Friday, November 07, 2008

update 3: putsying along

so usually i am pretty down on the time change. i get very sad when it gets dark so early.  i guess with my old age i think i am going to turn into a pumpkin being out past dark. and when it is dark at 4 or 5pm, i promptly get home, put on the tea kettle, and begin crocheting pot holders or something like that.  seasonal depression kinda started a bit early this year, so i was quite fearful "fall forward" was going to kick me while i was already down.

at times like these, trickery is necessary.  i was determined to beat the time change.   so i thought if i tricked myself to stay in the old time zone, i can easily get up at 5:30, because it is actually 6:30. then i can extend my commute to work by an hour and go ride to work via redwood rd and lake chabot.   so this week i've putsied to work the long way three days.  by the time i get home and eat, i am very sleepy.  and there is no use fighting it because, after all, it is dark.  i don't care if the clock says 9:15.  that is really 10:15.  and there is no reason to stay awake.  so, one week out and i've beat day light savings.

today i had off work, so i thought i'd putsy along with fred.  i wanted to go for a long ride, but he said he ran out of geritol so he said we could only do 3 or 4 hours.  i really wanted to ride out by the oil refineries, cause i hadn't been there in a while...and that is longer than a 4 hr ride round trip, especially when i will be putsying with the old guy. but god bless BART, because we can take the train out to pleasant hill.  so we are to meet at 8:30.  
8:30 i open my door, sit on my steps and put on my shoes and helmet.
8:32 i stand in the street.  no fred.  i wait a few minutes. 
8:34 i go down the street to ring his buzzer on his apartment.  no fred.  
8:38 was he at bart?  were we supposed to meet at BART?  we do that sometimes. he's probably waiting at BART for me and pissed i am late!   
8:39 i bike down to 19th st.  
8:44 i arrive at 19th st. no fred outside.  i go in.  no fred inside.  wait wait wait.
8:54. my train comes.  no fred.  i guess i should get on the train.  
9: 17 i get to pleasant hill.  i call fred.  no answer.  uh oh.  he is pissed.  i don't know how i missed him, but it is probably my fault and he is going to mad. 
fred gets mad at me and dumps me every fall for one thing or another. this happened both in 2006 and 2007.  i told him this october i was not going to see him much so he wouldn't dump me. october came and went, so i figured we were okay.  nope.   i lost him before we even started our ride.  he is probably mad and totally not going to talk to me for a month.  this was one was totally my fault.

riding out on franklin canyon road rules.  but it would have been better with fred because he would have told me good stories.  and then the birds would have chirped and he'd have known all the names of the different birds.  so i putsied along, thinking about fred.  passed the oil refineries.  i only ever see them on the weekend when they are lying still, not when the smoke stacks are working in full force. so strangely pretty. and then i thought about how everyone likes riding up in marin and i was all excited to see the smoke stacks and oil refineries.  it is kinda beautiful...ya know, in that eastern european bloc kinda way.  rolled into rodeo, hercules, no fred.  it was nice out so i decided to go around the bears, then meandered my way back home. 

got home, called fred.  where were you?  where were YOU?  i was outside at 8:30.  I was outside at 8:30. i went to your apartment.  i went to YOUR apartment. i went to BART.  I went to BART.  i don't know how we missed each other.  i blame day light savings...even though it is almost a week out.  sad we didn't putsy together, but lucky me i didn't get dumped and he is still talking to me.  he even said: "maybe next friday" so that means i am safe.

i've putsied a lot this week and my quads haven't shrunk at all: 60.5cm. now it is all about minimizing losses.  but not for long.  in one hour i am going to pump some iron and get HUUUUUUGE.  so i need to rest now and eat some raw eggs.

7 comments:

Itinerant Rick said...

i guess with my old age

You crack me up. I would hate to think what I am, or what Fred is, if you are in 'old age'.

Maybe I should just go to Costco and pick up a case of Geritol.

~ lauren said...

that happens around here too.

you sound a little grumpy. ride more and you'll feel better. that usually gets me through this time change, too much darkness stuff.

and cyclocross.

maybe you should come out and race, for fun.

Anonymous said...

"put on the tea kettle, and begin crocheting pot holders or something like that"

I just can't picture you doing those tasks...

"i guess with my old age"

ehem...you just reminded me how old I am...

deprogram said...

Wait! The story ends before we find out what actually happened to Fred. Was he abducted by flying monkeys? Did he just decide not to ride with you? Perhaps he fell into a wormhole outside his apartment.

Tell us!

place_holder said...

what's this word "putsy"? it appears to be a verb.

Is its definition this on urbandictionary?

Or is it this "putz" verb entry on dictionary.com?

you are confusing an esl.

beth bikes! said...

neither of those.

i would say it would be to act without much purpose...or be kind of lazy or without intent. on a rainy day if someone putzied around their house, they didn't get much done and kind of wasted time.

see also: putter, fart around, dilly dally

WarrenG said...

see also: www.oldfartsdictionary.com