Inane Asylum

Well…the myrtles are gone. I came home from work on Friday and the very FIRST thing Jeannie said to me is “I found homes for the Myrtles”. Not ‘hello’, or anything like that. She has Friday’s off as she works 4 - 10 hour days…and apparently has been scheming for a while now to find homes for them. (I had NO IDEA she was looking, or that they’d be gone when I got home). She says called nearly all the pet stores in town before finding one who didn’t care what size they were (they are still ‘illegal’ size…as in under 4”). Being juveniles, they can’t be put out on display and sold. However in that one shop the lady was happy to get them. She says she has teachers looking for turtles for their classrooms. So Jeannie gathered them up on Friday unbeknown to me and took them away. I was rather sad, as I didn’t even get to say goodbye….but it’s probably for the best (she was afraid I”d be upset, or want to go get them back). So this weekend I totally took down the turtle-tank…which in itself is quite a bit of work. EVERYTHING needed to be sterilized using chlorine bleach before being put away. So now the tank is down, drying upside down in the bathtub, and later will be put into the attic most likely, along with all the amenities.

It’s bittersweet actually. Sure, they were a LOT of work. But I had really taken a shine the little creatures. They seemed quite happy in our family, swimming, swimming…always seeming to love being IN the water. The only times they really basked lately was when I had the water too cold. After the heater got it back up to temp they just hung out in the water all the time. And I fed them well…they had freeze dried shrimp and also special ‘turtle-chow’ (ReptoMin…specially formulated aquatic turtle food). And then I kept a kale leaf in the tank all the time…and they LOVED snacking on that….they’d totally eat a huge leaf down to the bare stalk in 2 days. But that’s all neither here nor there, as they are no longer my responsibility.

And so ends the time of the turtles in the dominion of Matt.

On to CYCLING! I see Boonen had a good day, winning at Ghent. And yesterday Fabian won at Harlebeke in CONVINCING fashion, seemingly picking up where he left off last year in the cobbled Classics. So…the Tour of Flanders is coming up on the 3rd of April, and Boonen and Spartacus will be facing off for the BIG ONE. I am crying in my beer that I won’t be watching it, but no matter, it should be a race of races. And hey…lets not forget that right here in the US the Redland’s Classic starts on Wednesday! I admit I don’t know who all is racing that…the last few years Lance has ridden it with his mini-team. Don’t know if the Shack is sending a team or not I’m sad to say.

And speaking of cycling, I haven’t been. Rain, rain, rain. Pretty sick of rain right now. This afternoon it FINALLY seemed to break up and we have some sun, though it’s a mite bit chilly (for wimpy rider me I mean)…I think the high today was 58. I could have gone out, but just didn’t feel like it. Lots to do today…laundry, mow/weed-whack the yard, finish the turtle-tank off the top of my head. Sure…it’s all excuses as I await warmer weather. And I won’t have to wait long…we are SUPPOSED to be in the 70’s the next few days! That will be quite a change…and one that is quite welcome too!

On a side-story, Jill Homer (her blog is “Up in Alaska”) is currently racing in the White Mountains 100…a Mountain bike race up in Fairbanks Alaska. I’ve been following her track all day, and she’s just a bit under half-way (it’s 4:15pm here in Calif). She’s been on her ‘fat-bike’ now for over 7 hours, and is right at 45 miles. Her boyfriend Beat is running the race rather than riding it, and he’s currently at 26 miles. I think they are BOTH crazy…but I love to follow Jill’s blog….she is capable of more pain and suffering than anybody I ‘know’ (never met her, but after following her blog for years now I feel like I do). It’s not a big race, I think they limit the field to the first 65 crazies that sign up each year. If you are interested, she has links to hers and Beat’s track-pages on her site. I’m always amazed at what the human can endure…but to do it on purpose (voluntarily I mean) is a whole different matter. I guess you really learn what you care capable of when you do these things ‘for fun’. Me, I know the limits of my ‘fun’ and when the fun stops, what’s the point is my take. I’m just not built to ‘test’ myself…have no need I guess.

My brother Greg does (has that need)…he is constantly doing the crazy road ‘centuries’…and his first this year is 2 weeks from yesterday…the Mulholland Challenge. Just peeked in at their website….it’s listed as having 116 miles and 13,375’ of climbing. That’s just sick if you ask me. Glad I don’t have the bug that makes me do those things…whew! I”m just not cut out for 8 or more hours on the bike. I stop having fun sometime in the neighborhood of 5 to 6 hours…after that I just want to be done.

And so…April Fool’s day is NEXT WEEK already! With that I bid you “Happy April Fools day” (on Friday).