This and That

A lot going on, so here are a few noteworthy things.

Bike Riding: A little intermittent last week due to a sprained ankle, but that's feeling much better now. Today I overslept (sad face), and passed Jesse, Liz, and J on their way back. It was strange riding alone for once. Interesting fact I learned was that I have actually gotten a lot faster throughout September and October. I dropped about 15 min off the time it usually takes me to ride to the end of the path and back, which is pretty exciting. This is why I like riding with stronger guys, even if it means fake recovery days. I'm still working on how many layers to put on. The last few rides, I wore waaay too much, ironically.

LEED-NC study session: So I get off at the California stop on the Green line to get to the Chicago Center for Green Technology, forgetting what the surrounding neighborhood is like in that area. Shattered glass all over the street, boarded up windows, many open lots, loitering people in baggy clothing ... Eight blocks of that, and it was enough to get my heart rate pretty high. It's really too bad this particular building is so far out of the way. It's strange that it wouldn't be more centrally located, especially since Mayor Daley is touting sustainable design and claiming to be working towards making Chicago greener. It's so far behind Seattle though ... We'll get there eventually. Anyways, the guy leading the session seemed to think that we could realistically pass the exam with just a little extra studying, which I was mildly surprised to hear. I might reconsider taking the exam.

Shower: Since I got back from Bike and Build, I've been suffering through showers with rather low water pressure. I'd get back from rides, turn the water on, leave it running a few minutes, wash my hair first, and then MAYBE it would warm up by the end of the shower. Today, I turned it on, and it was a DOWNPOUR. Absolutely phenomenal. My dad fixed it. I guess there was lot of scale built up on the filter. It might not seem like much, but a hot shower after a cold ride is awesome.