Bike Month Hump Day: I did *not* ride & as a result ...

i didn't feel as good, physically or emotionally, as i did the prior 15 days.

i had bicycled every one of bike month days 1 thru 15, but yesterday morning i put on my Bontrager reflective shell and opened the back door to bike to work ... and it was raining, again.

i said to myself "to heck with this, i'm driving".

it had rained every day for seemingly as long as i can remember and it had gotten to me. as i walked back into the house to grab the car keys Lisa said "what are you doing?"

me "it's raining. AGAIN. i'm driving."

Lisa "really? you're wussing out? it's not raining that hard."

that little pep talk nearly worked.

Lisa knows me pretty well and on another day those very words may have been all i needed to ride, but i'd deeply rationalized my being a wuss by that point.

• drive rationalization #1 - my Passat wagon had become a warehouse for tennis gear, which i completely unloaded at my office, improving fuel economy and making more room for passengers.
• drive rationalization #2 - the wagon was a mess, inside and out, and i had a fantastic travelling car detailer Paul Mercer (540-589-1217) come to my office and beautify the Passat while i worked. i can't recommend Paul highly enough. he does incredible work, he's inexpensive, the convenience is unparalleled, you save money and time over driving your car to a detailer somewhere and then having someone pick you up and give you a ride back, and Paul is just a great guy - so it feels good to support him with my business.
• drive rationalization #3 - because i've been driving so little, i actually still had the winter tires on my Passat, and i really needed to have them removed and my Bridgestone Ecopia (low-rolling resistance, fuel saving, all-season) tires reinstalled.

a redeeming joy was that that i grabbed my skateboard when i picked up my Ecopia tires from my old home, dropped the car off at Oak Grove Firestone to have the tires swapped, and i skateboarded and walked home from there :)

in this photo: zero skateboard, bontrager sport packable wind jacket, shiny VW Passat TDI

so while i didn't feel as good when i arrived at work in a car, i did make the most of a driving day, and i loved skating home. 

as i was going to bed i thought "wow, i didn't ride at all today" and i knew in that moment that i wanted to ride  all the rest of days of bike month ... and beyond ;)