Buzz and I went on a longish bike ride today. He brought Jonathon with him and, while Alisa and the boys took him to Kidsports, we went on a good ride. It was rainy all morning and the roads were still wet when we set out. It was cloudy and chilly with a strong breeze out of northwest. We rode north to Sunderland, crossed the river, and turned south along River Road. It felt much warmer with the wind behind us and, eventually, the sun began to peek out of the clouds. We stopped in Whately for a few minutes so I could drink a soda, and then continued on. My chain got jammed as we were about to cross 91 and Buzz got his feet caught in his pedals and fell over as we were about to get on the bike trail, but the ride was otherwise without incident. We enjoyed the flowers and a chance to chat quietly about getting old, retiring, and experimenting with plant genetics. We stopped at Whole Foods and got some of the peanut butter I favor and a loaf of bread to spread it on. When we got home, we ate some with 
violet jelly and few home brews. We rode 27.09 miles at 11.21mph. The last time I did the ride, in August, I went at only 9.92mph. We chatted amiably with Lucy under the cherry tree, picking petals and bracts out of our beer. After a while, Alisa brought Jonathon back and he and Buzz took off. A great afternoon.
StevenBrewer