I’ve been biking the past few days. After two months off the saddle, I remounted to join Paul and Autumn on a 27-mile ride on Sunday. The ride was my longest in three years and, after an early bout with nausea, went quite well. I enjoyed it. Paul and Autumn were great company, the day was radiant, and the ride itself was energetic but not taxing.

I took Tuesday off to stay home and play the Diablo II expansion and to read Tom Sawyer. I was back on the bike yesterday, and rode it to work again today. It feels good.

One curious aspect of these past few rides is the absence of a bike computer. The battery on mine has failed, so for the first time since I started riding four years ago, I’m riding without a clock, without an odometer. Amazingly, it is a joy. It’s nice to be riding for the sake of the ride rather than to compete with myself. My initial urge to replace the bike computer immediately has waned; I’ll try to go as long as possible without buying one.

I’ve been playing Diablo II on-line, on Blizzard‘s Battle.net and enjoying myself. In the past, I’ve mainly played solo games, with a few LAN games. Playing on Battle.net is more fun, and my fears of “player killers” seem to have been greatly exaggerated. The other players seem genuinely willing to play as a team and to share the spoils of war. Mostly. I don’t know how long Kris is going to tolerate my obsession with the game. She’s been patient so far, and is earning Wife Points (though she may not care).