Bike to Boston, socially-distanced hangout [Mon 17]

Listened to the pods in the morning after being awoken quite early. Work was the usual, busy in the afternoon easy in the morning.

Had the eggplant-stew-rice biriyani with my kraut salad and yogurt on the side for lunch. So filling so satisfying it was heavenly quite honestly. Only problem is the eggplant is still stringy in parts and will get stuck between my teeth it could be because I didn't cut it to the right size, so that's for the next attempt.

Cleaned up and shaved after work, was going to Boston Public Garden to meet NS [who I know from the school back in the day but also the temporary college in Nepal, she also spent many years in Germany] and her husband. Spent a good hour trying to figure out the good mode of transportation to take there...didn't want to bike because it was so long and I'm terrified of Boston drivers, didn't want to take the train because Covid, didn't want to do a mix because that'd be the worst of all the worlds. In the end I set up the directions on my cellphone for the bike-ride, played the office, and as I went down to get the bike decided to take the bike to Davis and the T from there.

Right as I got off our first intersection, the lady in my earbuds the directions lady whom I'd forgotten completely began giving me directions. I was in no mood to bike all the way to Boston but figured it'd be fun for a moment or two and it'd be good to humor her by pretending to go where she wanted me. Took it up, followed the instructions. Boyoboy the uphill ride on Magoun square and then on the Longfellow bridge is intense I was all ready to pass out. Hadn't had a real biking workout for a while so this was new to my body. Eventually I got so far out there was no way I could take the train and just kept on biking.

Took about 29 minutes to go to the public gardens from my apartment which is probably the quickest way to get there if you don't have a car. Possibly even when you do have a car under heavy traffic conditions. Everyone else was late by at least half an hour so chilled observed the aggressive canada geese the ducks I mean not the jackets, looked at the dirty water of the public garden pond and observed people. So many people around all having fun, nowhere to go now imprisoned in their houses all day long so they just want to be out of the house anywhere they can get.

Sbk and pb showed up, we caught up and talked for a bit before NS and her hub arrived. They own various companies so they can't shirk off work, they'd driven all the way to the Common and parked near Comm Ave. We spent two solid hours catching up, figuring out things etcetera. They've got such a cute dog called Max who looks like a puppy labrador but he's actually a small mutt who really really likes chasing rats and squirrels though he never seems to catch them, ever. He's figured out the way to escape from the harness they have, so clever.

At about 9, sbk and pb called it a day, NS nad A offered me a ride home, I folded up my bike and stashed it in their nice full-trim audi and they drove me home.

Back home, I had some of the cake from ND's roommate's birthday, fried an egg and had it with the rice-and-eggplant from the morning. PK and ND had it too for dinner apparently and they loved it, though PK never liked eggplants. After watching shark tank and helping ND figure her kindle out, talked to NP in DC for like an hour. Then talked to parents for another hour. Tried writing, wrote like a single post for the day. Had taken a little bit of gigglies earlier, too tired from the exhaustion from the ride and the effect of the gigglies I well asleep while resting, leaving the posts I was ready to post halfway through.

Must have been quarter two twelve when I fell asleep.