Back in the saddle

It's been a remarkably long time since I've last hit this blog. I've probably forgotten and remembered and subsequently forgotten it again several times in the past... two years? Holy shit... it really has been that long since the last post, eh?

I'm not sure anyone really cares though. A whopping three official followers, and I'm sure two of them don't exist anymore. Knowing the third in real life, I recently learned I had slighted her by ignoring her for about a year or so. Overall, I don't think many people are miffed or clamouring to their internets at the end of the day to see if this blog has updated lately. 

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In any case, not too much has happened on this end for the past couple years. Work has continued to dominate my life, imbued with the typical healthcare lifestyle stresses --poor sleep patterns, not much time for proper exercise, no time to go on dates or meet anyone in any inkling of a romantic fashion, etc. I've been taxed by the absolutely abysmal management behaviours of the 'leaders' of our healthcare system --write-ups, suspensions, absolutely zero official recognition for the multiple patients and family that seek me out upon their discharge to share how much my effort meant to them. This is sadly an experience many nurses worldwide face on a pretty consistent basis, leading me to give you the following instructions if you're ever encouraged, inspired, or generally impressed by the effort of anyone in the healthcare system:

It's not enough to tell them that they are doing a great job. Tell unit managers, service directors, VPs or CEOs!

Seriously. The person you are most impressed with is probably being reamed by management because they fight for improvements in their workplace, identify safety issues on their unit, or try to initiate change in the healthcare system as a whole. There's an unfortunate saying shared in the realm of nursing: the nail that sticks out in gets hammered down.

But I digress...

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In this same timeframe, I gained about 40-50 lbs. over two years. It wasn't a good scene. I lost touch with the saddle (cycling) in anything other than a commuting capacity. I didn't realize how much divorcing myself away from the bike reduced my horizons. After turning 30 this year and receiving a great blog about hitting your 30s from my good friend Jabes, I realized I needed a bit of a re-adjustment. I would totally suggest the blog to anyone entering their dirty-30s!

In March I started running again with some help from the always stellar Zombies, Run! app. In April I had enough saved up to buy a brand new Giant Defy 2 in order to get back on the saddle and re-discover what I'd been missing from riding over the past two years. 

Ain't she a Beaut!!

It's been wonderful: feeling the power slowly returning to the legs, the wind whipping against my face when blasting down a curving stretch of road on my way out to Sambro, or feeling the accomplishment of climbing one of the tougher hills during the Cow Bay Loop. The crush of traffic at your heels. Even points of exhaustion have been enjoyable. Feeling the strain in my quads, the sweat sticking to my back, sun pounding and stinging any exposed skin. Thinking I'm totally spent, but reaching down and finding some modicum of energy to climb off the saddle to power out the last section of rolling hills after a 50 km ride. 

Halifax itself has improved slightly in the world of cycling. We have at least one bike lane that makes a degree of sense which runs down Windsor St. (you're welcome). Drivers are getting more experienced in sharing the roads with cyclists and the NS Motor Vehicle Act now requires a metre of space between cars and bikes. Of course the rule is broken constantly, but at least there is more of just a shrug from police and a "get over it" mentality when accidents happen. Personally however, I don't really mind being close-cut by traffic. I think that comfort comes to almost everyone on a bike in time. Also, I've never been in an accident. That may also have something to do with it. 

In any case, I'll leave you with some photos as this entry is getting a little long. Hope to see more of yous out there!

Trip to TO

After looking down the barrel of a two week vacation, I asked myself, "How can I make the most of my time? You know, do something new." The answer invariably came to me in a dream in which everything in the world was being sucked into a black hole in the centre of the universe. When I woke up, for some reason, Toronto seemed the most logical choice as a place to visit. I would later make sense of this dream. While I was in Toronto, I learned that many Ontarians consider Toronto the centre of the universe.

After taking a Porter flight to Toronto City Centre Airport (quick note: if you are flying to City Centre, expect a choppy landing!), and making my way to Jabes' place in the west end (yes, my friend Jabes now lives in TO while completing a Forrestry degree), my week started off with sushi, cheesecakes, Chinese baked goods (sweet and meaty), casseroles... pretty much a weeklong food extravaganza. In fact I wound up gaining about two pounds per day while there. But I was also able to visit the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Royal Ontario Museum, various bars and pubs, and (possibly my favourite attraction) the Allen Gardens Conservatory.

I was also stunned to see that traffic in urban Toronto, ever during peak hours, is incredibly tame compared to Halifax. After taking a couple days brainstorming how a city with about 10 times the population of Halifax could have about 10 times less traffic, I've come to the conclusion that --even though subways are helpful in reducing use of the single occupant vehicle use-- Toronto streetcars are the answer. They penetrate the entire urban core (and the 'burbs to a lesser extent) so much and run so often that if you live in the catchment area of a streetcar, it would make ZERO sense to use your car for the majority of trips you'd ever have to make in your weekly schedule. As a result, you get an urban core that has a markedly reduced incidence of using their cars and clogging up the streets during peak hours when suburbanites are making their ways to work. HOWEVER, because public transit poorly penetrates the suburbs, traffic usually builds up in these areas more readily during peak hours. I really think that adding light rail transit to help people get to the more transportation-diverse urban core is a great idea. Unfortunately, it looks like the newly elected Mayor Ford is putting the kibosh on this idea. Kind of a shame, but I can't say I'm surprised.

Similarly, Halifax has a network of streetcars buried under a lot of our streets. Up until car culture invaded Canada, you could grab a streetcar from downtown Halifax and ride it all the way to the Halifax Shopping Centre. I wonder if we will ever see a mayor, or council interested in digging these things up and actually putting them to good use again. Hmmm.......

All in all, Toronto was fun and I'd like to go back in the summer sometime. Maybe grab a bike and go on a tour of Toronto (ToT?) and visit Jabes again.

Enjoy the photos!