Moments D606: Cold before the heat

It's always an exciting day when you know the next day you are going on vacation.  Today was that day.  My last day of work for an entire week.  While there was much to get through, it was easy to stay focused and push through to get it done.  Skip lunch, skip the breaks.  No problem, if it means everything is all laid out for the time I'm away.

And it was all done.  Phew.

And then it was a mad dash to pack for the coming Christmas cruise.  Three hours.  LOTS of time, right?  Nope!  As usual, there were more things to deal with than expected and EQ and I were rushing right to the last moment we had before heading to the airport.

We took his bike to the airport.  Good thing too as the traffic was crazy busy.  On the upside, we were able to use lane sharing to keep us moving towards the airport.  And we arrived there on time! On the downside, the ride into the airport was very cold.  So cold that even with my three layers on, with a scarf and a hat, I was very chilled by the time we arrived.

As we sat and ate our dinner at the gate, I shivered the entire time.  But you know what?  As we were boarding the plane, me still wearing my hat to keep warm, I realized, I was soon going to be in Miami.  I was soon going to be in the Caribbean.  The sun and heat were only hours away.

Sometimes it's darkest before the dawn.    In my case it was coldest before the heat would hit me.

It was a fun moment of realization.

Moments shuddering in the cold.

Moments knowing that the cold will be replaced soon.

Moments D119: Biking for transportation

Today was the first day I’ve biked to work. I’ve been meaning to do this all summer, but with my hectic schedule it’s been nearly impossible to find a day where I wasn’t expected somewhere either too far to bike home from or I would be out too late to want to bike home from.

I was nervous. I wasn’t sure how long it would take me to bike to the office. My estimate was 30 minutes. So I planned for 40 minutes just to be on the safe side. After a delayed start due to soft tires that needed air, off I went.

I loved it! All 21 minutes and 18.2km of it. Seeing all the other bike riders, passing the cars, turning left at a couple of intersections (nerve racking in rush hour traffic), and cursing at the street car tracks as they bit at my tires. I pushed hard on the hills and loved the burn in my quads and I felt good when I finally pulled into the office parking lot. Twenty-one minutes. Five more than it takes me to drive into work. Only 192 calories burned, but boy was it a good feeling. I can’t wait to do it again sometime soon.

I’ve only ever ridden my bike for pleasure/entertainment before this moment. So today was a new adventure for me. A moment of using my bike as a mode of transportation instead of “just for fun”. How fortunate that I still, very much, enjoyed it!

Moments of new adventures and new transportation.

Moments to exercise and feel good.

#moments #exercise #biking