Freaked Out...

is what I've been lately. Or, to eschew the vernacular and embrace adult idioms, "overwhelmed." The crazy thing is, there's nothing really going on that should produce this feeling. Maybe winter lasted a bit too long. Maybe it's the job and relentless piles of papers that loom over every weekend. Maybe it's because I volunteered to help organize a bike ride for my 25th college reunion. Maybe it's because I took this job with the Examiner.com and I'm worried about publishing 4 articles a week. Maybe it's because my son doesn't love his bike as much as I wish he did.

These are not problems. I guess it's the up-in-the air stuff like whether or not the boy got into Masterman. Whether or not I won the Tour d'Afrique trip. Whether or not we bring the dog to D.C. Seriously, the whole not being able to go away because of the dog is on my nerves. Ew, I'm a whiner and starting to annoy myself.

Yesterday, I opted out of team training and went on a 2.5 hour tour of the Wiss. A killer mix, specially made for such a ride, provided excellent background noise. My favorite combo was Bowie's Hang on to Yourself as I blasted down the twisty windy trail from the meadows followed immediately by the Dead Kennedys Rawhide as I churned up that rat bastard climb that immediately follows.

I'd like to apologize for referring to the Visit PA team as "goobers." I've been watching a whole lot of Sponge Bob lately, and as everyone knows, he and Patrick are "goofy goobers." Goober gets a lot of play in our house as a term of endearment and when I asked Drew if he was riding with "those goobers" I was in no way trying to be insulting. I'm often an ass, but not on purpose. Sorry.

I also ran into Diana and Alan who seemed to be having a whee of a good time. Always a pleasure seeing them. Ed and Amy were out in full force with a nice group. Alex Mills and I believe Ed were out too. At the end of the ride I ran into Liddell who I recognized from a distance because he was sporting that sweet super Target vest. That's a keeper.

I felt 1,000% better after this ride and feel even better today. I dragged the boy to Pennypack Park where we found some fun but easy trails. It looks like there's a little something for everyone there, and I look forward to further explorations.

The boy is going to Florida for 8 days with his best buddy from across the street. I am going to miss him terribly. Don't tell him that. He's really excited to go and I know he'll have a blast. Maybe this should be added to the list, too.