Recovery Rides

Friends, there are reasons why you are not seeing me on the road as much these days. I would say that it is both a sad fact and an annoying happenstance that I may not be able to race this road season. My ankle's nerve, with effected area now retracted enough to allow me to wear most shoes, has put me in a spot where my legs are simply not there in strength nor ability. My job, flinging fashion at everyone that walks through the door, has me stuck in a life without rhythm. Though these two potholes have left me without much control over my riding, I will be the one to change all of that.

As most of you should know, that neuritis put me right out of the game. Put ever simply... As long as nothing touched where that nerve was screwy, I was 100%. Once something touched it, game over. I don't know how some people don't get it, but think of it like... either something is touching your elbow or it's not. That's all. Once something touched it, it either gave a tingling sensation (from a light touch) or an excruciating stabbing sensation (a rough kick). For a while there cycling shoes were out of the question. This is probably nothing new for those who have followed any bit of my lackluster cycling life the past few months. Yet, as that nerve damage has found its way out of my life, another hindrance has plagued my unsuspecting legs.

J. Crew's clothing is something I feel lucky to wear. No one needs to wear clothing that can cost this much, but some people will drop thousands in one trip to that store and it's evident that the job I have can get hectic. I'm sure many of you have worked retail before. Remember, if you will, the kind of schedule one has to keep when working retail. What schedule, you ask? Exactly. My schedule for the rest of the week is as follows:

• Wednesday - 11am-8pm
• Thursday - 11am-7pm
• Friday - 12:30pm - 9:30pm (will be later for closing)
• Saturday - 9am - 6pm

Some weeks are better than others, yet none have a predictable attribute beyond me usually opening on Saturday and probably closing again on Sunday. I get that I can ask for weekends off, or Tuesdays and Thursdays left open to train, or for some pattern that might allow me to put some training in, but that's not all that I'm after.

I am happy to have a job, but I hope you can understand how limiting (in more ways than I will mention here) a retail job like this one can prove to be. To keep this on a positive spin, I have been making strides to better my situation and am open to changes that will facilitate development in every aspect of my life. My resume has been updated and I am currently churning out cover letters and applying to places where I feel my abilities are better suited while my cycling can continue as I need it to.

Thanks for reading.