Posted On Saturday, January 8th, 2011 By David Veatch
This is an outline of how I make my trips to work by bike successful and fun. This list is written assuming that you, like me, already possess a bike and attire of your choosing. If you don’t, you might need to look to that first. The Night Before Verify bike ABC Quick Check ‘A’ is for ‘Air’. Check your tires to make sure they aren’t flat. They don’t roll right if they are. ‘B’ is for ‘Brakes’. Make sure they’re working. You won’t stop well if you’re rolling if they don’t work. Stopping is just as important as going, after all. ‘C’ is for ‘Chain’. Is it broken or bent? If the answer is yes, then it’s probably not a good idea to ride on it. ‘C’ is also for ‘Drive train’, though they start with different letters (just go with me on this). Make sure your shifting is working and that there aren’t any squirrels hiding away in your derailleur. Pack work clothes. Do this the night before so you don’t forget anything when you’re all groggy from having to get up freakishly early to ride. Prepare bike clothing, depending on weather. Again, so you don’t forget your more »
Posted On Monday, August 23rd, 2010 By David Veatch
Jami saw my PuTTY screen a couple of weeks ago while I was preparing a major home server upgrade. Upon noticing the frantic scrolling green text of a compile in progress (I have my term colors set to mimic the old Apple //e I grew up with), she belted out “What’s that?! What are you doing?! Is that some sort of crazy ‘Logo Rhythm’ thing?!” She’s prone to sudden and unexpected outbursts. It’s her way. One such outburst involved the History Channel. While on the couch together I was watching the History Channel (and it wasn’t about Hitler!) while she and a friend of ours who was sitting on the other couch, were talking about flowers, or butterflies, or ribbons, or some such thing. Upon noticing what I was watching, Jami immediately belted out “Boring!! What is that?!” I couldn’t help but start laughing. As did our friend. As did, or course, Jami. The passion with which she evoked the single word “Boring!” was admirable. Thus, it immediately joined ranks with the many inside jokes we’ve developed over the last two(ish) years. I did not, however, change the channel. This time, having asked with equal passion (and a touch of more »
Posted On Wednesday, March 11th, 2009 By David Veatch
Last night, I checked the mail and had three Netflix movies waiting for me! Excellent! Except for one small thing… I don’t have a Netflix account. Huh. Immediately suspicious, I decided to dig in and see what I could find out. My first step, having opened the movies to see what they were (nothing worth watching, and no… no pr0n), I sat down at the laptop and brought up netflix.com. I’m not a member… well… I’m not a knowing member, so I had no idea what my username would be, much less my password. Normally, you can have instructions sent to the e’mail address on file, but I was confident that in my case, my own e’mail address wouldn’t be on file. However, they have a method of logging in if you don’t remember, or have access to the e’mail address you signed up with. It asks for the first name, last name and card number used to sign up with. Using my real first and last name, I started going through my credit cards to see which one had fallen into the wrong hands. I didn’t have far to go… I got a hit on the first try. I more »
Posted On Friday, December 19th, 2008 By David Veatch
Posted On Monday, December 8th, 2008 By David Veatch
In the break room this morning I was chatting with a co worker. She mentioned that they were predicting snow this week. I’m not in the old habit of checking the forecast yet, so it was a surprise to me. “No. Snow you say?” “Yes. Snow, even as I say it.” “And so you do. Fah. I hope it’s not too bad.” “Tell me, may I ask you a question?” “Certainly. You may ask anything, but I reserve the right to refuse to answer.” “But of course. This then, is my question.” “I anxiously await your question. Please note how I stand ready.” “Here it is then: Will you be riding your bike in the snow?” “Certainly! But only if it snows lightly. I don’t like too many inches, after all.” I’ll leave it up to the reader to find the humor in that. If you found it, you and I think alike. If not… then I must admit to part of me being rather proud of you. And a question of my own, posed to you: Can you guess the name of the author I’m reading right now?
Posted On Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008 By David Veatch
Overheard two nights ago at Shooters in Olathe: “McDonald’s fries give Burger King fries the 6.“
Posted On Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008 By David Veatch
I’m on a conference call with my headphones on. It’s the kind of one-ear headphone set with a microphone that curves around in front of the mouth. I have a bag of peanuts. I have a handful of peanuts. I swing hand with peanuts up towards face to place peanuts in mouth. Peanuts hit microphone. I have a lap full of peanuts.
Posted On Wednesday, October 29th, 2008 By David Veatch
The Dew Drop is about a week away, and I’m chomping at the bit. I’ve hardly ridden at all this month. Looking back, it’s been almost as slow as February, and I was sick and out of town for much of that month. And perhaps most distressing is that somewhere in there, I missed Fall. When I tore down the Fire Mountain (pics), it was warm. I was wearing shorts. When I pick up the Dew Drop, it’ll be cold, and I’ll be wearing long layers. That’s really only a shame for my fan club here at work that likes to watch me ride off… they’ll have to wait until Spring for the Good Stuff again. Back to the point at hand, what happened to it? Where’d Fall go? Granted, I’ve been a little bit preoccupied with personal stuffs around here, but still… I thought I’d notice when Fall stepped aside for Winter. One day it was nice, the next it was freezing at night, and barely hitting 60 at the height of the day. And here I was, completely oblivious. I mentioned to a friend, aghast, that it had hit 27°F the night before. She looked at me, clearly more »
Posted On Thursday, June 26th, 2008 By David Veatch
It’s been well documented that whenever two or more commuters meet on the road, it is necessary that they race. It’s unspoken, and rarely even acknowledged, but accepted without question. I hear that runners have the same rules. This morning was supposed to be a relaxing ride in. It was supposed to see me arrive at work relatively low on the sweat meter. In case you’re not paying attention, it didn’t end up that way. Russ and I hit the intersection of 91st and Lamar at the same time. I was heading east and turning right, while he was heading west and turning left. He hails from Brookside, and I from Shawnee. Honestly, this morning I was that guy that doesn’t stop to chat. I was that guy who just rides on with only a nod, anti-social and distant even though you’re going the same direction. I was feeling solitary and withdrawn due to some general life stresses that have been getting the best of me. I turned right and rode on, pulling a pretty good pace down the hill from 91st to 95th. He apparently kept up pretty well, because the light at 95th stopped us both. We introduced more »
Posted On Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 By David Veatch
This morning, our hero finds himself racing against manicured lawns everywhere. Turning east on 91st, he notices what appears to be a street cleaner in the distance. He up shifts and increases his tempo just a bit to try and catch up. Unfortunately, stop signs and passing traffic keep him at a distance. He makes quick work of the 69 Highway overpass, and enters the rolling hills of Elmhurst. More stop signs and traffic continue to keep him at bay, but he finally catches his quarry at 91st and Grant. Unfortunately, there are still two cars between himself and what turned out to be an industrial size riding lawnmower. One car, impatient with the slow and steady pace of the mower, guns it and passes, leaving just one car in between our hero and certain victory! The last obstacle guns her engine as well, but seeing oncoming traffic, stays put, forcing our spry pedalist to do the same. At about that time, a car comes up from behind and tries to squeeze him to the curb, but he puts a hand out and holds firm. The driver backs off, perhaps knowing what is at stake. At the stoplight at Antioch, more »