~it all started with a bike ride~

     A good friend mentioned to me the other day at school that he enjoyed reading my blog posts and I told him, I'm sure with a smile upon my face, that writing has turned out to be way cheaper and much easier than taking pills for depression.  

     And that is probably more true than not.  

     This blog was essentially "born of depression" although I didn't really think of it in those terms way back then.  In its beginnings, this blog was never intended to be more than just a couple of dozen or so entries to chronicle my journey on the Bike Across Kansas of 2011.  It would begin in mid-May and be finished 4 weeks later.  Well it did begin on Thursday, May 19th of 2011.  My first post was short, sweet and to the point.  It felt weird to be writing, especially knowing that others would be reading those very words that I wrote but after a few posts I got used to it.  The first one published led to about 800 gazillion others that would follow.  It is shown below.

Thursday
May 19, 2011

Bucket List Item #1-Ride the Bike Across Kansas from start to finish

Hey Everyone!  Welcome to my first-ever blog!  This summer, June 4-11, I will be riding the Bike Across Kansas and thus fulfilling Item #1 on the "Miller Bucket List."  I'll be using this blog to hopefully update my family and friends as to my progress each day.

This has been a dream of mine since the summer of 1987.  Now, at age 55, it's "now or never" for me.  My hopes are that keeping track of my journey, day by day, will empower me to stay the course and finish with the rest of the 800 or more riders that will be joining me for the week.  

As of this writing, June 4th is 2 weeks away.  Much has yet to be done in preparation for my leaving--many more miles to be ridden.  But I look forward to this journey and am anxious to share what happens to me with all of you.

Stay tuned!  :)

     As fate and "Miller Bad Luck" ( a second cousin to Murphy's Law on my mother's side of the family) would have it, I dropped out of the BAK that year at the midway point.  After nearly 250 miles of riding, I succumbed to the effects of a mild heat stroke, exhaustion and dehydration. My part of that epic journey came to a halt near the south-central Kansas town of McPherson and less than an hour's drive from my home in Hutchinson.  After heading straight to the clinic back home in Reno County and having enough IV fluids pumped back into me, the dr. said it was over.  I was to go home and rest.  I was disappointed and sorely depressed.  My blog post of June 7th that year reflected how badly I felt, not only physically but mentally and emotionally as well.  That post, the 40th one in all and shown below, gave new meaning to the old saying from the ABC Sunday afternoon program, Wide World of Sports.

"It was the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.  Heavy on the agony part."

Tuesday

June 7, 2011

What a day....

Day 5 on the BAK started out from Hoisington and was set to go to McPherson.  My day started out at Hoisington and ended up about 7 miles into Rice County on Highway 4.  I knew that I wasn't feeling good when I left this morning and about 15 miles into our ride I knew that I wasn't going to be able to ride any further feeling like I did.  Grahame picked me up and I went to the clinic here in Hutchinson.  4 hours later and bags of IV fluid I was given the "no go" from my doctor who said that blood work and UA showed the effects of mild heat stroke and dehydration.  Looking back, I felt bad last night already and shouldn't have probably ridden the 30 miles that I did today.  But I wanted to try.  I am very disappointed but I have learned that there are lots of people in this life who have made a premature trip to the cemetery because of their foolish pride.  I kind of like living still.  So I am listening to the dr. and saying "enough".  There is much I wish to tell you all about the good 5 days that I did have.  Tonight, though, I just want to rest and stay cool.  More tomorrow when I feel a little better.  God bless each of you for the words of encouragement.  I will be fine-just need to rest!  Take care all of you and I will post more tomorrow.  Peggy

     
     You know, I could have stopped writing back then and I almost did.  But I had started to see that writing out all of the thoughts that were on my mind actually was helping me to understand myself better.  In the days that came after the end of that bike ride, many more things in life would follow.  Experiences that were mine in the ensuing 3 years have provided the fodder for many a blog post.  "Old Lefty's" nearly year long saga, my life as a teacher in both Kansas and Colorado, my move to the mountains of Colorado and the accompanying homesick I initially felt here, plus a thousand other things have been written about.  Nearly 800 blog postings in all can be found on my page.  As I look back at them, there are so many that I don't even recall making some of them in the first place.  In fact, sometimes I have to go back and click on a few and reread them to even remember what they were about.  You know, I used to think that was weird.  I had written it but couldn't even recall what it was or why I wrote it.  Then a good friend told me something that made all the sense in the world to me as she said.........

"Peggy, you just had something you needed to say.  Something was troubling you, something was deep on your mind.  Once you said it and got it over with, you were able to move on.  It's a good thing that you cannot remember them all. Not remembering them all means that your writing served a purpose."

And I think that she was right.

     Many times I have been asked how long I intend to continue to write and my answer is always the same.  I will write until I have nothing left to say and even if no one on earth ever read my words, it wouldn't matter to me.  This is one thing that I do for myself. 

All things considered as hobbies go, there's one thing for certain.

It's probably pretty harmless.

 100 miles into the state of Kansas from the far western Kansas town of Tribune.  It began at the Colorado line and would continue to the Missouri border well over 400 miles to the east.  I remember how hot and windy that summer day in June was.  I may not have made it all the way but at least I made it halfway.