Countdown to Triathlon – 153 Days, 21.85 weeks to Race Day (See Installment 74 of "The Journey", 220 mile bike ride, below)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY -

This is the motto for the bike ride.  I found it this weekend while sorting papers.  Unfortunately, I did not find the bike ride story file and if I don't find it, all the future writing will have to be from memory.  We had a very exciting Saturday.  Bob went out to get the news paper and a neighbor was walking across the street to our house. She asked if Bob knew his window was broken.  Last week a rock from a truck shattered the lower one third of his windshield so he answered her that he knew about it.  A few minutes later, another neighbor came over and asked if we knew that the drive side window was broken.  This was about 9:30.  Since it had been raining hard all night and there was very little water in the truck, the robbery must have occurred in the daylight hours.  Whoever did it was probably on foot or on a bike.  They broke the window and snatched Bob's new GPS and his new XM radio that I gave him for Christmas.  They left all the cord dandling so they can't be much use to them.

At 9:30 that night we were watching a movie and there was a huge bang which scared me.  Then I saw falling sparks and debris on fire which fell into our backyard.  The power went out immediately.  I called the city and told them I knew exactly where the problem was.  Our side of the street for several blocks each direction had no power. A branch from the neighbor's redwood tree fell across two of the power lines and shorted out.  It was so windy and rainy all day.  It took them about two hours to get the power back on. 

It's amazing how much we depend on electricity.  I kept saying to myself, "Okay, I'll do this then."  Then remembered I need electricity to do it.  "Okay, then I'll go do that."  Can't because I need electricity.  It made me think of how the pioneers must have had to get up at dawn and work until dusk to get all their chores done because candlelight is hard to work in.

The Journey - Installment Seventy-Four

        The week of the bike ride was here!  I could not believe it.  I kept getting encouraging card and notes as well as phone calls from people.  Their encouragement meant so much to me.  I made sure the bike and gear were all ready and that my muscle stimulators for my knees were packed.  Lisa and I made arrangements for she and her husband to pick me up on Thursday around 2:00.  He would not be able to stay for the bike ride and Bob would join me later that night after dinner.  He had decided to to accompany us in his truck.  He would ride ahead and wait at intervals for us to pass and would stay with me in the hotels for the three nights.  I was so glad to have his presence on this upcoming journey.  We were all to meet the night before the bike ride at a hotel in Sacramento and then would be given rides to where FOTF was to host dinner for all the riders and the helpers.