Repairs, recovery, rehab

I've come down with some kind of strange flu this week, or maybe an arthritis flare-up. It started with sore, swollen thumb joints and a stiff neck and slight fever on the weekend. Then my back and neck started to ache, causing radiating pain in my arms and left leg. I treated this with cold packs on my spine, followed by a long soak in a hot bath, then I slept rolled up in a down comforter with a cold pack for my left hip, knee and foot. My bones were feeling better on Monday, but for two days I've had a terrible swollen, aching sore throat. I'm drinking all the cranberry juice I can swallow, but it's hard to get much down.

My cat, Elvis, has enjoyed having a large, warm companion who sleeps as much as he does, but he has been sadly disappointed with my performance of other duties.

I've been curled up in this cocoon for three days now, and can hardly face going out in the cold and wet again.

The last couple of weeks I worked, the weather was threatening snow so I was riding my old K2 hybrid bike, and left my Surly at home. I'd been having some trouble with the front derailleur on the Surly - it would shift up but not down - and meant to give it a thorough clean and tune-up before the weather turned sunny and spring-like again. But I haven't had to ride regularly since I lost my job, so I've mostly put away both bikes for the past three weeks, which have brought day after day of stormy weather. Some nights the wind and rain were so heavy and constant I could go to sleep imagining I lived by the ocean, hearing waves breaking on a rocky shore.

I've never had so much trouble with a derailleur before, at least not since my first bike, which I was trying to clean and lube with WD-40 and 3-in-1 oil. There must have been fine road grit worked down in to the threads of every screw, spring and pivot point, so it was pretty well locked up when I finally got around to working on it. I replaced the cable, but fiddled and readjusted it so much that the wires split and frayed, and I had to go buy a second one and try again. Over the winter I'd been cleaning the chain and gears with Pedro's Oranj Peelz degreaser. During one rainy spell, I would dry the bike off when I got home in the evening, then clean it every morning before work. Until one day when I arrived at work after riding in the rain, and found the rear gear cassette was covered with black, gritty foam. Figuring I'd over-used too many chemicals, I switched to rinsing it with plain hot water, then drying and lubing.

If I don't get out riding more,
pretty soon my backside will look like this

This is such a strange, disjointed post. I think my illness has affected my mind. Or maybe I've just been spending way too much time fooling with the computer, looking at lists. As soon as I can brave the weather, I'll get out for an easy, scenic ride, with a stop for cofee and pastry at someplace nice.