Abingdon and back again

We have been doing a bit of travelling lately. First, we were down in North Carolina a couple of weekends ago to see Next to Normal and then also to see Rachel graduate.

I (Mike) was silly and bought an iced coffee (I don't drink coffee) and a cup full of donuts holes (I shouldn't eat cups full of donuts, especially right then since my Navy physical fitness test was coming up that Friday)

Rachel is one of those blue ants!

We were able to meet a lot of Rachel's friends and hear Carson's band play. They were so good that I felt like an impostor when one of them asked me what I had majored in in college and I said "music." 

Watching the show.

When I got back from North Carolina I finally got around to decorating my office.

I (Mike) should have asked for help when moving the large pieces of furniture, especially right then since the Navy physical fitness test was coming up that Friday.

On Tuesday, Kelsey's nonprofit had an event for all of their new college scholars. While there, some of her graduating students gave her a card.

She refused to open it in front of them because she knew that she would cry.

Friday was National Bike to Work Day! Kelsey didn't have a bike...

So she just went and walked on a treadmill.

I, however, had my sister's old bike, which I have since learned is a genre of bike called a "beach cruiser." It is so called because it is designed for cruising on a flat surface. A beach, for example. For that reason, it only has one brake, located on the front wheel, and it has no gears.

Since it was National Bike to Work Day, I hopped on it around 5:30AM and promptly biked fifteen miles to work. It was mostly successful.

Except for that moment when I was reminded what happens when you only have a front wheel brake and you are going down a hill. (Please do not send concerned texts or e-mails. I am fine. My knee is fine. It looks perfectly normal now.)

Anyway, remember how National Bike to Work Day was on Friday... and how my Navy physical fitness test was also on Friday? And how I had apparently not ever used the muscles necessary to power a single-geared bike up hills until that day? 

So there I was doing the running portion of the physical test. I was out in front of my entire command trying to stay ahead of Dan, the fastest person from my ODS class, for just a few seconds. I made it through lap one of six with 1:26 split, which is exactly what I was going for, and Dan and I were running right next to each other. 

It was at that point, right after the first lap, that the long-unused bike muscles in my legs tightened up. I improvised and began running somewhat like the tin man rapidly losing his oil reserves. Unimpressed, my legs went into shutdown mode and I stopped in the middle of the track, wanting to move but finding myself entirely unable. My entire command passed me and expressed concern as I very very slowly collapsed to the ground. 

After everyone finished I explained what had happened to my skipper and she laughed and laughed (most of my office, once they realized that I had never been in any sort of serious danger, also laughed). Then she told me that I could retake the test on Monday- today- which I did. I did not bike into work today so I passed with a very wide margin. 

Over the weekend, though, Kelsey and I went to Abingdon, Virginia- a place so rural that our weather app on the way there just said this:

It's not wrong.

I had thought that Abingdon was much closer than it actually was, but we had a lovely drive through the mountains on Saturday and an equally nice drive on the way back. Plus, I got to see one of my oldest friends starring in a professional production. She has starred in many professional productions since beginning her career, but this was the first one I have been able to see.

We were very excited and didn't get any pictures of the actual theater. Just us.

And of course, a picture with the star!

We would have gotten a picture of us standing with Em standing with herself, but they shut down the lobby before she was done getting changed. 

This coming weekend we are staying right here. No more driving right now. And no more biking. Well, maybe a little bit of biking. I think I have the hang of it now and the trip to work was really very pretty. And there isn't another fitness test for six months or so, so I'm safe.