Discovered Cafe Silva

Today morning, I got up early and was in a zombie state for a while. I don't take caffeine drinks in the morning until I get to work, so I was lazing around. I was wondering whether I should bike or just take the train in to work. Somehow, I fought the urge to go back to bed and got ready. I was still thinking whether I should take the train from the half way point or bike the whole 14 miles.

I suddenly remembered the coffee shop sign (Cafe D'Silva) that I usually see on the ride into work (about 1 mile away). I used to be an avid coffee drinker. But the way the coffee shops (local or starbucks) operate these days causes me much aversion that I have killed my cravings. My agony is towards those disposable cups. Coffee shops are places where people go to relax and take time sipping coffee. Such places should really serve in china. They charge an arm and leg for it but give us sub-stand service.

I hate it for several reasons. Firstly, environment. These coffee cups are lined with plastic on the inside. A person I know, fed them to his worms, the worms eat all of the paper and left the liner behind. It cannot decompose. Second, the plastic liner is making contact with hot liquid, imagine what kind of toxins get released into the liquid. Besides that the lid is plastic and we sip through it. The worst add-on is the sleeve which is a perfectly reusable/recyclable material which gets discarded as trash.

All cravings a not worth it, we usually realize it after eating the food we crave for. I feel particularly stupid when I drink out of a disposable cup. Today morning I had the craving for strong coffee that someone makes for me. So, I thought I will checkout this coffee shop. As I was riding, I was trying to decide which kind to choose. Cold coffee might be nice for today but it usually comes in plastic container.

So, I was making a list of questions to ask. This was my thought process. If they have ceramic cups, I will have hot coffee, else I will get cold coffee. I walked in from the muggy outside to the coolness of the shop. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw a stack of glass tumblers for cold coffee. Ordered my drink and thanked the barista for doing it. The shop is not overly fancy, just a regular coffee shop with tables and a view of the park outside.

My coffee was ready. I went up to the condiments stand and was happy to find organic agave nectar. I relaxed on a chair and drank up my drink. Left the coffee shop feeling refreshed and contented. Now, thats how coffee shops should be run. Cafe Silva, you will be seeing me a lot!

All set for long rides

Bought my a road bike today! Didn't plan on it. Thought this search is going to be long. I had set my mind on buying an used bike. This is because I have decided to buy most things used. Recently, I was tempted to buy a handbag I have been long dreaming of owning. I stepped into the store and had second thoughts. Won't I find this bag in a thrift store? Can't I wait till then? So, I decided to wait.

But road bike is a necessity now! I started feeling the drag riding on my hybrid. Visited few shops but its a hit or miss with used bikes. Contacted a few people on craigslist. Most bikes on sale there were too big for me. I heard Richardson bikemart has a bigger used bike inventory. So, I went there to test drive.

I was shown two cycles of my size. One is older bike with Italian parts and the other one is my bike. People were telling me, just go ride a bike and you will feel it. I felt it! When I rode it, I knew! It felt right, very comfortable. Didn't want to get swept by it but everything was convincing. All the specs matched what my friend, Krunal told me to look for. So, I went ahead and bought it!

Thought I will have a steep learning curve getting used to riding a road bike but the transition to this bike has been amazingly smooth. I went for a 10 mile ride today. I feel more comfortable in the new bike than my hybrid. Loving it!

Bee pollen

I suffered from bad eye allergies this spring. That's when I came across Bee pollen at Earth day. I bought them from local honey makers, they even sell honey according to zip code. I have been having them regularly for the last one month. Apart from helping with allergies, bee pollens are loaded with protein, vitamins and minerals. I am sure they will make me strong for my ride in September!

Texas Honeybee Guild has a permanent stall at Dallas Farmers market. They also sell at art shows and Deep Ellum Outdoor market. Some local green grocery stores carry them. I have seen their products at Green Grocers (Dallas) and Gecko Hardware (Garland).  

Tour d'Italia

Today I participated in a bike rally for the second time. I rode 30miles for the first time. I have been mostly riding roughly 20miles at a stretch and am comfortable with that distance. Texas is starting to get hot very fast. I had been mentally preparing myself for the ride, to be out in the sun for three hours and I got a pleasant surprise today. Today morning, I wake up and find my meetup group backing out from the ride since thunderstorms were predicted for the whole day. When I checked the weather, it seemed that the rain won't start till 12noon. I had already paid for the ride, so I didn't want to miss it. So, I got ready and checked the weather again. Rain got postponed much later and there was thick cloud cover for the whole ride!!!

Started the ride on a positive note, there was a pleasant breeze and no heat from sun. About 2 miles into the ride, I saw a vast sunflower field. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Right then, I felt, that nature has a way of granting your wishes when you least expect it. It was beautiful.

The flower was as big as a person's face. The plants were standing up with their face down. I felt like walking up to them to ask "What's wrong". I didn't ask since we didn't want the same thing :-)


The ride was tough. For the first 12 miles, we had to ride on old state highway. The ride was so bumpy that I regretted riding it on my hybrid. There is no shock absorption. To add to that, the course was an endless array of hills. Some of the hills were long and high. Once I stared up at the elevation climb and pushed myself to finish it. When I came out down that hill, another hill stared back at me. I apologized, huffed and puffed through the rest of the hills without staring.

Occasionally, someone will catchup to me and say encouraging things like, "The high hills are over in the first part, there are only small hills towards the end". I should have been suspiciously. The guy who said this, immediately pushed off to find his cousin. Liars! Met another liar at mile 25. He told me that this is the last hill. I gave him the stink eyes at mile 26 on top of a bigger hill.

It was also hard since this is the first time I am attempting 30miles. I am glad that I never got of the saddle, just kept pushing and I reached the finish line. Checkout today's workout stats here. I am so grateful that the sun was hiding today. I plan to do another 25-30miles tomorrow morning. Thanks for your support!

Rallying to train

I have been mostly biking around the white rock lake. Its about 10 miles once around. I was wondering what I will do as I increase the distance every week. I can certainly do multiple rounds around the lake but doing 7 rounds around the lake will get boring! That's right, I am building up the stamina to do 70 miles in one day and go back an do it again the next day. I have got to be able to do this on Sept 7th weekend.

When I was wondering about this, I spoke with my garden buddies Karen and Sean. They told me about the string of rallies that happens every week until fall around Dallas. I was thinking of doing the Red River rally in Oklahoma. Thankfully, Karen told me that there is one closer in Mesquite. It was an easy choice to go to Mesquite since its a shorter commute.

The online registration had closed but I was able to register in person. I don't have a car bike rack that's why I limit myself to white rock lake trail. Yesterday night, I figured, I can dismantle the front wheel and put my cycle in the back seat. The back seat is dirty now but hey, something's got to give.

The rally itself was great! My pace was phenomenally better than usual on a hilly terrain. I shaved about 1-2mins on each mile. Loved being out in the countryside, seeing crops and horses. Just liked the different scenery. I also got to see Mesquite's compost site up close. The weather was cool and it allowed me to complete 20 mile today. Tomorrow, I get to do the same distance around white rock lake!

I have registered for the next event on June 15th. Will be riding 30 miles in Italy!

Its Italy, Texas! I wish I can go to Europe just for a bike ride.