Sunday II

I learned today that Kohl's changes "deals" from Saturday to Sunday. I had had my eyes on a luggage set to take care of my Italian needs, but didn't pull the trigger on Saturday specifically because I wanted to check if SRH had an additional discount coupon. (SRH always has discount coupons.) I figured that the same sale would continue to apply on Sunday. Wrong. You could say that I am a victim of inexperienced shopping. Then again, I'm sure that more product will be "on-sale" next week.

Don't mean to bore the peanut gallery with cycling trivia, but this guy deserves recognition. Hats off to George Hincapie, a teammate of Lance's on all seven of his wins in France. Big George won the US Pro Road Race today which entitles him to wear the Stars & Stripes jersey at all pro events over the next year. He's a pro's pro. (Another member of the European peloton, Dave Zabriski, won the individual time trial (for the fourth straight year!) yesterday, giving him similar privileges. These guys can ride with the best anywhere.)

I did salmon on the grill tonight. Along with a veggie potpourri in virgin olive oil/balsamic vinaigrette sauce. A bit above my normal menu of sandwiches and chips. California Suite! (This after NY Strips with 2 last night. The high life on Maplecrest Road!)

Another busy week ahead. The IRS has changed the drop-dead, extended due date for 2008 partnership returns to September 15 (from October15), so we have a number of clients who are used to the later date now on a shorter fuse. And my pal Bill is headed to New York City this Friday for a week or so to see US Open Tennis. So we have no choice but to pump a bunch of files out the door in the next five days.

Check in here for more educational pronouncements soon. Where in the world is 3?

BCOT

Sunday

A few lines from SB's on a cool, but sunny Sunday.

My pal Pete and I did another DeWitt ride this AM. Not easy as a slight headwind at the start turned into a full one by midway, so we had to work. But the tailwind on the way back was fun. Still, he dropped me on the big hill coming off the McCausland flats. I'm a wimp. The Wapsi is out of it's banks, and they actually had Old 61 closed to traffic overnight. Just a trickle of water coming over the road now. Still, hard to believe we have water issues in August.

2 and I did a little Italy planning over BBQ'd steaks and Italian red last night.

ESPN broadcast the opening football game from Parkersburg, Iowa on Friday night. That's the town where the long-revered coach was killed by a looney-tune earlier this year. It's noteworthy here because the teams wore "FFF" decals on their helmets. In their case, it stands for Faith, Family, and Football, a mantra of the former coach's.

The substitute RCL was through the homestead yesterday. She doesn't do quite as good of a job as The Real Deal, but her work was satisfactory, and much appreciated. It's not like I had a pit going, but I've become accustomed to the regular cleaning. Life is more in balance now.

I'll add more here later. Gotta go take care of the yard.

BCOT

Thursday

The monsoons have returned to the Quackers...

1 and 1.1 announced a positive doctor's appointment with an audio text message of the sonogram. Cool.

2 has had a big to-do at her house. Not good. She can provide details.

I've been thinking that the blog's topics have been somewhat limited when I eliminate NASCAR, politics, and my sex life (just checking whether anyone is reading!) Actually, it's a little like those AP English courses where the girls couldn't use variants of "to be" (is, are, was, were, etc.). So if you are going to put in an entry about something other than your daily grind, or personal interests that are truly personal, you have to be creative. Bring on writer's block!
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It's no wonder that newspaper, magazine, and electronic columnists who have 2-3 weekly deadlines often fall into predictable, and often repetitive, narratives. Political writers are the worst because they just take the topic de jour and spin it according to their particular bias. Entertainment reporters just look for dirt, drugs and divorce. They all probably just have pre-defined formats and just drop in the issue, the names, dates and end-of-column snarl.

All but Craig Wilson who simply picks the most boring thing that happened to him or his boy-toy that week and fills in his own blanks.

Then you have the absolutely inept (usually sports writers) who write numbered lists of their thoughts on the most popular issues of the week. No creativity required.

Looking forward to the weekend. Local football starts. What happened to Summer?

BCOT

Tuesday

The good news is that I don't need Plan C for my vacationing RCL. Plan B called and is scheduled to come over this Saturday. A little good news on my phone messages that I had failed to notice/listen to yesterday.

Departure for my morning ride with @bcbison was pushed up to 0605 today due to delayed sunlight. I figure that I'll have 7-8 more weekday rides before Italy. We could be pushing 0630 0n 9-14. And it has definitely been cooler around sun-up. For the Monday ride, I wore the full-fingered Gotex runner's gloves under my half-fingered biker gloves (after being just plain cold on the Sunday morning ride).

I've had to research a couple of chapters in my NSSP owner's manual. The pre-selected settings had the software finishing my words and inserting corrections in funny places. I hope that I've shut those features down for now. The icon on the screen that you had to hit just to get to the menu of these options was a small triangle that I hadn't even noticed before. I figure that I need to sign up for a course at the JC to even have a chance with the more esoteric features of the phone.

Little League World Series this week in Williamsport. Where's Erin? (Actually, she's been ultra-low profile since that peeper video surfaced last month. Hope she's back on the grid-iron next month. Goes to show what pathetic garbage walks our streets.)

Top Ten electronic gadgets in my house:

1. NSSP
2. Mini Digi
3. Regular Digi
4. Direct TV receiver
5. Cycling computer
6. Laptop
7. Ironman watch
8. CD/Receiver/Amplifier
9. Automatic Dehumidifier
10.Auto Key/Remote Starter/Buick

So hope everyone has a good mid-week day. If the rain stays away, bcbison and I are doing an afternoon spin followed by beers on the deck at Gov's. TGIW!

BCOT

Sunday

This week's DeWitt breakfast with @bcbison. Cool and foggy on the way up. Really difficult watching him eat those hash browns at breakfast. Little wind either way, so care-free riding.

The shirt is the same one on the Mt. Rose photo from yesterday. My cycling wardrobe is a bit limited.

Yard work this afternoon. I actually called a landscape guy whom I know from coffee, and I haven't received a return call. Is that a sign that I need to do the stuff myself?

Interesting to note the discussion in RevKev's blog about our family's numerology. And the comment about the addition to the household with 1 and 1.1. The final determination on that designation has not been made.

More later.

BCOT

Saturday

Levi Leipheimer did Mt Rose today. 65 minutes. Not sure if he's in my league.

DeWitt with my pal Pete in the AM.

BCOT

Friday

Can't believe that we have more rain today! If @bcbison is out there this afternoon in this stuff, more power to him. I'm headed to some fine Italian red at my normal Friday hangout.

2 is making a bit of a spontaneous visit to 4 in Lincoln for the weekend. Sister bonding. The Buick is making the trip as an LtPC contribution. Margret will get some asphalt-time if this freakin' rain ever stops.

And 3 is in C-town for the weekend. I learned of it this AM on Twitter. Life in the fast lane.

My RCL is actually in Russia this month. The designated substitute, also Russian, is AWOL. I don't like my place's lack of attention. Still working on Plan C.

2 and I did a little Italy planning last night. She's gone into Google maps and plotted some likely destination points from our hotel in Verona, and will be doing the same with Turin. Pretty amazing what details you can bring up on local restaurants, museums and other points of interest. She says that I can use the same program to map my bike trips. But I usually just get a feel for how long I want to ride (based partially on how high the hills might be). We'll see.

If there is any doubt about the lack of identity in today's women's golf circuit, it is evident from the TV coverage (or lack there of) for this weekend's Solheim Cup being contested outside C-town. This is the women's equivalent of the Rider Cup which has become blockbuster entertainment over the last 20 years. It's the USA versus Europe. Rah-rah. The problem is that all the good players on the LPGA tour are either from Asia or Mexico. The Solheim Cup might better be compared to a minor league All-Star game.

Lance is in Ireland this weekend for a three day stage race. He's not expected to compete for the over-all title; I don't think that the hills in Ireland are high enough to separate out the true climbers. I think he's there for Livestrong publicity stuff. He draws a crowd.

No big plans here for the weekend. Biking. Yard work. Boring.

BCOT

Wednesday

I've used this pic before for 2, but she gets another recognition as Daughter of the Day for a small promotion at work and some well-deserved recognition of her efforts to promote the museum. You go girl!!

I'm off to Muskie for a little golf R & R.

BCOT

Monday

More rain. At least I got my yard mowed last night in between storms. The neighbor's gauge said four inches in the last 48 hours. I suspect that the weed spray that I applied to the grass after the mowing got washed away before it did it's deal. Another application is in my future.

My sleep last night was disturbed around midnight when the rain gutter right outside my window backed-up and the water was spilling over and down to the cement, creating quite a ruckus. The rain wasn't going away, so I had to go out and drag a ladder from the garage and pull the leaf muck from the down spout. Didn't take that much time, but it was a down pour. And it was midnight. Welcome to life.

4 has had a little excitement in the automobile maintenance area in the last 24 hours. She's had some Twitter explanations, but she should share more here as well. LtPC isn't much use at 2200 hours, several area codes away.

Another classic Seinfeld on as I write this entry. The one where Kramer is driving the Hansom cab with the gassy horse, and Jerry steals the the loaf of bread from the old lady who got the last one at the bakery. Hilarious.

Really busy at work. Riding in the AM.

BCOT

Sunday II

To Uncle Phil, the out-sourcing of my garden next year is still in negotiation. My neighbor Judy is over-the-top with her yard and garden. She patrols her lot with an unmatched enthusiasm. Her tomato plants grow to about six feet tall. She does Fall and then early Spring work on the soil. Fertilizes. De-bugs. Prunes. All the things that I don't do.

Their yard abuts to the East side of my garage, and I've already ceded the six foot strip of ground on that side of the garage for her flower garden use. And she does a great job. As reported here earlier this Summer, she's also taking over the space on the backside of my garage for a berry patch. And we were joking the other night about her moving over to the strip on my side of the garage to manage my plants and bushes there.

I'm thinking that I write a check for some tomato plants, a packet of cucumber seeds, and maybe a few bucks for chemicals. And I'm good.

Anybody have the Korean in the PGA?

Have a great week.

BCOT

Sunday

SB' s on a rainy Sunday.

My pal Pete (aka @bcbison on Twitter) and I did the Dewitt breakfast ride this morning. It looked like a full rain ride when we took off at 0630, but the sprinkles stopped and we had no moisture until about eight miles out on the way back. And there was nothing dry by the time I got home. Here's a pic I had a stray pedestrian shoot on the mini after our breakfast at the Sunrise Cafe.

I need to bore you with a couple of comments about the ride. We had a tail wind on the way to Dewitt. And I was almost always painted just 6-8 inches from @bc's rear wheel. At one point on the flats, after a momentum-building down hill push, we were gliding along almost effortlessly (and I had to carefully throttle back to avoid jumping his wheel), I looked down at my computer, and we were doing 29+mph! On the flats! Wow. For a 16mph guy, that's flying.

The flip side of course is that we had the head wind coming home. A whole lot less excitement. Add in the rain and you have some forgettable miles. Probably wouldn't have gone out if we had waited for a later start.

Another thought that came to me on the ride was the meaning of the expression, "Got one". That's what @bc automatically says on our rides as a warning to me when he sees a car in his rear view mirror. (I have a mirror too, but I think that he realizes that I am mostly concentrating on my spacing with his rear wheel.) I'm sure that members of the peanut gallery all have their own history with the term, but mine goes back to my varied history of pick-up basketball games.

"Got one" was what I said when I called a foul on a shot or other move to the basket. Different courts had different terminology, but "Got one" was always mine where ever I played. The whole concept of calling fouls in street ball was not something for the weak of heart. The more-competitive the game, the more fouls are called. Same for the closer the game. And when it was "game-point", every missed shot was a foul.

Better players (on offense or defense) matched against one another never had much of a problem with fouls because they knew when one was committed. It was the more marginal players and the lying players who made games miserable at times. Again, particularly at "game point". Since I went to the basket a lot (as opposed to jump shooters), I needed to establish my stature on the court by calling fouls when they needed to be called. I really didn't like the guys who abused the system, even if they were on my team, in a "lose the court" situation.

I'm headed back to the barn. I'll add more here later.

BCOT

Saturday

Looks like a pretty nice Summer day here. I need to do a bike ride, mow my yard, and get some other yard work done. We'll see.

A good night at Biaggi's last night with friends, and 2. Liberty School Cabernet.

Even with the operational issues with my NSSP, I have found myself able to be more responsive and, dare I say, efficient(?) since we converted to the new system. It's a little aggravating to have to unlock the phone every time that I use it, but that irritation is preferable to all the butt calls that I was making initially. And my ability to access the office email 24-7 from the phone has already proved to be beneficial. We have a guy giving us a bid next week on the phone system in the office to further upgrade the systematic flow of voice and electronic information. Hello 21st Century!

Lance is riding a 100 mile mountain bike race in Leadville, Colorado today. A little unusual that a world-class road racer would jump on an off-the-asphalt event. But he did it last year as he returned to racing, and since he finished second, my guess is that his ego has him back there to correct the placing.

I see that the crew now has SRH on mobile Twitter. What does it all mean?

I need to get out and get my stuff done. I'll add more here later.

BCOT

Thursday

Sorry to have missed Wednesday. Some Italian red got in the way.

My pal Pete and I did the early morning ride today. My conditioning is definitely coming back. Pete dropped me only on the two bigger climbs. (He didn't power up at least one of the shorter hills, just to help me out, I think.) It really creates more opportunities for the rest of the day when the workout is done before the morning shower. This from a guy who has said for years that he wasn't a morning workout kind of guy. If you aren't willing to change your protocols, you shouldn't expect more-positive results.

Uncle Phil reports that they had the boat in Emerald Bay all day yesterday. Suite!

The last "major" of the PGA golf schedule is this weekend in Chaska, Minnesota (in the TC area). I vaguely remember a very negative comment from a touring pro following a previous championship held at the course, something to the effect that the only thing missing from the farm was a herd of cows. I checked Wikipedia and my memory was correct. Again. Back in 1970 when the course hosted the U.S. Open. I think that they have made many improvements to the place since then.

Numerous pro football pre-season games tonight. In just a couple of weeks, football will be on the tube every night of the week until Thanksgiving. Can't say that I am all that excited. Fantasy leagues are now in formation stages. This week's SI was almost entirely devoted to fantasy-team building. No interest in that at all. 1.1, you're on your own!

Looking forward to the weekend. A couple of key projects to get done by 5 tomorrow.

BCOT

Tuesday

AM is right about the bikers who ignore traffic signals and signs. I think those guys do more harm than anyone when it comes to biker/driver relationships. Sometimes it's even the experienced road cyclist who makes the choice to blast through a red light when he sees no cross traffic to worry about. And these are the same guys who complain about cars buzzing them on a country road. No excuses.

Busy day today. A couple of new deals, and lots of phone calls. The hours jumped by.

My pal Pete and I hit the road early today for the 16 mile DCC route. Incredible how the day is shrinking. We were starting at 0520 seven weeks ago, and now anything before 0600 is not advised. At least my conditioning is coming back a little. I wasn't entirely dusted on the medium inclines this morning. In another week, I'll be back to OK.

A new development in business that I am experiencing is the use of the executive's mobile phone for daily business purposes. (Which shouldn't even be worth all that much commentary since every exec whom I know has been writing off cell phone expenses for tax purposes forever.) I routinely give my cell number to clients, and it gets used some by a few customers, a little by most, but quite a bit by a small handful. Not really a problem, although there is some regularity of me being on the cell phone when a call comes in on the land-line (or vice-versa), and maybe a client is down in the waiting room.

I have learned that the cell phone is also now the access portal for advisers, associates and other anointed ones for the busy physician. Almost no one of importance goes through what might otherwise be considered the old normal channel of the office receptionist. Pity the poor pharmaceutical sales guy with no "in". A permanent outcast.

What's the deal with Brooks & Dunn? Enough money, I suppose. The one article I saw said Ronnie Dunn was going solo. Makes sense. Kix Brooks never added much to the act. I think that it's fair to say that "Neon Moon" has been background to some serious parties. I remember a couple. And there was a lot of Boot Scootin' Boogie-in' done at the street dances on RAGBRAI.

I've never been a big Rick Patino fan. I always thought that he could coach, but he always left me with the impression that he thought he was ahead of the curve, above the fray, better than the fans, other coaches and his bosses. It was false humility to me. All that said, he's now in an ugly spot of bother. He's made the choices, but...

On the bright side, the neighbor's garden is coming in and I have fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, banana peppers and green beans. Life is good. (Did I previously report that I've contracted out my 2010 garden to the neighbor?)

Have a great Wednesday.

BCOT

Monday

Enjoyed the weekend visits from 1, 1.1 and 4. Sometimes the best plan is no plan.

Really have no explanation for my absence from here over the last week. The evenings were all full and work was busy with my assistant out for the week. A bit of a mid-Summer's hiatus.

The Seinfeld episode entitled "The Soup Nazi" is on as I write this. A true American treasure.

4 and I did about 15 on the Bettendorf bike path Sunday to break in the new bike. With the heat and humidity, a little work was involved. The city created within the last year several additional miles of bike-compatible sidewalks in the newer section of town near where SRH lives, which allows a rider to access the primary paths along Duck Creek. The idea of wider paths has merit, but it's no panacea.

My biggest complaint, and it's really not a complaint, but a bit of a negative observation, is the constant of little "Stop" signs at every street corner. For a "biker", little stop signs are a pain. We want mileage in big chunks, not in city blocks. You're always stopping and starting, and taking extra time to get there (where ever that is).

4 reports that IC has an ordinance that prohibits bikers from riding on the the sidewalk. Which makes sense to me since normal sidewalks really don't have enough room for a walker and a biker passing in opposite directions. Plus, in a college town, there's always a lot of walkers.

July was a historically cool month in this area. My utility bill was at an all-time low; $37. (Then again, I was on the road half the time, so there wasn't a lot going on with the old HVAC system.) I remember a corporate publicist for the local utility company many years ago proudly proclaiming at a Rotary meeting that the company liked it, "Really hot or Really cold!"

In follow-up to an earlier comment here, the report from the local fair was 25K for the Big and Rich concert last week. Keep in mind that they set the stage up in the infield in front of the main grandstand with people then allowed to stand on the dirt track between the seats and the stage. And that we had 2-3 inches of rain that day. Can you say, m-u-d?

Busy week. Lots to do between now and Italia.

BCOT

Sunday

Tuesday

No blog today.

My pal Pete and I did a standard 16 miler this evening, but then decided to check out the social life with a couple of beers on the deck at Gov's. A successful venture.

More tomorrow.

BCOT

Monday

The heat is back, although not the 100 degree stuff from StL. Did the 16 mile route tonight and it was all I wanted.

This is "fair" season in Iowa. The local county fair in Davenport starts tomorrow and runs through the weekend. The state fair in Des Moines runs for about two weeks beginning on the 13th. In addition to the traditional farm-related exhibits from cattle to cucumbers, the fairs today feature big-name stage attractions who can draw tens of thousands of people for each show.

The local fair is known to draw between 25 and 30K for headliners. The ingress-egress is a mess. Don't go if you think getting home will be easy. And I'm sure that the neighbors love the noise, litter and other acts of public indecency that routinely occur in their yards on those nights.

Mom and I saw Olivia Newton-John at the state fair in the mid-70's when she was one of the hottest singers around. I'm thinking that they had the traditional buttered cow carved out that year. Can you believe that they figured that maybe the Iowa State Fair was not the place for a buttered tribute to the King of Pop?

Anyone hear the loud f**t on the players' mic when Tiger was waiting to make his approach shot on the 18th hole yesterday? I happened to be watching, but not watching, the tournament at the time, as I was also doing a crossword, and the passage of gas was no polite little toot. We're talking frat house quality and quantity. Tiger was very amused. They say it wasn't him. Hmmmm. I guess it was the hit of YouTube today until the PGA took it down.

Another early day for me tomorrow.

BCOT

Sunday

I'm not sure if my life is back to normal, but at least I'm not headed out of town tomorrow. August is going to be a "stay at home" month.

The trip back from KC on Friday was uneventful. I-80 continues to amaze with the truck traffic. The rednecks had already set up camp at the track outside Newton for the NASCAR race (held on Saturday). They had 55K+ in attendance Saturday, which is a strong showing for the first big league (AAA variety) race at that track. They'll be back next year. Sponsors like those numbers.

Aunt Rosie deserves a little recognition here as I totally whiffed on wishing her "happy birthday" while staying there. Thursday was the day, and we shared late drinks on the deck for a couple of hours and neither she nor Uncle Tom offered any clue. It wasn't until on my way home Friday that I put the days and the calendar date together. Remembering birthdays, anniversaries, and other dates of importance is not one of my strong suits. Remember that, ladies.

This is the calendar week that we most often scheduled for vacations when the girls were all fairly young. Business was always a bit slow in early August, the girls' Summer programs were done, and school didn't start for another couple of weeks. Good times.

And we always saw a lot of motorcycles headed West for the Sturgis rally. And the procession was in full swing on my way back Friday. I wonder what the fatality count will be this year? Is Vegas carrying an over/under line?

Back on the bike today, which again reminded me of how quickly my conditioning goes away when I'm off for several days in a row. This week will be used to rebuild my base so that I can have a full 30 days to hit it hard before the Italy trip. I may even do some spin classes at Gold's to fill in weekdays when the road workout is inconvenient. Time is short.

The one brain flash that I had on the bike today was the possible purchase of a vanity license plate for the Buick: 4KDAYS. A thought only at this point. I used to think that a vanity plate just gave somebody the chance to remember your location when you really didn't need or want anyone knowing where you were. Since I take Margret quite a few places, and get noticed all the time, it's not like the vanity plate is all that meaningful. Plus, there's all those cameras...

All for tonight. Have a great week.

BCOT