My first (slightly) intoxicated bike ride

r.Today was another spectacular weather day – cloudless blue skies, high 70’s and low humidity. As we prepared to cycle into Greenville to pick up a trail, I realized I had a flat tire. Fortunately the local shop was open and the tube was replaced and we were on the road within an hour. We rode about 15 miles taking a break at some friends before turning around. We rode back through Greenville and stopped at a Mexican place for a snack. We were debating whether it was a good idea to have a margarita before we finished the ride and reached consensus that it was. Little did we know that the Saturday special is $13.99 pitchers of margaritas. That was less than the price of a one margarita for each us so what were we supposed to do????? We were sitting outside on a beautiful day in the 70’s with low humidity on July 3rd. When was this ever going to happen again? A celebration was in order.

We got the pitcher, some great nachos and slowly drank our pitcher.. I felt a little buzzed as we left. We rode through the Darke County Fair Grounds and found a locked gate on the other side. We had to lift the bikes over the gate and crawl over. I cannot remember the last time I crawled over a gate. Fortunately, I remembered the correct technique and made it over safely in my cycling shoes. The gate was metal so there were no splinters.

We rode the 4 miles home and decided to float on the pond in lounge chairs. Normally I do not combine water and bright midafternoon sun but I had gotten a long sleeve swim top with capri length bottoms last year for just this sort of occasion. I had been carrying them around the entire trip so this was the day to try them. I reapplied SPF 100 sun block on exposed skin and hoped for the best. We spent over an hour in total relaxation and I did not have any redness from the sun except on my nose where I forgot to reapply sunscreen. A total success.

Tonight we went to a Gourmet Club – every couple brings a dish assigned by the host. This group of friends has been getting together for 35 years – which is hard for me to imagine having moved around so much. It was a perfect evening for an outdoor gathering. I am not sure what the hosts did, but there were no bugs as we sat outside for 3 hours.

I hear fireworks in the distance as the cool breeze comes in the open window. Tomorrow is supposed to be 90 so our ride will be a bit more taxing but with a pond to jump into when we return – who cares!!!!

Happy July 4th!!