keeping the body active and alive...

another weekend in the cawledge drew to a close last night as zayne and i rolled out under cover of sopping wet rain clouds and a chill in the air more reminiscent of a late-october football weekend than a mid-august one. with every weekend in the mountains i feel a little stronger; a little more sure of my physical ability; and always happy and thankful to be in the presence of good friends, good food, and beautiful surroundings. it is easy to be dragged down by the weather and the return to work. but when push comes to shove, the rain gives good reason to stay in and read a book, cook a tasty dinner, and head to bed at a decent hour. those are my simple plans for now.


we left sinky on friday night with otto's burgers on the brain. we passed up the temptations of the red rabbit and broke a few speed limit laws en route to our lusted-after servings of anemia-busting red meat and fries. excluding a mixup with the fries, dinner was spectacular and i feel safe saying it was worth the drive and the late dinner. with blood sugar at a low and being tired to boot, i opted for the very cute 10 ounce beer. it arrived in a juice glass and went wonderfully with the burger and fries. we bid a fond adieu to the football on hd tv and headed to the farm for some snoozing. or not. well, i slept like a rock star.

saturday was just about the most beautiful day you could have ordered up for august in the cawledge. as we drove to town i noted that it was as though you could see each individual leaf on the trees covering the mountain ridges. my lungs were full of the cleanest air they've had in a while and the day unfolded well following a tasty spiced chai from saint's cafe. had to throw that in there for the former cawledge bretheren out there. ah, saint's.

one of the best things about heading back up there is there is always the chance of running into someone i know. this weekend brought a welcome run-in with duarte at the shop, who informed us that orion trips were taking off and susanne would be around the im building all day. we passed an hour or so, sitting outside, catching up on past months, being wowed by marcos and his incredible biking skillz (look out, all you two wheeled fanatics, this kid is in hot pursuit) and enjoying the company that goes along so easily with old friends.

the front porch at chez braun nearly sucked me in for good later in the afternoon, but i escaped the temptation and headed out for my standard ride through the mountains. the views were spectacular...


and i couldn't help but notice that my hair mirrored the mountains as they tumbled out toward the southwest from the vista at keith spring.


i was admiring the view when a couple passed me on mountain bikes. a few more minutes passed and as i hopped on my bike i thought, maybe if i really work i can catch those folks. they looked happy to be on their bikes, but i knew i wasn't chasing down serious bikers. the competitive spirit was creeping up the back of my neck and i flew down the descent and hit the hill on the other side. sure enough, as i crested the hill i caught the couple, and i didn't even collapse under the strain of the climb. i sat up and cruised down the hill, proud of myself and with my competitve spirit satifyingly quelled for the time being.

the evening brought a trip to bellefonte, no not for the climbing, but wouldn't it be fun to get up on el crack for old times' sake... but for dinner at a new place called high street. the atmosphere was good enough, save for the crashing of dishes in the kitchen. dinner was good, dessert was tasty but would've been better had it involved some pie. meeting up with zayne at zola proved to be a little fishy but brought some silent laughter as we cracked ourselves up over a smooching couple and a dead fish. i'd say you had to be there, but even if you had been, you might have missed it. i nearly had to take a knee. the silent laugh is deadly.

sunday brought the rain and chill in the air. breakfast at otto's did well to serve up some calories for my furnace to burn off, and my afternoon nap to the sound of rain on the roof was one of the best in recent memory. shrimp scampi, fresh baguette, and salad, topped off with fresh peaches and ice cream were the icing on the cawledge cake this weekend. i was still full when i woke up this morning. i've got to be up into the mid-120's now.


all good things, including the wall at chez braun, need to come to an end, and we left town nestled in the subi along with bikes and tomatoes galore. stay tuned. i might eat a couple bites of tomato with dinner tonight. old dog, new tricks. can you believe it? why not...