I woke up to snowy skies and yesterday’s wind, but I was pretty much dedicated to riding my bike to the gym to go for a swim in an attempt to get back on a schedule, so that’s what I did after some reading and writing. I layered up, put on my hat and gloves, and pulled the bike out. And the wind. Wow, it was cold, and there was a thin layer of ice everywhere in the shade. I carried my bike down the stairs, put a foot on an icy spot, almost slipped, and reconsidered my dedication to taking a bike ride. I am, however, quite stubborn, so I hopped on, tried not to brake, and was on my way. I was pretty scared about losing a grip on the roads, so I rode slowly with a death grip on the handlebars that did little but make my hands tired, but there you go. I’m guessing a little more practice and I’ll feel less trepidacious about the whole business. Once I hit the main drags downtown, the roads were mostly dry and I calmed down a little. I made it down to Harbor East, locked up the bike, went for a lovely swim, and then it was time to ride back. The ice was all gone at this point, thanks to the welcome appearance of the sun, but wow, the wind was blowing straight into my face unless it was blowing to my side, almost knocking me over. I took this picture of the beautiful and brilliant blue sky as I waited for my turn to cross E. Lafayette on the way up the hill, mostly because Baltimore looked so lovely today but felt downright miserable. I dropped into an easy gear and pumped my way up the hill into that headwind, thinking to myself, “My, this is unpleasant.” Once I was home, though, I was awfully happy I’d taken the bike out for a spin. Sometimes the gratification is delayed, but thankfully, on the bike it is always there. I’ll be happy when Baltimore turns down its wind machines, though.