Wednesday’s 16 miles on the bike began with a ride to a downtown coffee shop to talk with a very interesting person.  I can’t reveal their identity or the purpose of the talk just yet, but it was a good experience for me, and I hope for them.  So we’ll see how that goes.  You’ll read about it here, assuming you keep coming back to read A Dude.

While I was there, I spotted someone else of note.  That person was Jim Hightower, the populist former Agricultural Commissioner of Texas who has gone on to be a voice for progressive politics in Texas and beyond.  My second favorite thing he ever said was at a Ralph Nader for President rally where he was a warm-up speaker.  The crowd was rambunctious, so he said, with a Texas inflection, “This rally is hotter than high school love.”  Hilarious!  My favorite thing he said was, “I was born recently, just not yesterday.”  I said hello, he was pleasant and polite but he didn’t remember me from Adam.  Funny thing, years ago he considered me to be too radical for his radio show.  Instead he got my friend on the air, largely because he was an Army veteran.  True story.

This blog is ostensibly about biking, but if you’ve noticed, I write about whatever I want.  If I ride my bike somewhere, I think it’s fair game.  After the meeting, I popped into nearby Bicycle Sport Shop to ask about a slow leak I seem to have, and then to macrobiotic restaurant, school and community center, Casa de Luz.  I frequented CdL years ago, and since it was Day 4 of eating better, I stopped in for some soup.  Entering I encountered the director of Bike Austin who was there for a meeting.  I dined at a communal table with a genetic nutritionist, civil engineer, farmer and tea server.  All interesting folks.

On the way out I had a talk with a City transportation engineer who enlightened me about some issues I have with biking around my neighborhood and other matters.  I also saw my health coach from Natural Grocers, met the director of Hill Country Conservancy, and ran into an old friend who runs a massage practice there.  So it felt like I was in the right time and place for a number of things.

This would not be possible if I had a job.  Every day I don’t have to go to work is fantastic, but also full of worry about money; I do things to forestall that.  But I also have freedom to:  rest, continue my walks, biking, yoga, blogging, healthy eating and more.  So I’m grateful for this time while also hoping for the best in terms of finding income.  Perhaps this blog can evolve into that.  What do you think?

My point is when you get out and go places out of your normal pattern, you’ll be surprised what you might find.  So get out there!

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