Storm Alex, cycling, and cat-shaming

This weekend we’re getting the tail end of storm Alex which has brought a deluge to France and Italy and caused severe flooding. Yesterday we had heavy rain non-stop all day here. Elizabeth had highland dance in the afternoon and so I cycled her there in my cargo bike, Hoss.

One of the nice things about cycling is you can cycle right up to the door so Elizabeth barely got wet at all. I was nice and dry inside a poncho and pair of gum boots. I went and got some groceries while she was dancing and when I returned I was able to sit inside my bike and read a magazine.

I don’t mind cycling in the rain or the snow. The only weather that’s really bad for cycling is wind.

One of my pet peeves is when people leave their car engines running. Yesterday one of the parents pulled up outside highland dance and then sat with their car engine running for 5 minutes or more. It requires the smallest of hand movements to turn a car engine off and on again. There’s really no excuse to leave it running and unless you have an electric car then you’re poisoning all the people in the local vicinity when you leave it on. Please, if you’re one of those people, turn your engine off while you wait.

And now for some cat-shaming. Yesterday we discovered Victoria had ripped apart some insulative lining on the inside of a cupboard in the spare bedroom. My husband wasn’t sure whether it was me or the cat who’d done the damage because apparently – in his words – I like to pull apart random things around the house.

Look at that! No remorse whatsoever.

Posted

October 4, 2020

Journal

Rachel M

Tags:

Aberdeen, cat shaming, cycling, Hoss, pollution, Victoria, weather

Comments

7 responses to “Storm Alex, cycling, and cat-shaming”

Denise

October 4, 2020

There were a couple of days I didn’t want to take my bike in last week because of the wind. I read an article about which bike set ups are more wind resistant and it’s quite complicated, not as straightforward as how heavy the bike is or how high the profiles of the tyres are.

Reply
1. Rachel M
  
  October 4, 2020
  
  The wind can make cycling very hard and sometimes even dangerous. It’s better with electric assist though.
  
  Reply
  1. Katrina
    
    October 4, 2020
    
    Does Hoss have electric assist?
  2. Rachel M
    
    October 4, 2020
    
    Yes, Hoss has electric assist. I’d never make it up the hills without it.
Hangaku Gozen

October 4, 2020

Cats are shameless! And I find it hilarious that your husband thought you made that mess! That is unmistakably the work of a cat, unless you also have a ghost dog wandering your house. (My cat Sunny just huffed at me and jumped off of my lap: she must have read that last sentence as I wrote it.) Hopefully it’s not too hard to repair. Cats’ claws are remarkably sharp and tough; I’ve had mine shred drywall and canvas.

Reply
1. Rachel M
  
  October 5, 2020
  
  This is the first time the cat has done something like this. It’s not a big problem. It was just some flimsy material that had been pinned to the door.
  
  Reply
Rainey

October 7, 2020

Nice hat, naughty cat! (combining comments for two posts into this one)

Reply