Work...if you can call it that...has been pretty exciting the past few days. I was sent to possibly the most oppressing place on Earth. Hawaii...

As you can see from the picture, Afghanistan's got nothing on Waikiki. (The picture incidentally is taken from my hotel balcony)

Yes it was a rough assignment: Beaches, Sushi, Weather, and Sun. Next, I'm headed to another hell hole, San Diego.

Seriously though Hawaii is beautiful. I drove around the island yesterday after work in absolute awe. I've jogged to the top of Diamond Point (which I can see from my hotel if I look in other direction) and I love the fact the everywhere you look there are wild Orchids, Hibiscus, Mango Trees and Coconuts. I wish I had some more time to go skin diving, and generally get out on the water. It'd be an expensive family vacation, but well worth it. Hopefully that inheritance from my Nigerian Prince relative I got that email from a while back will come through soon :)

It's hard work, but somebody's got to do it...

Stuck in Philly

So Lily and I are here in Philly, while Daddy is in Hawaii--Lucky lucky him...we sure wish we could have gone on this adventure

The job-sharing has been going on for almost a month now and we seem to be getting into the swing of things with the lab work and child care--this is so close to ideal and I'm loving every minute of it... I get to keep my finger in the lab work AND see my little love (and play with a very smart little one-year-old) every other day...
The kids are so great together...Lily loves watching Brent and he kisses her and is fascinated by her...it is so cute, he grins whenever he sees her

It is amazing watching both of them interact and watching how they are growing

For my sister...Lily is busy learning to sit up alone...she props herself up with her arms and can sit for about 2 mins before tipping over or forward...AND she is consistently walking forwards in her walker! yay for Lily...she is watching and focusing on everything ...and the goofball loves to look at things upside down

We just started giving Lily solid food (yum rice cereal)...she's not too wild about the rice cereal but shes getting some in her mouth and that is a start...i'm curious to see how she'll react to all the yummy home-made baby food waiting for her...I think we're going to try squash or yellow beans next week

:)

Good Old Fashioned Crafty Riding

I'm loving yesterday's stage (Satge 3) of the TdF.

Read about it here

Basically it comes down to this: Team Columbia got smart and rode away from the field. The team directors had no idea what was going on, so the other teams didn't chase because they wern't told to over the radio.

It looks like our boy Lance got some inside info from his old buddy Hincapie so he made the break. Looks like the info was also shared with the Yellow Jersey (Cancellara) in order to keep Saxo Bank from chasing. This allowed Lance to move to +40sec, which he could take today in TTT.

I love how he keeps turning the screws to Contador...That whining Spainard just doesn't get it, can't mess with Lance. He's the only top rider in the peleton during those years who hasn't been caught doping. You think he's not crafty?

Burnination

Like I said yesterday, here's that burned out '09 Neon that showed up over the weekend on the west end of the towpath. Very nice...

I love the towpath. It's flat, usually not crowded (at least during the week), dirt and cobblestones to keep it interesting, and really, really fast.

I got a chuckle yesterday riding by the bruned out car. Parked right next to it were two brand new SUVs (not burned). It was like the sight of a burned out shell of a car suprised no one...

Don't You Just Love PA?

Today in my Velo News RSS Feed there's this little gem:

Dear Explainer,

I just read in the local paper that a county judge hearing a lawsuit against the Tour de 'Toona ruled that a waiver, signed by a woman who was later injured and paralyzed in an accident at that race, will keep her from recovering any kind of damages. It's a sad case and it got me to thinking.

Now, I’ve signed more than my share of those things over the years and I always had a nagging belief that they really weren’t worth the paper they’re printed on. How many of us actually read them? How many of us actually think about them when we sign them? As one of my teammates once said, “Any lawyer worth his salt can beat one of those.”
I have my doubts, though, especially after this case. What are you signing away when you put your signature on the dotted line?

J.D. MacDonald
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Click the link above for the whole response from a very PC staff member over at Velo News. It's actually a pretty good response. To sum it up for those who don't want to read it: "If you don't agree with the waiver, it's probably best to be a spectator."

For those of you not familar with PA, it's one of the most litigous states in the US, and therefore one of the worst states to be a physician or run a business in. Primarily this is due to morons like JD who truly belive that if they get hurt they can always sue someone. There are two problems with this.

1) You signed a waiver. Even if it's poorly written ("I promise not to sue you when I crash my bike because i handle it like a Triathalete, signed JD"), no one made you sign it.

2) Sue the promoter when you wreck? What BS. You had the chance to pre-ride/drive the course. You know where the sketchy parts are. You know most CAT 4 racers suck. You understand that "CYCLING IS AN INHERENTLY DANGEROUS SPORT" and that it hurts when you crash.

Essentially what it boils down to is personal accountability. I know only a few people that have an interal locus of control. (Yeah Labrat you're one...) Get over yourselves, take responsibility for your own actions, and stop trying to turn your idiocy into profit.

It's ridiculous that someone signs a waiver in good faith believing that if they get hurt they can always get around the waiver and sue.

However it's SAD that we even need to sign a waiver...

BTW, if you get out on your bike, there's a burned out newer model Neon at the west end of the towpath. I'll take a phone pic today on the way home. Looks like someone couldn't pay their bills and is looking to collect some insurance money....