Go Carly

This post is mainly for all you non-Knoxvillians but if you don't compulsively pick up every free publication in Market Square, you might enjoy this too. (what? I can't help it)

Check out the super awesomeness that you are missing. Our very own Carly Matthews was featured in Skirt! magazine in the "My Way" section back in September. Btw, this was actually published after Carly skipped town and moved to Oregon to become a hippy...err, grad student. Grad student, yes, that's what I meant. :) Check it out. It's pretty cool






Alright - No more blog slacking. More posts coming soon, so stayed tuned.

I think if you click on the picture you will actually be able to read it. You should read it, it sums Carly up pretty darn good.

pretty leaves and pretty lights

please enjoy these pictures as replacement for fun and entertaining stories about yours truly. knoxville is enjoying an absolutely gorgeous (and warm!) november.

Boo finally posed for a photo without giving me the squinty eyes or begging for food. Only took 6 years!

Commuter Karma

Alright, alright, I've learned my lesson.

I hopped on my bike Monday afternoon and headed the long way home. The longer route goes down Tipton St. then left up Neubert Springs, and then right down Martin Mill Pike. It is a much more enjoyable trip than Maryville Pike at 5 o'clock. The pot holes combined with pissy drivers trying to get home stresses me out a little bit after a long day at work.

So I'm riding along all fine and dandy, enjoying the weather, and I'm about to hit Martin Mill Pike when, pssssttt!! - a flat tire. Now, I have always been "that person" who hardly ever carries the necessary items to fix a flat because "I always have my cell phone, and I'll just call somebody". Makes sense, right? But, it seems this doesn't really work out when A) people are still at work, B) people don't answer their cell phones, or C) live too far away to be helpful.

There I am on the side of the road, trying to figure out why I flatted. I check the tire - no holes or punctures or sharp objects. Alright, well, guess I'll start walking and try to catch the bus. I know I'm going to be walking for awhile, so I go ahead and put my running shoes back on and start walking down Martin Mill. (super fun! everyone should try it!)

I get down Martin Mill in one piece and I'm almost to the bus stop when I notice the construction that is being done on Maryville Pike. Hmm, me thinks there will be no buses running down here today. So I keep walking for a few more minutes when Rebecca Falls rides by and asks if I need help. THANK YOU LORD!!! Rebecca saved me a couple more miles worth of walking, and I will be forever grateful. Luckily, the 25c road tube didn't explode while being pumped up to fit a 32c cross tire. And, I would like to say that we changed that tube pretty darn quick - go us!

Anyway, like I said above, I have learned my lesson and stocked up on flat fixing tools so I won't have any more 2 hour treks home.

Now after all that, I commuted to work the next day and found some goodies along the side of the road. Jeremy refers to them as "commuting primes" (Prime: An award given for the rider to reach a certain point mid-race in a sprint. Pronounced "preem." French). The only thing I ended up keeping was a pair of wire cutters that I'm sure will come in handy at some point at the house. One less trip to Lowe's, right?.

Eleanor

This little kitty joined the McCalley household a few weeks ago after being tossed in a ditch on the side of the road. Naturally, Boo is showing her the ropes and teaching her all kinds of ways to irritate me. What's with the attitude, little kitty?

wait, i know those people

Sharon, you and JJ are on www.forbes.com!!

link: how to train like an olympian

my work productivity pays off...

throw out your sunscreen

If you prefer to not strain your eyeballs trying to read that little bitty print, check out this site for more info. sunscreen study

And for those of you that just want to know what you should be using...the top 10

1. Blue Lizard (without oxybenzone)
2. California Baby (anything SPF 30+)
3. CVS with zinc oxide
4. Jason Natural Cosmetics Sunbrellas Mineral Based Sunblock
5. Kiss My Face ("paraben free" series)
6. Neutrogena Sensitive Skin Sunblock
7. Olay Defense Daily UV Moisturizer with zinc
8. SkinCeuticals Physical UV Defense
9. Solar Sense Clear Zinc for Face
10. Walgreens Zinc Oxide for Face, Nose, and Ears

My mom has already bragged to me this morning that she uses number 3 and number 8.

Lumberjack 100

Big M Mountain Bike/XC Ski area - Manistee National Forest, Michigan

What can I say about the trip? Tons.

First off, I have to give a big shout out and thumbs up to MSR and their Hubba Hubba tent. After watching my Dad throw this thing up in a matter of minutes, I am impressed that it kept me warm and dry during the worst storm I have ever experienced in my entire life.(Dad slept in the car) I learned the next day that I camped through a tornado warning and approximately 10 inches of rain. Go me.

the race course. this is not a joke.

Next...mosquitoes. Oh. My. GOD. I'm pretty sure Manistee is the old Native American term for "don't you dare stand still or the mosquitoes will eat you alive". Thank God I brought a pair of long pants. I also brought some long shirts, but apparently sleeves were not much of an obstacle for these guys to overcome. That's one more good thing about the Hubba Hubba, it's mosquito proof. I closed myself up in my tent at 7 one night because I couldn't handle them swarming around me any longer. Ugh. I will never complain about the mosquitoes at my house ever again. Never, never.

Ok, so the whole reason for the trip - race time!

6:45am. Ready to go! Brr!








getting ready for the 3rd lap


last one!


final time through the bog (it was really nasty)






why would you do this on a tandem?


all done!

Finishing time was 11 hrs and 40 some odd minutes - way to go!
A quick race review can be found here.
My gift to dad on father's day was to drive him home on Sunday. :)

Discburner

On Saturday, I paid my dues and helped my fellow cyclists by volunteering for the Discburner. The Discburner is a 6 or 12 hour mountain bike race in which participants ride in a 8 mile loop over and over again until they die. Sometimes literally, but most of the time not literally.

These things seem pretty popular and I don't really get it.

Run to your bikes! Hurry! The race is only 6 hours long!


I was pretty lucky because I got to hang out under a tent all day in the 95 degree heat. Dave tried to make me stand at the road and direct traffic, but I said to myself, "self, there ain't no way I'm standing next to the road in the 95 degree blazing hot sun." So I said, "I hope those mountain bikers remember to look both ways before they cross the street, 'cause I'm going back under the tent." Looks like the mountain bikers remembered what their mommas taught 'em, 'cause no mountain bikers got runned over by speeding cars.


Discburner Casualty

The dude on this bike had just started his first lap and all of a sudden, his bike broke in 4 places. WTF? That's a really, really expensive bike. I went over to take a picture and the guy goes, "you can unfold it if you want"...um, ok.

yeah Dad! (ps. the oldest competitor) I think he finished 5th in the 6 hour category.


I managed to snag a good amount of free stuff. The list includes, wool socks, beer, a pint glass, and an entire box of Grape Nuts Trail Mix Crunch Cereal. YUM!!! I LOVE that stuff.

Bad news, I dented my back bumper by hitting a grill grate that was hiding in the grass while trying to avoid a large truck and a tent. Thanks for the heads up girls that were standing right next to my car and the grill....

Grow little veggies (and fruit)

The last couple of weeks I have been commuting to work by bike, but as I was pumping up the rear tire on the Surly this morning, I blew a tube. So, since I had time to kill before hopping in the car, I took some shots of the garden this morning.

But first, the commuter rig...
A burly, heavy hunk of commuting fun. It weighs in at just a bit over 24 lbs. A big change from the Tarmac.

There it is, sans front fender because I can't find a long, skinny bolt.



baby yellow squash


maters - these guys were a surprise.


the zucchini is growing like crazy. there are blooms like this all over the place


peaches - still growing very, very slowly.

Jake Gets Hitched!

On May 17, 2008, Jake (aka Rachel) married her TN House Majority Leader (aka Gary Odom) in Belle Meade, Nashville.

Proof that I can't afford to live in Belle Meade:

Umm, no, that's ok, I'll just have my limo driver make a loop around the block.


Wedding details:
The dress - Oscar de la Renta
The rock - huge! I tried to take a picture, but the ring was so huge and sparkly that my camera had a hard time focusing...
How they met - Rachel was Gary's summer intern in 2005(?). Don't quote me on that, coulda been 2006.
The band - awesome! They had choreographed dance moves and everything!
For dinner they served filet mignon. Good try, but I think that's a difficult meal to serve to so many people at the same time and do it well. I still ate it though. You know me, never turn down a good hunk a meat.
At the end of the night, there were fireworks over the golf course which I'm sure the grounds crew was super excited about in the morning.

Some pics from the wedding

First, sober

Lake Ave. together again!

The happy couple


Well, that's the end of the sober pictures. The reception was insane! Bartender Kim boasted that she could make margaritas five different ways, and I saw this as a personal challenge to try them all. Alas, I only tried two, but they were damn good.

The bride and me


The bride and Katie - rumor has it (and from a good source I might add!) that there are several paintings of Rachel in the house.


I have no idea


Get 'em, Katie!


Patrick was a lucky man, he took three girls back to his hotel room.


Who's next!??

coloRADo

After spending a good, solid week at the new house and not accomplishing much of anything, work whisked me away to spend a few days in the wild, wild west. On the agenda for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday was the biannual ASTM (american society of testing and materials) conference where all of the "cool" sporting goods engineers put on their best short sleeve dress shirts and try to impress with their knowledge of physics, biomechanics, epidemiology studies, and laboratory testing procedures. I actually counted this time, and I saw a total of four...yes, four women during the entire conference. To say I was out of place is a gross understatement, but I'm sure they love having someone around who can always say, "wow, you've been coming to these meetings before I was even born". I'm sure they love that. This time, the convention was held in Denver, so I was super pumped to have a cool place to go explore when I didn't have a meeting to attend.

8 Things I learned about Denver:

1. It's really hard to get comfortable outside. If you are walking in the shade, it's too cold, so you put on a jacket and it's too warm, so you go walk in a sunny spot sans jacket and you're sweating. Pick one.
2. Denver is flat. Like really flat, I don't think I encountered a single incline of any degree while walking around downtown.
3. No fat people
4. All of the homeless people live in the grassy area that lies between the capitol building and the US Mint.
   
   
5. No black people either
6. Punk is still alive and well in Denver. I saw many a mohawk in many a color.
7. There is a Starbucks or a Chipotle on every corner. Mmm, burritos and coffee. Actually though, my first experience at Chipotle was not a good as I had hoped, but the second, third, fourth, and fifth experiences were top notch.
8. Always be prepared for rain. Don't know if this is always the case, but in the week I was there, it rained a little almost every day.


So that was downtown Denver. Since the conference ended Wednesday, I decided to spend the rest of the week in CO to visit a couple of friends I hadn't seen in awhile. I spent Thursday and a good part of Friday with Brian, aka BK and the rest of Friday and Saturday was spent with an old friend from high school, Mike.

Brian was a gracious host even if his car did not want to cooperate with the weather. Like I said above, it rained a good bit while I was there and BK drives a Jeep Wrangler that isn't covered in the back. It was probably the most entertaining part of the trip, to see if you could avoid the water that was coming at you from everywhere. As long as you were moving it wasn't bad.

BK drove me to see just about everything you could see in Denver, we even stopped by to say hello to Buffalo Bill.




Red Rocks



Unfortunately, I forgot all about taking pictures when I went to chill with Mike in Boulder. I liked Boulder, but I'm pretty sure I could never afford to live there. Mike lives in a little run down house that costs more in rent than my mortgage. Mike showed me all the cool spots including his favorite bike route, Pearl Street, and his various workplaces, my favorites being the bakery and the bike shop.

The one picture I took in Boulder





And who was waiting for my arrival back to K-town Saturday night? Brooke? Cleo? Feedy? Coach!? T-Mad? Awwwww, you guys.




Yes, I do have cornrows in that picture. That's how I roll.