Moronacity

Today was the second day of snow accumulation in the Keweenaw. I drove Amanda home to Copper Harbor. It was a little tricky. The roads were getting covered and the snowplows were out.

We found ourselves traveling behind a Keweenaw County snow plow on the covered road leading to Copper Harbor.

Amanda and I decided to have a little fun and go for a hike. We took the dogs to the cemetery in Copper Harbor and walked around. It really didn’t take much time. There aren’t very many grave markers in the tiny cemetery, but there were markers that were waiting for certain people to pass on. This was quite odd because we know many of these people and have had a beer or many with them.

Our next stop was the park right in Copper Harbor. This is the park where many events take place, including the Copper Harbor Fat Tire Festival. A little one-room schoolhouse sits next to the park, and is the home of a great display of playground equipment, including monkey bars, a merry-go-round, and teeter totters. We teeter tottered for a while, then moved onto the slides – they have a twisty one and a little straight one. It was great fun playing in the park in our snow pants and coats. It was just like being a kid, again.

Beauty can be found even in the harshest weather. Here, the trees surrounding the Copper Harbor cemetery offered protection from the wind blowing off of Lake Superior.

We put the dogs in the car and walked across the street to the Mariner. I wanted to see who was there. It was only a handful of people, but the conversation was light-hearted and enjoyable while I enjoyed my iced tea and Amanda sipped on her Sprite. The weird part was when we walked out. Walking out of the Mariner is something we’ve done a lot of this year. We would open the door and see a parking lot with cars and trucks sporting snazzy bike racks with expensive bikes. We didn’t expect to see them, but it hit us both funny when we didn’t see the hustle and bustle of mountain bikers in town. It was dead.

We ended our weekend with a healthy and tasty dinner before I set off for home down the lonely, snow-covered road. While driving to and from Copper Harbor, I found myself amazed at the beauty of this transformational event. The snow-covered trees and cliffs were almost divine, while the windy, snow-covered roads were to be respected.

The Keweenaw offers spectacular views and plenty of opportunities for fun, outdoor activities. A snowmobile trail goes along the cliffs seen here from Cliff Drive.

I couldn’t help thinking, however, about cycling. Winter riding isn’t really a sport that is embraced up here, mostly because it is difficult to find safe winter roads and the trails are covered with several feet of snow. Many of the area cyclists are skiers who mountain bike in the summer to keep in shape. Then there are people like me who are mountain bikers who ski to stay in shape.

One thing is for sure – while I look for different ways to keep my legs cycling-ready, I fully intend to feed my adventurous side by taking in all that the Keweenaw has to offer. It is truly a winter wonderland.

It was suggested a couple months ago that we hold a grrls’ night at my house. I chose this weekend for the festivities. Only two of us were able to show up. It only happens on rare occasions, but I was actually on time for this little get-together. The fact that the meeting place was my house may have had something to do with that.

I still hadn’t washed my hair, done my make-up, or dressed. In a nutshell, I looked like doo doo. My friend, Amanda, arrived while I was cleaning. It was approaching noon, and she suggested we have some wine, so I made a nice lunch and we broke open a bottle of Pinot Noir. We turned the afternoon into a wine tasting.

I thought this was a rather interesting sight. Wine glasses, bottles, and books scattered all over the kitchen counter made for an interesting picture.

I gave Amanda a little lesson in how to look at the wine and assess its color and other characteristics. I was quite surprised to learn that she has an amazing nose. She could smell anything and everything. I’m jealous because my nose doesn’t work quite as well as I’d like it to.

We went out and socialized for the remainder of the evening. It was a party day. It was also the first day snow began to accumulate.

Some of you may think it’s kind of unusual how I haven’t been very devoted to my blog, lately, or that I haven’t been taking much time to comment on the MMBA forum. You’ve read about my evasion of the U.P. Cyclocross Championships, and my inability to make an actual ride happen, either due to weather, school, or lack of energy. I may not have put it like that, but I have pretty much been experiencing a meltdown.

I felt fat, unattractive, lazy, unhealthy, unhappy, and just plain “un.” Due to the timing of my very busy schedule and our very unwelcome rainy weather, I haven’t been able to really ride in three weeks. Anyone who regularly rides knows that missing three weeks of intense activity can have quite a negative impact on one’s mentality. In fact, Runner’s World once reported that athletes who missed their regular activity for a certain period of time were likely to experience clinical depression to a considerable degree. I can’t remember the exact time frame tested by the study to which they referred, but I believe it was quite close to the three week mark.

I’ve been out several times, this week and last, socializing and drinking. Last night, my friend, Don, and I decided to meet at the Michigan Tech Trails today at 3:30. Don said that we would ride rain or snow. I told him I would even show in the event of sunshine. While the sky was mostly cloudy, Don and I found the temperature to be excellent for our ride. We knocked out twelve miles in two hours.

After the ride, I headed to The Library for a healthy post-ride meal and a pint of beer. I found myself zoning out and sitting on my bar stool in perfect serenity.

I still felt fat and unattractive, but not so lazy, quite happy, and the un was dwindling. Even though I looked like crap, and probably smelled, I didn’t care. How fitting. I shouldn’t really give two flying you-know-whats because I’m a cyclist. I’m a pretty talented cyclist and you know something? We cyclists are pretty amazing people – even in all of our fugly, glorious stenchiness.

As I write this, MSNBC (link not provided because they aren’t a real news source) has already handed electoral votes over to Obama. Fox News, on the other hand, has merely given the current percentages with the percentage of precincts reporting. Personally, I love seeing the press being proven wrong, which is why I cherish the 2000 Presidential election so much.

I arrived at the polls at 8:30, this morning. I quickly got my ballot and sat down for a thorough reading and marking. After fifteen minutes, I fed it through the machine and headed off to work. It was effortless.

This was the fourth presidential election I’ve voted in thus far. The first, a race between Bill Clinton and Bob Dole, I voted absentee ballot. The second was between George W. Bush and Al Gore, I voted downstate in a rural community. There were lines, but they weren’t that long. The third was between George W. Bush and John Kerry. That was a nightmare. I arrived at the polls about a half hour before voting started. An hour and a half later, I finally voted. There were a lot of people there, but the great city of Neenah, Wisconsin was, I feel, completely unprepared. Today, between John McCain, Barrack Obama, and I’d like to add Ralph Nader to this list, I walked in, checked in, voted, and walked out. The process was painless and took about as long as it took for me to fill out an absentee ballot. Well, maybe it took a little longer because I read through everything so carefully, including the proposals.

I am proud to say that this is the most split ticket ballot I’ve ever submitted. There were several Republicans, several Libertarians, and a Democrat who I’ve known to be of good character through a mutual friend. The rest really weren’t choices. I just filled in the bubbles for people with no opponent.

The proposals were interesting, and I felt the list was quite short compared to elections past. This is quite sad since I consider proposal voting a true democracy. I cherish the opportunity to vote on these. The proposals were:
• 1 – the one I refer to as “pot”
• 2 – the one I refer to as “no”
• 3 – Franklin Township wanted money for the fire department. Of course!
• 4 – Franklin Township wanted money for roads. This was a difficult decision, but I reluctantly voted yes.

Most importantly, I am ecstatic it’s over!!! I fear the new direction our country will take, as I believe Obama will take it. I firmly disagree with him on many issues, and I feel the Democrats, in general, have chosen to fight noble issues with decisions that are either ineffective, because they’re like aiming a fire extinguisher at the flames instead of the source of a fire, or expensive, because a Democrat solution to supposed funding issues is raising taxes, no matter how much they promise they won’t do it. I do not believe Republicans are innocent, but I do firmly and fearfully believe in the traditional Republican belief of smaller government.

There is so much waste in our system that has been promoted by Democrats and Republicans alike. I’d like to see real change, but they seem to only propose [non]solutions to problems that seem logical to the average person, but really only do harm in a different way, or exacerbate the current problem.

Either way, whoever wins, let us all hope it is for the best.