Last night’s ride home was a glorious hammerfest through rain and puddles. I had to forego the riding glasses because the rain would have rendered them useless. Perhaps I’ll look into little tiny battery powered wipers for glasses. I had so much fun, I didn’t even realize until I was almost home that I made record time. 9.41 miles in 39:15 minutes for an average speed of 14.3mph. I finally broke the 40 minute barrier, and the 14mph hump on my 91st St. route!

This morning was another fine ride. Cool and misty, I could see the beams of light blasting from my CatEye headlight like afterburners. The damp roads glittered in the street lamps, and the misty air was illuminated everywhere I looked. There was such a sense of quiet peace on the roads without traffic that I wanted to just stop and soak it in. Alas, I had to get to work… aided by the slight tail wind, which made for a relaxing and easy ride after yesterday’s high energy ride through the rain.

The only moment of confusion this morning came at the roundabout at 110th and Lamar. A white Outback hurried around me to beat me to the roundabout, only to stop hurriedly as a car approached in the circle from the left. I didn’t have time to scoot in behind, and was forced to stop next to her (not where I’d prefer to be). I didn’t want to squeeze the juice out of the brakes, so I ended up slightly in front of her. Given that, I went ahead and spun up after the car passed, and wouldn’t you know it, so did the Outback. Fortunately, she swung wide, giving me plenty of room. Unfortunately, she needed to turn right immediately and had to wait for me, thus holding up traffic behind her. Had she waited for me to reach the roundabout to begin with, there would have been no confusion.

I never understood it when I drove more, and my increased time on my bike in traffic only highlights the phenomena, and does nothing to alleviate my confusion about it. So many drivers seem so desperate so often to shave 0.00089 seconds off their driving time, that they’ll risk their own lives and those around them to do so. The idiot in the Outback (at least) four lives at risk simply because she had to hurry around me to beat me to the intersection. On wet roads, no less.

I hope she gets where she’s going without hurting anyone.

People confound me sometimes.

Yesterday’s post with the Taoist parables got me thinking. I used to be very interested in Taoism and the “Be and Let Be” mentality. I used to be a lot more spiritual. Not religious, mind you. Never religious. Spiritual. Interested in the inner peace that comes from meditation and mindfulness (how’s that going, chernobylred?). Organized religion never held any attraction for me. My reading and studying of Eastern spirituality and philosophies in college brought me a lot of that internal peace.

Last night I picked up one of my old books right before bed and thumbed through it. I finally feel like my life is heading in the right direction again, and I want to wrap myself in the warm blanket of the simple joys again. Ironic, isn’t it, that when I needed that spirituality the most, I didn’t pursue it. Now that my life is settling down, I seek it out again.

I confound me sometimes.