I ended up working fairly late on Tuesday, and again yesterday.  So I decided to work a little extra today and take Friday off.  The weather is supposed to be chilly and rainy anyway and I don't feel like riding in it.  Not having to work makes that an option. 
   After work I stopped by the bike shop and they were quickly able to switch out my rear cassette.  That seems to have done the trick.  I last change the chain in mid December, meaning I put about 2,000 miles on the last chain.  I did not replace the cassette at that time and it had been on my bike since September meaning it closer to 3,800 miles on it.  Not sure how much life other people get out of their equipment, but I'm going to start tracking mine.  Not sure if I should have a sense of pride in stretching chains and wrecking cassettes in 4 and 8 month increments, but I kinda do.
   Pictured is the Shorewood Hills Pool which I bike past on my rides to/from work.  Last year it closed in October, open much latter in the season because of how warm it was.  Yesterday I noticed it had been filled and clearly is getting ready to reopen.

   Fun skies on my ride to and from work today.  I got quite lucky this morning.  When I woke up there was heavy rain with thunder and lightening.  However, by the time I was ready to leave the house the rain was done and the radar showed I had a small window between two fronts.  With a good tailwind I made it to work in an hour without getting wet, and another storm front moving in behind me.
   Sadly my newly turned bike is jumping gears under torque.  The bike shop did not change the rear cassette and said it looked alright but to come back if it started skipping.  Looks like I will be back.  Otherwise the bike rode pretty nice.  It was so clean when I went to pick it up I didn't recognize it and walked right by it.

   My bike has been in the shop since Friday for its annual tune-up.  They were not finished with it yesterday and apparently my setup is a nightmare to work on.  I have a lot of custom wires, racks, and bags.  Sorry, but only sorta.
   Tonight Pokie, Amy, Tyson and I went out for hibachi.  Always fun to watch them start the grill on fire.

   The spring bloom.

   Fire.

   Cinco de Mustache started on Thursday with a couple people showing up, more yesterday, and a lot more today. 

   Another day of rain on my ride into work.  This time I had a stop for breakfast.  A change of clothing helps, but with the humidity one does not dry off quickly.

   The spring bloom has begun.  Latter than the last couple of years due to one of the coldest April's on record.

   Foggy ride into work this morning.  For the ride home I decided to do the north side of the lakes and loop into Waunakee.  The forecast said I had enough time to get home before the rain began, but it was wrong.  A medium rain fell the last couple miles on my way home.

   My rides home have been getting comfortable with temperatures in the 70ºF/21ºC and staying above 60ºF/16ºC even after the sun sets.