While it’s still technically summer, we’ve had a bunch of cooler days in Boston, and I’ve been taking advantage of them when I can, running near dark, priming the soon-to-be-office, and talking the dog for long walks around the neighborhood. It’s been nice riding home, too. Instead of the brutal, sticky, too-hot commute, I’ve had breezy, pleasant rides most of the time.

I’m getting ready for a few other things too, both personally and professionally. It’s a good time in my life, and I’m looking forward to September, and REALLY looking forward to October with its big race and big steps (more on this later), and when things settle down a little. November will bring even cooler running and quiet times, settling into planning mode for 2011, time with friends and family, and prepping for my class at RISD.

While autumn is technically a season of moving into dormancy, for me it’s a rebirth of sorts. It always has been. And this year, it really does feel, even now, prematurely, like a new beginning. And that’s just swell.

Jim over at Bikerly (@bikerly) posted recently about lessons learned from cycling, or #bikeschool.

I spent some time thinking about what cycling has taught me and I came up with a few simple things. First, cycling has taught me to overcome fear. I didn’t actually learn to ride a bike until I was a little older than most kids. I remember riding a vintage (like 1950s) girls Schwinn that had belonged to an older cousin, taking the training wheels off by myself so I could be like the big kids, having a nasty fall, and not wanting to ride for a while after that. I remember the learning curve of getting back on that bike and being afraid, but learning to handle a bike with confidence and letting go of past fears. Years later, I would be hit by a car and I’d have to overcome even bigger fears, getting back on my bike, moving forward, letting go.

Even riding clipless taught me to trust myself and let go of fear, and I certainly fell once or twice during that learning process. It probably helped that the first fall was a low-speed one, in my driveway, when I couldn’t get my foot out after a 40 mile ride and toppled over in front of a cop, 2 neighbors, and a moving van. AWESOME.

The other thing biking has taught me is to be patient. I’ve learned to be patient with myself when going from 18 miles to 50 miles, patient in traffic, patient when I have to wait for a light, patient with drivers and pedestrians. I am still working on being patient with other cyclists, because sometimes I internally lose my shit when someone zooms by me and cuts me off, or yells at me for not running a red light (this happened this morning). And I suppose I am less patient with drivers who do idiotic things, like block crossings on the bike path or park in the bike lane, but, like I said, I’m trying.

Besides, being angry with them doesn’t get you anywhere. It’s better to smile and say “hey, can you move your car? It’s blocking the bike lane. Thanks so much!” But this takes patience. And extra time to stop and fully express your view on the situation. The easy thing to do is yell, “get out of the bike lane, jackass,” as you speed by and hope they don’t open their door in your face. But that doesn’t help us to have a society or be kind to each other, and the world (and rush hour commutes) could use a little kindness – that’s for sure.

The third thing that cycling has taught me is that there is this whole community of people – wonderful, interesting, insightful, fun people – who view cycling in the same way that I do, and that gives me a sense of belonging to something. And that’s just swell. My friends Daniel and Todd are in that group, as are my friend Rick who does charity rides to raise money for MS, and my friend Mike who rides the Pan Mass Challenge every year – even though he now lives in Seattle. Russ & Laura are part of that, even though I don’t know them personally. Jim, Dottie, and all the authors of the biking blogs I read belong there, too. Even The Runner is a part of it, and we’ve been talking about doing some touring either in the fall or next year, depending on when we get our touring bikes built out. There is much adventure and fun to be had on a bike, and it’s not all about getting there the fastest, or on the lightest, most high-tech rig, either.

I guess that you could say that as much as cycling has taught me about myself, it’s taught me about other people, and about how we can connect and relate to one another. For something that is often a solitary activity, there is so much room for it to be bigger than that, and it’s something that just about everyone can experience if they want to. And, to me, that’s what makes cycling so important.

• A car that pulled up next to me had a sticker in the back window of a soft serve ice cream cone. Chocolate and vanilla twist!
• One of my coworkers complimented my outfit, specifically my Sharp Shirter Tee
• The sunflower seeds I roasted taste great
• One of my friends called someone I can’t stand a “jack wagon”
• Making plans with Daniel
• Having lunch with someone really smart & discussing great ideas
• The kitty I found on Saturday night came home

On Sunday, Maureen and I rode to the food truck festival, which was, in my opinion, a little disappointing. Not because the idea of a whole slew of food trucks in one parking lot isn’t completely awesome (because it is), but because by the time we arrived, many of the trucks were out of food. One of the trucks ran out as we were standing in line. We got in a different line. Then that truck ran out of food 2 people after us. At least there was the ice cream truck. Soft serve cones on a hot day hit the spot.

Anyway, we were late getting there and late riding home, and I had to stop by the pharmacy near my house before they closed, so Maureen ended up driving me there and home, and I left my bike at her house. While she was driving me to the pharmacy, she went a totally different way than I’d ever been, and I was intrigued. So after work today, I went over there to get my bike (via the train) and then rode that new way home.

It was amazing! And somehow flatter! This street was quiet and wide, with ample room for cars on both sides, traffic and bikes. There was no need for a bike lane. The houses were stately and grand. The trees were leafy and provided plenty of shade. People were out walking their dogs. And there was a traffic light at the end that made it easy to turn left. It was lovely. How had I never traveled that way before? This is going to be part of my new route for sure.

I only wish I could ride tomorrow. I might have to pick up a cat that I am hopefully adopting from the MSPCA, and I will need my car to get her home. Jackie and I found her, declawed and completely emaciated, across from Vee Vee on Saturday night. She was so, so friendly, and very sweet. She was perfect in the car, in the house, and Bo was so excited about having a cat around (he LOVES cats, even if they hate him). I took her down to MSPCA/Angel Memorial to see if she was microchipped and to have them check her out. They weren’t too optimistic about her health, and they think that she is pretty old. I ended up leaving her there so that they could assess her health, get some fluids and food into her, and see if she was adoptable. If she was adoptable, I said that I would be interested in taking her.

When I called today, she seemed to be doing okay, but they hadn’t examined her yet because she was somewhat aggressive and stressed there. When I said that I would definitely adopt her if she was well enough to be placed, they said that they would tranquilize her for an exam, do what they needed to do, and then get back to me about her condition tomorrow. The fact that she’s old doesn’t bother me. I just want to do whatever is the most humane thing if she is physically suffering. So, I could very well have a cat in my life again by tomorrow evening. Or not. If I do, I just want to give her a good home for whatever time she has left. Maybe she’ll have taken the long way home, too.

The title of this post pretty much sums up everything that is going on right now.

Yesterday, I spoke with Mike at ANT. I have to say that I had heard how nice Mike was, but let me tell you, if I hadn’t been set on buying one of his gorgeous bikes, speaking with him would have sold me. What a genuine and lovely person. We spoke at length about his work, my bike, riding in Boston, and riding in general. We talked about neighborhoods and family, and trying to find the balance of rural quiet with city conveniences. It was such a nice conversation, and after it was over, I was so happy to have made my decision about this bike. I am going to go out to Holliston in two weeks, meet Mike in person, and have a little tour of the shop. And then I wait for my bike, which is going to be semi-custom and will take a little while, as Mike has a lot of bikes in his queue right now. And that’s okay. It will be worth the wait.

In the meantime, I’m riding my commuter more than ever – both to work and just around town. The new bike is steel and will be heavier than what I currently ride, so I have to become stronger and faster on the hills near me, which is how the saying goes, right? “How do I get better? Ride lots.” So I do, and I will.

Today I ran 7 at a good, strong clip. The weather was cool and in spite of my initial discomfort in the first mile (just some tight calves & sore left hamstring), it was a fantastic run through the hills of my neighborhood and the Arboretum. I ended the run feeling confident, which was awesome after the last 2 seven milers which were just okay. If I can do a strong, hilly 7, then I know I can do a flat 8 or 9 at this point, which puts me in a good position for my half in October.

After cleaning up and doing a few things around here, I rode over to Maureen’s for lunch. We ate and talked, and were joined by various neighbors as we sat outside, and then I rode home. My legs were pretty tired by the time I got back to the house. I was in a lower gear and riding very slow up the final hill. When I got off the bike, I was sweaty and ready for a nap. Three hours later, I think that is what I am going to do.

All in all though, it’s been a good couple of days. Good conversations, good riding, good running. That’s something to smile about for sure.

The word “worth” has been on my mind lately. Assigning a dollar cost to items I’m selling on eBay is part of that, but what about the costs that appear elsewhere in daily life? There is an exercise in The New Good Life where you assign an hourly wage cost to things like your commute, meals, clothing, etc, and this morning I sat down with my morning coffee and did that exercise. While I think that John Robbins uses a bit of hyperbole and spins statistics in such a way to make his point, there is no denying that we are working harder and over many more hours in a week (most of us), and that means that our hourly wage is not always what we think it is when we figure in all the real costs.

Dottie got me thinking today about the cost of urban sprawl. I live about 8.5 miles from my office, and luckily I can ride or take public transportation to get there. My hard costs of commuting are much lower than someone who lives far away, obviously, but conceptually my costs are lower as well. I have more free time once I get home because I get home earlier. I can accomplish something during my commute: physical exercise when riding, or mental exercise when reading on the train. In either situation I get to decompress. I get a significant amount of ME time just by living closer to where I work. And while I feel good about my live/work situation, I find that I am still looking for ways to improve it.

At the heart of the matter, I suppose, is that lately I’ve been feeling like I need a lot more ME time, even though, by most standards, I have plenty already. I don’t know if it’s the crazy year I had last year, or because I’ve never taken more than 10 consecutive days off at any point in my life since I was 16, or because I am losing friends in their 30s and 40s, but I am very afraid that life is passing me by – that I have one chance, and I’m blowing it.

So, I feel like a big change is coming for me. I don’t know what it looks like yet, but I’m starting to envision this more flexible life – one where I can work full time for a little while, take some time off to travel and/or teach, and then choose to work on the next big idea. That’s the thing about startups – there’s always a next big idea. What is exciting (and flattering, and humbling), and what makes it feel possible, is that over the past few months I’ve been contacted by a number of people about working with them again.

Today I was in a meeting and one of our execs asked me, “can we DO that???” I said, “Sure! Anything is possible.” And I like possibilities. I really do.

EBay update: I’ve sold and shipped off several items, and have everything else that I planned to sell online, but as always, I keep thinking of other things I can list. The question is, how much time do I really want to devote to this little endeavor?

My road bike is up on Craigslist, and as sad as I will be to see it go, I have my eye on a bike that is more appropriate for the kind of riding I do and plan to do. And I’m excited about that. I’m also excited by the prospect of my bike going to someone who really will love it as I first did when I brought it home 5 years ago.

There are bags of clothes that are ready to be dropped off at Boomerangs, and I still have to go through all of my books and housewares and all of that nonsense.

But it feels good – really, really good – to let things go. And the more I do it, the easier it gets. Each time I pack something into a box or put something aside to give to a friend, I think of at least 3 more things I’d like part with.

I’m about a third of the way through John Robbins’ The New Good Life, which is not exactly chock full of new insights for me, but I am enjoying all the same. I’ve just gotten through the part where you identify your “financial archetype(s)”. We’ll see where that goes. The only thing that lessens my enjoyment of the book thus far is that Robbins’ uses quotes throughout that are paraphrased in such a way that they seem incorrect. For example, he says something like, “as the saying goes, ‘give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for the rest of his life.’” The quote is: Give a Man a Fish, Feed Him For a Day. Teach a Man to Fish, Feed Him For a Lifetime. The gist of it is the same, but Robbins’ words are always a little bit off. I realize that this is completely nitpicky, but after a few times, it’s a little Cliff Clavin, if you know what I mean.

In other news, I was asked to teach a class at RISD, which is a huge honor and a great opportunity. I have always wanted to teach, and I’m excited to see where this takes me.

I’m also thinking about my job and how to structure my time a bit better there. It’s a work in progress. Surprisingly, I am trying not to multi-task. I try to focus on one project per day, and if I can’t do that then I do one project in the morning, and one in the afternoon. Maybe I will save an hour at the end of the day, or reserve an hour first thing in the morning to tie up loose ends on this or that, but then I am all business on ONE thing. And you know what? It works. I am getting way more done than when I jump around from project to project and task to task.

That it! Week 2 is going great. We’ll see what happens when I have the whole weekend to myself. What could I accomplish? The possibilities are making me giddy.

My favorite film (Amelie) and my favorite obsession (bikes), made an appearance together on my favorite blog today. Trifecta!

On Sunday, I began photographing a bunch of my stuff. I carefully measured and created written listings for each item. After downloading and color-correcting some of the photos, I was ready to roll on eBay. It didn’t take as long as I thought it would, to be honest, and if I had more time I could have moved on to another set of items, but it was getting late.

By Monday I had sold 2 things – a pair of Frye boots and an Orla Kiely handbag. On Tuesday I made another sale. This time it was a Longchamp bag. While I haven’t sold anything else yet, most of my items are being watched and/or bidded on, which makes me happy. And I think I have a better understanding of shipping costs now, too – something about which I was completely naive when I first started this endeavor.

Other things I’ve been doing:

• Trying to get up earlier. 5:45am most weekdays.
• Not wasting time on digital media at home. I check my email (and eBay listings) first thing in the morning, and here and there while I am at work, but when I’m home I’m offline.
• Reading. Cutting out my internet time has allowed me to finish two books and start a third. Tonight I’ll use some of my free time to multi-task and walk Bo down to the library and back.
• Gathering up… things. I’ve started culling more and more items from cupboards, drawers and shelves. It’s a slow process, and hey, it’s exercise! Every time I walk up and down the damn attic steps I think “this is good, and good for me.” Heh.

Anyway, baby steps.

This weekend won’t be very productive in the simplification sense, but I think it will be productive in the creative and emotional sense, which is fulfilling in its own way. And really, when you think about it, that’s the reason for simplifying in the first place: to have more time to do what you want to do, and to be with people you value.