SUCH a spaz

We have a lovely bike trail just behind our condo complex. It's paved and next to a creek and lots of people use it for walking, biking, jogging, etc. From our house to Vasona County Park and back, it's just about 10 miles, which is a nice ride.
I decided to ride this morning instead of going to the gym. All was well. The weather was cool and a bit overcast when I left and it was a great morning for a bike ride.
At exactly the turn around point (meaning the farthest distance from my house) I had a little incident. I went through part of the county park and started to turn around on the road (which NEVER has any cars on it) and looked to my left just as I was about to turn. Wow. There was a truck coming right at me! I braked hard and skidded through the dirt and gravel and fell. I figured that was better than getting hit by a truck. Mr. Truck driver didn't even stop to ask if I was okay. Thank you very much. Not.
Oh yes, I always wear a helmet.
Long story short.... I feel like a dork. I banged up my knee pretty badly. It was bleeding and sore, but what could I do except get back on my steed and head for home. By the time I got home I had bled down to my shin. I actually took a picture of it, but Kristen deemed it too gross to post here.
So now I'm a middle aged woman with a boo boo on her knee because she fell off her bike. What a dork. Guess I won't be wearing a skirt any time soon.

Walkin'

I walked to work and back again today. I realize my goal of three times per week has not been met and was chided by a friend of mine. He threatened to audit my blog for accuracy. Sheesh, that's kind of harsh.
Then I got an e-mail from another friend who gently said "Keep up the walking".
Ouch, man. I was prepared to go to the gym today, but by the time I got done taking care of stuff around here it was already 9. So I decided to walk.
I still need more sunscreen. You see, most of my walk to work is south and home is north, so that means the left side of my face and neck take a beating from the sun. I already have a weird patch of skin on the left side of my neck due to a bad burn while skiing a few years ago. I may be blogging about skin cancer on my neck in a few years. Argh. I may have to start wearing a hat or something. SPF 40?
I have no excuses, even though a week at convention and 100+ degree heat are legit. I just need to make a more diligent effort and I will.

Just Drive!

California has a new law on the books. Starting today, drivers over 18 years old must use a hands free device while talking on a cell phone and driving. Drivers under 18 cannot talk on the phone at all while driving.
I see the intent of this new law, but I'm really skepical whether it will produce the desired results. People do a lot of stupid stuff while they are driving. These are things I have seen and frankly, most of them should be done in the privacy of one's own bathroom. Applying makeup is pretty common, but I saw a woman last week plucking her eyebrows in her car. Picking one's nose is also pretty common - do these people think there is a cloak of invisibility around them? Who the hell would pick their nose in public? Yuck! I saw a guy shaving the tops of his ears with a disposable razor once. That was weird.
Some other common offenses are eating or reading - map or newspaper. Yelling at your kids is pretty distracting, as is having Fido on your lap. Texting while driving is still legal, which I find mind boggling.
What is so important that a phone call cannot wait a few minutes? Do you have a patient on the table with his chest cracked open, waiting for an organ donation? Probably not. Cars weigh thousands of pounds and with increased traffic and crappy drivers, we all need to pay more attention to the task at hand.
Hang up and just drive.