Clarity

I've had a really crappy day at work today so I've decided to commute again tomorrow instead of Friday to give me something to look forward to. On the back of having to wear two pairs of gloves last time (and it was uncomfortable, although warm) I've treated myself to these:



The piccies doesn't really do them justice - they're much more slinky and "stealth" looking than that. They're Gore Windstopper Gloves picked up from my local bike shop at the weekend, along with a pair of Summer and Winter trainers. This should make hands and feet much more comfortable on the bike.

I still probably won't have any piccies of the commute as there will be almost 100% cloud cover tomorrow which means the journey there and back will largely be in the dark, but you never know, they do get the forecast wrong sometimes!

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There's no photos as it was dark pretty much all the way there and all the way back. Since I now have my locker and know where the bike sheds are, there's no longer any excuse apart from the wimp-out excuses of being old, cold, wet, muddy, dark..... I figure that if I can do it in these circumstances, then anything else will just be a bonus.

I had everything ready the night before, including my new Terry cycle clothes all laid out for me. My thinking was that it would be nice if all I had to do was get up, clamber into cycling clothes, slurp a cup of tea and then head off into the unknown by about 06:30, leaving plenty of time to cycle the ten offroad miles to work and shower.

And so it was. My stalwart husband got up at 06:00 to drink tea with me and see me off (I also wanted him around to notice anything glaring that I might have forgotten in my sleepiness). The cat didn't notice anything different or seem interested - but then he got fed; that's all he's concerned about in the morning - that I don't walk out without fulfilling that necessary function!

I finished the tea, loaded up the panniers, and ventured out into what was still, strictly speaking, the night. One pannier was full of clothing - spare gloves, waterproof top, underwear, Thinsulate hat - along with spare essentials for the bike, namely pump, pre-Slimed tube, tyre levers, multi-tool, First Aid Kit (more on that later), and chemical glow-sticks. I have a horrible fear of having a CDE on the Downs Link in the pitch black after having gone through an ocean of mud. I need a head-torch. The other held spare battery for Lupine, purse, tissues... basically the usual contents of my briefcase.

So I wheeled out of the back gate, turned on all my lights, checked the fastenings on my glow-in-the-dark tabard and pedalled excitedly off into the dark. It was so cold that I stopped two miles down the road in Cranleigh to put a second set of gloves over my cycling mitts as my fingers were already numb. The rest of me was warm enough though.

The route worked out well - the dark hid the hills as it always does and I missed out those parts of the Downs Link which I knew would be muddy. I met deer on the Wey Navigation who dashed backwards and forwards across my path, obviously trying to figure out the easiest way of hiding until I had gone. They stood just the other side of a fence watching me as I wheeled past.

I still had to get the bike over the footbridge crossing the railway as I couldn't figure out where the path was that I had been told about that would take me under the railway. I picked up a fair bit of mud trying to find out!

The sky was growing light as I arrived almost at work - the sky was painted pink and blue and purple and there was mist between the hills. Beautiful. I tried to make it all the way up the hill but had to give up about tow-thirds of the way - I was starting to wheeze so was obviously overdoing it. I'll get there.

A good hot shower was very welcome, as was the discovery that the shower room is very well air-conditioned - my towels and cycling clothes were completely dry by lunchtime having been hung up on hooks. Excellent!

The journey home was not quite as pleasant - I found the bridge under the railway to the Wey Navigation only to have two things happen - firstly the towpath was impassable - three or four inches of mud meant that I had no traction despite my tractor-tyres.... also a jobsworth wanted to see my British Waterways Cycling Pass (which I now have, but didn't have at the time) and ordered me off the towpath.

I was by now liberally coated in mud and still had my whole journey to do, now in the dark. There was also a light drizzle of rain. I became a complete wimp once I got to Cranleigh - the last mile was the most difficult for some reason.

I put newspaper down on the kitchen floor before bringing the bike in. I couldn't see the worst of the mud until Saturday morning. I was very glad that I've fitted out the patio at the end of the garden as a fettling space! I was also very glad that the hosepipe ban has been lifted.

So, in summary, I made it, the lights were sufficient, the mud was deep and better gloves were needed. But all in all, very enjoyable.

I've been working full time again for seven odd weeks, although it seems like longer! It's amazing how quickly I've reverted back to "living" at the weekend and seemingly just working and making arrangements for work during the week, laundry, putting stuff out for the next day, that kind of thing. To be fair, I've been working some long hours - I generally get to work about 7am and lately have not been disciplined enough not to start working way before 9am, which is daft considering I still have to stay until 5pm at the earliest because of what I'm doing. I've not bothered trying to go to work later because, even though I'm only a 20 minute drive from work now, once I cycle to work I'll need all this time in the morning to shower and get myself sorted for 9am.

I don't want to feel resentful; that my life is taken up with work and there's nothing left for me. I have a lot of annual leave as part of my new contract - I must use that well and make every day count. I need to keep telling myself that I'm now working for my ideal employer, serving a worthy cause, doing something I'm good at and that makes time race by, and that, as I do need to work to pay my bills, much better this than a myriad of possible alternatives.

Some of this may be the Winter talking - the long Summer evenings give me so much more freedom and space. I've still not even begun to master changing how I live and what I do to match the seasons. I still want to go out for long bike rides. I still want the sunshine and solitary joy of watching the sunsets whilst silently coasting along country roads.

I'm hoping that a year of cycle commuting will see me fit enough next Winter to be able to take on more sports to fill the gap in the evenings. I could do with another beginner squash partner and maybe someone to go swimming with. But if this is not possible, I can still book a court and practice, or swim on my own. Not quite so much fun though.

Still. I need to think positive, enjoy my new working situation and explore it's possibilities. I've not checked out the gym yet, or the swimming pool in Godalming! I need to do that, it would cheer me up to find a nice pool to go to after work.

Took me a little while, but I've figured it out. I was wondering today why I'm feeling more tired than I think I should. There are people around me with various coughs and colds and I thought I might be fighting off a virus or two, but as time went on last week and nothing came of it, I started to cast around for ideas again. I'm struggling to get up in the morning, and that's not right!

Silly me. How long have I been working in an office? Over a month, you say? And is it brightly lit, you ask? Well no, I should not be surprised if I found out later that many of the staff in ICT are, actually, proper vampires. So what could be wrong? Could it possibly be (shock, horror) that your SAD did not kick in until now as from October to the end of November you were outside every day, and now you're in a warm, very dimly lit office from before sunrise until after sunset?

Well,d'oh. :-))

Visor time.

I'm glad I didn't drink last night. There were a lot of fireworks until late, and apparently I was heard wandering around the house at about three in the morning (!) but as far as I'm concerned I had a good night's sleep. Imagine my delight then to wake nice and early on New Year's morning to blue sky and sunshine! I was up in a flash, eager to be out and about. Look how inviting the roads looked!



I'd brought a hot drink and biscuits with me again. I could have happily stayed out all day, but had left a sleeping husband behind who just might have plans for the day, or at least a part of it, so I made the best of a short ride out. It was amazing how warm it was in the sunshine, although the low angle of the sun made it look like early evening. All the colours were very rich, and the previous day's wind and rain seemed to have washed the blue sky to an amazing clarity.



A new year and a new attitude! I went out of my way not to hilldodge and the views were worth it. The sun and air were so invigorating that I almost expected to see blossom on the trees and daffodils coming up already! Gods, I look forward to Spring, but I know how bad the weather can become in January and February.



The roads were very quiet - surprising for such a lovely morning, but most welcome! I must admit to being a little nervous in case there were drivers still over the limit, but I needn't have worried. What few drivers I did see were smiling and driving sensibly. I was glad to have my wheels with the Extreme Knobblies on, as although the roads look clear, they were slippery with rotted leaves and other old vegetation.



I really was very surprised indeed at how easily I managed the hills. I either had an extremely good tailwind, or all the use of my trainer in the bad weather has paid off! I will make that route part of my normal loop I think. The only possible issue will be the steep descent into Cranleigh, as the road is quite potholed and rutted. I may have to keep the speed down when it's dark.



I really, really like the village enhancements, as I've said before. I must get round to writing something nice to those people who organised it. I had another nice stop in order to finish my coffee and read a text message from a sleepy husband who'd surfaced and realised that there was no chance of my still being in the house so late on such a lovely morning.

I wish every day could begin like this.