I managed to get my ass out of the house on time this morning.  It feels good to be back on my schedule.  It was pretty cold but not so much that my fingers were going numb.  Which happens sometimes.  I headed off 17th to Eureka to 18th to Valencia to Tiffany to 29th to San Jose to Wilder to Diamond to Monterey to Ridgewood to Flood to Hazelwood to Greenwood to Plymouth to Wildwood to Faxon to De Montefort to Ashton to Head to Holloway to Font to Lake Merced to John Muir to Skyline to the Great Highway and up the coast.  The Marin Headlands looked a little misty and totally beautiful:

The North Pyramid in Golden Gate Park:

I went into the Park at JFK and stopped at Spreckels Lake for pics.  The view of the Outer Richmond with St. Thomas the Apostle:

Spreckels Lake:

Me at the lake:

I continued on JFK to the Panhandle to Baker to McAllister.  This is City Hall from McAllister at Van Ness:

I continued on McAllister to Polk to Post to Kearny to Bush to Sansome and into work.

I slept in late Wednesday morning.  I got eleven hours of sleep.  I needed it.  It's cool but gorgeous in San Francisco this week.  I got a couple pics coming down Market after lunch:

After work I headed up Columbus.  This is the view of the Transamerica Pyramid from Columbus and Stockton:

Fabulous North beach building:

Gorgeous North Beach mural:

I continued on Columbus to North Point to Van Ness to Francisco to Gough to Chestnut to Lyon and into the Presidio.  I came around on Lincoln into Camino Del Mar to 25th to Balboa and down to the coast.  I came down the Great Highway and stopped at Sloat for pics of the ocean.  Which I'd missed:

Me at the beach:

Surferlicious:

I continued on the Great Highway to Skyline to John Muir to Lake Merced to Font to Holloway to Harold to Ocean to Phelan to Foerster to Monterey to Diamond to Wilder to Arlington to Randall to San Jose to Duncan to Valencia to 18th to Diamond to 17th to Ord and home for dinner.  Mr. Poe had to work late so it was just me and the dogs.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                                33.0
Week to date                                      33.0
Month to date                                   176.3
Year to date                                   1,925.7
To Goal                                         8,074.3
Over (Under) plan                                 7.9
YTD Mileage vs Last Year                 528.9
Rolling Year                                 11,315.1
Since Inception 10/1/07                 15,203.4

I came across this incredibly awesome picture of Ashley Sr. on Facebook. It was taken when my friend Sean was dogsitting for me while I was in Canada with Jim Aimers. I miss my little guy.

I managed to get out of bed pretty early on Monday morning and went for a bike ride out to the south shore of Lake Tohopekaliga.  It was a clear, cool morning and the lake looked gorgeous:

Me at the Lake

This is Daddy's old bike:

I've been riding it for a couple of years when I come to Orlando and it's getting to the point that it needs some work done.  Not a whole lot but I'm thinking I'm going to have Mom send it to me and the guys at REI work on it and make it my new commuter and then send the Cannondale I'm currently commuting on to Florida to ride when I'm there.  I think I'd appreciate the bigger tires on it more there than here.  I have a bike that's allegedly dedicated for wet weather commuting but I never ride it because the Cannondale is pretty good in the wet.  This bike is, I believe, a Vitus 979 from the late eighties.  It's aluminum and considered a classic road bike.  I loooove the frame.  It's so cool looking and such an unusual color.  I'm not sure what kind of wheels it has but it's got dura ace hubs on it and they're in good shape.  I'd want to change the handlebars to drop bars, put on a new seat and change the drivetrain to a 105 triple.  It's kind of a lot of work for such an old bike but it would look awesome and be better for my day to day commuting than what I'm currently riding.  Stay tuned!

This is a view of the swamp I rode through on my way home.  So pretty:

I had lunch and then Mom and I ran some errands and then she took me to the airport.  I got checked in and through security really quickly which was nice.  It was a gorgeous day in Orlando and the airport looked great.  This is the view of the control tower from the tram to the US Airways gates:

I like the tram but wish I could walk instead:

US Airways has a pretty sizeable operation at Orlando and they had a bunch of gates.  Their new livery is such an improvement:

Orlando airport has free wifi and so I parked myself by a power outlet and recharged my phone and worked on emails.  The interior of the airport is gorgeous.  I approve:

There's a lot more variety at the Delta terminal because they fly a wide variety of heavies in Orlando from Atlanta and also because that's where the international stuff is.  So I didn't see anything but narrowbodies.  Continental 737-800:

American 737-800:

United Airbus:

Our ride:  An Airbus 321:

US Airways 566 MCO-PHX Dep 5:05 PM Arr 7:00 PM A321

We were on another sparkling clean Airbus A321 back to Phoenix.  I miraculously had an empty seat next to me so I had plenty of room to stretch out and read comic books for most of the flight.  I'm still pretty impressed by US Airways.  I was totally expecting I would be miserable the entire time and only booked with them because I had to book at the last minute and it was pretty much the only choice.  They've vastly improved since the last time I flew them and I would have no problem flying them again.  We had two drink services on the flight back to Phoenix.  Still no free food of any kind which kind of surprised me because a little pack of pretzels can't be a big ticket item and it would go a long way in improving the perception of their service.  Southwest has tons of free snacks.  The uniforms that the cabin crew wore in flight were awful.  They were of a cheap looking fabric in a crappy shade of blue and they were mock turtlenecks.  Mock.  Turtlenecks.  What are their uniforms now being supplied by the Men's Wearhouse??  On the women, they looked OK but the male flight attendant looked like a pedophile circa 1988.  Not a good look.

Here's the cabin in flight:

Phoenix airport is pretty easy to get around.  I had a burrito which had to be returned because they put cheese in it.  The bastards.  They also have free wifi which is awesome although you have to answer a questionnaire about how friendly you think the airport is before you can log on.  Forcibly friendly, I'd say.

Here is our ride for the flight home.  Our flight was delayed for about forty five minutes while they worked on a maintenance issue.  I don't understand why it's so hard to make an announcement every ten minutes with status when a flight is delayed, but Southwest seems to be the only airline that consistently does that.  Employees at the gate seemed.... a little surly.  Boarding was a little chaotic after they finally let us on.  I had to check my bag because the overheads were full.  They didn't charge me.  Our ride:

US Airways 415 PHX-SFO Dep 8:10 PM Arr 10:17 PM A319

Flight was pretty uneventful except for the large number of screaming children on the flight.  The people in front of me at their child watching a DVD with the sound turned up and no headphones.  Lovely.  I didn't want to complain because the child only stopped kicking, crying, and throwing stuff when the DVD went on.

We got into SFO around 11 and my luggage made it to baggage claim and Mr. Poe came to collect me and we went home and after a half an hour of dog excitement we went to bed.  My opinion of US Airways is vastly improved and I would have no problem choosing them again.  Their aircraft were spotlessly clean on every segment I flew and the interiors look terrific.  Phoenix is a pretty good place to connect through and I wouldn't have a problem going there again.  Their service is still a little weak and they're going to have to work on that but they're getting there.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                                 29.7
Week to date                                       29.7
Month to date                                    143.3
Year to date                                    1,892.7
To Goal                                          8,107.3
Over (Under) plan                               29.7
YTD Mileage vs Last Year                 581.9
Rolling Year                                 11,392.4
Since Inception 10/1/07                 15,170.4

I missed my CAT2 ride today.  Obviously I cannot be there.  I hope they don't miss me too much and look forward to the ride next Sunday.  I went to Wal Mart with my Mom in the morning and then after lunch I headed off on the bike down to Haines City.  This is a sign for Maryland Fried Chicken.  Love the sign.  Love it.  It was an early and much less successful competitor to Kentucky Fried Chicken.  I don't see how with this awesome sign:

This is Lake Eva which is between Haines City and Lake Hamilton

Me at Lake Eva:

Then I headed over to Lake Hatchineha which I hadn't been to before.  It's a little community of homes that all seem to have water access via a series of canals and there's also a little park and a boat lauch.  Pretty.  I think it might be prettier than Lake Tohopekaliga:

I'm leaving tomorrow night and I'm glad I've been able to help my Mom but I'm ready to get home to Mr. Poe and the dogs.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                                  41.6
Week to date                                     113.8
Month to date                                    113.8
Year to date                                    1,863.0
To Goal                                           8,137.0
Over (Under) plan                               27.4
YTD Mileage vs Last Year                623.0
Rolling Year                                  11,381.7
Since Inception 10/1/07                 15,140.7

In the morning I went riding with my Mom.  She's totally faster than Mr. Poe.  Here's a blurry pic of her riding:

Afterwards we had lunch and I headed into Kissimmee.  It's a pretty nice ride and it was good day.  Here's the big tower in Kissimmee.  I like:

Downtown Kissimmee keeps getting nice as more housing goes in near downtown, a trend I love to see:

Me in downtown Kissimmee:

I went to the comic book store, the Coliseum of Comics.  It's huge!  Much bigger than any of the comic stores I've been to in San Francisco.  I got a few new issues and a few back issues to read on the plane.

I headed home and we went furniture shopping and then to the Indian Restaurant for dinner.  Long day.

Bike Mileage:
Today                                                  49.2
Week to date                                       72.0
Month to date                                      72.0
Year to date                                    1,821.4
To Goal                                           8,178.6
Over (Under) plan                               13.2
YTD Mileage vs Last Year                600.4
Rolling Year                                  11,363.5
Since Inception 10/1/07                 15,099.1

I ran errands with my mom today and managed to get on the bike in the late afternoon.  I headed over to Southport on Lake Tohopekaliga which I like to hang out at.  I love me some wetlands:

Me at the lake:

They have these fan boat rides that leave from there.  I can't wait until my niece and nephew are old enough to enjoy them:

This Spanish moss is not a prop.  It's killing the trees.  Not so romantic when you think about it like that:

I headed home.  We're having Chinese for dinner!

Bike Mileage:
Today                                                  22.8
Week to date                                       22.8
Month to date                                      22.8
Year to date                                    1,772.2
To Goal                                           8,227.8
Over (Under) plan                               (8.6)
YTD Mileage vs Last Year                574.6
Rolling Year                                  11,359.1
Since Inception 10/1/07                 15,049.9

Daddy's funeral was in the late morning at a Saint Rose of Lima, the church that they went to when he had been able.  Father Ortiz from the church had been coming for a couple of years to give him communion at the house.  He's a nice guy and I like him.  Mr. Poe had sent me with matching ties for Sam and I to wear.  We looked great.

The church was recently rebuilt after the last one was destroyed in a hurricane a couple of years ago.  It's simple, but pretty:

Here is the interior:

All of us before the funeral:

Father Ortiz had Sam and I do the readings.  He gave us a selection to choose from.  I told Sam that if Daddy was there he would have chosen the two shortest ones.  So that's what we did.  I gave the first reading.  Here's Sam giving the second:

Hannah and Eugene were pretty well behaved.  They got really bored by the end of the mass and I was able to amuse them using the swiveling LCD function of my camera so that they could look at themselves.  The output:

Hannah made a run for the altar towards the end of the service:

Aunts Sheila, Mary, and Sara:

This paining is in the vestibule.  It's totally Jesus with highlights in his hair.  Me Likey:

The family with Father Ortiz:

All of including the aunts:

After the service we went home and had lunch.  Sam and I went and picked up Daddy's ashes around 3:30.  Sam and Mom had chosen a very tasteful polished burl wood box for the ashes.  It's beautiful.  Some of the other choices were of a bit more questionable taste.  When I die please put my ashes into the three foot tall clam shell.  I'll haunt ya good if you don't.  We stopped to get a birthday cake for Youngran and then headed home to find my mom and aunts had gotten into the wine.  We are Irish, after all.

I didn't sleep very well and we were all up at about 6AM.  I puttered around the house a bit and tried to take cues from my brother about what to do.  He was totally on top of everything.  And so organized!  I'm so proud of him.  After lunch Eugene wanted to go for a bike ride on Daddy's old three wheeler.  Here we are riding around Solivita:

We got back and Mom was napping so we got in the car and headed for the grocery store.  How cute are these kids??

Later in the afternoon Daddy's sisters showed up. I was glad to see them because they're such good people and so much fun to be around.  This is Sheila and Mary with my Mom.  My aunt Sara was also there but not around when my camera came out.

This is Aunts Sheila and Mary flanking Sam and Youngran:

Kids playing on the sofa in the living room:

Sam and Youngran:

We went to bed around 10.  Eugene slept with me in the family room.  He kicks in his sleep.  Like a kung fu fighter or something.

Daddy took very ill Sunday morning and died Sunday night.  He had been sick for a very long time but still it was kind of a shock.  Thankfully it was over relatively quickly.  I had to make last minute travel arrangements to go to Orlando.  I had initially wanted to get on a red eye through Philadelphia, but that wasn't available when I went to go make my reservation so I ended up on a 6AM flight on US Airways the next morning that went through Phoenix and got me into Orlando at 4PM.  It was surprisingly cheap.  I paid less than $350 for a round trip ticket.  I thought last minute tickets were supposed to be expensive and I was pretty relieved that I got such a good deal.  A huge storm hit the east coast and there were a lot of flight cancellations.  I think if I was on that red eye to Philadelphia I would have been stuck there for a couple of days.  Eeek.

I didn't sleep very well Sunday night and got up very early for my flight Monday.  When I went to check in I was able to get better seats than I had originally gotten which was fabulous because I was originally in a middle seat for the Phoenix to Orlando leg.  Huzzah!  The terminal wasn't very crowded and I got through security pretty quickly.  US Airways is making a huge deal about their return to complementary beverages in coach.  It was such a stupid move to start charging for them in the first place and all the hoopla they're making about the return kind of highlights that fact.  It's like "We're so pleased to be able to offer a service level that everybody else never abandoned." 

I took a few pictures of the US Airways planes at the gate.  I like the current livery a lot better than the last one. 

Our ride:

US Airways 81 SFO-PHX Dep 6:00 AM Arr 8:51 AM A319

Loads were light.  You can see that this was originally an America West aircraft based on the design of the bulkhead.  I'm impressed.  My last trip to Phoenix was on a ratty America West 737-200 that was old, dirty, and just plain sad.  This aircraft was clean and really nice.  I approve:

We took off on time and the flight was pretty uneventful.  We got the much ballyhooed free drink.  No food at all in coach.  Luckily, Mr. Poe had sent me with snacks.

We got in on time.  It looked like a beautiful day in Phoenix:

Looking good:

I love love love the control tower in Phoenix.  It's so futur-licious:

I ate a kind of meh burrito and waited for my next flight to board.  There were a bunch of storms on the East Coast and the flight was hopelessly overbooked and they were looking for volunteers.  Usually I can't resist a travel voucher but under the circumstances I just couldn't.  Definitely on the way back if it's offered.  I was worried that I had been bumped and they just weren't telling me because I was in the last boarding group and America West had once done that to me in Albuquerque and I've been suspicious of them ever since.  Luckily, we boarded without incident.

US Airways 567 PHX-MCO Dep 10:00 AM Arr 4:05 PM A321

I'd never been on an Airbus A321 before and they're so cool!  A lot like 757's on the inside but subtly more futuristic. It looked new and was spotless inside.  I like!  US Airways has no in flight entertainment at all but there was a drink service and some nasty looking buy on board food that should have come with an apology written on the napkin.  "Sorry about this shitty sandwich you just had to pay $7 for.  We could probably have done better but we couldn't be bothered."  Halfway through the flight I headed to the back of the aircraft for the rest room only to see that the flight attendents had drawn an opaque curtain separating the galley from the cabin and then fixed it with snaps.  Keep out!  I guess they were on break.  I'd never seen such a thing and it kind of shocked me because, from a service standpoint, it looked just terrible.  You'd never see that on Southwest.   We landed in Orlando on time and it was looked the same as it did when I was in town last month:

Spirit Airlines Airbus:

I like the Orlando control tower but not as much as the one in Phoenix:

My brother Sam picked my up and we headed back to my parents's house where we distracted ourselves by hanging out with my brother's adorable children:

We went to bed pretty early.  We were all exhausted.