the corner office

This week was a milestone on the bicycling front. I cycled all the way into work and all the way back, all 4 in-the-office days this week. This was quite a big deal for me because a few short weeks ago it was pretty much unthinkable. 140-odd miles (and quite a few calories) later, and it's done.

Gravity and biomechanics waged a slow war of attrition on my muscles and some of my what you might call 'pressure points'. Yet I persevered. London was not to let me off that lightly though, and my triumphant, if somewhat ooh-ooh-ow-ow-punctuated ride home this evening was undertaken as the heavens dumped a load of ice-cold rain upon my phearsome symmetry.

Cycling in a rain jacket is partly pointless though. It's waterproof so the rain doesn't get in, but since air doesn't get through either, all you do is trade getting soaked from the rain for getting soaked from your own sweat. Maybe some people prefer this, you never know where the rain's been. At least you're bright and yellow and and visible and you look Prepared, so people in cars don't think you're just some poor bedraggled schmuck who got caught in the rain. You look like you Mean To Be There, and that's what matters. Can't show the car drivers any sign of weakness.

Getting up the stairs is a bit painful tonight, though.