Whoops, I Missed a YEAR!?

 Not dead yet... 

2022 Rides - Week Thirty-Two

 

All this past week I rode up to the Rusty Mcdonald Library with Keiran on the tandem every the morning to drop them off at the Sage Hill youth writing program, and then rode back up to pick them up later in the afternoon! It was a 14m round trip each time! So I was doing 28Km each day just getting them there and back! 

I have to say, this kid has come a LONG way this past year. A year ago they were suffering from crippling social anxiety - they would barely leave the house at all, certainly not on their own. I highly doubt they would have got to any workshop with a pile of complete strangers for a week (no matter how much the might desperately WANT to)... and they definitely would not have just walked in there on their own... 

When I dropped them off Monday morning I suggested I could wait outside for a bit and they could text me a thumbs up when they got in and figured out where they were going and if it all seemed okay. They just said, "nah, you can just go..."

We DID ride up here the previous week - partly to scout a cycling route to get here, but also I made them go into the building on their own (after I had done so!) to see where the library was in the building and where the meeting rooms were that the workshop would likely be taking place in. 

It was lovely Monday morning.

By the afternoon it got really HOT - I thought I was going to die climbing the big hill up Pembina Avenue... 

All week we rolled past this cute little "free library" on the way to the public library... 

It kind of made me laugh... 

I have to admit, I was curious... but was a little afraid of finding thirty-seven copies of Fifty Shades of Grey in there... 

One of the mornings we spotted cormorants on the cables over the river. 

Part way through the week they closed off part of the trail to do some work on it... 

And the detour turned out to be a bit of a challenge - Almost hit that light post a couple times while dodging branches!? 

Thursday, on the way home, Keiran and I stopped for groceries at Preston Crossing and then checked to see if Amanda was ready to leave as we rolled through campus. She said she was... but then we ended up waiting while she finished "just one more thing!"

Riding home with Amanda. 

Friday we went to meet our new family doctor! Yay! 

I did a LOT of riding in the end this week... but not a lot of picture taking - it was mostly hauling and picking up Keiran from places and a few other errands... not a LOT of pictures were taken (thankfully! less to sort through and decide what to post!) 

I took Saturday off (I was tired, it was hot!!!) 

Sunday morning I decided to paint a portrait of the PURPLE SURLY KARATE MONKEY!

Afterwards, I decided I needed to actually go for a RIDE on the the Purple Karate Monkey! 

hit some of the easy single track along the river valley. 

And that was it! I did make my 200Km goal... but didn't do much extra to try and catch up the kilometres I missed the last two weeks.... 

2022 Rides - Week Thirty-One

 Monday, 1 August 2022, was "Saskatchewan Day" - a statutory holiday here in Saskatchewan - so Amanda had the day off and decided we should go for a paddle. 

There is a whole separate post about that... 

Saskatchewan Day Paddle

Tuesday I rolled over to the Broadway area to drop some stuff off at a friends and then rode down to the South Bridges, just to get some extra distance in... 

It had rained a lot the night before... and most of the day... and I thought I might just get rained on before I got home... 

Lots of sections of pathway through Gabriel Dumont Park were partly washed out - lots of these cones all over the place. 

Gulls out on the water. I stopped to try and take some pictures with the better camera... only to find the battery was dead... 

CrAzY clouds. 

I did not get rained on in the end. 

Wednesday I rode keiran over to dance class on the tandem and pick them up again later. Admired MORE crazy clouds while waiting for light to cross 22nd. 

Thursday I rode up to Chief Mistawasis Bridge and east through the swale. Hit some dirt trails along the river bank on the west side. 

View from the west side of the bridge. 

Lots of ducks and their babies in the wetlands. 

Our friend the Swainson's Hawk at its usual post.

As it was well past quitting time when I rolled past campus I check to see if Amanda was still working (and she was!?) so I convinced her to ride home with me. 

Friday scouted a route to the library Keiran would be doing workshops at all next week and art show

On the way home we stopped at City Perks to check out the Wild in the City art show that I have a few pieces in. 

Later in the afternoon I did a loop of the bridges. 

South bridges

Lots of Pelicans and Cormorants on the island by the weir. 

Circle Drive Bridge

By the weir on the other side of the river. 

Again, I met up with Amanda who was working late and rode home together. 

Saturday I made a quick trip to Broadway for supper fixings. 

Sunday up to folks and then back on other side of river. 

Later on Sunday, I went for a ride south of town. 

How long has it been since I went out this way!? Fields are turning yellow already!?

Lots of Black-eyed Susans along the edges of roads everywhere. 

In two separate locations I was startled by very well camouflaged Goldfinches taking to flight from clumps of Black-Eyed Susans as I rode past. (can you see the goldfinch in the picture above!?) 

There he is! 

Hit some sandy summer roads. 

Saw lots of other birds. Kestrels... Some other hawk I coudln't identify or get a good picture of... 

Raven on a power pole 

Young Mountain Bluebirds. 

Scores of Magpies! 

Heading back into town. 

more yellowing fields

Some kind of party on one of the islands in the river. 

That's all for this week. 

2022 Rides - Weeks Thirty

Slacked off on Monday again, but got caught up on the previous two weeks of posts... and got some drawing finished up... 

I did have to go out to get Kerian to an appointment later in the afternoon/early evening. 

There were some CrAzY clouds on the way downtown

We got to the appointment without getting rained on too much. 

It did rain for a bit while Keiran was in the appointment...

On the way home we spotted PILES of Cormorants on the cables going across the river! 

They were teetering and bobbing and looking like they were having a hard time balancing up there - which is unusual. Usually they sit up there quite perfectly still...

It wasn't windy, so I wondered if it was that the cables were wet and slippery from the rain, or if these are all young cormorants, unaccustomed to sitting on cables (or possibly some devious combination of the two!?) 

Tuesday I woke up to rain... didn't go anywhere... 

Wednesday I ran out to do some errands along 8th street. 

Picked up a copy of Stone Age from Dragon's Den (which we played the next day).

and some bulk pure sugar candy for the diabetic to deal with low blood-glucose events. And some more groceries at Superstore. 

In the evening I rode with Keiran to dance and rode out to pick them up later. 

Thursday I went out for a ride to drop off two pieces of art which are to be included in a show next month. After that I rode up to the Circle Drive Bridge, across to Sobey's at Preston Crossing and then back home through the University of Saskatchewan campus. 

There were SO MANY CROWS everywhere. 

This fist three I ran into as I worked my way past construction and the detour through the Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan site. I think they were running lines... I'm pretty sure I heard one of them say something about the "Thane of CAWdor"...?

Murder on the Tracks

I think they're plotting something... 

rolled into capus on a trail I haven't used in some time. 

Getting close to where Amanda works

This old crow was just finishing work so I rode home with her. 

I swear the whole ride home was just catching me up on the latest in the unending OFFICE DRAMA!? 

Saturday I made a quick trip up to Broadway for groceries... no pictures... 

And that was it for this week. Nowhere close to 200Km I was to do this past week... However, I did note that at the end of week 30 I was just over 3000Km for the year. The plan was to do 100Km per week plus eight weeks where I'd do and extra 100Km - originally that plan was to be july and august... as long as I manage to do 200Km a week for the NEXT eight weeks... and then 100Km a week for the rest of the year.... I COULD still make the 6000Km goal!