an old compilation tape i was listening to tonight while doing the dishes - it was cool, i'd forgotten what songs were on it, and they just rolled off into my ears, pure aural pleasure

velvet underground
waiting for my man

bob dylan
idiot wind

sam cooke
bring it on home to me

ry cooder
jesus on the mainline

mary coughlan
double cross

tom petty
yer so bad

10,000 maniacs
hey jack kerouac

aretha franklin
natural woman

the band
we can talk

marianne faithful
broken english

tom waits
yesterday is here

verlaines
joed out

Amazing what a hug can do to your mood. One of the best is face to face, a head tucked under a chin, arms wrapped around a middle, over a shoulder, and the smell of hair in your nose.

That hug just worked for me.

I spent a couple of hours yesterday afternoon cleaning and polishing my bike, oiling it and getting it all ready for the commute into work.

I am not naturally gifted at mechanical tasks. I'm not gifted at practical tasks at all. But I can take my bike apart and put it back together. This is because I have done it so many times, and made every mistake there is to make, that I've managed to teach myself things. Trial and error and error and error.

I've taken my chain off and not been sure how to put it back. I've put the pedals back on the wrong side. I've put the wrong bolts in the wrong holes and stripped the thread through trying to force them. And I've blown a tyre because I adjusted the brakes so they were rubbing on the tyre rather than the rim.

Still, it's good for my soul to get my bike ready to ride. In so many ways the bike feels like an old and trusted friend. I've cycled thousands of miles on it, in three continents. I've had it longer than I've known Debbie. I've entrusted my life to it. It fits me perfectly now.

So today I rode into work. First time in over a two years I've done that. It was a lovely morning. Calm, sunny and cool. It wasn't quite as effortless as I remember, and my bum hurts more than it should, and everyone passed me, but it was great!

The ride into work is along the waterfront the whole way. And dead flat. It felt good. Coming home I got a puncture, but that didn't diminish anything. Maybe even added to it. You ride a bike, you get a puncture. Fix it.

I'm going to try and ride 3-4 times a week to work. Good way to start and finish a day.