Daily Life

Stunning Start

The 2025 new year has kicked off in a maginificent manner.

We have had unseasonable warmth and the return of once customary brilliant winter sunshine.

I started off with a flurry of enthusiasm, too.

My year started with an extremely early rise not long after 4 a.m.

I quickly showered and got on my bike.

Even though I weighed myself for the first time in many months, and didn’t like what I saw, I was still feeling keen.

Once my mind started turning over, it was already too late to turn my back, and I was on my way to Tokyo Tower for an in-person AA meeting to launch the new year. While there, I got to witness the year’s first sunrise.

The ride in was uneventful and followed a route I have used hundreds of times over the years that I commuted.

How I found the energy to do that is now beyond me!

After the meeting, I headed to Shinagawa to start Half-Fast Cycling‘s traditional New Year’s Day group ride around the Yamanote Line.

We gathered a fairly large group with a few stragglers and were blessed with fine weather and a wonderful atmosphere.

A delightful trip home through the backstreets of Tokyo’s southwestern suburbs capped off a wonderful day.

I made it home with enough time over to finish chores and spend a bit of time playing with the dinosaur.

I’d achieved the goal I privately set for myself of riding 100 km and exceeding 10,000 steps. I hope to acheive this daily for the foreseeable future.

I returned to a chart of the type I used to use to track my riding and walking, and was a little disheartened to see the exertions I made every day before covid hit. Most disconcerting was the difference in body weight between then and now. It’s something I hope to work on in 2025.