Double up

I just found that I've been tagged, not once but twice. And unfortunately, it's two different meme thingies. I've been putting off answering these, but now that it's the weekend I've run out of excuses.

First, from Tex:

First, the background.

1. Post the rules of the game at the beginning.

2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.

3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names.

4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

5. Create an arbitrary rule to keep with the whole fives theme.

What were you doing 5 years ago?

Five years ago the girls would have been 4. I was doing pretty much what I'm doing now. Being a dad, working at the same place I work now, married to the same wife, commuting to work by bike. Some of the things that were different are that I think I'm a better dad now than I was then. I might be a better husband, hard to say on that one. One major difference is we were still living in St. Paul 5 years ago, so while I was still bike commuting it was a different route.


What are five things on your to-do list for today?

1. Hiawatha ride - done
2. Pack for upcoming camping trip - maybe tomorrow
3. Mow lawn - maybe tomorrow
4. See Kung Fu Panda at The Riverview
5. Do some work work - maybe tomorrow

What are five snacks you enjoy?


1. tortilla chips and salsa

2. ice cream

3. cheez its

4. pretzels

5. sunflower seeds


What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?

1. have one "good bike"

2. landscape my back yard

3. start a foundation, something patterned after the Bill Gates/Warren Buffett thing. Or maybe I'd just donate it to theirs, save me the headache of running one.

4. Take a lot more trips with the family

5. Buy a boat


What are five of your bad habits?

1. Being crabby

2. waste excessive time on the computer reading blogs and crap (saved this one from Tex because it applies)

3. Portion control with snacks (see above)

4. Not returning phone calls

5. Being a slacker


What are five places where you have lived?


1. Twin Cities, MN

2. Fargo, ND/Moorhead, MN

3. Rapid City, SD

4. Huron, SD

5. Pierre, SD


What are five jobs you’ve had?

1. busboy
2. telephone operator
3. ice cream truck driver
4. perfume salesman
5. pizza jockey

And then there was the bike related one from TOB:

If you could have any one — and only one — bike in the world, what would it be?
Some sort of all-rounder. A bike that can go everywhere. Not too fast, not too slow, not too heavy, not too light.

Do you already have that coveted dream bike? If so, is it everything you hoped it would be? If not, are you working toward getting it? If you’re not working toward getting it, why not?
With every bike I buy, I'm working toward the ideal. I'm getting closer, but perfection is never attainable. It keeps me tinkering and experimenting.

If you had to choose one — and only one — bike route to do every day for the rest of your life, what would it be, and why?
My commute isn't bad. It's about the right distance, and if I take the long way home (Greenway to West River Road) it's plenty scenic. I'm sure there's a better route I should be choosing. Someplace that goes by both a free beer stand and the practice court for women's beach volleyball...

What kind of sick person would force another person to ride one and only one bike ride for the rest of her / his life?
I'm a creature of habit. I do most of my miles now on one route. I can thing of worse fates.

Do you ride both road and mountain bikes? If both, which do you prefer and why? If only one or the other, why are you so narrowminded?
I own both road and mountain bikes. However, the off road riding I do can hardly be called "mountain biking."

Have you ever ridden a recumbent? If so, why? If not, describe the circumstances under which you would ride a recumbent.
I own a recumbent trike. It's a nice enough bike and fun to ride. Don't make fun. However it doesn't get the miles it deserves, simply because it's not an efficient commuter.

Have you ever raced a triathlon? If so, have you also ever tried strangling yourself with dental floss?
Not. Gonna. Happen.

Suppose you were forced to either give up ice cream or bicycles for the rest of your life. Which would you give up, and why?
Ice cream, natch. Biking's good for me, ice cream's not. Seems an easy decision. I also like biking a lot more than I like ice cream.

What is a question you think this questionnaire should have asked, but has not? Also, answer it.
Q: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
A: 7

You’re riding your bike in the wilderness (if you’re a roadie, you’re on a road, but otherwise the surroundings are quite wilderness-like) and you see a bear. The bear sees you. What do you do?
I had this experience on a motorcycle once, only it was two bear cubs. Figuring mama bear was close behind, we gunned it and kept going. I'd probably do the same with an adult bear.

Now, to pass the tags along. If tagged, choose with meme you want to do. Feel free to do both. Or neither.

Ray
Gilby
Yon Saucy
Rob
Bill