I went for a massage yesterday morning

and Tanja (my therapist) and I got talking about how hard it is to motivate yourself to exercise when you have no significant events on the horizon.  Now, she is nowhere near as tryhardcore as I am and is swaying quite a way into the hardcore and non-mediocre at sports.  She has done ironman's and run marathons and once stepped into a boxing ring for some fisticuffs with another chick to raise money for Canteen.  You won't see me doing any of that shit.  Still, we talk about how it doesn't come naturally to  her and  she  has to work bloody hard at it.  I really admire her for her gutsyness.  Is that even a word?

I had this discussion with her about how I lurve to ride my biek but finding time during daylight hours at the moment is impossible. I told her I had this plan to light myself up like a fricken Christmas tree and  do some urban rides around sevenish when people were tucked up inside eating dinner and there wasn't so much traffic on the roads.  Tanja tells me she hasn't been out on the bike in 'forever' so we cook up a plan and she was keen as.  I sent the text off this morning to tell her I was heading out tonight and received an affirmative text in reply.  Pretty exciting stuff.    But - Best laid plans oft go awry and Tanja called to say she had hit the wall and was in pre-flu mode.

Up Fairview getting the strap stuck to my glove velcro. 

So I'm sat at me table thinking "Well,  I probably won't go either".  But I tell you what.. I bloody did!  No more co-dependent exercising for me!! I switched my lights over from the roadie to the mountain bike and hit the road.  Grabbed the camera so I could take some extremely crap shots to prove that I was out there and at the first pic got the camera strap caught in the velcro on my glove. I wasn't very coordinated.  I am trying to cram the camera into my back pocket, unhitching my glove from the strap and find myself half way up Fairview Rd, in what I would normally deem an inappropriate gear and too much pressure to change so mashed it to the top.  Damn it felt good!! I liked it a lot.

A little further around town in Mandeno Street and I was discreetly peering into Nikki's windows while I rode past when a car passed me and then turned a sharp left into a driveway directly in front of me.  Stupid people!! My brakes are a bit noisy and I have no mechanical skills so don't know if it's something I should be worried about or not.  Mel will tell me.  I will have to start paying her for all her advice, knowledge and spanner skills.  Bless her little bottom rocks.  Anyway, a few cursed words and I was on my way again.

Somewhere up Cambridge Rd.  Not really sure what happened here.  

I rolled up Cambridge Road and an old Hilux passed me and pulled over.  I rode past and the dude in the cab said something but I don't think he knows I am deaf and so I didn't understand what he may or may not have said to me so carried on and then he passed me again and in my head I went "that's irritating" and then he pulled over again and I thought "Hmmmm.. I'ma just turn about and go the other way" so I did and so he did.  Dodgy shit.  I rolled up a side street where some people I know live just to be on the safe side and didn't see him again but I was looking over my shoulder almost the entire rest of the ride.  I memorised his registration number.

And that's about as eventful as it got.  Apart from the guys up the Main on their bmx's and I thought they were going to chase me and steal my biek.  I was deciding whether I was going to put up a fight or not but there was three of them and one of me so it would have been pointless.  Really.  They looked like they had stolen those bikes too!! Maybe I just have a really vivid imagination?