It’s the end of the first day of our MABDR trip. We jumped on the route in Harper’s Ferry on section 5 this mornin and are 1/3 through section 6 as I sit here by the fire, drinking some warm tea out of my very flimsy rubber collapsible cup, thinking back on what a fantastic day it was. One full of plenty of humor and amazing scenery.

One of the riders in our group had his mind set at leaving Charlottesville, VA at 6am this morning so we showed up at our meeting location around 5:40am. We pair all of our intercoms successfully after some trial and error and headed north.

After approximately two hours of riding, we stopped for breakfast at a little cafe and then continued on to join the MABDR at section 5 in Harper’s Ferry.

Only two of us went down today; me being one of those. I ruined yet another pair of nice pants to a tear caused by gravel and the blood that later soaked in to it. My bike sustained very little damage. One of the panniers was bent and became loose but it should last the rest of the trip until I have an opportunity to repair it when I return home.

I’m going to bed now so that I’m well rested tomorrow for the long, and possibly rainy, day ahead of us.

VDOT here in Charlottesville has gotten a little lazy when it comes to picking up their construction signs after the road work they are performing is complete. On my short drive home from church tonight, I spotted two abandoned signs, one of which has been there several weeks since the concussion of the work. Both of which have no relevance to the conditions of the road.

After I finished work and spent a few hours working on a few projects today, I had a few options for how I could spend the last little bit of time of my day. I decided to read a book instead of watching YouTube videos and I’m so glad I made that choice. The time spent was so much better used reading than watching a YouTube video for a number of reasons. It was relaxing, taught me a lot more than I would have gotten from a video, made me feel like I had spent the time wisely, and did not suck me in like endless videos do.

I hope to make this a pattern.

Ball point pens are the standard. You see them everywhere. They are cheap, really don’t take any skill to use, and are disposable which is just what most Americans like. But a few months ago when I learned about fountain pens, I decide to give them a try.

It turns out that they are actually quite popular among writers and calligraphers. They provide a unique feel when writing that’s unlike any ballpoint pen I’ve used, requiring very little pressure. They are also very cheap to refill and the fact that you can buy cartages that you can put whatever ink you want in them is pretty interesting. They are usually more expensive to buy initially than a ballpoint and require a little getting used to but I have found them to be very enjoyable to use.

I’m currently using the very popular “Platinum Preppy” that is available for around $5. I own four that I have scattered around the house and one at the office. I currently have almost 20 refills which can be purchase for about $0.50/refill. I might upgrade to a Lamy Safari soon but right now I’m happy with the Platinum Preppy and it’s nice having several that are all the same.