Day 5 of 30: One is Greater Than Zero

I've used a phrase from my teacher, friend, and mentor (Denny Waxman - for those of you who are interested) on this blog several times before, and I'm paraphrasing: Going from zero to one is the most difficult, more difficult than going from two to three, and so on.

Today felt very much like going from zero to one, and I could use that phrase in the most literal sense in that today was my first bicycle commute during this edition of 30 Days of Biking. I made a couple excuses late last week due to cold weather and long days, and even this morning before I headed out the door, I almost told myself I was too tired to do it. A short while later, I did it anyway:

And that's the self-defeating nature a lot of us have inside of us, don't we? I'm as guilty as anyone of ignoring truths, like the truth that I always feel better on days when I ride my bike to work (in this case, with the assist of the bus). Sure, an extra half hour of sleep sounds great, but really, would that extra sleep have energized me that much more? Actually the opposite is true. I had a pretty productive day at work today after a short 4ish miles inbound.

I attempted to build off that energy by biking the long way home, which is also the safest route home if traveling completely by bike. The weather seemed nice enough, and I had ample time for once, so why not?

It turns out, going from one to two would be more difficult. While I was working in the warehouse unloading my truck and organizing for tomorrow, the wind had picked up and some clouds had started to move in. I encountered no rain, but there was now a stiff west wind blowing in my face for at least 2/3 of my ride home. For whatever reason, there were also a number of motorists who seemed adverse to my presence in legal trail crossings, including two instances with two different school busses. I'll sum it up by saying, it was quite the eventful commute.

One small silver lining was this bike repair station I passed by, which is clearly sponsored by U-Haul: 

The platform is still under construction, but there is a nice-sized canopy that could be a valuable bike shelter for future rides on the Camp Chase Trail. The more you know.

By the time I reached the bottom of this map, I turned east and was rewarded with a nice tail wind for most of the remainder of the ride:

So was it enjoyable? Absolutely not. Was it worth it? Yeah, I guess. I'll sleep well tonite. I do feel much more accomplished having done it as opposed to the alternative. The forecast looks better for tomorrow, and I'm hoping to make it 2-for-2 this week. Ya know, to avoid having to go from zero to one again.

30 Days of Biking 2021 Mileage Total: 44.3