Near the beginning.

One week-ish to liftoff and blackberry winter hit.  I expected/hoped that since March had both come in AND gone out like a lamb and because Dogwood winter was a bit of a fizzle, that blackberry winter (sometimes called Rose winter) would do the same.  Frankly, I didn't even consider otherwise.  However, the bramble berry buds are full and rose blooms abound down the  mountain in Asheville and much to my surprise and disappointment, the temperature has gone down and the wind has picked up as winter slipped in the backdoor for one last kiss.
It will come as no surprise that all this coolness has sent me back to the closet for another look at my collection of winter cycling gear.  My revised clothes bag weighed in at a whopping six pounds!  This may not seem like much, and in truth it is not...until it is compared to the counterbalancing weight of a three season down sleeping bag with polypropelene bag liner (4 lb 12 oz).  Some sacrifices had to be made.  So, here is the current packing list collectively referred to as "my clothes" :
2 pair cycling shorts (circa 2011)
1 short sleeve cycling jersey (very bright yellow)
1 sleeveless cycling jersey
1 windbreaker and 1 vest (both yellow)
1 pair legwarmers
1 pair armwarmers
Rain jacket and pants (took forever to find rainpants that weren't yards too long...thank you teamestrogen.com)
3 pairs of wool socks (1 long, two short)
1 pair Gramicci quick dry pants (not the most flattering fit, but I'm no Cosmo model)
1 wool knit knee lenght skirt
1 long sleeve wool shirt
1 short sleeve polypro shirt
base garments of polypro or wool (merino, of course)
cotton PJ shirt and shorts (I promise I can keep it dry)
1 hat and 1 pair of warm gloves
Purple crocs for wet and flip flops (naturally).........totalling 5.3lbs

In addition, my panniers will be loaded beyond reasonable measure with:
"the Kitchen" which is a trangia alcohol stove with full windscreen, one pot, one skillet, H2jo coffee maker, 2 plates which double as pot lids, spatula, spoons, forks, knife and cutting board, assorted nalgene containers
food (of course) and water
bath kit and quick dry towel
9 x 12 tarp (camo on one side and green on the other...almost red neck enough)
sleeping pad and sleeping bag sans dedicated pillow (see clothing list above, it doubles as a pillow)
bicycle cover
10"netbook and charger ("it's a mini!") with neoprene soft  case
smart phone, MP3 player and USB based interchangeable charger, maps and super important paperwork
headlamp

Sam's panniers will carry the following items, which looks like a smaller list but really isn't.
His clothes and rain gear
bicycle cover
portable shower and dromedary bag
bath kit and quick dry towel
tent / groundcloth
sleeping pad and sleeping bag
alcohol stove fuel
food and water
water filters
headlight and headlamp
bicycle tools
official team Whitaker 2012 Trans Am tour camera (we share joint custody).

Back the way we came.

We arrived, nearly three week ago, well after dark on a Saturday and went straight to bed.  On Sunday, we arose to discover that Hosta had taken over yard.  We usually come up in the late summer and cut the bloom stalks off before they drop seed, but we missed it two summers ago and there was a short but comprehensive carpet now.  They are a type of plant called ‘monocot’ (like grass) so if you recall the way thick corn roots spread in all directions you can imagine how time consuming it was.  To make matters worse, the hosta had gotten quite cozy with some plants we wanted to preserve…smallish irises, huechera and columbine so in some places they had to be teased out with a tent stake. 

In their defense, I should say that the Hosta got here honestly.  Sam planted them, with my approval, of course.  Regardless, it was clear they had to go so I dug them up and Sam harassed the rich soil from around the roots.  They are, as I write, on their way to being compost.

But first things had to come first so the Hosta were around to witness our gypsy return and subsequent unloading of all manner of Whitaker family accoutrement from the at-maximum-capacity car and a 17 foot full-to-the-brim Uhaul (temporarily named ‘the beast’).  See picture.   I’m glad I took the time to label the boxes so each room could get equally piled up and unnavigable and all entrances could be fully obscured from access.  The beast was due back on Monday at 4:24pm and after dropping some large items at the Habitat for Humanity store, we made it back with 13 miles to spare but exactly zero surplus minutes. When we dropped it off, the check-in clerk opened the back and said, “this smells like a barn. ”  But what happens on the road, stays on the road so I will say no more than it didn’t smell like a barn to me.

Combining two homes worth of stuff and the necessary culling and many subsequent additional trips to make thrift store donations….I don’t even want to talk about it.  Let’s just leave it at men and women have different priorities. All this moving stuff around was making me hungry.

  You know me, so you know finding vendors for our preferred foods was high on the priority list.  Asheville has 2 Earth Fare locations and one Whole Foods plus a food co-op but no Trader Joe’s so buying nuts and dried fruit just got a lot more expensive.  Recently, I went to Whole Foods to get more Jerk rub (for chicken) and found 17 quadrillion kinds of local micro-brewed beer but not the jerk.  A clerk said, “we’re such a small whole foods that we don’t have room to stock everything a larger store can.”…great. And while I’m griping about this Whole Foods, let me just say that a breakfast bar without bacon cannot be properly called a breakfast bar.  But that’s just my opinion.