difficult mechanical day

 Albert P, who comes on some of my rides (and can ride rings around me, although he's too polite to actually do it when we're out together), had a triple front chainring on his Cannondale. He never used any but the middle ring, and thought a double would give him the advantage of better use of the full range, so he bought some parts and we made a date to change it out. 

I thought it would take three hours; it took six. And, while the bike left in more-or-less rideable condition, it was a disappointing experience.

First, the bottom-bracket removal tool I have was the wrong size for the modern Shimano Hollowtech bottom brackets, and the left crank uses a proprietary star tool for attachment. Well, it will require a trip to a bike shop that doesn't open for two hours, so we'll install the rear derailleur first. Huh? There's no "B" screw; that's funny... OK, then we'll do the brakes. Oh, damn; you can't get the rear wheel on with the derailleur in place because of the stupid adjustment. OK; remove the derailleur; put the wheels on; put on and adjust the brakes.

There's a spot on the rear wheel that has a bind. While Albert goes to the shop, I true the rear wheel to fix it (Albert likes his brakes TIGHT).

When Albert got back from the shop, we popped in the bottom bracket and the cranks, lowered the front derailleur, installed the chain... wait; the chain droops. It turns out there are metal fingers that have to be aligned where the "B" screw would usually go; that fixed the droop. Adjust the front derailleur; that works... wait; no it doesn't. Something on the front derailleur popped, and now its range of motion is so limited that it won't cover both rings. Albert had the idea of using the other derailleur (it was only a year old); which works (I was too busy feeling disappointed and useless to think of it).

Adjust front derailleur. There's a terrible noise on the large cog; what on earth is that? Albert notices that the cog is hitting the jockey wheel; that means there MUST BE a "B" screw adjustment. Albert notices a screw sticking out into the atmosphere that doesn't seem to have any other purpose; it turns out to be the correct one. Nice!

Finally it's working. The rain has let up enough for a test ride; when Albert gets back, the left shifter won't drop the chain to the small gear. It turns out there's an interference in the levers; if you tap the lever, the interference clears... but it's not elegant. I think it's an issue in the shifter. It may pass with time; in the meantime, I'll look for information about an adjustment to the shift levers.

The bike is rideable... but I'm not happy about it.

Why am I doing this?

 Since I got off Facebook, readership has plummeted. I get about ten views per post, and I suspect half of those are bots of one kind or another.

It's not as much fun with so few readers. So why am I still doing it? Maybe it's time to let it go... after eleven years and almost 1,800 posts.

frock coat progress

 You can read here about the inspiration for it, and here about making the mockup. I bought the fabric about three weeks ago, and cut it about a week later... and then I was too nervous to start it, because it's WAY beyond my sewing capability, and then we went on vacation. But since I've been back, I've been working on sewing up that frock coat.

The shell of the main body. The lapels aren't finished, nor the collar, and the bottom's not hemmed yet; it will be about an inch shorter.

The main body lining. It's bridal satin: heavier than the usual taffeta lining, and not bad to work with (it's about the color of orange sherbet, and I love it). I added the inside pockets (the pattern didn't include them), because what's a men's jacket without inside pockets? (The answer, frequently, is "a women's jacket".) I really messed up on those inside pockets: they'll hold together, but I'm glad nobody's going to see this work. Correcting those inside pockets is one of the things I'll do differently if I do it again.

I'll probably do it again. I'm a much better bicycle mechanic than seamster.

The jacket is made with a number of different panels, and I didn't get them a even to start, so I cut some panels apart and reassembled them to get it right. That's another thing I'll do better when I do it again.

Next project is the sleeves. I know from experience that making the sleeves is only a little challenging, but setting them into the shoulders without tucks and inadvertent pleats is much more so. I'll do the lining sleeves first, and (I hope) learn on those. The jacket fabric is light enough that I'll definitely want to add sleeve heads.

I've had the sewing machine about five months, and I'm doing this. One one side, I really suck; I'm the most arrant beginner. On the other side, I'm making up a jacket, and adjusting the pattern to my wants. I'm simultaneously embarrassed and impressed with myself.

a couple of days of overdoing it.

Yesterday, Tom H invited a few of us on a ride that started near Cocoluxe in Peapack.

43 miles, with 3600 feet of climb. It's the kind of ride I'm usually ready for at the end of June, not the middle of May. I was tired by the end of it! But I did pretty well, considering. Still, I was glad when it was done.

In addition to the demand, it was notable in that we passed a place reported to be the headwater of the Raritan. Laura OLPH stopped to get pictures.

It was a bit less memorable when we crossed a town line, and got to another place that was reported to be the headwater of the Raritan. WTF?

Also notable: Peter G's daughter Sarah, waiting up front there, is going back to the left coast after having sat out much of the pandemic at her parents' house. She came on a number of rides with us, and behaved like she enjoyed our company, and didn't show off how much younger and stronger she was than we. I was glad she came out with us, and I wish her the best.

After that ride, I was sure that today's ride would be a slow recovery. RideWithGPS says that I averaged 15.1, but I think they're overreporting.

I particularly wanted to do this route today, because the Thomas Sweet in Montgomery reported that their toilets would be open, a condition about which I've been asking for a year.

Some of the folks who are usually fast horses were surprisingly social today; perhaps the sudden warm temperatures got to 'em. I suspect they got to me; I was dizzy and exhausted after the ride; took a sudden nap, and woke up with a cramp.

There's probably a lesson I should take from that, but I'm avoiding deriving it. If it's obvious to you, be a good person and don't point it out.

seein' mom, and cape may

 The Excellent Wife (TEW) and I took off this week; so went up to Buffalo to see my mother. Her memory's unreliable these days; she doesn't always remember that she's got a brother Jim AND a son Jim; while she usually remembers that I'm married, she hasn't remembered Regina's name in months; she keeps complaining that my sister is angry and won't call, despite the sister's daily phone contact.

My relationship with my parents was complicated, We went, I'll admit, because TEW felt sorry for my mother (more so than I felt). TEW brought an album from our wedding, and they had a happy time going through it.

We also dropped in on my sister and her husband (or, more properly, met them at dinner, along with my brother-in-law's brother and his wife, and another couple who are friends of theirs). We were invited to a birthday party for the other couple the next night. TEW couldn't think of a graceful way to get out, so we went... but that was weird. (On the other hand, they really were most welcoming.)

That was Saturday and Sunday. On Monday, we drove back home, stopped for a few minutes to swap bags (we had pre-packed separate bags for this part of the trip) and loaded up the bikes, and headed for Cape May.

We rode bikes every day, using a route adapted from Tom H's Road Biking NJ book. You can see the route I set up here, and our rides for Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. (We added miles - some not reported here - and shortened, as we needed).

 TEW wanted to buy a pair of gloves, so we stopped in at a shop that had this wall screen made of bike parts built into wheels. I love it.

TEW loves being at the water anywhere, and I like Cape May particularly; it attracts geezers (as opposed to the youngsters at Seaside or the families at Point Pleasant, although there are some of both), and I love the Victoriana; there's a Renaissance-fair feeling to it - not authentic, but fun, nonetheless.

WE stayed at an AirBNB.

We also walked through the Nature Conservancy bird sanctuary on Sunset Boulevard.

And, of course, we ate good seafood, and almost enough Ben & Jerry's. And I finally got some Cape May fudge. I'm glad I did, but I won't have to do that again.

not goin' back

 I recently turned 66 years old. I'm planning to retire around Thanksgiving.

Because of the pandemic, I've been working from home for fourteen months. The Excellent Wife (TEW) and I were on vacation this week (there may be another post about that), and I got texts today at home from two of my coworkers that my employer has decided to extend the work-from-home program until at least December 31. 

I will never again work with all my coworkers in the office. If we hire new staff, I may need to train them... but I'll be alone with them, or with one other staff member.

I have mixed feelings. I'm glad not to lose the commuting time, not to have to pay for gas, not to have the wear-and-tear on the car. I get chores done around the house on my breaks.

But I'll never have the easy conversation with my coworkers. I'll never have the insight into their lives (or they into mine) that I used to take for granted. 

I don't have to dress up for work anymore... but I don't want to live in my pajamas either. I've taken to putting on a tie most days I'm working.

I'm grieving the loss of the office.

conservatives in disarray

 Headline from US News & World Report:

"Trump's GOP Drives Out Reagan Republicans".

Hrmph.

tracking spending

 Yeah, the title of this post is "tracking spending". The truth is, I only "kind of" do it.

You can find articles all over the web saying that you will probably spend less if you use cash instead of credit or debit cards. Yeah, I don't do that; I use debit or credit for almost everything except snacks on rides.

I don't have budgets for specific items, or even categories. But there are two things I do that, I think, help.

First, I have a list of my monthly bills. The Excellent Wife (TEW) and have a complicated financial system of her money/my money/our money, and I know exactly what is supposed to come out of my money every month (including the contribution I make to the "our money" fund). So when it's time to pay the monthly bills, I open up that list and grind 'em out.

The other thing is that I track all my finances (spending, savings, credit cards) in Gnucash.

Some time ago, I was asked by a friend which financial software I used, and when I said Gnucash, the next question was whether it did anything automatically. It might, but I don't know; I enter every transaction by hand. Salary, interest, checks, charges, debits, transfers... ALL of 'em. I THINK this might have a similar effect to paying in cash; I pay a little bit of attention to every transaction, and I see what it's doing to my overall budget.

If I used a program that did everything automatically, I think I'd fall into the too-comfortable semi-ignorance that might be what leads people to overspend on credit cards. Instead, I have a comfortable savings (separate from my retirement savings*), and I think the repetitive data entry has something to do with it.

(I started using Gnucash because it ran on my Linux computer, and its free. But it also runs on Windows... so I keep my data file in my web storage, and update from whatever computer I have open at the time. I always have a computer open; I've not made the transition to everything-on-the-smartphone yet.)

*And I keep the retirement accounts on a spreadsheet that I update every day that the markets are open. I know that wouldn't work for most people; the daily ups-and-downs would be irritating and/or alarming. But it's impressive to me to see how, while the amounts did not increase much for the first decade I tracked, it's gone up dramatically in the most recent years. Even including the years of the Trump Slump (see 2018-19), seeing the spreadsheet is a motivator to keep dumping money into the retirement accounts.

hudson river ride

 Dave H led the Hudson River Ride on May 2 (go see the ride page here), and probably the most important part of this post is that I've posted my pics in a photo album at the PFW Photos & Albums page. (I broke my resolution to avoid Facebook by posting there that the album was up, but I consider that part of my duty as PFW WebGuy.)

On the ride, the head of one of the bolts on Laura OLPH's two-bolt seatpost sheared off, and after it became clear that the electrical tape she always carries was not going to solve the problem, somebody mentioned that we needed a replacement bolt. I remembered that the bolt that holds your steering tube cap on is pretty much just along for the ride, so I donated mine, and it happened to almost fit (it was the right diameter, but too short to be a long-term fix, although it worked well enough for a get-you-home solution).

Fellow riders made far too much of a fuss about my idea, to the point where the adulation was uncomfortable, and I'm afraid I said some things I regret now. Nonetheless, I've replaced the bolt with one a centimeter longer, just in case. It's the kind of thing that will almost certainly never happen again... but if it did, on a ride on which I was a participant, how could I hold my head up if the bolt were just that little bit too short, after having had the experience?

(Today is my 66th birthday, which I celebrated by having some extreme dental work, from which I may not have completely recovered. The previous paragraph suggests that I have not.)

thoughtful planning

 

Whether because so many are signed up for the NYC ride tomorrow, or because of the heavy winds today, there weren't many takers for Dave H's Saturday Cranbury ride.

Albert P, above, and Mike, below...

And new-to-me, both Toby, above, and Tom, below.

But Dave had a route planned that would send us into the wind on the way out, in hopes that we could more-or-less coast back. We rolled north and west through South Brunswick to the canal, where we made a quick stop at the Blackwells Mills/Six Mile lot.

While we were there, The Excellent Wife (TEW) drive in for her own solo ride. Dave asked if she wanted to roll up to the Millstone Deli with us, and she might have taken him up on it, but I suspect she didn't want to be seen with riff-raff like me.

But while we were at the deli...

...who should ride up?

After she went on her way, we went down to Kingston, and across a closed, unnamed road...

... that turned out to be a back entrance to Sayre Drive, that crosses under Route 1. And then, mostly with the wind at our backs, we avoided the worst part of Plainsboro road and got back to Cranbury. 

A good ride. We mostly stayed together (unusual for the Cranbury B ride; I'm NOT sorry there were so few attendees for this one). See the ride page here.