Jingle Bells and more

Props to J for organizing all of us for the jingle bell run. It was a good time. I've never attended a race with a group before, and it definitely enhanced the experience. Thanks also to everyone for helping out with lil-M. She enjoyed her first race. Afterwards she asked me if we could go faster next time...I said only if she pedaled.

I'm spending the afternoon (currently?) working on more applications. Just finished one and this blogging is my reward. It's completely draining. I go read all about these departments and schools, then write this extensive b.s. letter about why I'm the perfect canidate for them. I proof it like crazy because the tiniest grammar mistake and I'm out. Seems like it wouldn't be so rough among all the non-english speaking folks who apply to write well, but I suppose they are more careful and by the book. On to the next school.

Let the travels begin

It's that traveling time of year...at least for my generation. All of us who have left the hometown for the big city(in my case it's true!) head back for Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. When does it change over...when lil-M goes to college? Does that earn us the right to stay home? Actually the truth of the matter is I love going elsewhere. I love not having to clean, decorate, entertain guests, etc. I love being in a decorated house with family. I love not feeling the burden of things undone hanging over my head. However, I love my own bed. I'm always feeling torn.

So, it all starts Thursday for me. To NOVA for a brief pop-in on Teta; to the bay for BB's birthday bash; to Lancaster PA(for work); to OC with the GPs; to Pville PA to see GGM, cousins, aunts, and uncles; to LH PA to see more aunts, uncles, and cousins; and finally to North Canton OH for Tday with my brother's family. I'll return to my comfy bed next weekend.

Ahh...let the packing and traveling begin.

Casting your vote

My first vote is one of confidence and mostly congratulations to B&N!!!!! Check it out here.

A distant second, but still important, don't forget to go vote tomorrow. Find out where to vote, who is on the ballot, and other election info at the Virginia Board of Elections. You'll have to decide for yourself who (tim kaine) to vote for.

Career Stuff

This blog is turning into my career thoughts and changes blog. Sorry about that, but I'm sure they'll be even more to come as I start getting academic applications in. So, the current situation is that a consulting opportunity fell into my lap last week. This is very exciting becuase I can effectively work part time mostly whenever I choose, I can make good money, and no need to move! The only downfall is some occassional travel. Heading out of town this evening to spend Friday at a plant in PA. Huge props to the hubby and JE for taking care of lil-M while I'm gone. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but if by chance this consulting this could take off, it would be a great way to stay in the burg while working in my field. As a result I'm a bit giddy about it and better do a good job if I have any chance at a future with this.

To Teach or To Parent

So as of today, I officially have the opportunity to teach 1 or 2 classes this spring. (That's good news!) I'm debating on it right now and just thinking outloud here. I think it will be good teaching experience, of which I am limited, but teaching adjunct isn't exactly a career boosting job. It would, however, fill in the gap on my resume and *maybe* increase my chances at a full-time VT position (assuming I do a good job). Although it might hurt my chances if they think I'll just teach adjunct forever. Anyway, it would require lil-M to be in daycare about 15-20 hours a week. I'm not particulary opposed to daycare, in fact, I think in alot of cases it's a good thing. However, I'm not sure if a "gaining experience", "filling a gap in the resume", and not that great paying job is worth it. But, it's part time, which is a cool way to transistion lil-M into a full-time job later on.

Bicycle seats

As evident by lil-M, aparently M and I aren't cycling enough. NYTimes article on how serious time in the saddle can hinder your sex drive and cause impotency. This study is new because it includes the ergo-style seats as well as the traditional style and women as well as men.

Travels

Back again after a 10-day trip. Took the little-M on her first plane ride, then drove with my mom and aunt up to Portland, ME. My favorite part was Newport, RI. It's this little NE coastal town with beautiful ocean views and amazing architecture. Stopped in for lunch at the Bush complex in Kennibunkport. Guess they missed the memo I was coming b/c they wouldn't let me in!

Met up with big-M in Raleigh for jetfest 2005. See our MSN space for pics of that weekend.

I think on the flight to RDU I was sitting next to two of the most unhappy men I've met in a while. So there I am in the middle seat with an infant on my lap. The aisle seat guy was enormous, hanging over into my seat, as well as the aisle. The window guy wore dark sunglasses the whole trip and it wasn't sunny out. Neither said a word to me when I sat down, or offered a hint of assistance. At least the fat guy got annoyed that he had to stand up to let me in. Little-M was in prime form looking back and forth at these guys, smiling, cooing, trying to get their attention, and they never even looked at her. Don't get me wrong, I don't expect everyone to think my baby is the greatest thing, but most people will at least glance at a child sitting next to them. Eventually M needs to eat. It was almost humerous. The aisle guy was taking up so much space that I had to turn sideways in my seat to nurse. Afterwards I burped her aiming at the dude lap and of course it was one of those non-spit-up times...bummer. My next plan was to let her cry herself to sleep instead of rocking, patting, etc, but nope, happy baby, lucky bastards.

Back home

Ahhh....I really do love living in Blacksburg. Mostly due to all of my friends (that's you I'm talking about readers) . After every trip, no matter how great of one, I'm always so happy to be home again. Enjoyed the bw3 ritual lunch with M and N...we still have another couple months until it's too cold to eat on the porch there! Can't wait to catch up with everyone else.

Had a great trip last week. Got in 4 days of surfing (sometimes twice in one day)! The waves were great, clean, smooth, big enough to be fun, but small enough that I wasn't too scared. Spent a day in NYC. We walked around taking it all in, and caught with 4 friends who have recently moved there. They showed us a good time. Also got to see lots of fam...my parents, aunt & uncle, and grandmother, M's mom, bro & sis-law, aunt & unlce, cousin, and cousin's son.

It was a bit strange being at the beach, enjoying the water and waves during Katrina. Can't stop thinking about it all. Just a little pitch...NLCF is selling beads on campus the next three days. Proceeds go to the Salvation Army Gulf Coast Relief Fund.

the beach

We're off to the beach and I'm uber-giddy. It's been a long summer without surfing. Pray for waves!

VT gear

I'm back, at least briefly. Yesterday I read this article on the VT News email. It is over the top. I realize that everytime I buy Hokie stuff Tech (and others) are cashing in. However, it's nice when you buy a Hokie sweatshirt to just be happy about the purchase and excited to wear it, give it away, etc. I'd rather not be slapped in the face with the fact that I'm being exploited because I'm a VT fan. In this article, they aren't even the least bit discrete about their intentions. Basically it says, we've made so much money on hokie gear, that we've created a new line (Legends of Lane-cheese!) for the purpose of exploiting the fans further....but don't worry the proceeds go back to Tech Football (and a tiny little bit for education so we can say we support it). I know, everyone tell me how good for Tech having good football is. Hmmm....that must be why the engineering school's ranking continues to fall.

Maternity Leave

According to our federal government, maternity leave lasts for 6 weeks. I try to make my own decisions; therefore, I'm not planning to leave little-M in daycare for another couple months. However, I'll take their recomendation when it comes to blogging. So, this is my last week of leave and with this post I'm beginning the warm-up period. Hopefully starting full-time blogging next week...assuming lil-M cooperates with the plan. Shouldn't she be able to take care of herself by week 6?

Stage 5

Today's stage could not have been much better planned for Lance and Team Discovery. It was a relatively flat stage, so it was again a day for sprint contenders. Tom Boonen has been dominating the sprints so far, but today Robbie McEwen won the stage. Boonen still holds the green jersey as he has earned the most sprint points, and is likely to hold the jersey for some time...potentially the entire race, which would be quite an accomplishment. Lance maintained his hold as the race leader and will wear the yellow jersey again, after a relatively easy day for his team.

As the stage started, lots of riders made attempts to break away from the peloton. One rider Flecha, managed to get out in front and was joined by 3 other riders. They usually don't let anyone "important" break away, so this was a chance for some underdogs to shine. The break-away pack made a great effort and held off the peloton until the final 10km. Because the stage finish is huge with respect to sprinting points, the teams that are competing for the green jersery (sprinting points) stepped up the speed of the peloton to catch the break-away group before the end. What this means is that the sprinting team (not the sprinters themselves) moved to the front of the peloton and pulled the entire way. This was great for Team Discovery because the sprint teams kept the break-away from getting too far ahead and potentially taking over the yellow jersey, while they got to sit back and effectively "rest" inside the saftey of the peloton today.

What is pulling? If you know, skip this paragraph.
When a team pulls, they are effectively doing the work for everyone else. The reason is the wind and ability to draft in order to conserve energy. It might not seem like much, but it's huge. In a pace line, such as in the team time trials of stage 4 where nine riders ride in a straight line, the front rider will be working at roughly 130% of his VO2 max and those following just under 80% their VO2 max. They can maintain just under 80% for an hour or so, but the 130% for only a few minutes before the lactic acid kicks in. Therefore, if they rotate who is in front the entire line can maintain an extremely fast speed with each rider only needing to do the hard work for 30 seconds or a minute at a time. This same concept translates to the entire peloton of 180+ riders. Those tucked inside are comfortably crusing, not using nearly as much energy as those doing the pulling.

Thoughts on the sprint competition:
The sprints get interesting, because those contending are the powerhouses of the sport, often the most hotheaded as well. An Australian Robbie McEwen won the stage today, outsprinting the main competition of Boonen, O'Grady, and Hushovd. McEwen had been disqualified from the sprint two days ago for effectively trying to block O'Grady with his head. It is questionable if it was a legit DQ and unfortunately it is enough of a blow that McEwen is unlikely again have a shot at the green jersey in this tour. However, I don't feel much sympathy for McEwen after hearing his comments following today's win. He continued his complaining about the DQ and how he has now proven he's the fastest man in the race, "I'm the man," he says. Even so, props to McEwen for a well executed sprint today.

Today's Yellow Jersey Controversy
Lance tried to start the race today in his Team Discovery jersey instead of the yellow jersey. The reason being that he earned the jersey yesterday when the previous leader, American David Zabrinske, fell. In the past, riders have made similar gesters, but the race officials stopped the race at the start and made Lance put on the yellow jersey. The tour is full of such traditions. No one wants to win the tour, or even just a day in the yellow jersey in a questionable way. For example, when the current yellow jersey holder is eating, or taking a bathroom break, everyone waits for him. It would be considered in extreme poor taste to attack and try to break away at such a moment. If someone successfully attacked at such a time, the cycling community would immediately discredit that rider's abilities because of the tactic.

Stage 6 preview:
Tomorrow's stage is longer with more climbs. It will still be dominated by the sprint teams, but a break-away group is likely to be able to stay away as the sprinters often have trouble making up ground on the big climbs. Who will make the jump and can they hold on for the stage win? Will Team Discovery have to work this time to defend the yellow jersey? Stay tuned.

Tour de France Reviews

On my msn space I started reviews of the Tour. Seeing that my main job these days is waiting for a baby to arrive, I have trouble pealing myself away from Tour coverage. Therefore, my reviews are an attempt to summarize all the coverage I read and present it so that my friends, who might not be interested in following the details, understand the cycling lingo, or actually work and don't have time to read all the details can get a simple summary of the Tour events.

If you haven't read anything up to this point, want to read these, and don't know anything about road racing, I recommend going back and reading my first post on the Tour.

Moving Blogs

As much as I love the msn spaces for all it's cool features and ease of use, on my space I didn't use anything besides the text, so I figured I might as well use blogspot for the commenting ease and given the current community of blogspoters. However, I must admit I'm skeptical and already a bit pissed that I'm editing html to the links list...but, after promising a few of you I'd make the switch, I'll give it a shot anyway.