Learning to Blog is time consuming...and the rest of RAGBRAI

Well, I've now lost the whole post that I spent 2 days writing. All because I was trying to delete a photo and the page wasn't user-friendly. "Delete It" didn't mean the photo I checked, but the whole posting. Go figure!

All that after I found out that the blogs I sent from the road on my iPhone with pics, only the pics posted, not the text. Luckily I still had the email and could cut and paste the text in. The learning curve is killing me!!!

So now I’m writing the blog in Pages so that if I lose it again, I won’t have

to start all over. See, I get smarter every day!

Back to RAGBRAI. Zip, zip, zip....I can still hear the sound of bikes zipping past. Bikes were everywhere! And they were always zipping by, whether I was standing still or pedaling. Well, on occasion I did pass a few, but usually only on hills. I got to using Tim’s method of gearing up on the downhill, build momentum, no coasting, then keeping the gearing engaged, pedal hard up the other side. That worked well for me on the rolling hills, but if the hill was long, I’d lose momentum getting down onto my Granny gear and then all was lost. And let me tell you, there were a lot of hills in Iowa. The southern part was a roller coaster. It was definitely noticeable when the road stayed flat for 1/4 to 1/2 mile because it was so rare. Most of the time we were either going up or down.

Imagine 10,000 to 15,000 bikes rolling in

to any small town on any day. That’s what we did 5-8 times a day for 7 days. And each town was a county fair of sorts. Music, food, stuff for sale, and bikes! Lots of bikes. Laying down, leaning against each other, propped against every wall, tree, post, truck or anything else that would hold up a bike.

And the costumes were so creative. Chiquita banana and dancers. Guy in a different colored speedo each day. Flamigos. Cowboys on stick horses. And on and on. Every day I saw something I hadn’t seen before. And I loved the creativity.

People of all ages do RAGBRAI. There were children under 3 being pulled in trailers, as young as 4 pedaling on the backs of bikes, age 8 riding their own bikes... Then there were women and men in their 70's and 80's doing this ride too! They are all my role models. I can't imagine having the strength at that age.

And the bikes: trikes, tandems, triples (a mom and 2 boys about 10 yrs old!), unicycles, roller blades, running, and I'm sure I've forgotten some. Oh yea, the one with a sail!

Lines, standing in lines. If there was a line, I was probably supposed to be in it. Lines for the KYBOs (porta potties...Keep Your Bowels Open...must be a RAGBRAI thing), lines for food, lines for showers, lines just to get through a town. Patience is a requirement...hurrying is an impossibility. And often, after much advertisement about a special food item at the next town, they would have sold out of it. No Whoopie for me. No ice cream for me. No Subway for me. But there ususally was something else further down the road.

Food. County fair food. There’s no vegetables, except corn, in Iowa. But there is meat, mostly pork. I’ve never eaten so much meat in my life. I don’t know what a vegetarian would do on this ride. I don’t think it’s possible unless you brought your own food. Maybe you could find a grocery store in the overnight towns, but I wouldn’t count on it. And there were lots of fruit pies, everywhere. So pie for breakfast, BBQ pork something for lunch, smoothie in the afternoon and then I was lucky if I got dinner. One night it was a Power Bar I had in my bike bag.

I traveled with a charter group, so that I had a neighborhood amongst the 10,000 cyclists. That was a smart move.

I met people on the bus ride across the state from Burlington (the end town where I left my car) to Council Bluffs. Jim, Jay, and Kaitlin was a dad and his 20 something kids. Melissa, a sports writer for AP from NY. Janel and Ann, women from Illinois. Glen, Bill, and Tim, three Jamokes from Chicago. They were the funniest guys, always good for a laugh. And they took good care of me. Helping with my bags, getting my stuff out of the rain when I came in hours later than they did, hanging with me at the musical entertainment at night. Thanks guys, you made my RAGBRAI!

Well, I’ve done it, but I’d never do it again. It was exhausting. Long days in the saddle. Blisters where one shouldn’t have blisters! Too much stimulation. Too many people. Too much frustration. I lov

ed all the people - they were warm and friendly - both on the ride and in the towns. Iowa is a beautiful state. Looks a lot like NY. And the creativity. The cyclists costumes, the town’s decorations! We were warmly welcomed, that’s for sure!

So I can check RAGBRAI off my Bucket List.

Two days at RAGBRAI

53 miles day one. 73 miles day two. An undulating ribbon of riders snake down the roads as far as you can see in either direction.

10,000 people on bikes

2 guys on unicycles

1 guy on rollerblades

1 gal running the miles every day

And the fashion is like nothing else. Guys in tutu skirts. People dressed like bananas, flamingos, and super heros. A guy in a speedo with money tucked in it. A girl dressed like a Chiquito banana dancer. Guys in cowboy hays with stick ponies attached to their bikes. Whenever you think there's nothing new to see, look up. A biker fashion you missed will be biking by.

I've eaten pulled pork nachos, inch and half thick porkchop, hamburgers, breakfast burritos, cinnamon bund, and many slices of pie. But tonight for dinner I had a Power Bar. There are so many people everything sells out early

And you wait I'm line for food, showers, porta johns.

And then there's the danger of riding on the road with bikers of varying skills and speeds. Usually the whole road is closed to autos and we fill it but you have stay in your narrow 4 inch alottment. And signal with your voice and hands if you're going to shift over. If you're going to stop, don't stop on the road. Pull off the road saying "biker off". And get on saying "biker on" and waiting for a space in bumper to bumper bikes. It's quite stressful. I was taken down by a little old lady yesterday who was going the wrong way on the left shoulder. No injuries though.

I'm tired after not getting much sleep last night. We were camped next to the fairgrounds and they had loud and louder bands playing til well past midnight. Then they flew a copter overhead to wake us and get us out of town this morning

Tonight my tent is set up on a swine barn at the fairgrounds in Greenfield. I need the tent to change clothes. But at least it will stay dry.

Sleep now so breakfast comes sooner. I'm pretty hungry!

I think I'm having fun. Don't think I'd do this ride more than once, though.

Tomorrow's another long day of over 70 miles. Sure hope the swelling in my

knee goes down or I'm gonna be a hurtin' lassie tomorrow.

Zzzzzzz

The road to RAGBRAI

I can't believe I'm on the road... again. This travel big must be in my blood. I feel quite happy when I leave home. I feel lighter, less encumbered. I feel strong, In my power. I feel more at home away from home... go figure.

Got out of town around noon, as planned. Then, around Erie PA I began to think about the fact I hadn't checked the oil. Dennis always did that. And I still forget to pick up the slack. I quickly look up high on the windshield to see how overdue an oil change is...only 6,000 miles overdue! Guess I'd better get that done. And sooner rather than later. Good ole iPhone. Let's google "oil change" and it finds the nearest place. Quick call. Yup, they can take me right away.

Got that done. And back on the road.

Why does driving always make me want to eat? I munched and munched my way to Indianapolis tonight. Sleeping in my truck at a rest area where the lights are too bright and the highway too noisy, but beggars can't be choosey.

Nighty night!

Loneliness

Loneliness is a strange and unfamiliar emotion that I've been having for the last year. When Dennis moved out last March, for the first time in my entire life I began living alone. Truly alone. Before that I lived with my parents; then roommates; then husband; then husband and oldest daughter, Avery; then only Avery; then Avery and Dana, my second daughter; then only Dana; then Dana and Dennis; then only Dennis. Then just me. JUST ME! I get tired of being only with me, only with just my thoughts. As good as they are, and I like myself and my zaniness quite a bit, they do get old and limiting after a while. I reach the same dead ends day in and day out when there isn't someone around to throw other possible conclusions or options in my thought pathway to head me down a different direction. And without work to distract me, it makes for some long days.

So what's a typical day like for me, you ask. I try to sleep as late as possible to shorten the day. Sleeping mask goes on when I awake around 7 a.m. (my usual wake up time) and I manage to go back to sleep until about 8:30. Then I may read a bit til 9 or so. Up, on goes the coffee, check emails and Facebook, and wander about the house. Perhaps outside. And wander. I wander about, puttering most of my day. I spend a lot of time on the computer, googling this and googling that. And I munch. Wander and munch. I must munch more than I wander because I can't seem to drop 5 pounds. I used to go to CrossFit 3 mornings a week and I loved it. But it didn't love me. It caused too much bodily injury I'm afraid. So, for now, that's on hold. My days fill up but I can't tell you what I've gotten done. I putter in the garden, I putter in closets and cupboards trying to clean stuff out, I putter in the basement. But when I look back at the end of the day, I can't figure out what I've accomplished. Accomplishments. Deliverables. I'm trying to let go of those concepts. I don't have to get anything done by the end of the day. And I seem to have grappled that, because I often don't.

Most days I spend alone and most days I don't leave the house. I might go for a bike ride or a paddle on the canal. But not often. I might walk to town, but not often. I might go to the library for movies. I don't watch TV or movies during the day. I do sun quite a bit. Feels good. Warms my soul.

But I'm lonely.

I have a dear friend and playmate that lives here in the village. And since she's unemployed right now, we often have coffee together in the morning or dinner together at night. She's my connection, my anchor. I need that. Without it, her, I'd feel like a dinghy floating in the ocean. I have no direction. No purpose. Don't know which way to paddle to find shore. Well, I guess, even with her I feel like that dinghy. Just when she's around I feel less lost. I can tell her all the crazy feelings I'm having and she lets me have them. She's patient and listens to my rantings and ravings over and over again. What would I do without her?

But when she's not around, she's got a life too, then I'm usually lonely and empty.

But this only seems to happen when I'm home. When I'm on the road, I'm happy, I'm powerful, and I'm in love with life! Home is the place I least like being.

And I'm lonely even in a crowd. Last night I walked up to our Tuesday night's antique car show. People all around, but I'm not connected to any of them. I have nothing to say to them, so I don't. Nothing happens that causes a connection to occur. So I walked around, alone, and then I walked home. Then I drove to the lake, alone. Sat in the car, alone. Watched the sailboats, alone. Then drove home, alone.

But what's really strange about this loneliness, is that when I'm with people it's gone for that time, but returns when I return to my house, alone. And it's not constant. Some days are lonelier than others.

I really appreciate what Pearl must have gone through. She lived to be 106 1/2 and she was lonely. Her husband died 40 years earlier. That's a long time of loneliness.

What a crazy society this is where our elders live alone and not with their families. When the time comes, my daughter Dana better take me in. I promise to listen to her needs and be as accommodating and easy to live with as possible. Just to not live alone in my senior years, I will do anything.

But what's the solution for today? More travel this year. Keep reaching out to friends. Keep building other relationships. Keep looking for Mr. Right. Explore Intentional Communities as a possible way of living within a community of like-minded people. And stay aware: aware of the loneliness, aware of the cause, aware of the solutions. Maintain consciousness. And all I have to do is just be.