couple of weeks ago, I left home for a 30ish mile ride and ended up going almost 55 miles. Thankfully, I realized that the first half of a ride had a nice tailwind before I got to the point of uncomfortable return. Sadly, I ran over a small snake and probably killed it.

If you squint, it looks like a shiny palace,
not an oil refinery.

On an old historic swing bridge, jutting out
into the Mississippi. 

A nice overlook by Inver Grove Heights, not too far
from Hastings, which my friend Matt showed
me several years ago. It looks a lot nicer when there
are leaves on the trees, which would be now. I'll go back!

The next day, I did my 30ish-mile ride and made myself find the hillier spots of MSP. So I rewarded myself with a very summery treat: a monster cookie and coffee on the patio at Fireroast Coffee. 

So, what else? My morning "commute" ride - - the loop I did most weekday mornings last spring, summer, and fall apparently will have another detour this year due to construction (there currently is one detour due to a recurring landslide issue), so we'll see if I do the detour or switch up my route this year. I like this route because there is little traffic and few stoplights/stop signs. Plus, I saw a deer the other day and had to ring my bell to get it to scamper away. 

This past Saturday, I rode down to Blackdog Lake (What city *is* that? Burnsville? I think so, even though I go through Eagan?) and took a new little trail alongside the I-35 bridge, and then took a beautiful new paved trail along the river toward home - - until it dead-ended. So then I went home through town. 

The MN River from I-35.

This is the actual view, but I had held the
phone up between the bars. I think the people
in their cars must feel like they're locked up
while I'm out there riding freely next to them. Well,
with a wall separating us.

That darned dead end! 
The trail is so pretty and
what a nice loop it
would be if the
trail went through!

Then, on Sunday, I got a late start because I was glued to nature TV - - drinking coffee, looking out the front window, watching the opossum that Haley spotted in the crabapple tree, from half a living room away.

I wish I knew if it was a female with babies in a pouch.

We each kept vigil in our own way.

I ended up riding to the Coon Rapids Dam, where the sky was dark, but I beat the (not-too-heavy) rain. I kept myself amused for a while after I saw this sign, by thinking of YEARS ago when there was an episode of Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me on NPR where they accepted essays of why people wanted to go smelting, and the winner got to go to Wisconsin for a smelting adventure.

I'd go, if it is outside. I should check on that.
I'm so curious. I don't know that I'd eat any.

I did see a big fat woodchuck - - not going hungry at all on my bike ride. It startled me and I thought that would be quite the story of falling off my bike. But, I didn't fall. 

My goal this year is $3000 - - just another $700+ to go!  https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo-2021 

A glimpse of summer!

Today was unseasonably warm, even in our new climate-changed era. I like to do a springtime Bloomington Ferry Bridge ride each year to check out the Minnesota River. Since I had walked along the river just a few miles east of there yesterday with my dog, my friend Andrew, and Andrew's ADORABLE dog Wallace, it was a little anticlimactic, but still lovely to see the undeveloped river doing its thing and take a little break on the bridge. (I can't wait to go back when the mulberries are fruiting. It is a great buffet.) 

Some good things about today's ride: 

• Hardly anyone was on the few paths I rode on. 
• Hardly anyone was on the roads I rode on. (Easter, I think.) 
• I took a couple of small wrong turns and they were really good decisions! They helped me iron out some of the parts I wasn't fond of on this route. 
• Lots of bird noises, spring peeper frog noises. 
• I stopped to sit on a patio and have an iced coffee and a scone when I was close to home and it was really delicious because I was really hot and hungry.
• I saw two guys and two kids on my way to the Bridge and on my way back, when they were carrying bags from a grocery or convenience store. We all madly waved to each other the second time we saw each other and the cute young girl and I gave each other extra waves and smiles.
• My physical therapist recently gave me a tip about my biking posture and it totally seems to help reduce my recurring back pain. 

What wasn't perfect: 

• Some weirdo honked at me just because I was riding on the road. 
• Winter made some potholes. 
• I accidentally took a weird photo of myself (maybe this is a good thing, because it is funny?) when trying to take a photo of a really, really sad evergreen tree by the coffee shop.

Nice chin diaper, as they call it
on South Park. 

I feel really bad for this evergreen.

Anyhow, I guess it was my longest ride of 2021 so far. I will be in good shape to do my BikeMS rides in May, June, and July. They're scaled back because of COVID (if I do the organized rides, which I may because I will be vaccinated by then), but of course I'm thinking of ways to make things more interesting and challenging for myself (and, let's be honest, for the donations), in which case, I'll want to keep adding on miles. 

https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo-2021 

Dust on my saddle, mud on my boots

Well, actually, that's what I would have said last week (and what Seals & Crofts said in 1973). This week? Back in the saddle and dry feet, friends!

We had a pretty cold snap in February, where it didn't get above zero for something like 10 days. And then it was sunny and in the mid-30s. And now the past couple of days the low temp has remained above freezing and the daytime temps have been warm, which means that almost all the snow is melted in our yard, streets are dry, and any stubborn ice patches on bridges and trails are pretty minimal (except those that were never plowed all winter and are in the shade by the river).  

What does this mean? I've been on my road bike the past three days and it is glorious, just glorious, despite the fact that my recurring back issue is pretty, uhm, currently present. My back hurts because I haven't been stretching as much since we got our dog Haley on New Year's Eve. First, she'd prefer to sit on my lap when I'm on the floor. Second, I get covered in dog hair when I try to stretch. Then, I think poor body mechanics due to bracing one's self on slippery winter surfaces combined with hunching over to train the dog to walk on a loose leash combined with being in the car for a big road trip last weekend set the stage for discomfort that has not magically been alleviated by being on my bike. Weird.

Anyhow, last weekend! I'm so grateful that we had the means and opportunity to skip town to go to Gunflint Lodge last weekend. We stayed in a cabin on the side of the lake that isn't in Canada (although Dan walked across the lake, and technically was in Canada for a few minutes), and I took Haley for a lot of walks on the eerily booming lake as well as in the surrounding woods. 

Haley's first car trip with us, not in a kennel.

The trees were really sparkly in the morning sun.

I didn't even know I was kissing
her at the time. I was just putting
her in a headlock for a photo.

She's always on the edge of thin ice! Ha.

I've told people in the past that I could freelance as a "justifier." You make a decision, pay me, and I'll tell you all the things that justify your decision. This weekend, I realize I have a related skill: rule bending. More specifically, bending rules for myself. 

An example: on Friday, I took Haley for a walk and tried to go up the "High Cliffs Trail." It was too slippery and steep and she and I kept on sliding backwards, despite the fact that there was a rope "railing" for a stretch that I was using to try to pull myself up, while holding on to her leash with my other hand (essential since she ran away the night before - - more on that another time!). We skipped that trail, but I went back the next day by myself. I hate ice and I'm tentative on going down rocks and trails even when they are dry. Anyhow, I'd make a rule for myself about the conditions I was willing to endure crawling up on my hands and knees on the ice on the "High Cliffs" and "Lost Cliffs" trails. And then change the rules about the conditions I was willing to endure. Finally, near the final last bend to the topmost point, I couldn't figure out how to climb up and was trying to plot it out but couldn't get a good starting point. I finally reminded myself that if I can't really find a way up, going down would be impossible, and maybe I just hit the end of my adventure. 

Friday's view of the bluff I'd climb up on Saturday

View from the Lost Cliffs Trail

View from the Lost Cliffs Trail

Either way, there's some terrain!

The last leg of the High Cliffs Trail.
I made it almost all the way there!

I got snow up my sleeves,
up my pants legs, and apparently
in my pockets, when sliding
down on my butt.

As it was, I (along with others I met earlier in the day, according to their accounts) ended up sliding down most of the trail on my butt, where it was covered in ice versus rocks or snow. It was like a water park flume and was pretty fun (and quick!) except for the two parts that were near a cliff edge. That was a little more sweat-inducing, although I was able to rely on that rope railing thing a bit and aim for a tree to stop myself. 

This experience illuminated for me how I've ended up in some weird biking situations (like riding with Matt through thigh-high water, next to fish and ducks, and then climbing on the outer edge of a bridge to continue on our merry way). I don't think this is a flaw, necessarily, but it is good to be self aware!

Anyhow, we got to experience one last weekend of a not-cold version of winter up in the woods, and it was a welcome change of scenery from our house where we've spent oh-so-much time in the past year. And now, it is spring. 

The past few days, I've been putting on my BikeMS team captain hat and getting things situated for this year's rides. They're a little different than in years past due to COVID (the two-day, 150-mile ride will be a 75-mile ride and the five-day, 300-mile ride, will be a two-day, 100-mile ride). The extent to which I do them (or train) with a group will depend on when I get vaccinated, but I will do some version of them - either the exact route or my own replacement rides - again this year, in conjunction with a personal goal that I'm trying to settle on. 

Regardless, I'm focusing all of my fundraising efforts on one ride again this year: https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/GoMaggieGo-2021. Please support me again this year, if you can! Regardless, I'll keep you in the loop on what my goal/plan is and then look forward to telling you about how I ended up bending the rules. At least I normally make things harder for myself, which ends up being a good story! 

Our sweet girl, scared of the fireplace,
thought that when I was "finishing"
some bacon from the restaurant
that wasn't crispy enough for my liking,
she heard a crackling fire.
She sought comfort from me,
not realizing I was the source of her anxiety.

Muscle Mania

Sometimes I provide what some people (including myself) may consider TMI. But I figure why the heck not?

You may recall that I've had ongoing back issues, brought on by rowing and exacerbated by biking and scoliosis, improved by PT, yoga, foam rollering, chiropractor visits, and sports massage, about half of which I haven't been doing during the pandemic. Only a few people know that I have, well, I'll just say it - - constipation issues - - that become very annoying when, say, doing a 5-day bike ride. Add to the mix some "lady issues" that my last two gynecologists shrugged at. Well, I have a new gynecologist. She said, "yeah, I think you've got some issues related to, but not entirely caused by, the fact that you're starting menopause," and she suggested that I could benefit from pelvic floor PT.

I've gone for a month and it is FASCINATING. It is almost entirely all ab exercises (and anything else really isn't anything more unusual than a pelvic exam that you have with your annual pap) and it is helping all of the above issues. As is my Zoom Pilates class. 

I figure I should say something because talking about vaginas and whatnot is so taboo. We can't even barely talk about menstruation in our culture - - something so basic and fundamental - - so how are we going to get to a place of discussing constipation, sexual health, etc.? Oh, and pelvic floor PT is not just for the ladies, you gents. 

Also fascinating? Learning about the massively intensive training that pelvic floor PT therapists need to have to do their jobs.

We focus so much on quads, hamstrings, biceps, triceps, etc., it makes sense that there are other little, important, more hidden muscles. I guess the point of this post is this: if you think something isn't right, talk to someone else who might have more creative ideas rather than someone who just shrugs, and if the solution involves some crazy-sounding thing like pelvic floor PT, you might give it a shot.

New Year: New and Old Friends

As a chill set in as it tends to do this time of night (except for those few days around Christmas where I was either burning up from digesting massive amounts of sugar or experiencing the first of a series of menopausal hot flashes(?)), I donned my fleece sleeping cap (yes, I do sometimes wear this when I go to bed) and my kerchief (or, rather, my scarf) and started scrolling through my photos. (That was quite the parenthetical-filled sentence.)

It was quit a weekend! We got our new dog, Haley, on Thursday night. She's "closer to one year than two years old," but no one really knows. She was found in an abandoned, foreclosed upon house in Texas. This really breaks my heart. She is such a sweet, sweet snuggly dog; she must have been so confused to be left alone. They aren't sure how long she was there by herself. She was very skinny, but obviously alive. 

I took this just a minute ago. She
had covered her face with her paw,
but then decided to cross her legs
for cozier sleeping.

We decided to keep the name that
the rescue agency gave her. I ordered
an ID tag with our address and
phone numbers, but was happy to
learn that she also has a microchip.

Anyhow, she is trying to get settled in and is trying to be a good girl and learn the house rules. Indoors, the biggest challenge is getting her to walk in the house (including to the kitchen to get water). She is getting better at realizing that the hardwood floors are not going to kill her. This afternoon she walked and ran from room to room. And then she got stuck, frozen, unable to move until we helped escort her to safety. Outside, the biggest challenge is that she jumps up four feet straight in the air and makes sounds like Chewbacca every time she sees a dog. We'll get over these things, with patience and training. It is hard to remember that she is going through a huge adjustment period. She's smart and doesn't want to be a jerk, so I'm optimistic that the two, six-week training classes (Obedience 1 and Socialization) will make a difference. I haven't prioritized in-person contact for a haircut since last February, but have signed up for in-person dog training classes. Seems like I could probably get a haircut sometime - - it isn't like the dentist (who I haven't seen in a year). 

She loves her crate and puts herself in it
when she needs some self-comforting. We've never
had a dog do that before. It is kind of nice
to have her in there for sleeping and to not
worry about her.

In years past, I started the new year off with a fat bike ride. I didn't do that on Jan 1, but did go today on my old familiar route down to Fort Snelling. I don't think I did that route even once last year. I barely rode last winter, if at all. Anyhow, it is a slow 15-mile ride when your bike tires are set for the snow at 3.5-4.5 psi. (Compared to my road bike tires which are usually close to 100 psi.) I got super sweaty and hungry and that was good. I saw a buck and, a little bit later, two juvenile deer. There were a lot of people at the park (walking, skiing, snowshoeing, ice fishing), but mostly not by me. It was nice to see so many people enjoying nature and nice to go back to the state park that I can ride to right from my house. 

I like how the whole
route I followed is
coded to show that
 I was slow.

My app showing my heart rate
is not unlike my app showing
the energy generated by
our new solar panels. The
sun fueled me, too!

So, while I know that this is going to be a challenging winter (COVID still exists, I have a new dog that will require a lot of training, I still miss my family), I feel like I kicked it off in a good way to set the tone for a new year. 

Good tidings of solstice, and a happy new year

"Forest Festivities" by Jahna Vasht

The winter solstice is my favorite day because the days are going to start getting longer, and I am grateful for this. 

I'm also grateful for the fact that although I didn't go for as many long bike rides this year, I got out on my bike more frequently, and put in more miles this year than I did either of the past two years. (I think my decreased mileage those years was attributable to my lack of self-motivation when my riding partner Matt was on some international trips.) I'm also grateful that I got to do a long, masked-up ride with Steve and with Deb (separately), and that gravel-y fat bike ride with Matt that I mentioned in my last post as being - hands down - my favorite ride of the year.

Most recently, I took a week off in early December and got in some rides, including a longer-than-planned ride down to Grey Cloud Island one last time for 2020, and a hillier-than-planned ride back through South St. Paul.

I rode to Grey Cloud Island many times
this year. The last time, there were still
leaves on the trees and dead cornfields,
which have since been cut down.

These past two months, now that it has gotten colder and distanced patio happy hours in friends' backyards have gone by the wayside, I have been skipping biking when I can instead get in a masked-up walk with a friend outdoors. I'm grateful that people are willing to walk with me, despite my apparent reputation for tricking people into walking farther than they intended.

Although the fact that we all have Zoom fatigue, I am also grateful for being able to do a post-Thanksgiving Zoom Girl Craft Day (which actually worked really well!) and a couple of other Zoom get togethers with friends. 

In general, I'm very grateful for friends this year. Like my friend Jen, who dropped off a full-size DQ ice cream cake; Matt, who made me a biking-themed card; and Marcy, who made me some goodies, including a very decorative jar of sweet and spicy nuts.

I am also grateful for my friends' senses of humors. Oddly, I got two sausage-themed cards for my birthday this year! 

I'm grateful for my siblings (all of whom I really like), happy memories of my dad, getting to safely see Beth (my stepmom) a few times this year, being able to help my mom after her surgery (before COVID shut everything down), being able to visit my mom and Terry (my stepdad), and my mom having good post-chemo scans. I'm grateful that my husband and I still get along despite seeing much more of each other than we usually do, yet am equally as grateful that I have the luxury of being able to escape and do jigsaw puzzles while listening to audio books. 

This weekend's puzzle.

As we hunker down for the winter (Where did all the snow go? At least the ice skaters are happy about being able to move across all the lakes, unfettered), I am comforted by the fact that the first bike ride that I've signed up for in 2021 (https://mssociety.donordrive.com/participant/Maggie-MahoneyTC) is less than 20 weeks away. In COVID-math, that can feel like either 5 and/or 40 weeks, all at the same time. Here's hoping I can do some of these events next year! In the meantime, I'm reflecting on this interesting swag from the Ride Across Minnesota two years ago.... Ha! 

Cliff's Notes to the Fall

 Well, hi there. The more-than-two-month hiatus I've taken from posting means that there's too much that's been going on for me to get lazy and rely on the too frequently lately, lazy book report-style "blog" post. 

I can say this: 

• Shortly after my last post, I took two days off work and went on two of the hottest bike rides I have ever taken.

One of those days, I rode to the wildlife
refuge and went for a hike.

• This year, although my bike rides haven't been as long as in years past, I've been riding more frequently. So far (knock on wood that I will keep riding one bike or another through the end of the year), I've ridden more miles than I did last year or the year before. It seems unlikely that I'll get another 700 miles in and tie my mileage for 2016 or 2017, which were remarkably similar. 
• This year, I did a lot of rides to Grey Cloud Island, and got to see the farm fields as they thawed, as they were being planted, as the corn and soybeans sprouted, as the corn reached knee high (before the 4th of July), as the plants were harvested, and as the fields were turned over. It was kind of nice to see the progression over the season(s). 
• I also did a lot of early weekday morning riding over the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. One day I purposely shifted my route to see the Mississippi in its fall glory.

Looking upstream, from near my house.

• I got some rides and long walks in just before we found out snow was coming. I'm trying to find beauty in my surroundings, despite the fact that there are no leaves on the trees and it has been cold and windy. I'm trying to get my head in the right place before winter. Living in the north during the COVID era is going to be hard to navigate because you can't just sit on a patio with people (or not for as long or as comfortably, anyhow!).

Downtown from by my house, the
night before we got 8 inches of snow.

• In mid-October, just before it snowed, my good friend and riding partner for seven years - Matt - was in town to pick up some things. We went on a masked-up ride on fat tire bikes on gravel roads so we could ride side by side and then had a cold beer on a cold patio in the cold rain. It was my favorite ride of 2020. It was so not normal, yet so normal. 
• Speaking of "not normal," but kind of normal, Dan and I went to Iowa the weekend after the snow, and went to an outdoor concert, with our seats distanced from everyone else and masks required in common areas. Live music! What a treat. Since the temps were in the mid-30s, having a face covering was kind of nice.
• More speaking of "not normal," I have spent a lot of time lately making stupid videos as a way to entertain myself and maybe a couple other people - including pretend workout videos. I won't share them here because they are too dumb, but here's a sneak peak of the type of other videos I have been randomly sending people.

• The snow has melted and it has been windy. I have been riding in the cold (like, wind chills in the 20s) dark before work and am pretty much the only person out there! It is peaceful. I rode this weekend and even though it was a little warmer, I think the wind discouraged people. That's fine; more space for me! 

This big ol' willow came down
overnight. It will be interesting
to see how the landscape -
and the park board - respond.

• The second half of 2019 was a bad year for me, personally, and I kept on thinking, "I cannot wait for this year to be over." And then I realized (I think my sister pointed it out to me) that the change of a calendar page doesn't magically wipe the slate clean. In fact, the first day of 2020 itself was a bit of a whopper (not in a good way). I think things will get better for most people in 2021, but am worried about everyone being so focused on the stinkiness of 2020, that they'll have unreasonable expectations for January.
• Here's hoping that the rest of the fall will be nice and that the winter will be conducive to outdoor activities, including snowshoeing and walking with friends.

I didn't manage to fully escape my book report mode. I guess this is more the Cliff's Notes!