So I had reached a point where I really didn't want to ride my bike. Just due to overload -- lots of driving around the area on weekends to help out a relative who recently moved here while trying to plan and manage home renovations -- as well as being sick of cold weather. This past Sunday we had fantastic spring weather, so I decided to do a relatively short ride (30 miles) on an old familiar route that I hadn't ridden in a long time, and to go by myself so I wouldn't have to worry about keeping to a set schedule. In fact I didn't even decide on the route until a couple of hours after I woke up on Sunday. It ended up being a very nice ride, uneventful, seeing lots of flowers on trees and people doing gardening and yard work, but pollen counts not high enough to be bothersome. The route is mostly on residential suburban streets with lots of stop signs, so I typically have a low average speed, but I think I was faster than usual on Sunday. Afterwards I visited with my friend who broke her leg last month.

That seems to have done the trick, since today I've actually been looking forward to going for a ride after work. And in fact I am leaving for that right now...