Stupid Cable

So Friday morning, I noticed that my console into Amazon was slow. I did a couple of speed tests and found my upload speed was horrible, somewhere around 10kbps. Almost unusable.

Called the cable company, after 20m and talking with the agent. Hangup. Great. Have to start over with someone new. 

Decided to try the "chat" feature. Couldn't make it work. Tried it in Microsoft's Edge browser instead of Chrome. Worked awesome. Worked with an agent for some more time. Eventually, I'm standing in the corner where the cable modem is, he wants me to reboot everything, including my computer. OK, but I'll lose the chat. He makes me reboot anyway.

So after everything restarts, chat is now off for the day. I have to call again.

Get a hold of an agent. Same song and dance. I get annoyed and don't want to do that. He remotely reboots modem. Says speed from his end is fine. I ask what kind of test he's running because depending on the path, you can get a false success. He doesn't understand, I've gone off script.

Finally set up an appointment for a tech. I want to make sure I cancel because when someone else complains or some other test is run, a piece of their equipment will reboot and everything will be fine. "That isn't what happens." Yeah, sure. I work in IT. I know how it works.

Decide to check up on my modem. It reached End of Life two years ago. It is probably still fine, but if that is the case, the cable company will still blame it. Get Ellie to order me a new one. *cough* expensive. (My kids have prime. I don't.)

We suffer with crappy internet all weekend. My kids, used to gaming, are all kinds of ticked off.

Sunday morning. 9am. Internet is gone. Not just slow. Gone. Great. New modem is scheduled to arrive at 11am. Amazing. 

10:45. Internet is back on. Full speed. F'ing thing happened just like I expected. They rebooted their equipment and it is fine now.

11am. New modem arrives. Now have a debate on if I need this expensive modem just so I can stay where I'm at. Tracy convinces me to replace our old modem.

9am Monday, replace the modem.

Technology sucks. Especially when you understand it.

Also, next time they try to convince you that a rented modem is better than your own, they lie. They control the entire thing and it is their protocol. They do all the updates and configuration.

A Weird Way I Learn

 I watch train videos. I mean, like cameras set up in the cab of trains and record the train's going down the track. I really have no reason to do such a thing but I do see some interesting things. I think it calms me in a way. I mean, in my cube at work I had three monitors and one of them was running a train video off Youtube, unless I needed it for coding purposes. I would get the random person walk by and notice it and ask me what it was. (Hmmm, maybe I used it for a conversation starter too.) Back in 2019, I was riding the rails across Russia, doing the whole Trans-Siberian Railroad. Dang, I learned a lot from that. Anyway, this is another story.

So lately, I've been riding the railroad in Southern France. I don't know why that struck me as interesting but there I was, noticing what that part of that country was like. It was gorgeous. So anyway, I'm tooling around and if I see anything interesting, I go to maps and see if I can find it. In the early part of the video of this particular train ride, I noticed water along the side of the tracks. I figured it was a canal of some sort, as I've done plenty of bike rides along canals here in Illinois. I didn't think too much of it. It didn't even spike interest for me to look it up on the map or even the history. 

BTW, later in that train ride it goes on the high-speed rail section to Paris. 320 kph! That is impressive. I also looked up the TVG network and how they connect to cities, as at that speed, you don't go through city centers. Dang impressive what they did there.

Anyway, along comes a couple videos from The Tim Traveler. I love this guy. ,He seeks out strange little facts about places and I enjoy his work. This time, he talked about a canal, in Southern France. Hey, I've seen one of those. This was about a canal that had a large number of locks in an area and a guy wanting to see if he could make that an easier transition. 

Here it is on Google Maps.

While it took me a bit to understand what this was, I was also fascinated that the canal that I saw in the train video was part of a system that connected the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. Fascinating, I didn't know anything like that existed. I don't think it is in use now, but wow, 

A little while later, he posted another one of these beasts.

Here that one is on Google Maps.

I think it is kind of ingenious. Making a moving canal to take boats up a slope. And the second video explains it better. 

I learned a lot about France by paying attention to some online people and checking things out on a map. I don't think I'll ever get there in my lifetime, but I do feel smarter by watching these things.

Some more weirdness:

The Great and Spacious Building

"Let go of what you know and honor what exists." 
--David Bazan

In the religion of my youth-middle age, there's a parable, story, or tale about a vision that involves a large building. In it are people that are mocking those that have chosen a particular path in life. In this case, it is laughing at those that chose to follow Jesus.

26 And I also cast my eyes round about, and beheld, on the other side of the river of water, a great and spacious building; and it stood as it were in the air, high above the earth.

27 And it was filled with people, both old and young, both male and female; and their manner of dress was exceedingly fine; and they were in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come at and were partaking of the fruit.

28 And after they had tasted of the fruit they were ashamed, because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost.

 I mention this because I found that these verses had exerted a good deal of control over my search for, if I can call it this, reality. I didn't want to feel shame over my beliefs or how I had chosen to live my life. But here's the rub. I learn by reading, asking questions and being convinced of particular stances. One of the greatest thing people can do is ask, "Why?" I had come to the point of asking "Why?", not only of those that were educating me on my chosen beliefs, but also to swim across that river of water and ask of those in the building, "Why?"

I think a lot can be learned by questioning your own beliefs. You can also ask those you know, love and respect in other things, why they hold different views about life, love, family, etc. I asked those that were knowledgeable in diverse things, "Why are you laughing at those over there, eating?". I asked that metaphorically, of course. They had their reasons. They also asked me to test things out. Their attitude wasn't of mocking. Most had been there and had struggled with the same things I did. Now, maybe their paths were different but they also were once believers. At some point, they just couldn't anymore. They wanted something that was real, concrete, consistent.

I just mention this because, while the imagery is good, the premise is flawed. There are some things that people believe that are ridiculous. Christians can ridicule Hindus. Muslims can ridicule Christians. Lutherans of the Right-side Synod ridicule Lutherans of the Left-side Synod. We all spend our time in the Great and Spacious Building. 

I want to honor, for the current time, that which is real. I want evidence and proof and something I can grasp with mind and body. For now, that is what my brain needs. I lived with faith for many decades. I just grew tired and needed firm ground beneath me. I have no need to mock. While from this perch, I might not fully understand what took me so long to get here, but I'm here now. No reason to point at others and laugh. I appreciate and respect most people on this planet, but beliefs are open for discussion.

It is a good thing to ask, "Why?"

 

Cold Fire

While dropping off Ellie for her internship, I popped in some safe Rush into the radio and the song Cold Fire came up. I can't say that it is the most memorable song but it struck me this particular morning. For me, the song is about daters/lovers discussing their views of life with the female of the pair being more forceful in stating her outlook.

And it reminded me of a discussion I had with Tracy just the previous night. I paraphrase my observation, "There's a fine line from being viewed as insecure and my showing respect for all you do and having your own time and your not having to deal with my demands and requests."

So there's this negotiation that happens in a relationship about views and time and discovering what the other needs to have a meaningful life. While I've become more deft at doing this with someone who has shared her life with me for over 30 years, I can still appreciate what others that date have to do to be comfortable with the process. And I am more than aware that I go through a similar negotiation with my non-romantic relationships too. I like to talk about a lot of things that many are not comfortable discussing and I have to find out what limits exist there too.

I was told once by a former classmate that she never expected someone in her past to be so romantically minded. While that might be true, the execution of my thoughts and feelings are definitely lacking. And I know the difference between the "ideal" and reality. As the woman in the song states, "This is not a love song. This isn't fantasy land."

It was long after midnight
When we got to unconditional love
She said sure my heart is boundless
But don't push my limits too far.

I said if love is so transcendent
I don't understand these boundaries
She said just don't disappoint me
You know how complex women are.

...

It was just before sunrise
When we started on traditional roles
She said sure I'll be your partner
But don't make too many demands.

I said if love has these conditions
I don't understand those songs you love
She said this is not a love song
This isn't fantasy land.

Don't go too far
The phosphorescent wave on a tropical sea
Is a cold fire
Don't cross the line
The pattern of moonlight on the bedroom floor
Is a cold fire
Don't let me down
The flame at the heart of a pawnbrokers diamond
Is a cold fire
Don't break the spell
The look in your eye's as you head for the door
Is a cold fire.

I'll be around
If you don't push me down too far
I'll be around
If you don't push me down.

Last Ride of the Year, Unfortunately

 

My last ride of the year wasn't meant to be this. I was going to finish up, and I had been shooting for, a 120-mile ride that started by Wisconsin Dells and finished in one of my favorite cities, Winona MN. But I was tired of trying to convince Tracy to do an over-nighter in the age of Covid and as I was so dependent upon her for these, I guess I would just have to wait. So I tackled Military Ridge. It was a shorter trail, about 40 miles or so, and to make it more interesting, I didn't start at where it merged with the Badger State Trail and where I started that trail. Instead, I looked at the map of Madison and found a pathway that should be interesting through the town. 

I started at Olin Park, on the right of the map, and I would go north on the causeway and then get on the main path past the University and down to where the path started to head west on Military Ridge proper. I want to start off that I thoroughly enjoyed Madison. It looks like a nice place to live. Aside from some snark from my wife about parking where my journey began, knowing full well how my insecurities rise for putting her through this nonsense, the start was inconsequential. I think one of my knots gave out on the bike rack and I dragged a line for some time and it was shredded but the rack was still usable. That is one regret I have, not having a proper bike rack on the car.

Anyway, the causeway was a nice ride. I had to stop a few times to take pictures. You can see the capital also in this shot, as well as the skyline.

When I reached the other side of the causeway, I was joined by a woman on a bike that helped me with the signal to cross. It wasn't obvious on what to do to activate it. She was a pro in more ways than one. She had a trailer attached to her bike and she was a vet and that was her transport around town. I had an idle thought on what she did in the winter but the light was green and she was off. I had a general idea where to go but I decided to follow her for a bit because if anyone knew the pathways around town, she would. She led me up a side-street and an ally and a short path and boom, I was on the path I wanted to go. In short order, I went past the old rail station that appeared to be under rehab for shops or a museum. I couldn't tell which.

I also got to nerd out going past the University. Yeah, I stopped to take a picture. Some co-eds walking by probably thought "Grandpa's doin' grandpa" but I don't care. Shortly after this, Amy Shira Teitel, one of my intellectual heroes, posted this so I don't feel so bad.

I also passed by a diner I've wanted to eat at for years. There it was. Huh.

The rest of the ride through Madison was pretty and uneventful. I was mostly trying to be inconspicuous as Covid was in full bloom and I didn't want to breathe on anyone and the paths were somewhat crowded.

I wish I could give a good impression of the path, but it was very similar to the Badger State Trail. but had more turns. There were a few more "free libraries" along the way and smaller towns had parks along the way for riders to rest and recuperate. Tracy wanted to find a few places to shop along the way as a few of the towns were unique in crafts and arts but I don't think she was successful. 

There wasn't a whole lot to make the path memorable along the way aside from a nice park in Klevenville, a town of three houses with its own free library and a nice diorama showing how important the town was once.

Ridgeway was the nicest town for me. I was getting winded and they had redone the old depot and a nice park was alongside the trail. Going out of town, a nice church greeted me. 

The last leg of the path was the most brutal. It was like they decided to make it more difficult. The path started having more severe slopes, it had some paved stretches but then it broke up into potholes and macadam gravel. At one point, I wasn't sure if I was still on the path as it seemed to take a tractor path through a field and went awful close to some homes. I didn't want some guy running out of his house wanting to shoot me for trespassing. but it did settle down for a bit as it was to the side of a major highway and soon I saw Tracy parked in a DNR lot and I knew my ride was done. Dang, I needed a drink. I would have killed for a Dr. Pepper right about then. I think we did find one in town.

The ride home was a bit more interesting. I had placed her 40 miles outside of Madison and the best way of going home was a diagonal on the back roads. It was an adventure by our tame standards.

And so ended my year of biking. I still need to take a few more trips in Wisconsin to do the paths I want to do. Hopefully this death and sickness will leave us next year and we can go about our lives easily once again.

Who's the Horse's Ass that Came Up with This?

 The US standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. That's an exceedingly odd number.

Why was that gauge used?

Well, because that's the way they built them in England, and English engineers designed the first US railroads.

Why did the English build them like that?

Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the wagon tramways, and that's the gauge they used.

So, why did 'they' use that gauge then?

Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they had used for building wagons, which used that same wheel spacing.

Why did the wagons have that particular odd wheel spacing?

Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels would break more often on some of the old, long distance roads in England . You see, that's the spacing of the wheel ruts.

So who built those old rutted roads?

Imperial Rome built the first long distance roads in Europe (including England ) for their legions. Those roads have been used ever since.

And what about the ruts in the roads?

Roman war chariots formed the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match or run the risk of destroying their wagon wheels. Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome , they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing. Therefore the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches is derived from the original specifications for an Imperial Roman war chariot. Bureaucracies live forever.

So the next time you are handed a specification/procedure/process and wonder 'What horse's ass came up with this?', you may be exactly right. Imperial Roman army chariots were made just wide enough to accommodate the rear ends of two war horses. (Two horses' asses.)

Now, the twist to the story:

When you see a Space Shuttle sitting on its launch pad, there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are solid rocket boosters, or SRBs. The SRBs are made by Thiokol at their factory in Utah . The engineers who designed the SRBs would have preferred to make them a bit fatter, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. The railroad line from the factory happens to run through a tunnel in the mountains, and the SRBs had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than the railroad track, and the railroad track, as you now know, is about as wide as two horses' behinds.

So, a major Space Shuttle design feature, of what is arguably the world's most advanced transportation system, was determined over two thousand years ago by the width of a horse's ass. And you thought being a horse's ass wasn't important? Ancient horse's asses control almost everything and....

CURRENT Horses Asses are controlling everything else.

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Trail Number Two Out of Three, I Guess

 

This is the trail that caught my attention that first time in the winter. I noticed that there was a trail in Freeport, Illinois that headed north and then I followed it a bit north and saw it joined up with a trail in Wisconsin. So it was the Badger State Trail. Cool. Did a lot of looking at the satellite pictures and reading up on it. There was a tunnel in the middle of the trail and it was a long one, the longest I'd ever been in. You couldn't see the other end because of the curve. So in the pack that I ride with, I always keep a flashlight, just in case.

The morning started out with the ride up to Madison. There would be a southerly wind and I wanted to make sure the wind was helping me. While I can ride for long distances, I am intolerant to slope and wind. My muscles get pretty shot around 20 miles and there just isn't enough umph in them to do much other than pump my legs at a constant rate. There was a Home Depot along the trail, close to what would be called the "beginning" but there wasn't a clear "beginning" of the trail because Madison has a lot of interconnected trails. I figured heading south from there would keep me on the right path. 

Pfft! I wasn't on there for half a mile before I took the wrong turn and started heading downhill. It would be a bummer if I took the wrong turn...better check. Nope. Wrong one, back up the hill and take the left trail. Ok, nice and flat, like a rail-trail should be.  I passed over the trail I was on previously and up and over a bridge over a major road...and there ya go. A trail closed sign. There was a sign redirecting me to another trail, one that went back where I came from, down the hill and back on the path I originally took. Dang. Wasted energy. I need to go almost 60 miles today and already wasted minutes. The detour signs directed me down the Military Ridge Trail, one that I planned to do later in the summer. So the detour eventually took me down into a parking lot into an industrial park. There weren't a lot of signs from there and I hoped I was on the right way. The road was undergoing resurfacing and was a mess and I was on this side road with dump trucks going by. I did a couple more checks on Google Maps and I did see maybe a way to where I was heading. I needed a right up here with a left a bit later.

The right turn led me straight up another hill. I hit the lower gears and stayed on the sidewalk because this road was narrower and cars lined the road. I'd be more vulnerable to an accident if I stayed on the road. Dang it was tough going, and I was still not sure if this was the right way. The signs weren't clear or even present. Eventually, the sidewalk became nothing but an upward trend with lots of smaller hills to conquer as it hit every driveway. The road had widened and the cars no longer were parked on the street by the time I hit the apex. I still wasn't all that sure of where I was. Then another biker pulled up besides me and she mentioned how much she hated the detour. I told her I was just relieved to see her as now I knew I was on the right way. She told me at the bottom of the hill again, there was a sharp left and then back on the normal route. She was fully decked out in lycra with more of a street bike. I figured that with her setup, the pavement would end and I'd see her again on her way back. My bike has bigger wheels and flat outweighs more so it can handle the more rough path. She was right, and long gone, by the time I got back on the path proper. There was construction on the highway that the path crossed and they were rebuilding the bridge that the path used to cross that road. So away I went.

Fitchburg was one of the first towns on the line. It wasn't a real town any longer, just a line of houses along the old line. However, they did care about the park there. They put benches out and other things that made bikers feel welcome. It was a nice place to rest after the hills that I had encountered.

The ride continued for a few miles after this. I eventually met the woman I had encountered earlier so I know she hit the end of the paved section and that I needed to be aware of it. I figure I had a few more miles to go. And I did.

There are a few times that I've been surprised on my rides. This was one of them. I think a lot of them are just mental exercises to keep the brain engaged. Some evolutionary questions there, maybe. Anyway, when I hit the end of the path, there was parking and dogs. Lots of dogs. I mean, there are things I try to keep aware of. Dogs are one of them, for obvious reasons. Another is women. I try to keep my distance to not show myself as a threat because I don't want them to not enjoy their own time on the trail.  Women with large dogs. This transition had women with large dogs. So I tried to work my way through without getting anyone upset. But that isn't the big thing. The path had deteriorated and became wet. Not only that, but there was a distinct slope down. I get to take it at speed, but it was a wet, dark mess. 

Belleville was a pretty little town, with a unique bridge into the town.  It wasn't noteworthy other than I wish I had a picture of it but I was in need of water and Tracy would meet me at the path. When I met her, she pointed out where the police had a place to sit to pull people over. I don't know if it was a "speed trap" but it made me nervous, considering all that was going on in the country at the time. 

Going south out of Belleville was a bit odd. The path went up and down and along a road or two. It wasn't a big deal, but I was starting to tire. I mean, all during these rides, you get tired. You just keep going. 

A few miles later was the object of my ride. I was fully prepared for the tunnel to be closed. It was closed all winter and I hadn't seen any change in status on the trail webpages. I had met a man coming the other way tell me that the tunnel was closed, so it was no surprise to be greeted with the gate and fence.

So I had a choice. I could go a longer, flatter route or a shorter, hilly route. I chose the shorter. And I felt like I was going to die. To make matters worse, there was a younger couple that went on the road with me. They had street bikes so I don't know if they were on the trail or following the Ice Age Trail that kept to the streets more. They annoyed me because not only did they pass me, but they waited at the apex of each hill as if to taunt me as I walked my bike up. I was really feeling my bike's weight by this time.
But at the top of the larger of the hills, I had a good view.

For whatever reason, I lost the couple at the top of the hill. Maybe they were waiting for someone. The rest of the way back to the trail only had a few small hills so it was a better ride. I'll have to do the tunnel at a different time, I guess.

Then next short stop was in Monticello and that is where Tracy met me for lunch. I had felt a slight rise in the trail, and I think by this point, I can feel a .25% grade. The insects became thick and I had to ride a few clouds of them. This was about the first time that insects had even begun to bother me. The trail seemed to be following a slight ridge and the thickness of the trees kept it quite dark. 

Shortly after this picture, the slight rise changed into a slight downward slope, and I felt that I raced into Monroe. The park in town was a nice picnic area and off to one side was a bike shop. I was really starting to feel tired at this point. BTW, the sign at the top of this post was also located here. The next few miles were a lot of work. I had to stop about a mile short of the Illinois border to eat some granola bars because I just wasn't keeping up with the calories I was burning.

At the border, the Badger State Trail ended and the Jane Adams began. I stopped and talked with some cows there while I rested. One took a lot of interest in me but I later found that her calf was right under me in the thicket and she didn't appreciate my being there. The picture was taken shortly after she gathered her calf and stormed off to the left of the pic. 

I want to add that the Illinois part of the trail was quite depressing. It was darker, a bit wetter, and they seemed to maintain the trail by going through and spraying defoliant everywhere. It was death on either side of the trail. It wasn't attractive. I'm sure it was time-saving, but depressing.

Towards the end of the trail (this portion was a hard 18 miles), I approached Sciota Mills. I found remnants of the old railroad. Ruins! There really wasn't much along the path to this point to let me know this was an old railroad.

There were a few other things off the side of the path too, but I wasn't going to dig around to get to them.
There was also this creepy house.

The windows were new and the garden was tended, so someone had to live there. Until US20, it was swampland, highlighting the creepy.

The last 5 miles are always the hardest. I crossed 20 and forgot about the mileage I had to do to get to Freeport. The path was paved, and nice. I was just tired. Going through Freeport, and before the last turn to get to where Tracy was waiting, was a bike store with this outside.

By this time, this is how I felt. I had traveled at least 58 miles. Tracy had to tolerate my inability to walk or stand well, but I had finished the trail.