Cute Commute: Springtime Snapshots!

A quick snap of some gosslings on the Willamette Greenway Path. I was headed from John's Landing to the South Waterfront. So much <3 !

With a matching mani, I am enjoying the many beni's of fingerless gloves! Woop woop for warmer weather!

"Gel" is not just a type of nail treatment. Its a great cushion for your palms!

Faire du Velo! Columbia to Springwater

Start: Gateway Park and Ride
Distance: 28 miles, Loop
Difficulty Level: Easy

Time: 2.5 hours
Pit Stops: Blue Lake Park and Gresham City Park
 

I recommend getting a book and a map of the Portland area. It seems archaic but it is less time consuming than navigating forums on the internet.

Impressions: There were definitely parts of this ride that a gorgeous. The highlights would be the Columbia River, Downtown Troutdale, Gresham City Park, and the Springwater Corridor. The suckiest part was riding through all the traffic in Troutdale. The directions provided in Road Biking Oregon were far too detailed (3 pages of bullet points!) so I stopped very frequently to check my barrings. I definitely want to repeat this loop, now that I’ve learned the route.

Here is my pared-down version of the directions:

-Start at Gateway Park and Ride, park in the garage

-Cross the train tracks and head North on the 205 bike path

-Follow Signs for Airport way

-You will see a Home Depot, head East on Marina Drive

-Stop at Blue Lake Park if you have to pee

-Go under the I84, turn left on Frontage

-Turn right on 257th Drive, start climbing

-Follow signs for downtown Troutdale if you are a dirty tourist

-Turn right on 23rd St (this is the most confusing part, you will pass a 22nd and 24th and several other streets before you reach 23rd street

-Left on 242/holgate

-Right on Roberts

-Enter Gresham City Park, Find the Springwater trail and head West (right)

-Right on Foster

-North on the I205 until you reach Gateway Park and Ride

Gresham City Park

Gresham City Park

Fresh Ink!

I got a new tattoo! Here is an explanation of the three components.

The Eye of Horus (The all seeing eye):

The eye has so many names, meanings, and nuances tied into the sun, moon, math, our senses, healing and protection. The beauty is that I can adopt the meaning into my life as I see fit. This is just one myth that I identify with:

Horus is the Egyptian sky-god, usually depicted as a falcon. In an epic battle, Seth (an evil force) killed Horus’ father, and gouged out Horus’ eye. The eye was broken into six pieces each can be drawn out separately and has a separate meaning (sight, smell, thought ect…) Then the eye was recovered and offered to Horus’ father to restore his life. The eye is often worn for protection and represents sacrifice and healing.

When I look at the eye on my arm I am reminded first of the sacrifices I have made and continue to make for my profession. I have delayed many luxuries in my personal life to go to school (not to mention all the student loans!) The Eye of Horus represents where I’ve come from.

 Also, it not only covers me with healing and protection but anatomically I chose the specific location based on this simple concept: an embrace. When I embrace people—my friends, family and patients—the hope is that I can also cover them with healing and protection.

The Laurel Wreath

Following sacrifice, I hope for achievement. Here is how the laurel leaves are used:

In ancient Greece Laurel was used to form a crown or wreath of honor for heroes, scholars, and poets. Laurel became the symbol of triumph in Rome as well as in Greece. The term "laureate" derives from this tradition. Some believe that "bacca-laureate", the name for the university degree of bachelor, owes its origin to this revered plant.

The idea of the leaves is that hard work pays off. It has already paid off, I have a bachelor’s degree in biology and I was just inducted into a Phi Lambda Sigma, a pharmacy leadership fraternity. Incidentally, Phi Lambda Sigma also uses laurel to represent the charateristics of its members.I’m nearing the end of pharmacy school. The laurel leaves give me hope for myself, that I can do anything if I work long/hard enough at it.

The Bowl of Hygeia

Hygeia was a goddess of greek mythology and her bowl has been adopted by the pharmacy profession:

 In Greek and Roman mythology, Hygeia, was a daughter of the god of medicine, Asclepius. She was the goddess/personification of health. While her father was more directly associated with healing, she was associated with the prevention of sickness and the continuation of good health. Her name is the source of the word "hygiene".

 Her bowl holds medicine and the snake wrapped around it represents wisdom. In pharmacy, this is an esteemed award given to pharmacists for exemplary community service. At last all the pieces come together. The reason why I’ve sacrificed and hope to achieve: for my community. This portion of the tattoo is on the inside of my left arm, close to my heart. Only visible when I flex my hard working muscles or open up arms to embrace others.

Overall

I haven’t quite decided which community I am going to serve. I am ok with that. With this constant reminder on my arm, I feel at ease. What I am doing for a career is less important than how I go about it. So that is my tattoo: sacrifice, achievement, community service. It is a compass to guide me and a stake to ground me.

I was awarded this for the work that I've done in Rural areas.

Phi Lambda Sigma Pin!
The mortar and pestle, which bears the letters of Phi Lambda Sigma, is surrounded by a wreath of laurel, symbolic of leadership and wisdom.  The date of our founding, 1965, appears below the mortar and pestle.  Our colors are green and gold; green, symbolizing strength, and gold, symbolizing fineness of character.
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Helmet Hair: The Princess Leia

I have always been a fan of Princess Leia. Ever since a young age people have jokingly called me "Princess Leia" or "Princess Leah" because our names are so similar. Some even say that Carry Fisher is my doppledanger. Incidentally Return of the Jedi is my favorite Star Wars movie. Leia has some kickin' looks including the famous golden bikini. However I would like to draw your attention to the scene where our heroin is rocking a helmet.

Thats right! Leia on the Moon of Endor. This bad bitch keeps her head safe and her hair sleek with a wreath of braids.

I also must give credit to Michelle Phan for making a tutorial of how to achieve this look.

But now for the real question: Does it actually hold up under a helmet? Here is my experience.

I braided my hair dry. I think a little damp, with a little product is preferable  for maximum hold and texture. Here is the best I could get it to look, pre-ride. I'm obviously not as good a Ms. Phan, my hair is a bit shorter.

As an after-thought, this look would be really cute with dangling earrings! Then I mashed my Lazer Helmet down on my head. This helmet has a really snug fit.

Oh! And by the way, the weather was much like the Moon of Endor--raining cats and dogs!

I arrived at school/work sopping wet. Peeled of my rain outter gear and changed my shoes. I had my friend take this picture of me. I think my hair held up really well. This picture is before I fussed with it., I secured the fly-aways with some hairspray and tugged at the braids to restore some of the volume. I was payed a lot of compliments on my overall appearance.

This is after the commute home. Ready to change into evening clothes. I had some nice texture in my hair from the braids. Princess Leia did too! Just add some product, teast the crown to restore volume and voila!

 

New Years Resolution: Half Resolved

This year, I made one New Year's Resolution, Reach the Beach and, for the most part, I did it. My goal was to ride the full century. After hearing about my training schedule (or lack there-of), Papa-Bear insisted that I ride from Amnity to Pacific City. It was a total of 55 miles. It was my first solo ride of any great length and I had an awesome time.

Obviously, I did not achieve my goal of a century ride but I am still proud of myself. I did 55 miles on a bike that is older than I am. There is definitely room for improvement which I will get into more but for now I remember the words of my friend, Ken. One particular Saturday I was down in the dumps because I finished a 5K dead last (I am NOT a runner) and he said:

 "Leah do you know what I did with my Saturday morning?...nothing. Good for you for getting out there and trying."

I will never forget Ken's advice and I will always hold my head up high for even making an attempt.

Also, I am completely, head-over-heals, addicted to riding my bike. I have so many plans! Plans for longer rides, plans for my bike, and plans for the blog! All of which will be released in time; here is a preview of some upcoming posts and some more photos:

1) Crater Lake Rim Ride-a metric century

2) Passion for Velo Fashion

3) Reach the Beach 2013, new goals

Bad Weather and Hippies

Sunday mornings are supposed to be my long rides, however everyone kept saying the "S-word". Low-and-behold I wake up to a window full of snowflakes. These snowflakes mean business too. Their trajectory is headed straight toward the ground and seem to be sticking.

Being smart about this weather, I decided this week was a good week to take my bike into a shop. I called around a little bit. I wanted to make sure I found a shop the was friendly towards road bikes and felt comfortable working on older bikes. I was also looking for a shop that deals used parts. I finally settled on CityBikes in SE Portland.

As a rule of thumb: I never cross the river unless necessity forces me too. I hate bridges. SE Portland is so different than the south west side. It is...alternative. After driving past a couple cannabis clubs, I found the repair shop. It looks like a house with a bike shop on the ground level. When I walked in the first thing I noticed was the smell. Its NOT an offensive smell but it has the definitive scent of earth muffins. The employees were hipsters with the googly classes and funny hats. The shop happened to be full of lesbians when I walked in. Immediately I thought "Oh yeah, this is my shop".

http://www.citybikes.coop/ This is Molly, she helped is the one that helped me with my bike!

The employees were very friendly. The helped me ensure my bike fit properly, listened to my concerns and negotiated parts and labor with me. What I liked most about this shop is that they didn't freak out over my bike. First they were professional and focused on me (the customer) more than the bike, second they viewed my bike as a legitimate bike for riding not something that belongs on a collector's wall. This is the OPPOSITE of the experience I had from another bike shop on the SouthWest side.

Both personnel agreed that the bike was old but also in very good condition and needed very little work. The components are all "top-of-the-line" and "hardly-used". They are going to put new brakes on it. The current brakes are very hard for me to reach. They are going to give the gears a nice tune-up. Hopefully, then I will be able to use the stem-shifters more effectively. If I still have problems with the gears, I will consider upgrading to a more modern system.

So for now I'm happy with my decision. I've decided to take this relationship with my bike slowly.

Masi Mia!

One week of training down! I have to admit, I am riding slightly less miles than is originally in my training schedule. I did 8 miles last sunday and about 12 today. I don't mind. Slow and steady wins the race. As long as I get to 50 miles by spring break.

Today we rode out on NE Marine Dr. It is flat and beautiful. The road follows the river and there is a nice view of Mt. Hood. There is also a bike path but the bike lane is plenty wide for comfortable riding.

I went with my froomie and her friends. I couldn't keep up with them but I didn't care, at least I was out doing it! This was my theme for the week: just show up...effort optional. Kinda lame, I know. Next week I'm going to try to dig in a bit more.

One dilemma that I think is going to be my biggest challenge is my new bike. It is a 1984 Masi Gran Criterium. (The one in the picture looks just like mine, but far better condition) It is such a cool vintage racing bike. I think it won the Tour de France in its day. It needs a lot of work, especially if I want it to fit me right. The catch is that the more work/modifications that are made to it, the less the bike is worth. As it is now. It is a classic, something that a collector would hang up in their shop. It is ridiculously cool but not that practical for riding. I mean it has stem shifters!

So I guess I need to find a high-quality used road bike and try to trade my masi. I have absolutely no time for this sort of thing...which makes paying for it to be fixed up all the more tempting. What to do...what to do....