The best thing about riding trails on a cool, gloomy Thursday is that you will not have much company.
Herself’s elder sis and one of their longtime pals flew into town yesterday for a weeklong visit. I whipped up too much grub — turkey enchiladas in red chile, turkey tacos with homemade salsa fresca, and Mexican rice — and this morning I felt the need to balance my caloric budget. So I kitted up, grabbed the Voodoo Nakisi, and rolled out.
The forecast called for wind and snow, which is why I decided to log a little dirt time on the Elena Gallegos trails, just in case they turn into ice rinks, mudslides, and/or drainage channels. The NWS did not sound particularly confident in its prediction, but hey, even a blind dog finds a Milk-Bone now and then.
I exchanged compliments with a couple cheerful hikers early on as we took different routes around the same rockpile. A third reluctantly stepped aside for me as I cranked cautiously up a sketchy bit of Trail 341 that most double-boinger types ride as a descent.
Putting a foot down and waving her through, I explained that I hadn’t ridden this section in a while and was likely to intercourse the penguin right about where she was standing. She complied and trudged on down the trail, mumbling something about having been denied “a little entertainment.”
She didn’t miss much. I cleaned that sumbitch right up to the rock garden just below where 341 intersects with the Pino Trail. That obstacle has me completely buffaloed. I nearly rolled the dice but figured that I’d been lucky so far and didn’t need to break any bones with the womenfolk off raiding The Duck! City’s thrift stores for their eBay empires.
Made it home without incident, tossed a light lunch down the gullet, and started a pot of posole for the evening meal, when Herself the Elder joined the throng.
I am seriously outnumbered here. Why, I can hardly hear the voices in my head.
Tags: Elena Gallegos Open Space, enchiladas, Herself the Elder, posole, tacos, Voodoo Nakisi
March 10, 2022 at 7:54 pm |
PO’G: Quit gripin’ about the voices in your head and celebrate the women and friends in your life! 🙂
And the ability to non-dab Trail 341 while showcasing your trail courtesy and etiquette to someone who is now regaling friends with a story of civility and manners not expected in 2022!
🙂
March 10, 2022 at 8:15 pm |
I’m never in a hurry, JD, so I yield to everybody. You’d be surprised how many pedestrians automatically step off the trail when they see me coming (well, maybe not).
I tell ’em, “No, we’re supposed to yield to you.” To which they reply, “Yeah, we know, but nobody ever does.”
March 10, 2022 at 8:01 pm |
Sir, you are an oak taking care of the ladies and a stranger on the trail. How about this instead of those voices?
March 10, 2022 at 8:20 pm |
Now that is a pretty song. What some fellers can do with a guitar. I still sound like a brain-damaged monkey climbing a fence.
March 10, 2022 at 8:28 pm |
Paul Thorn is on a short list of musicians I would like to meet.
March 11, 2022 at 5:47 am |
At first listen I thought it was Marc Cohn singing. Nice tune thanks POB.
March 11, 2022 at 6:08 am |
Remember this one? It’s for the bad days that come along every now and then.
March 11, 2022 at 7:33 am |
One of my faves in a similar vein is “The Sergeant and Arthur McBride,” by Planxty.
Paul Brady does a slower, more contemplative version of the same tune. Either is great fun to play along with.
March 11, 2022 at 10:09 am |
Enchiladas, tacos, and posole? You keep spoiling your guests like that, they’re going to come back more often!
March 11, 2022 at 2:18 pm |
I will never be smart, it’s true. But what can I say? I like to cook.
March 11, 2022 at 11:18 am |
Is your better half (and her sis) now cursed with the affliction that every time she goes by a thrift store, garage sale, etc., she thinks not about what she may want to buy, but how much money she could make by going in? A curse that follows one everywhere, even while on vacation. The extent of which one plans their trip around the size of the vehicle to use so that they can get their “finds” back home to sell. In the spirit of the words of Kurtz “The ebay! The ebay!
March 11, 2022 at 2:20 pm |
Yeah, the eBay thing runs in the family. The elder sis got Herself started, and now it’s a fun thing for her to do that also contributes to the bottom line. We spent some of her income retiring the mortgage a bit earlier than we had planned. So it’s both business and pleasure.