I've been riding into work, bicycle commuting, for about a month now this summer. This is a big part of my plan to get rid of the "sympathy weight" I put on while Tammy was pregnant with Mazie. It's working, I've been able to take off good weight every week without getting completely obsessed about what I'm eating. I'm really lucky when it comes to my commute.

In some ways, I feel like I should be obligated to ride my bike to work. I can get on a bike path after going 3 blocks from my house on residential streets. The path crosses some roads, but mostly it's just a great trail. I then have two options of trail that I can take going into downtown. So I get to take one trail in the morning, and a second trail in the evening on the way home. There are also a few people that ride into work as well so on the way home I usually have some company as well.

One of the highlights of this commute is when the trail that I take on the way into work crosses over highway 100. This is the same highway that I get onto after a few miles and crawl the rest of the way into work when I drive. Everyday as I ride in I always take a moment to let up on the pedals, look to the left and chuckle a little bit to myself as I look at the hundreds of cars piled up, going very slowly. When I look ahead I see clear trail, trees and fellow riders or walkers out having a good time.

The only part I miss about riding into work is the music. I really like listening to tunes in the morning and there just isn't any safe way to do that on a bike. The weather has been great, making it even more enjoyable. I find that when I ride into work I show up with a better outlook on things, and in general a more pleasant disposition. On top of all that I'm saving money on the record high gas prices and not paying for the toll-lane on the way home. All this and I get to help the environment, and my body, all at the same time.