Hightlights from the Commute:

I had a better than usual commute to work this week, so I thought I’d share the highlights with all of you:

• On my way home Wednesday, I caught sight of some wild black raspberry bramble, and stopped to pick some. I LOVE raspberries. In fact, nothing on earth will induce me to disclose the location of these delectable treats, because I am a selfish, greedy person when it comes to raspberries. Later on the same ride, a wild turkey ran across the road in front of me. How awesome is that? I’ve never seen one on my commute before, but I hope to see this guy again. The whole time this was going on, the sky was dark purple and yellow and there was lightening and thunder in the distance. But the storm was predicted to stay north of me, so I wasn’t too worried and just enjoyed the dreadful light show. I didn’t even get rain until I had turned on to my street. All in all, a very spectacular evening.

• On Thursday morning, I pulled up at a stoplight beside an acquaintance of mine that I do not get to see very often. He’s a very nice guy, and I spent a couple of enjoyable minutes chatting with him, waiting for the light to change. This is actually rather odd for me: I can still probably count on one hand all the random conversations I’ve had with people while out for a bike ride, yet I had two this week. Very cool. Then, on the way home, I stopped to pick more black raspberries, this time with a tupperware container so I could save them for breakfast. They were very yummy. And just so we’re clear: these are not on private property.

• This morning, I took the more challenging scenic route in to work—something I’ve never done. It was awesome: the entire trip, it really didn’t feel like I could possibly be headed for work. I could hear birds, crickets, and frogs all singing their various songs to greet the morning. The grass shone bright silver with dew in the fields. Shreds of mist still clung to the ground shaded by trees, and there were hardly any vehicles to break the peace of the morning. I’m definitely taking this route every morning I can; it was only 4 minutes and .8 miles longer, which isn’t too bad for a significantly more enjoyable ride. This is really why I bike: immediate gratification. It took a while to achieve my fitness goals, but the amazing scenery is reward enough to keep me trudging up the hills.
  

Whether you are on a bike, on foot, or in a car with the windows rolled down, I hope you all take a moment today to enjoy this awesome summer day.