At my 25th high school reunion my classmates and I lined up for lunch. The line next to us comprised the 50th year alumni. Overhearing their conversations, I couldn’t help but laugh. All they talked about was the diseases and operations they had been dealing with.

Of course, now that I am at the tail end of my 60s, I am finding that medical woes are the topic du jour no matter where I go. At Friday’s Coffee Club we had three shoulder impingements and one post-op rotator cuff. My shoulder impingement is an interesting diversion from my whiplash recovery (nearly complete), my lumbar spinal stenosis, my wrecked left knee (nothing new), and my recovery from carpal tunnel surgery.

Another thing that seems to be new is my difficulty in dealing with excessive heat and humidity. Aren’t old people supposed to love hot weather? This summer in the DC area has had it usual oppressive, swampy weather. Lately when I finish a ride in “feels like” 109 degrees F, I need to drink a gallon of whatever I get my hands on and take a nap.

That hourly chart makes me super glad I hired out lawn mowing this year.

The heat and humidity does provide us with some entertainment. We routinely have raging thunderstorms. The other day I was doing a 50-mile ride on Big Nellie when I came upon a tree that had fallen across the Anacostia River Trail in DC. Fortunately, a young whippersnapper (in the green jersey below) helped me by hefting my bike over the tree and sent me on my way.

Another recent storm dropped a tree from my neighbor’s property into my backyard. Most of what fell in my yard was from the top of the tree. My neighbor was not at all concerned that his rotted tree had left a mess in my yard. Thanks, pal. I decided to return the wood to its rightful owner and threw it over the fence onto his derelict property.

The other night another line of storms came through. A tornado warning was posted for the northern edge of DC about 25 miles away. I was sitting in my kitchen when the loudest bang and biggest flash went off right over my house. The floor shuddered. WOW! Somehow the lightning bolt didn’t cause any damage other than my frayed nerves.

The heat and humidity does bring some interesting flora. The lotuses, water lilies, and other marsh flowers were in full bloom at the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in northeast DC. This, combined with Friday Coffee Club, made for a nice 48-mile jaunt on Big Nellie.

Speaking of Big Nellie, I have gone full on bent, riding it for 460 miles over the last two and a half weeks. My right arm, the one with the impingement, is happy.

A week ago my wife and I signed up to use the newly renovated recreation center three miles from home. I used to go there to lift weights before the pandemic. It had a crummy little weight room but it served my purposes. The renovated weight room is massive, with brand new equipment. Lifting helped my riding, especially during my recovery from pulmonary embolisms back in the winter of 2017 and 2018. I use only upper body machines with very light weight. I concentrate on going very slowly. One interesting result is that my upper back can now comfortably lean back when I am sitting. This makes for a much more efficient and comfortable ride on my recumbent.

Tone for my nap….