10/17/2007: 14.08-mile biking, 45:43, 18.5 mph
10/18/2007: 14.15-mile biking, 46:24, 18.3 mph
10/19/2007: 7.04-mile biking, 22:31, 18.8 mph
Last Friday I had to abandon my bike ride home - yet again! This time it was the weather that did not cooperate. Normally I can bike in the rain just fine (I've even done it here in NJ), but Friday afternoon was an exception. I was warned by my colleagues not to bike home, so I called my wife and she and the boys came to pick me up. As I walked towards the parking lot where I was to meet them the rain was moderate. I thought "this isn't too bad, maybe I shouldn't have called." Just then the rain started coming down in sheets, driven by a 20+ mph wind. This condition continued for the remainder of my wait for my wife, most of the way home, and for an additional 2 hours (off and on) after we got home. I was definitely glad I called.
Saturday, the Toms River library hosted a "family gaming" day from 10am-2pm. They had three gaming systems set up (including a Wii) for families to come and play. My boys spent some time playing Mario Cart and Wii bowling. As a family we did a doubles match on Wii tennis and took turns on Dance Dance Revolution. I was quite impressed with DDR. My wife and I are seriously looking into the cheapest way to get a good DDR platform. Why? The main reason is that it offers a good workout while having fun! As the days turn colder, we may not be able to keep up on our running/walking/biking - so we would want a fun way to stay in shape (sorry Kathy Smith, you're not fun!) If you have any suggestions on getting an inexpensive system that supports DDR (not the midi plug-and-play) please post a comment.
Finally, J. K. Rowling has declared that Albus Dumbledore is gay. I found out about this as I was looking for a legal article to give to my students. Within the article I found the response I would give to her revelation:
[G]iven that the Potter books, now complete, make no mention of Dumbledore's sexuality, Rowling would not appear to have any authority to declare the print version of Dumbledore gay, straight or bi. Her views on such matters are naturally of interest to fans of her books, but the work must stand on its own.
[A]n author of a work of fiction is, at best, first among equals in interpreting that work. Her intentions do not control the meaning of the text.
Unfortunately, we will now have the joy of watching the imminent collision as gay rights advocates proclaim Harry Potter as the greatest stories ever told and the book censorship crowd add "advocates homosexual lifestyle" to their lengthy list of Rowling's offenses.
Though I do love watching a good train wreck,
Brad
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