Reaffirming My Appreciation for Rule No. 5

When I remember some of my journal entries from long distant September, it's hard to believe I ever thought 66 degrees was "too cold" to enjoy a ride.

Oh, MY GOD. You crybaby! HARDEN UP.

This morning, in observation of Rule 5, I ventured out into a chilly 28 degrees and just kept on going. Hazleton to Beaver Meadows, Tresckow and back. I even went a little out of my way to pick up cat food. A 17 mile commute just to get to the corner grocery store. I'm sure my cat would do the same for me. (Probably not.)


Now, coldness is one thing, but what would a ride into glory be without a few snow flurries and freezing headwinds? As I rode into Tresckow, a bitterly cold gust blasted me in the face, holding me back as I struggled to keep my pace. This was one of those turning points where I thought, "Why the hell am I doing this? I'm supposed to be enjoying myself; this is like punishment!" And then a thought occurred to me. "Is this worse than the soul-sucking depression I feel when I can't go for a ride?"

I didn't even need a moment to consider the answer. I knew it was better to be on the bike than to be on the couch. "You can sit on the couch all afternoon, after you get home," I told myself. "But right now? It's 'GO' time. Time to shine, time to harden up, time to crank the pedals and conquer that next hill. Over that next hill, the clouds are gonna break, the sun is gonna come out and the heat on your back will make you forget all about the cold. Over that next hill, the ride will be good again." And it was. Somehow, miraculously, that's exactly what happened.

And then the cloud cover came back and I was freezing, once again. C'est la vie.

"I have to warn you, this is about to get very personal, but, my nipples could cut diamonds, right now. #justsayin I am sofa king cold."

So, there was that. Even as the temperature climbed into the mid-30s, it was still really cold. Meh.

At least I didn't have it as bad as these dudes:

So, what have we learned?

First of all, 66 degrees isn't cold. Even if I have an extremely high tolerance for heat and an extremely low tolerance for the cold, 66 is MUCH more preferable to 28.

Second, I love my cat. All the other cats in the neighborhood should be super jelly. Like, totes, fer sure.

Third, I had "Love Song" by Tesla stuck in my head the entire ride. So now I'm going to torture you with it. Ride on!