Weather outlook

I have officially arrived at the time of the summer where I have had enough.

A high pressure system is sitting right over Arizona and yet, monsoon moisture keeps feeding up from Mexico. The result is having to deal with sweltering, June-like heat (a record-breaking 108° yesterday) along with the high humidity characteristic of July (dew points in the 60s). Yesterday, the National Weather Service issued alerts for excessive heat and severe thunderstorms simultaneously. I suppose it's better than enduring the wind and rain from hurricane/tropical storm Irene, though some of our microburst storms can be momentarily nasty. It's also not helping matters that the mosquitos are completely out of hand.

But because dealing with this weather is part of my desert rat cred, I went for a mountain bike ride yesterday and another today. Back-to-back weekend rides aren't usually on the agenda because weekday commuting inevitably leaves me too tired. I know my cycling priorities are wrong, but it's just how things are. Anyway, I opted to drive a car to work for most of last week and, lo and behold, fresh legs!

It's been difficult for me to accept that I now need more than a single night's sleep to recover between hard efforts. I often complain about this to a coworker, who, in turn, advises me on the finer points of human physiology.

Me: "My legs (or knees, arms, back, etc.) hurt."
Coworker: "Do you know why that is?"
Me: "No, why?"
Coworker: "You're getting old."
Me: "Yeah, well, fuck."

This gentleman is over decade older than I am and yet, he rides more than anyone I know. And he doesn't screw around with bike commuting or rolling over to the regional park. This guy actually takes his mountain bikes to different places and does epic rides when he gets there.

There's hope for me yet.