The sun was low, the shadows were nice and long. I rode 24 miles into the evening twilight. I do enjoy a good ride in mild weather, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to attack a hill that perpetually defeats me.

Should have known better. But since I didn’t know better at least the hill was decent enough to clue me in right from the start. The excellent MapMyRide gives me excellent data on that hill, where it starts and where it ends. From there I can also look at how long the actual distance between the beginning and end of the hill. And I am a wimpy rider, really.

But maybe the local road makers are trying to pull a fast one on MapMyRide and Google Maps. Yeah, that’s the ticket. I feel much better about myself now.

Except for that part where I cut off a pickup truck. The driver had the decency to not honk the horn, or even run over me — I bet it was tempting, and you wouldn’t have blamed him. It was a matter of not seeing him as I glanced over my shoulder while needing a lane change. I moved and suddenly he was there and I was there and the truck was kind enough to give me a little space.

So, if you are or know the driver of a white truck who was complaining about a yahoo on his bike this evening, please pass along my apology and gratitude.

The best part about it was that the next stretch of rode after that is a strong progressive ride. I found myself thinking If he changes his mind and comes this way I’ll be gone!

Because I can outpace a truck, right?

There’s a lack of oxygen in the brain when you’re on the backside of a ride, I’m convinced of it. There’s simply no other way my mind — a thoroughly practical (if silly) and literal instrument — thinks up half the foolish things it does.

The next thing is to develop some speed. As I say, I am a wimpy rider. Now I want to go fast. Or, as I like to think of it, a good earnest and even medium speed.

I neglected to share this:

Because the world needs to know about my light fixtures. Bought this for The Yankee, on special request. Installed it with minimal mutterings. And was delighted to learn, once it was suspended in the ceiling, that the thing actually worked. There was a brief second, an elevated level of cognition perhaps, where it didn’t seem to work right away. The mutterings would have intensified, but the lights lit, the fear was gone, and now we have a moon and stars installation. Note the little moon guy that holds it all together.

Plus!

If you leave it on long enough, and then turn it off …

That is the dying embers of the glowing magic. For the first few moments it sheds enough light to illuminate a small room.

Class prep grading, reading, laundry. The usual Monday stuff otherwise.

The power was out this morning. That was riveting. Seems there was a scheduled maintenance. Ours is a below ground neighborhood, so we never see the hardworking power workers. Maybe they outsource that sort of thing to the mole men.

There’s a contract negotiation you don’t want to miss.