Week 13 (February 16-20)

Monday - Car (single occupant)
Tuesday - Bicycle
Wednesday - Car (single occupant)
Thursday - Car (single occupant)
Friday - Bicycle

In my jubilation to announce the discovery of the conference room shower last week, I failed to describe the ride home. It was great to breathe in fresh early evening air, but since I had work to do over the weekend I used a backpack to bring home my laptop.

I wasn't excited about the prospect of starting off the week with 7 lbs strapped to my back, so I opted for the two ton death trap instead, deferring my commuting joy for a day. I awoke with a smile on Tuesday, packed up my gear, and pedaled off, excited to cover new ground by cycling to a client site for once. It didn't matter how hard I pushed or how much I sweat since a shower awaited me at the workplace.

The shower stall had been used as a repository for the Company's beverage supplies, but with permission from the client, I moved about five cases of cans to the kitchenette. After lifting the last 12 pack of Diet Pepsi, I gazed dumbstruck at the permanently sealed plug in the shower drain. My facial expression likely remained unchanged for a good five minutes, though in times of intense trauma it becomes difficult to measure the elapsed periods of time.

Finally, the shock wore off and I realized that I had previously cleansed myself with far fewer resources (i.e., Mexico). In 15 minutes I emerged from the conference room, not quite a new man, but adequately refreshed for the day's work.

Since my return trip home was after daylight hours and I didn't feel like getting robbed on the Greenway, I decided to ride on-street for most of the way home. There was slight rain and fog, but my fenders kept me dry. It was actually nice to breeze past a drizzly Lake Calhoun, and the traffic on Lake Street was light enough for a relatively peaceful ride.

All things considered, Tuesday's experience wasn't terribly deflating and it didn't keep me from a round-trip bicycle commute on Friday. I had established an informal goal of riding two days during the week, and I was happy to have reached it. The prospect of riding any days to this client site had appeared extremely remote just two weeks before, so I considered the experience a glaring success.

The next three weeks of my schedule have me booked downtown, so my plan is to ride at least 2-3 times a week.