I’m back from a bike-less trip to California. It was a bit odd, going five days without riding a bicycle, but I think my knees appreciated the rest, and though I didn’t need it, Los Angeles traffic reminded me that I prefer riding a bicycle around to sitting in a car any day. I returned home to some seriously humid weather, and tonight’s ride to the coffee shop found me caught in the rain. Again. I watched the rain from my table, thinking about how dramatic weather is in this town. I mean, the sky was lighting up, clouds were crashing, and buckets and buckets of rain were coming down. But the great thing about that dramatic weather is that if you wait, it will stop. It let up enough for me to zip home, where I was greeted by this little guy. I hear these frogs in my neighborhood and yard all the time, but I hardly ever get to see them. He freaked me out a little, but I decided to go ahead and make friends with him. We both seemed pretty content to be home. Southern California was delightful, especially bobbing around in the Pacific and eating fish tacos and lying in hammocks. But I’m glad to be home, largely to be back on my bike.