Karma, or ...and tonight I met Gene

Today was a well needed easy day on the bike and the mind. A lot of stuff running rampant in my cluttered little noggin. After two days of racing, a nice easy 90 minute spin was well needed. A slap in the Ipod and go. The tunes were incredible tonight. Werewolves of London, Folsom Prison Blues, Lucky Man, Heroes, Everyday, By my side, After the goldrush, Somebody to love. It put me in such a mellow mood, it was perfect for a recovery ride. 200 Watt ceiling, JRA.
If you can sing to your tunes on your Ipod, you are going the perfect speed for recovery. There were probably 6 or 7 people I passed who just gave me wierd looks as I was riding and singing. It was the type of ride that was good for the legs, mind and soul.
Ahh the soul, that almost leads me to Gene, but not quite yet. The Karma patrol struck before that as I met the man who feeds the wild cats. There is this rusted out back end of a pick-up/trailer that acts as a shelter for 4 or 5 wild cats, that I pass on most of my rides. I always notice the cats have full paper plates filled with cat food. I always wondered who did this. Tonight I met him. As I ride up this little rise he is walking to his car with these huge buckets of cat food. He smiles and says, " Ain't life always uphill?" I reply, yeah sometimes it feels that way. I thought to myself that I should have stopped and said hello, and commended him on his helping the cats. So I roll along for a while and hit the daily double of emotional songs. Heroes and Somebody to love. This is right after I had just heard By my side, twice. I am rolling, just enjoying the ride, yes actually ENJOYING pedalling a bike. Like it was my Western Flyer from 30 years ago. Then I hit the homestretch and I MET GENE. Gene, to me is an institution. If you travel Space Highway, you know of Gene. Gene is the dude with the feathered 1970's poofy mullet. Gene is also the dude who walked his Doberman everyday for 4 or 5 miles. We always gave each other a friendly wave and a smile. Probably thinking that the other was a nut for being outside doing what we were doing.While I was bundled up putting in base he was there. When it was 95 and humid he was there. A man and his dog enjoying each other.Unfortunately someone hit and killed gene's Doberman a few weeks ago. Tonight was the first time that I saw Gene walking in the 3 or 4 weeks since the death of his dog. As I rolled along the Karma police got to me. I stopped and told Gene how sorry I was that his dog was dead. He was definitely taken back that I stopped to say hello and express my heartfelt sorrow. He was very nice and very thankful. We spoke a bit about his dog, and what happened that day. Gene was not angry, and he had every right, since the f'ing coward that killed his dog never stopped anywhere to see who the owner is. Gene said his dog was great in the house and on a leash, but nature took over when a door was left open. It was an unfortunate accident, like a lot of things in life. You can be going along enjoying yourself, and in the flash of an eye, your world can change. As we were done talking, he extends his hand and said, "my name is Gene, it was nice to meet you, thanks for thinking about my dog."
We each put in our ear phones and continued on in our respective ways. I can not help but think that today, Karma was on my side.