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I played hooky from work. Actually, not true, advance request was approved by boss a week ago. As stated in the weekend thread, Mike and I met Rodel in downtown Richmond near the start of the Capitol to Capitol Trail which runs from Williamsburg, the former Commonwealth Capitol to Richmond, the current Capitol. We arrived before 8:00 and paid to park all day on one of the municipal lots ($4 all day early bird special). Mike suggested a goal of 31 out and 31 back to make a 62 mile or 100 kilometer birthday ride. We are celebrating birthdays that are separated by a few days in May and 10 years in age. (52 for Mike and 62 for me). Rodel was along for the ride as he is also on our Bike MS Chesapeake Challenge team. Bike MS takes place in a few weeks, June 19, and will run 57 miles out of Easton MD. We rolled out in the sunny morning at 8:00 and shared the trail with a lot of early runners, dog walkers and a few other cyclists. Mike set the pace fast early but I wasn't playing that game. My longest ride to date so far was 25 miles on New Years Day. I had also done a 19 mile ride last Saturday. My ride count for 2021 was 10 rides totaling 122 miles. 62 was ambitious. I'd watch him fade into the distance and then catch up when he and Rodel waited for me somewhere. The trail follows VA Rt 5 and the James River is on the other side but too far to be visible. We rolled past old Colonial plantations, many open for tours. There wasn't many opportunities for provisions so next time we will plan better. I rode about an hour in the hot sun with no water. Took a 20 minute break at a gas station to recover. All in all it was a good ride. I like the trail and recommend it as well as planning to refill at certain spots. Total ride per Cyclemeter 61.4 miles, 14.17 avg, 548 feet climbed Garmin says: 60.7 miles, 11.16 avg (I didn't stop the timer at breaks and Cyclemeter does this automatically), 1,644 feet climbed and avg bpm 128 with a max of 143.

I think I told you all that since moving up into Whatcom County, our new home literally sits between the city and the farmlands. We now have access to local farmers products within a hop, skip, and a jump. The valley is spotted with little farmer stands selling their fresh local products. My wife and I can't help but stop at each one now and support our local farmers. We hit them up for fresh produce all the time and I must say since I've been given the green light by my coronary dietitian, we've also been getting the farms fresh eggs. What a difference! Fresh lettuce, fresh eggs, fresh berries. Even fresh and locally produced cheese and bread. They even sell seafood from the local industries around the Salish Sea. And it warms my heart these stands are unmanned and believe in the honor system -- something that is still valued in the country and not seen as a free high from some drug user. It makes me feel good to support the locals but even better knowing I'm getting fresher, better tasting product. For the record, my wife now makes the most tastiest, most delicious egg sandwich on the planet. Garlic sourdough and copious amounts of hot sauce. Do you live near agriculture where you live?

Just a touch of cornmeal, with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, sift the mix, add crumbled walnuts, let it sit a touch, get the oil and heat right, and punch in some blueberries and pay attention so they are not burned, and viola, good pancakes! Mmmm! Allmost as good as White tofu lentil chili with beans!

I have met and worked with (and against) many, many lawyers in my career, literally hundreds if not a thousand. The one common thread among all of them is, none of them want to be in court. They much prefer proof-read written submissions over the fear of making a mistake with the spoken word. As for my profession, I am one of the rare cases where my passion ended up being my job.

My wife's photos

The first time I rode the Capital trail I saw it on the official state website. I made plans for a long day. I got up early and rode from my sister in law’s house in Williamsburg down the Colonial Parkway to Jamestown Settlement and the start of the trail. The first five miles of the trail was nice, I was the only one on the trail. When I came to where they were building a new fancy bridge the trail faded away. The old bridge was a draw bridge with a metal grate deck. It looked kinda iffy but I rode across it to try to find the rest of the trail to Richmond. I must have rode five miles or so on the other side of the river, no stinking trail. Whoever made the State website was a dreamer. They didn’t complete the trail for two more years. Back across the draw bridge and back to the Colonial Parkway. I spent the rest of the day on the Colonial Parkway exploring. I managed to get over 100 miles but it wasn’t my planned ride.

I should be able to climb hills now. Upper body looks like TDF mountain man. Problem is lower body looks the same

But I got the cabinets assembled in spite of all that.

Mama, don't let your babies grow up to be engineers.

My oldest has a law degree from Osgood Hall. What she learned from it was that she really didn't want to make a career in law. She is in HR now. I wish she would have learned that before law school tuitions.

I made petite filets (French style) with pan roasted Brussel's sprouts and oven roasted rosemary potatoes. Am I the only one that splits the sprouts and half and makes sure all of them are face down so they caramelize nicely? Gotta use cast iron and grapeseed oil to get that nice seer. Brown butter basted with garlic and fresh thyme. Potatoes tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary from my plants out front. The finished product.

Troop champ. Proud Dad

Paid friends are still friends.

Broke my brakes, man.

I decided it was a good day to let the self cleaning oven do it job. It got the kitchen/dining room/living room pretty toasty.

"It goes forward when you pedal. It doesn't stop when you squeeze the brakes."

She can and probably will retire and then do something fun to keep her busy. Maybe work at a ranch or feed store... The firm is offering a golden parachute that is only offered if she sticks it out through the end of the year. I wanted to be a cop since my early teens. It was my dream job. I kept out of trouble as a youth & joined the military with an ultimate goal of civilian law enforcement. When I finally got there I was in for a rude awakening and realized it wasn’t what I had envisioned and so left. I never really chose another profession, I just kind of fell into it by accident...

I landed pretty good. Most people don't understand what Internal Audit or Risk Management does. We work to keep it that way. Good job security too.

Our current pancakes are a mix of flaxseed and King Arthur gluten free all purpose baking mix (no added sugar this way). Plus a dash of cinnamon, chia seeds, and sometimes vanilla (I can't taste it so I often leave it out). Some type of fruit, blueberries or banana are the usual. Whatever fake milk we have. Always organic real maple syrup.

You mean the outside ??

We better be careful if we have a house warming for Dr. Mickin. The last time he had a house warming he tried to burn it down.

I dont mind the colour, but the sock height warrants a good beating

Shire Highlands....hand rolled..not quite at my drinkable temp yet...will report.

Friday, May 28, 61.4 miles

i can strip in the garage and go right to the shower. It isn't mud. It's mostly just dust.

Wo7 has designed the garden for the front yard. The rest is up to me ( and her). The car needed inspection and we had to pick up the 60 bags of garden soil she bought for the project. The rototiller we rented (water Buffalo) was delivered yesterday. We went to the tire store after 7:00 to get there early for 7:30 opening. There were 5 ahead of us already. We were checked in and walked to the nearby diner. This is the old fashioned type with seating for about 25. Cash only. I had 2 eggs, home fries, and sausage gravy over biscuits with coffee. Wo7 had three eggs over easy, side of bacon and wheat toast. Total came to $22 n change. Good breakfast. Car was ready when we got back. Went to Home Depot and rented one of their trucks and they loaded the skid of dirt on the truck. Took it home, unloaded bag by bag and returned the truck. This is where the fun begins. Fire up the rototiller and it’s like wrestling with a water Buffalo. I got the job done but I am tarred. Before and after pics:

Give a guy a like or two, would ya?

Gonna be in the 50s for the next few days. The fireplace is warming up the downstairs now.

Windows are all closed. The heat that had been turned off is turned back on. The stove is running in the sun room and the prospect are that this will repeat tomorrow.......but hey, at least Monday will be warm rain.

20.1 miles with WoJSTL on the tandem. We went over 1,000 miles together today. Tested out new wheels.

5/28 7.5 miles walking and jogging. 18,911 steps.

Ah crap! I am working that day. When is it?

Easy soy-boy. Your moobs will get bigger!

stereo is better

If we had stayed, we might have done a little better. But I have no regrets. I think it was very good timing. Our lives are so less stressful now.

Since I have RO this weekend, I am binge watching shows she likes. "The Inbestigators" is the recent binge, and is about 4 kids in Australia that run an investigative service at a seemingly crime-ridden elementary school. Only two of the 4 are smart, with the little girl being the smartest by far. 2 are actually pretty dim, but ask the silly questions so they can be answered for the younger viewers. Kids shows are better now than they used to be.

This is how I do them too

I grilled chicken breasts ,and mrs_az_cyclist made mashed potatoes and veggies . I am loving the Big Green Egg to grill or smoke

@Razors Edge told me to.

It took two days, and here we are with windows totally closed. That should make #2 son very comfortable. He doesn’t have to deal with the sound of dogs barking in the neighborhood.

I should go back to taking pictures of my meals. If you had seen everything I ate the last three days you wouldn’t think it possible I’m unable to gain weight. I have to admit pizza and beer sounds better. I had salmon, potatoes, red bell pepper, a large sweet onion, mushrooms, and carrots. All cooked in olive oil. Washed it down with a bottle of boost.

But you don't understand; we're not spending money. We are offloading junk we no longer want.

From the picture it looks like a variable speed drive, rather than an off/on motor starter. The speed of the motor is varied inversely to the pressure in the tank; lower pressure = higher speed and vice versa. The motor (not the tank) maintains the pressure in the system when water is running. So the bladder tank can be smaller since it only needs to supply pressure for a brief period from when a faucet is opened until the pump comes on to take over pressure maintenance. This system is a good fit to the high volume well DH has, because there's plenty of water for the pump to draw from whenever it needs it. Since it's electronic, there are no or few contacts to pit or burn out. You also won't see the brief dimming of the lights that's characteristic of the off/on starter types coming on. I would recommend, since the well pump controller is electronic, that it would be worthwhile to invest in a good quality whole-house surge suppressor and connect to the electrical panel. It would help protect against lightning strikes that hit the power lines, or someone knocking down a pole with a car. If it absorbs a spike you might have to replace it, but it would be cheaper than replacing that well pump drive. To work properly, the surge suppressor should be mounted right next to the panel using the largest size wires the suppressor will accept.