And My Time Was Running Wild

This is what the course looked like - all frozen ruts. Really tough to ride on.

This weekend The Guy competed in Cyclocross Nationals in Madison, Wisconsin. He actually finished 7 places higher than predicted. Which was great.

The Guy taking the first hill.

We drove to Madison after work and went straight to Pizza Brutta to eat. After that we headed to my brother's house. He was away on vacation, so we had the place to ourselves...Well, if you don't count the dog and cats. Basically, we took care of the pets and then went to bed.

The obligatory cheese head. This is Wisconsin, after all.

We woke up early on Saturday and headed to the park. It was cold and after the previous muddy days, all the ruts had frozen and were so hard, they were popping people's tires right and left, plus people were sliding and crashing all over the place. The Guy said he crashed more in that one race than in all the other races this season combined.

The winner of The Guy's race and a former mountain bike Olympian athlete.

After the race, we met my oldest sister at her townhouse. I had never seen it before and it was very nice. We all went out for lunch at an Indian restaurant that had the best buffet I'd ever seen. So much good food.

Me taking more photos of myself next to things with bigger cheeks than mine.

We drove back to Iowa City and showered and then I picked up Stinky and some take-out sushi. After we ate, we decided to finally watch Singin' in the Rain. I hadn't seen it since I was a kid. What a fun movie.

The Guy shooting pool at the Ice House in Riverside, Ia.

On Sunday I woke and had a very leisurely morning. I read some and took a long hot bath and then by 12:30, The Guy and I were on our bikes, headed for Riverside, the future birthplace of James Tiberius Kirk. We had a nice ride and when we got there, we hung out at the Ice House and ate lunch, had a couple of pints and played a few games of pool. I tried to ride pretty hard on the way home, to see if I was getting stronger from my trainer work-outs. I did feel stronger. I guess we'll see what happens when I race again in the Spring.

On Sunday night, we watched the Exorcist. The last time I saw it was in 1983. The only parts I really remembered about it where the demon possessed Linda Blair scenes. It still was able to creep me out, all these years later.

I hope you all had a Linda Blairless weekend.

Pushing the Barriers, Planting the Seeds

Cara sucia.

So, cyclocross season is officially over for me this year. The Guy is going to race in nationals in Wisconsin in January, but I'm done until next Fall.

According to the national rankings, I was 185th out of 346 in the 45+ master's women's category. Although, the woman in 117th place in the standings was 71 years old. (How awesome is she?)

It's not like I came anywhere near the front of the pack at any point, but I started the season being dead-ass last in my first couple of races and did better and better as it progressed. I think the hardest part, was not to give up after my first couple of last places.

After Jingle Cross, a woman in her early twenties called me an inspiration. I laughed and joked that I was inspiring, because if someone as old as me can do this, anyone could. She stopped me and said, "No. You're inspirational because you always look like you're having so much fun and you are so supportive of the other women riders." Having someone say that to me, felt better than actually winning a race.

It's You and Me and All Other People

The Guy competing in the State Cyclocross Championships.

I figure I should probably try to post on here at least once a week....

Last weekend was ridiculously social. My friend E. came over for dinner on Friday night. We had a great talk and I love it that my girlfriends can come over and feel free to have a completely open conversation and not feel the least bit self-conscious around The Guy.

She left around 9:30, so we watched a Nurse Jackie episode instead of Armacord, before we went to bed.

This man goes to every cyclocross race in Des Moines and tries to give people a can of Hamms while they're racing.

Saturday we woke up early. I dropped Stinky off on campus, so she could take her ACT's before we headed to Des Moines.


Sometimes people take a break from their races to drink...Even for Hamms.

I didn't race, because I wussed-out. It was cold and the race was longer than I'd ever done and the only few people who rode were super good, die-hard types and I didn't want to end my season being last. So, yeah. I know it was lame, but I chose not to. The Guy chose to and got 3rd in his category, even though he had to stop for mechanical problems.

The Guy finishing his last cyclocross race in the state of Iowa for the year.

After the race, The Guy and I went back to El Baitshop for lunch and a beer or two, before we drove back to Iowa City.


Some of our friends on the garage trainer ride party. What we do for fun in the Winter in Iowa.

In the evening, The Guy and I went to our friend J's house for a little wine drinking. Our friend's Ted and Katie were also there. We had a great talk, but I drank WAY more wine than I wanted. I have to be so careful and count my drinks, because I can't keep up with the big kids. But J. kept filling my glass when I wasn't looking and so I got a little messy (er).

The food was excellent.

Sunday started our VERY slowly for me. The Guy was amazing and took care of everything before our party. I slept a lot. I finally got up, took some Advil and a shower and was ready to cook. I made some soups and some corn bread and guac to go with the black bean chili. A friend of mine supplied Christmas cookies and fruit dipped in caramel, to counteract all my healthy. Gawd love her.

We had a crappy beer tasting (I abstained). PBR was the loser, followed by Schlitz and then Rolling Rock was the winner.

The garage trainer riding party ended around 7'ish, after some love was given to Archie. The Guy and I finished up the night and our weekend, with a viewing of Raising Arizona. I hadn't seen it in forever, and I was so glad I did. Perfect.

My Beacon's Been Moved Under Moon and Star

Here is me holding a dead sunflower upside down. Nice.

The weekend is here already and I'm excited. We'll see what happens, but right now I'm planning on racing in the state championships in cyclocross in Altoona. I am giving myself an out, in case it's rdiculously cold or they got a ton more snow than we did. But I'm going with the intention of racing.

Tonight, I'm going with my easy stand-by dinner - shrimp fajitas with beans and guac and salsa. We're having a friend come over for dinner, and we might actually try to watch a Fellini film - Armacord.

I'm also hoping to finish my book, Bel Canto and start Swamplandia! this weekend. Stop back in for next week's post, where we see what actually gets done over the weekend...

Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again

So, Thanksgiving weekend was long and wonderful and crazy. On Wednesday evening, the Guy and I decided to go get a beer at the Dublin, since our favorite bartender, S. was working. We then tried a new restaurant called Basta. The food was pretty good. I got the butternut squash ravioli and The Guy got sea scallops. We went home with bellies full of food and watched the movie, The Queen with Coadster.

Stinky foolishly thinking she could take a nap on Thanksgiving without getting dog piled. Not in this family.

On Thursday, I woke up and started making au gratin potatoes. The Guy went down to Ottumwa with us and met more of the extended family. He didn't run out of the house screaming, but he said he did understand more of the crazy family dynamic better. I guess that's what holidays are all about...

Everyone but me.

We drove home and he went to his mom's for a bit and I stayed home and hung out with Coadster for most of the evening.

All the cousins. Super silly.

On Friday, we woke up early again and tried to get ready for our afternoon race.

All of my siblings, but one showed up around 11. We ordered Chinese take-out and all had time to chat and catch-up, before The Guy, my brother and I went to Jinglecross Rock.

Here is me terrified on Saturday morning. I had never raced in rain and mud before.

On Friday evening, I raced and it was fun. We had a bunch of friends watching and I am finally getting good enough to have people to race with, as opposed to watching everyone go way ahead of me and me riding by myself until I get lapped. Progress!

After the race, we met my brother and his wife and daughter at The Mill for dinner. It is where my brother and his wife first met, and they had never been there before.


Turns out, I loved riding in the mud and beat more people than ever before.

On Saturday we got up and it was raining. I knew it would be and I was soooo stressed-out about riding under those conditions. I did great in it. Better than normal and had a blast in it. I can't tell you how many men I passed too. Nice!

The Guy had a good race too. Well, if you think racing well in the mud is good.

After our Saturday race, we just went home, showered and went out for sushi. In the evening, we watched the move, The Descent. It was creepy enough and had one of those non-Hollywood endings. Stinky popped her head in the living room for two seconds, but then when she saw the movie, ran off. She said even though she had already seen it, it still freaked her out.

Sunday was our last race. It was cold and I was exhausted, but still happy to ride the course. I'm pretty surprised at just how much I love cyclocross.

In the middle of the day on Sunday, they have the Speedo single speed race, which is really just an excuse for people to wear bikinis and mud wrestle...And who would ever want to stop people from doing that?

If You A Obstacle, She Just Drop You Cold

Okay, kids. Here is what my weekend looked like. It was Halloween, it is Fall and we were at Living History Farms in Des Moines. So lovely, so fun. Best part? We topped it all off by seeing They Might Be Giants on Sunday night. I don't have any pics of that show, since The Guy and I were all the way up in the balcony and we were busy dancing our asses off.


I stole this pic of The Guy racing off of the internet. Please look at the writing on the bottom and know that I attributed the hell out of this.





Word on the street is that this woman laid down on the ground and let people spin her Twister board and put their hands and feet all over her. Sadly, I was racing then and missed the whole thing. Damn it!

We Could Be Sleeping in the Flowers

Stinky and her friend carved pumpkins in the kitchen on Sunday evening.

So, this weekend will be a little busy again. Tonight I want to rest and watch a scary movie and I'm going to grill salmon and beets and sweet potatoes. One of my favorite meals.

The jack-o-lanterns with the lights out.

On Saturday, we'll wake up early and head to Des Moines for more cyclocross. This is supposed to be bigger race, which scares me a little, but I guess since it's Halloween, it's appropriate.

On Sunday we're going to help a friend of ours move in the afternoon and then go see They Might Be Giants in the evening. I've never seen them live, so I'm really excited.

She's Moving Out in All Directions

Here is all the old black adhesive and carpet backing residue, left after we pulled up the carpet in Coadster's old room.

I had a great week so far. Monday night, we had the last Monday Night Ride of the season...Possibly. We rode out to a camping spot and had a fire and one of our friends met us out there with beer and stuff to make fish tacos. Very nice.

Here is a cute, cuddly (only because he's asleep) Archie in what used to be Coadster's room, that is quickly becoming the cat's room.

Tuesday was lovely and warm. Both The Guy and I went running on our own separate routes and met back at home. Where I made shrimp scampi with asparagus and served it with red sauce over penne pasta, with salad and bread. The Guy worked on taking the black crap off of the hardwood floors while I cooked. Then we were both pretty much exhausted.

Heidi with her reflective eyes.

Last night we did some cyclocross training in the park. I have a lot to work on, but I do feel like I'm slowly getting better and better at my skillz. When we got home, I heated up soup and pizza burgers and we just took it easy. We had a good talk about what kinds of things we wanted to do in the future and how we thought we'd train for them over the Winter. The Guy is a little more realistic than I am about such things. In my head, I can run and bike and swim all day every day. Right now, I think after Cross season is over, I might chill out for a bit and then get started making sure I swim at least once a week, do work-outs on the bike trainer a couple of times a week and run about 3 times a week. Of course, that will all go out the window if we get decent snow and I can cross country ski at any point.

And The World, I'll Turn It Inside Out, Yeah.

Me taking a barrier with my bike.

So, as I said before, this weekend was insanely busy. Because I don't have tons of time, you get another photo essay of the busyness.

A lot of people rode their bikes through the sand here, but since we are all beginners, most of them only made it halfway through before they had to get off their bikes and it cost them a lot of time. I decided to go with my strengths and just run through it. I gained a lot of time by doing that.

This reporter interrupted a conversation I was having to ask if he could interview me for the local paper. The Guy thinks he chose me, because I don't ride with a team and he wanted to speak to a beginner. If that's what he wanted, he certainly got that with me.

The Guy and I after our races. The Guy got third in his and I did better than I ever have before. Saturday was a good day.

My brother, my sister-in-law and my brother's Little Brother and Stinky after dinner. It was nice to see them and we had a good talk. There was a big discussion about gender socialization that I thought might overwhelm The Guy, but he seemed totally into it and contributed quite a bit.

On Sunday a couple of friends joined us. Neither The Guy or I had as good a racing day, but we had a wonderful day in general.

Raise the Roof and Have Some Fun

Here is a pretty bridge over pretty leaves. Fall is pretty in Burlington, Iowa.

So, my alone time, sitting on my ass watching Dexter last night was very lovely. I feel recharged and ready to take on the weekend activities.

Me hopping on my bike after jumping over a barrier.

The weekend activities look like this:

Tonight - get off work, frost pumpkin bars, pick-up a girl or two, run to a quick pumpkin carving party, leave a half hour later, pick-up The Guy, head to a sushi dinner with another couple, come home, pass-out.

Saturday - Wake-up, eat breakfast, get bikes and selves ready, head to a cyclocross race in North Liberty, race, come home, possibly nap, meet up with brother and sister-in-law and a couple of others for dinner, come home, pass-out.

Sunday - Wake-up, eat breakfast, get bikes and selves ready for the second day of the bike race in North Liberty, race, come home, head to a friend's house to help her work on her house, come home, pass-out.

Got it? Good.

My Head Keeps Spinnin'. I Go to Sleep and Keep Grinnin'.

Here is a fallen tree. Pretty.

So, if you can't tell by the minimal postings on my blog, things have been crazy, busy here. We started working on the floors in Coadster's old room, but got sidetracked by practicing cyclocross and raking leaves and living our lives and everything else.

Tonight The Guy will be at his mom's house and Stinky will be at work until 10. I considered working on the floors while I'm home by myself, but then started thinking about how crazy busy we'll be tomorrow and the weekend and, and, and...I decided I needed a night to relax. So, my version of relaxing is to go running after work, bake some pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting and then sit on my ass and watch some episodes of the new season of Dexter I have recorded. Sometimes you just have to listen to your body, when it tells you to sit on your ass, right?

Cause the Free Wind Is Blowin' Through Your Hair

Toasting to The Guy's Health and happiness.

I think I'm still recovering from this weekend. It was great and wonderful and, as always, we tried to cram as much into it as possible.
me at the derby with my favorite roller girl.

On Friday, I got home and Thy Guy and I went to work on the house. We went through every room and our storage area in the attic and the backyard and the garage and made a list of everything we wanted to get rid of, then we made a big pile in the garage with it. We also ripped up the icky carpet in Coadster's old room and threw that in for good measure.

I made tempeh reubens and salad and soup for dinner and watched a little Andy Griffith before we went to bed. Stinky was in the Quad Cities with her youth group and it sounds like she had a lot of fun there.


The Guy giving me some sugar at the derby.

We slept in until 7:30'ish on Saturday when Stinky pounded on the door, back from her youth group all-nighter thingy. She informed us that our friend S. was outside with his truck as well. The Guy and S. loaded up the pick-up and headed to the dump and to the architectural recycle store, and I took the cans and bottles back and ran another errand or two.

We got back and and got ready for our celebratory one year after The Guy's accident bike ride. We went to our friends' house. They just moved here from the Czech Republic and brought out this really good plum brandy, so we could toast The Guy. Very nice. We met up with some other friends, and rode our bikes to Hills for some Mexican food and back home for a nap.

The Guy running his bike up a hill.

Saturday evening, we picked up G. and headed to the roller derby. It was tons of fun and we drank beer and took dorky pics. When it was over, we dropped G off at a bar downtown and went home to bed, so we could get up early on Sunday.

Me all cheeky before the start of my race.

We headed to Burlington on Sunday morning. It was colder and sprinkled on and off, but the course was nice and easy, compared to some of the others. I raced the second full cross race, and I was much better at some things. I had a migraine and took my meds, which makes me spacey and my legs weak, but I felt like I was better about certain skills than I have been in other races. I didn't come anywhere close to winning, but I wasn't last and I learned a lot and had fun.

Me running my bike up a hill.

On Sunday evening, The Guy, Stinky and I finally ate dinner together. It wasn't anything all that exciting - just quesadillas with beans and guac and salsa and stuff to put on them, but it was great to hear all bout Stinky's weekend.

After dinner, I took Stinky to her youth group meeting and The Guy and I settled down to watch A Fish Called Wanda. It was a nice relaxing way to end a crazy busy weekend.