As Days Back to Work Go, it Was a Good One
Jul. 4th, 2006 09:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jamesqOne of my ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
mission101 goals is to get my bike fixed so that I can bike to work more. Well I dug it out of the garage this morning and took it to work with the intent of going to Bow Cycle after work. Aside from the tires being nearly flat (easily fixed at the Coop gas station by my house) and being loose and squeaky, it is rideable.
I rode down to Bowness after work as I intended, though I seem to be a bit more anxious about bike riding then I previously was. I think this is because I drive a car now and didn't last time I used the bike. The fragile nature of bike riding is heightened by barreling down a highway at 100KPH+ encased in metal. On the bright side, I do remember this while driving, so I give the bikers lots of leeway.
This is better then one SCAdian I know, who (at a party some years back) voiced the opinion that he should be able to knock cyclists off the rode because they slowed him down. I didn't have a lot of respect for him prior to his claim that he should be able to attempt vehicular homicide. Afterwards there was none whatsoever.
Anyhow, I get to Bow Cycle and stand in line for twenty minutes waiting for some help. The line moved slow, but it did move. In the meantime I admired the athletic scenery. Eventually I got to the head of the line.
I explained to the fellow what I wanted and he said "That's a tune up - the waiting list for tune ups is currently at July 18th". Ugh. What else could I do, I had him put my name down.
The real bad news is that I now had to bike back to Dalhousie - up Home Road, one of the steepest roads in Cowtown. Thankfully it's not that long.
I rode by my barber and saw a line up, so I skipped that. Then I rode past the Northland Farmers' Market. and opted not to buy anything. The Calgary Farmers' Market has spoiled me.
Now all this time while riding I was thinking about sushi. Yamato Sushi to be precise, which offers 20% off on Mondays and Tuesdays.
I walked in just as the server was telling the couple in front of me that there was a 45 minute wait (It's always busy on Mondays and Tuesdays). When It was my turn to talk, I asked for and received the last seat at the bar. Sometimes being single has it's advantages.
I sat between two women. One was obviously part of a couple and the other, a cute suicide blonde, was alone. The bad news is my appearance. I was wearing work clothes, but had just biked about 10K in them (and it was about 30C outside). I was drenched in sweat. Complicating things was the fact that I needed to blow my nose and cough. My lingering illness (which at this point does not affect me at all except cosmetically) ensured that when I did blow my nose, it would be juicy.
Basically I was not terribly presentable and I was thrust into the midst of several people who probably didn't need to be subjected to me. I say this not because I had any intentions towards these folks, but just as a way of pointing out that I was self-conscious about my appearance, and rightfully so.
I quickly ordered my food then vanished to the washroom where I attempted to freshen up. I toweled off as much of the dampness as I could, blew my nose and coughed up the fur lining my throat. I washed up, straightened my hair (which wasn't bozo-like yet, but it's getting there) and returned to my seat.
My salad and miso soup had already arrived, much to the shagrin of the lady next to me. this started us to talking about a variety of subjects: Assorted sushi bars in town, trips to other places, mosquitos, my upcoming camping trip, good and bad places to eat, her job as a farmer/investment banker, my job as a software scientist. Eventually she was finished (my sushi hadn't arrived yet) and she paid the bill and left. On her way out she told me her name (Janelle (sp?)) and I told her mine. I might run into her again someday as she too was sold by Yamato's combination of good sushi and great prices.
As she left it suddenly occurred to me, I had been chatting up a beautiful single woman in a (sushi) bar. At no point did I feel self-conscious about it, nor did I stick my foot in my mouth. I attribute this to my not-as-awful-as-it-once-was self-esteem and the fact that I didn't think about it at the time.
Afterwards the sushi was anti-climactic (but still good). All in all a very eventful day, with the pleasantness far outweighing the negative.
mission101 goals is to get my bike fixed so that I can bike to work more. Well I dug it out of the garage this morning and took it to work with the intent of going to Bow Cycle after work. Aside from the tires being nearly flat (easily fixed at the Coop gas station by my house) and being loose and squeaky, it is rideable.I rode down to Bowness after work as I intended, though I seem to be a bit more anxious about bike riding then I previously was. I think this is because I drive a car now and didn't last time I used the bike. The fragile nature of bike riding is heightened by barreling down a highway at 100KPH+ encased in metal. On the bright side, I do remember this while driving, so I give the bikers lots of leeway.
This is better then one SCAdian I know, who (at a party some years back) voiced the opinion that he should be able to knock cyclists off the rode because they slowed him down. I didn't have a lot of respect for him prior to his claim that he should be able to attempt vehicular homicide. Afterwards there was none whatsoever.
Anyhow, I get to Bow Cycle and stand in line for twenty minutes waiting for some help. The line moved slow, but it did move. In the meantime I admired the athletic scenery. Eventually I got to the head of the line.
I explained to the fellow what I wanted and he said "That's a tune up - the waiting list for tune ups is currently at July 18th". Ugh. What else could I do, I had him put my name down.
The real bad news is that I now had to bike back to Dalhousie - up Home Road, one of the steepest roads in Cowtown. Thankfully it's not that long.
I rode by my barber and saw a line up, so I skipped that. Then I rode past the Northland Farmers' Market. and opted not to buy anything. The Calgary Farmers' Market has spoiled me.
Now all this time while riding I was thinking about sushi. Yamato Sushi to be precise, which offers 20% off on Mondays and Tuesdays.
I walked in just as the server was telling the couple in front of me that there was a 45 minute wait (It's always busy on Mondays and Tuesdays). When It was my turn to talk, I asked for and received the last seat at the bar. Sometimes being single has it's advantages.
I sat between two women. One was obviously part of a couple and the other, a cute suicide blonde, was alone. The bad news is my appearance. I was wearing work clothes, but had just biked about 10K in them (and it was about 30C outside). I was drenched in sweat. Complicating things was the fact that I needed to blow my nose and cough. My lingering illness (which at this point does not affect me at all except cosmetically) ensured that when I did blow my nose, it would be juicy.
Basically I was not terribly presentable and I was thrust into the midst of several people who probably didn't need to be subjected to me. I say this not because I had any intentions towards these folks, but just as a way of pointing out that I was self-conscious about my appearance, and rightfully so.
I quickly ordered my food then vanished to the washroom where I attempted to freshen up. I toweled off as much of the dampness as I could, blew my nose and coughed up the fur lining my throat. I washed up, straightened my hair (which wasn't bozo-like yet, but it's getting there) and returned to my seat.
My salad and miso soup had already arrived, much to the shagrin of the lady next to me. this started us to talking about a variety of subjects: Assorted sushi bars in town, trips to other places, mosquitos, my upcoming camping trip, good and bad places to eat, her job as a farmer/investment banker, my job as a software scientist. Eventually she was finished (my sushi hadn't arrived yet) and she paid the bill and left. On her way out she told me her name (Janelle (sp?)) and I told her mine. I might run into her again someday as she too was sold by Yamato's combination of good sushi and great prices.
As she left it suddenly occurred to me, I had been chatting up a beautiful single woman in a (sushi) bar. At no point did I feel self-conscious about it, nor did I stick my foot in my mouth. I attribute this to my not-as-awful-as-it-once-was self-esteem and the fact that I didn't think about it at the time.
Afterwards the sushi was anti-climactic (but still good). All in all a very eventful day, with the pleasantness far outweighing the negative.
