I've been working on taking my new bike farther and farther from the house, to build up bike-riding chops that rusted after riding only stationary bikes for over twenty years.
Yesterday (one day after Bike to Work Day, but still within Bike to Work Week), I rode it from my house to my office in Century City. I discovered the bike lane (bless bike lanes!) on Santa Monica Boulevard, starting around Veteran, which provided a fast and relatively hassle-free ride for a few miles Eastbound. Only one problem with the lane: It ends abruptly in mid-Century City; and it terminates with a lane of car traffic between it and the sidewalk! So it left me stranded in the middle of the street during rush hour. The cars in the lane to my right were very understanding . . . .
This morning, I was scheduled to donate blood at 9:30. Exercising after giving blood is verboten. So I woke up at 6 (Yes! On my day off!), hopped on the bike before 7, and rode 4 1/2 miles to Maxwell's Cafe in Culver City/Marina Del Rey. The place is usually packed on weekends, with lines stretching out the door; but that early in the morning I was able to walk in and sit right down at the counter. I had the basic diner breakfast (listed in the menu as the basic breakfast): Two perfectly scrambled eggs, home fries, and toast (dry sourdough for me). Biking early in the morning, riding by the grocery stores loading up for the day and the bakeries with the pastries and bread in the oven, reminded me of riding my bike to Garrison Junior High when I was a kid, and occasionally stopping into Fleenors Grocery Store, where they served day-old maple bars to the customers gratis. (Yes, I ate them. No, I didn't gain weight. I had the metabolism of a shrew. Back then.)
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