Inside The Perimeter

My second time in Ottumwa, Iowa. Didn’t see any part of town because I needed a night of rest. Today’s penultimate day of RAGBRAI will be 85 miles.

Wordle: four, my starter was SLANT

Another busy RAGBRAI day. It’s my SAG day, so I have to ride in the bus to Ottumwa, and then cycle against the grain to meet the Chattahooligans. Must get an Iowa Craft Beer credit today.

Wordle: four, my starter was BRACE

Finally have service at a brewery in Indianola, Iowa.

Been a great time thus far, only my annoying hip hurting badly when I walk has detracted.

Wordle: four, my starter was ORBIT

Happy birthday to me!

A lot to report, no time to do so…

Wordle: four, my starter was
Connections: two mistakes, Yellow > Green X > X > Blue > Purple

Off we go to Iowa! I really hope this all goes to plan. I’ll be honest, I’m a little apprehensive about myself.

Hope that everyone has a great weekend, and I will check in again on my birthday on Monday.

Wordle: five, my starter was STEAM
Connections: perfect, Purple > Yellow > Green > Blue

While Barb and Allan were making the utterly complicated dinner of a timpano, last night I did nearly the opposite by heating up a can of refried beans with a can or Rotel stirred into them, along with some diced WLF tomatoes and jalapeños, and ate that with some rice that I made in my InstantPot. Okay, now that I have typed this my dinner was not as simplistic as I thought, but still, it was no timpano!

Yesterday’s excitement included watching a local hawk fly through WLF, and then seeing a large branch drop from a neighbor’s tree into WLF. I have identified the branch the fell as problematic, but thankfully it did little damage as it fell into an area in which nothing is planted.

I’m getting close to being ready for the RAGBRAI trip. Doing laundry today to have clean cycling kits, and will finish my packing tonight.

I received an email from Peacock today informing me of (another?) price increase. I just renewed my annual subscription in June, so the $20 increase won’t hit until then, at which time I will have to determine if Peacock sans ads is worth $140/year to me.

Wordle: four, my starter was FIGHT
Connections: one mistake, Yellow > X > Blue > Green > Purple

Yesterday was another day when it looked as if WLF would get a good watering from the skies, but that never materialized.

Happy birthday to ITP Reader Barb.

I have nothing today. I woke up too late and too unmotivated to do laundry, so I will do it tomorrow. I am going to spend the day getting my shit together.

Wordle: five, my starter was TRADE
Connections: perfect, Blue > Yellow > Purple > Green

It’s Prime Day(s) and while traveling to Iowa for RAGBRAI is certainly going to cost me money, it will also be saving me money because I can’t order anything from Amazon during the next few days since I won’t be home to receive any purchases.

Last night for dinner I pulled all of the beets from WLF and roasted them along with some WLF potatoes that I had in storage. This is the first year that I have successfully grown beets! I roasted enough for multiple meals, and last night I ate a bunch along with a patty melt that I made using ingredients that I am using up before heading to Iowa.

I hope to ride tonight to give my tube replacement a stress test. Certainly I will be packing plenty of tubes and CO2 cartridges in case I have flats in Iowa, but it would be nice to have a higher confidence in my handiwork before I depart.

Wordle: four, my starter was TREAD
Connections: perfect, Purple > Yellow > Green > Blue

On Saturday morning I talked myself out of going for a bike ride. This is where having an accountability partner would be beneficial. And that’s completely on me…

Because I wasn’t out on the road I was able to watch Saturdays stage of the Tour de France, and my remote control’s Mute button got a workout as Peacock/NBC inundated us with commercials prior to the riders getting to the mountains.

I managed to make my Saturday productive, however. I reorganized all of my bike shit, and packed almost everything except clothing for my journey to RAGBRAI.

On Saturday night I was going to watch the Atlanta United match, but then reflecting on how I felt that the club has given up on this season by selling their best offensive players, I decided to give up in their season as well. Instead I watched the finale of “The Bear”, and that’s all I have to say about that.

Yesterday was a day of fun and more choring.

Today I am going to cleaning out plants from WLF which have passed their prime, in part thanks to the brutal heat we’ve experienced.

Wordle: five, my starter was HABIT
Connections: perfect, Purple > Blue > Yellow > Green