Let's Make Some Art, Dammit

July 31, 2019. This toad is enjoying a prosperous summer in our back yard. Rest day today, watched the afternoon ballgame and puttered about. https://flic.kr/p/2gMiFb3

July 30,, 2019. Today I realized a longstanding ambition and cycled 103 km to Chesterville (pictured) and Winchester. That makes two 100K+ rides in a week, something I've never done before. I had to wait out a thunderstorm in Finch and was rained on by those dark clouds you see in this photo. https://flic.kr/p/2gLzM4F

July 29, 2019. No ride today as I rand some errands (including a run to the city), picked up my bike wheel and a new seat, visited my parents (who were not home, alas), wrote and submitted a paper, and took this photo on our milkweed plants in the back yard (which are now producing seeds). My 50mm lens is working again - I had missed it so. https://flic.kr/p/2gKLUbq

July 28, 2019. I took the gravel bike into LaRose Forest today. It didn't really go as planned, as one trail after another turned out to be impassible. I finally found the mountain bike trail, which was a workout, and then some gravel trail I'll try LaRose again - it's a matter of knowing where to cycle (the online maps don't help at all). https://flic.kr/p/2gJQcwb

July 27, 2019. Today's bike ride was cut short at 37 km by another broken spoke, but not before I got the chance to watch these farmers harvesting grain the old fashioned way. They're preparing for a world record threshing event - thereview.ca/2019/04/23/event-hopes-to-bring-threshing-wo... - and yes, I'll be there. https://flic.kr/p/2gJ8qrb

July 26, 2019. Today was Costco day, and then we went back into the city to watch an @OttawaChampions game. Good game, nice crowd, and the BenWings chicken wings are delicious. https://flic.kr/p/2gHzcMt

July 25, 2019. My plan was for a 100K ride to Cumberland, but I broke a spoke in Limoges and changed my plans. After a quick repair in Embrun (thank you @VeloXpress ) I headed west to Osgoode, where I had lunch across the street from this cute building). It was pretty hot coming home, but I had no incidents. 107km on the day. https://flic.kr/p/2gGSAx5

July 24, 2019. Rest day spent mostly editing images from the Raisin River. And getting myself ready for tomorrow... https://flic.kr/p/2gGRJow

July 23, 2019. I had a brilliant day today cycling from the mouth of the Raisin River upstream all the way to St. Andrews West, on the south branch, and back, on the north branch, a distance of 70 km. I felt great the whole way and could easily have cycled several hours more. I took dozens of photos of this historic Ontario region, including villages like Lancaster, Williamstown, and Martintown. https://flic.kr/p/2gFuiug

July 22, 2019. For most people, filling out a form is something they do quickly. For me, it's an all day affair filled with fear and trepidation. Today's form involved searching for documents, replacing a failed printer, a trip to the post office, and more. So, no bike ride. These are Japanese beetles eating our raspberries. https://flic.kr/p/2gEDJPJ

July 21, 2019. These white puffballs are hydrangeas in our back yard. I took a day off cycling to rest and watch the ball game. https://flic.kr/p/2gECC3Z

20, 2019. I went for a 60 km ride today to Vars in extreme sweltering heat. Despite that, I had one of my fastest times of the year. This is the storm that would hit us about a half hour after I got home - howling winds, torrential rains, thunder and lightning, even a tornado warning (no idea if or where it hit). This is the Nation river about 5 km from home. https://flic.kr/p/2gD4pVQ

July 19, 2019. I cycled 67 km to Monkland and back today on what was a very hot day. I encountered sheep dude on the way home. It wasn't the easiest of rides today; people were driving very badly. https://flic.kr/p/2gCqJTp

July 18, 2019. We saw these cedar waxwings in our back yard - it was a bit hard to get a decent photo because of the morning lighting. They were lined up for the blackcaps (black raspberries) lining the deck. Today was a rest day as my late night earlier this week caught up to me. That also meant it was a Costco day. https://flic.kr/p/2gBKrnW

July 17, 2019. I took a bike ride to St.Isadore today and, because I felt pretty good, spent time exploring the roads north of the river at Casselman, which is where I was to take this picture of our village downstream from the falls. 56km in all. https://flic.kr/p/2gB4bK8

July 16, 2019. These lilies in our back yard reach up to my eye level, which makes the plants 5 1/2 feet tall. Pretty impressive. No bike riding today as I spent the entire day - from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. - writing my art article . https://flic.kr/p/2gB4rwt

July 14, 2019. Because I had two brand-new Gator-Skin tires on my road bike I decided to try traversing LaRose forest. That proved to be a mistake - going through one way went OK but on the way back I hit some sharp gravel that shredded the inner tubes on my front tire. Two flats later my efforts at patching the tubes were failing. So thanks to the kindness of a stranger I was rescued from the forest and driven home. Only 40 km today, therefore (and a similar number of mosquito bites). Lesson learned: any future biking in LaRose will be on the gravel bike. https://flic.kr/p/2gyPuec

July 13, 2019. This was a Costco day - where I say these tulips - and a rest day spent taking a nap and watching the ball game. The cats are overjoyed that we have returned. https://flic.kr/p/2gyxpCk

July 11, 2019 https://flic.kr/p/2gwGyGM

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July 11, 2019. Because I am very very stubborn, I decided to take the same route that I failed to complete a couple of days ago. Though the mountain threw everything it had at me - including a raging thunderstorm - I kicked. Its. Butt. 80 km, including 21 in thunder and rain. But the rel prize for the day belongs to Andrea, who decided to take the trail down from the top of Mont Tremblant. So while I was sheltering from the storm in a restaurant in Labelle, she was hunched up against a granite rock face half way up the mountain. But we both made t back, wet and happy, and now we're going for pizza. https://flic.kr/p/2gwDH9B

July 10, 2019. Still at Mont Tremblant. Got both tires on my bicycle fixed but didn't really feel up to a ride, so we took the gondola to the top of the mountain and looked at butterflies and walked up and down hills (which wasn't really easier than bike riding). https://flic.kr/p/2gvXLQj

July 9, 2019. In this photo I've looking back on Mont Tremblant as I set out for a bike ride to Riviere Rouge. It would have been an epic 85km ride, but I wore out my tire through the tread until it exploded with a fitful BANG at km 55, on the way back. Still, a great day of riding. https://flic.kr/p/2gvG5nM

July 8, 2019. We are in Mont Tremblant for the week to enjoy the mountain scenery and the blues festival. This is what we saw on arrival, the acoustic jam on the main stage, https://flic.kr/p/2guW7cX

July 7, 2019. I rode the 25 km to Maxville in near record time, so I took the long way back, through Moose Creek, stopping at the “Menzies McRae and Family” Recreational Trail, which is where I photographed this beauty. It was a perfect day for cycling, just a little cool, bright sunny skies, and a light wind, and I did 58 km. https://flic.kr/p/2gtwD1t

July 6, 2019. I took a day off cycling to let myself recover. I've been in a generally down mood today (I have to stop thinking about work, it just depresses me). This is creeping jenny in our back yard. https://flic.kr/p/2gsKio7

July 5, 2019. Today's ride was to Russell and back. Humidex: 40 degrees or more, distance: 55 km. It was my fastest run of the year and actually felt pretty good most of the way. That's about it for today. https://flic.kr/p/2grZ4BZ

July 4, 2019. Spotted this interesting rose (?) in Warwick Forest, where I had lunch on my 54 km ride on a sweltering 32 degree day to Finch and back. That was pretty much my day, though I also did a newsletter and spent some time looking for ways to synchronize a desktop-based MySQL with a cloud-based one. https://flic.kr/p/2grhATn

July 3, 209. We ran some errands in the city - including a trip to the camera shop to get the sensor cleaned on the D750. This mastodon lives just outside the Museum of Nature in downtown Ottawa. https://flic.kr/p/2gqBLEV

July 2, 2019. I went on a 67 km ride today, tacking the loop to Vars that gave me a lot of trouble the last time out. This time was much better - I added an extra segment that took me to Bearbrook (on Russell Road) and despite 32 degree heat managed just a shade under 20kmph average speed, which is pretty good for me. https://flic.kr/p/2gpS7Xx

July 1, 2019. It was a brilliantly beautiful summer day and we went to the baseball game featuring Ottawa Champions against the Shikoku Island All Stars. It was great watching the Japanese players and we also enjoyed the culture and festivities. https://flic.kr/p/2gpxpXM