Name the most expensive personal item you’ve ever purchased (not your home or car).
It’s a good thing I love to ride a bike because my most expensive personal item recently purchased is a new gravel e-bike I brought home in September. It replaced the first e-bike, a Salsa Confluence, I bought in February. It quickly became evident the Salsa was not up to speed (pun intended), for the rides our group takes. The Salsa was half the price as the Creo, had a smaller motor, thinner tires designed more for bike paths than dirt roads, and unfortunately for me on dirt roads with rocks, no shocks in the handle bars.
My new, best bike is a Creo Turbo 2 Comp with a 1.2 SL lightweight motor, and SRAM hydraulic disc breaks. A really crazy feature is the “etap levers” for changing gears. If you’ve ever shifted gears on a bike, you can hear it going on down at your feet as the chain moves higher or lower. Not this bike because it’s electric! There’s only a delightful little “click” as I press the right or left lever, and the chain makes its move on the cog.
My Specialized Creo Turbo 2 Comp bike
It is worth every penny because my hands no longer ache after a 30 mile ride, I’m more comfortable and confident barreling down a hill, and I have more electric power for that hill at mile 27!
Physical, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, social, and relational. When I looked online for self-care, I found those categories.
Based on the descriptions, I was pretty surprised that I have always practiced self-care but never put the two together.
I eat heathy and work out every day. I write in my journal daily. I read my Jesus Calling devotional every day, followed by the associated bible verse. I read at bedtime and play the New York Times games (almost) daily. I have been working on my relationship with my husband to be more open and honest about things that concern me.
I was going to say that my social self-care would be where I was lacking but I realized – that’s not true! I belong to a group at the library, and attend library events at least twice a month. I meet with former neighborhood friends every month for dinner. I meet with our class reunion committee monthly, which consists of 6 other women who really like seeing each other every month because our next reunion is still 3-1/2 years away!
I could improve on all of that if I could stay off social media!
Which food, when you eat it, instantly transports you to childhood?
I grew up in a traditional household in the 60s and 70s. Sundays involved the 9:15 mass, picking up newspapers (New Haven Register, New York Daily News, Boston paper) with the possibility of a comic at Boylans, and a stop at my aunt’s house before we were home. Once home, we read the papers, and waited for Sunday Dinner which happened anywhere between Noon and 2 p.m. Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating, but some Sundays it felt like it was that late because everyone else was out playing while we were still waiting to eat!
Except for that rare Sunday when we got Kentucky Fried Chicken….
Kentucky Fried Chicken. There was a store across the street from our church that opened at noon. On those Sundays (usually during the summer), my mom would head back out to pick up a box or bucket. They would also get the cole slaw and mashed potatoes and gravy that went with it.
Oh that chicken! So crunchy and greasy. I probably ate it for the skin more for the chicken. You can have those big old chicken breasts at the bottom of the box or bucket! Give me a leg or thigh for that juicy dark meat. As a last resort, I’d eat the breast but I’d need a lot of cranberry sauce to wash it down.
My father would jokingly swear that the cole slaw tasted “just like ice cream” and I’m sure we choked it down. Not like now – I love cole slaw!
Stores still exist, but the one across from our church is long gone and it’s probably a good thing because, like anything else that tastes so delicious, that skin is not good for you!
The last time I had it was in 2022 when we were traveling in California to visit my father in law and we stopped to pick it up and bring it for a dinner with him. It was as good as I remembered it and I’m sure as I did every other time I ate it, I told my husband the stories of my families KFC Sunday dinners.
Describe one simple thing you do that brings joy to your life.
I feel joy when I am riding my bike.
I received my first bike when I was about 7 years old. It was a second hand bike that my dad painted and put a new seat on. I would ride it all over the neighborhood. On weekends, my dad would take me, my sisters, and anyone from the neighborhood who wanted to join us on rides around town. The bike gained a banana seat with sissy bar and upraised handlebars when they came into style.
My first bike – 1967
I outgrew the bike and riding during high school but then received a 10-speed bike my senior year of high school. I brought my bike to college and rode around campus and up and down the country roads.
Woodstock Connecticut Route 169
When I moved to California, I brought my bike with me (in pieces, in a box!), but based on the rides my husband to be and his friends did, I bought a new bike designed for my short stature and for long miles. My longest ride to date is a 100K through the hills of Sonoma Country. I never did become fully comfortable clipping my feet in to the pedals!
Dry Creek Road area, Healdsburg California
After moving back to Connecticut, the road rides ended but we would take our mountain bikes with us on camping trips and ride from our site to the beach at Hammonasett and Rocky Neck State Parks or ride around Lake Waramaug. We also took our bikes on the ferry to Block Island and Martha’s Vineyard for traveling around.
Sights to see on Block Island, Rhode Island
Recently we purchased e-bikes to ride on which are electric, but pedal assist, which means you still have to pedal to move. People get the wrong idea because there are other types. When I first started riding my new bike, I would turn the assistance on and off and at the same time try to work through my gears. I quickly realized I need to just leave the assistance on at level 1 and just work through my gears and it created a much more enjoyable ride!
My bike – 2025Farmington Canal trail undergroundOne of the trails
So why does it bring me joy? I love the movement both in my legs and traveling a distance quickly! I love the feel of the sun on my shoulders in nice weather. I’m not incredibly fond of cold weather but my first ride was on ice and I can say I finished that ride! Some of the rides involve gravel, uphill and downhill, and I feel challenged, physically and mentally, to get up the hill and DOWN the hill! I’m always in the back of our 6 person pack but I’m getting better! The bike pedals allow for my shoes to clip in or remain free and I currently remain free.
I remember my dad bringing out the movie camera during the 1960s, along with the bank of lights attached to the top, and blinding us as we walked down the stairs to see what Santa brought. We’d view those movies during the summer and watch as he reversed and moved forward the moment when my sister tumbled down the stairs. Down she’d go, only to fly back up the stairs!
Every Christmas, my mother’s family got together at one sibling’s house or my grandmother’s. Presents would get tossed around, and a shaker of Brandy Alexander would be ready to be poured.
The family celebration has migrated to a weekend before Christmas, so families traveling from out of state can attend and then have their holiday at home.
My husband and I host it every year, and we have had anywhere from 15 (2021 after COVID) to 30 people with us. Before our family room addition, it was a tight squeeze – we even had people sitting in the front hallway and on the stairs to the second floor! But now with the extra space and the open floor plan, no one is without a seat.
I’m not big on decorating, and shopping for gifts is stress-inducing, but I really like getting everyone together!
I always think I will be so productive because I get out of bed by 6am every morning. But that really has nothing to do with productivity because I’ve perfected the art of taking my time.
I feel the most productive when I make a list of what I want to do and what I have to do.
I find it amazing that I have so many “things” I want to do, yet I never work on them, because I don’t remember them in the moment. If I have a list, I can look and say “oh, I’ll do a little work on this”.
By working four days a week, I’m getting glimpses of what retirement will look like.
I have a variety of hobbies that include knitting, ancestry research, writing for this and my family stories blog, puzzles, reading. All my indoor stuff but I also have a new e-gravel bike to ride and a boat that will go in the water next month. And travel!
I wish I had more retirement time every day to find a flow to work on my hobbies and outdoor activities!
What strategies do you use to cope with negative feelings?
I have to work hard to brush away negative and worrying thoughts.
I’m learning to rely on faith.
Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Nights when I wake up at 3am and the first thing that pops into my mind is something about work, I roll over and I pray. It pushes out the worry and negativity and I fall back to sleep.
During the day if I start to worry, I just talk to God and thank him for the day, the weather, my home, whatever!
Which animal would you compare yourself to and why?
In sixth grade art class, the assignment was to draw an animal that represented us.
I chose a Chameleon. Whew, that’s deep for a 12 year old right?
I felt like I changed and adapted to the people around me. I didn’t consider it in a bad way, like I wasn’t being myself. It was more that I could be comfortable around different types of people.
Later on, I read a chameleon changes colors as camouflage to hide from predators. That resonated with me too because I do like to blend in the background and be support rather than a star.
When I think of a “shopping spree”, my thoughts go immediately to all that I don’t need! I don’t need clothes because my size is difficult to shop for and I get discouraged. I don’t need electronic equipment because I have more than I need. My brain no longer works on a “want basis”.
Things for my home! That’s it! I would buy a nice coffee bar, the sectional sofa for the family room that my husband and I have discussed over and over again, and …… hmm, as I look around, I think it would be a quick shopping spree!
I feel content with what I have. I would prefer to take someone else on a shopping spree and let them buy what they want. It would make me happy to do that.
Thoughts From The Passenger Seat 