Comfort

It’s relative. Today @ 7AM it was 15 outside and 50 degrees inside. Sun entered the windshield, I pulled the insufficient covers back over my head. The furnace ran all night never getting warm enough to shut off. But I was inside protected.

OK to Les’ comment about riding in Spokane yesterday in day time temps that were the lows here. Les, I used to do that when I worked and it was my day off. Your lifestyle during retirement will offer you choices, one could be I don’t want to live in the cold, another is tomorrow the weather will be better.

The sun warmed up the van outside temp to 41. I drove back towards town to ride Bar M trails. During the drive the temp dropped below freezing. Today i am riding in the sunshine. Just a few bike rigs in the big parking lot. Monday and cold. I only shared the trails w/ a roving herd of grazing cows. Deadman’s Ridge is a nice challenging trail w/ lots of rock moves along w/ short climbs. I am connecting w/ my Industry Nine hub w/ its 3 degrees of engagement for tech moves as I can back pedal a small amount to put the pedal in the power position for a front end loft. Great wheel set.

Yes, the LaSals, foreground is typical of Deadmans
Yes, the LaSals, foreground is typical of Deadmans

I made scratch pancakes for breakfast using brown rice flour: gluten free. Added blueberries. I’m not gluten free, never intend to, it’s just that it was the package size I needed. Wheat flour is in 5# bags which is too much. Buckwheat was too grainy. I would have liked oat flour. Small pot is my hot water maker, it was a wedding gift to my parents back in 1948.

Scratch made pancakes
Scratch made pancakes

In Bend I finally bought a nut grinder that grinds the walnuts easier than my hand dicing. When I find a cup size container of buttermilk I buy it for the pancakes. Not many stores sell buttermilk in that size. Grinder eliminates the hand work, better to turn a crank.

I drove back to town for a shower, propane, groceries, vacuumed the red dirt from the carpet, established Chile Pepper to accept my mail, laminated the paper temp license tag, and found a bar to watch the Zags tonight.

Weather forecast is still sunny and warming a bit, still below freezing at night. No moisture to create freeze thaw mud.

Fruita OTE tagged me w/ their sticker. One too many.

Trail work on Wednesday.

I burn about a gallon of propane a day, that’s w/o running it during the day. I have both heater and furnace on now while sitting in parking lot outside Chile Pepper. Will burn too much fuel.