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Lieb's Log

Paul Lieberman's Blog

@paullieberman.net0readers42posts2d ago

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Slowly recovering

It's been a month since my bicycle crash. Unlike previous crashes this one affected my head more than my body. While my headaches have mostly subsided I still get lightheaded and tired lot. I can do stuff around the house, but I have to move really slow. My vision has not returned to normal either. It's hard to describe but I seem to have lost some peripheral sight and in general have some focus issues. Initially I thought my hearing had been affected but that turned out to be normal ear canal blockage which I was able to clean. This is all new territory for me. I know what to do if I break a bone or injure a muscle. I never had to deal with a head injury before. While I have been able to get some lite gardening done, I've mostly stayed off of the computer. But now we're looking at a few days of rain so I might try and get some development work done. We'll see how that goes. My mood has not been great. I've never been the best at dealing with adversity anyhow, but this one is a bit different. This accident coupled with my advancing age may well mean a major change to my future lifestyle. I have to accept that the long, remote, bicycle adventures I still dream about may not come to pass. Even my day to day riding may be at a different level. I can adjust and do what I can do. It could have been much worse. I am thankful that I can still look forward to spending time with my grandkids, family, and friends. I can still play guitar and work in my garden. Much to look forward to.

Bike ridingMusic

It's been three weeks since I had a bike crash and hit my head. I've had several crashes in the past resulting in things like a broken clavicle, broken or bruised ribs, and other minor bodily injury, but never any brain impact before. Three weeks after this one my headaches have mostly subsided but my peripheral vision and balance are still off. Of course all the words of encouragement I receive tell me to be patient, and that recovery is always slow. The good news is that I do seem to be showing some improvement each day. Of course my summer plans have changed. My bike touring and camping trips have all been canceled. This is of course a big deal, but gives me more time to spend in the garden which is a good thing. Plus I'll have more time to spend with my granddaughter who will be visiting. So the thought of being off the bike is not bothering me that much. Indeed incidents like this provide an opportunity to reflect and refocus. For the past more than twenty years bicycle riding has taken up most of my time. Either riding itself, planning rides, maintaining my bikes, or participating in bicycle club events. I can't really see that changing very much, but I realize I need to be open to the possibility. I've already been thinking about trying a recumbent trike if my balance does not come back. And while my goal has been to make it to 80 before resorting to electric assist I know I may need one before then. Of course age is a big factor. Twenty years ago a crash like this would not have kept me off the bike more than a few days. Whatever adjustments I'll have to make were inevitable anyway as old age creeps up on me. So now I've just got to stay positive and navigate the flow of doctor visits, physical therapy, and whatever else I need to do to speed up my recovery. One day at a time.

Evidently one of my riding buddies and I had a different idea of the route and managed to collide at an intersection. Him being much larger than me, I came away worse for the ware. I hit my face, broke a dental bridge and suffered a concussion. It's been a week and I am just getting to where I can use the computer even though my vision is still impaired to a degree. This crash eliminates the summer tours I had planned for May and June. We'll see beyond that. The good news is I'll have more time to spend with my grandkids. Crashing of course is always a risk when bicycle riding. Of course I ware a good helmet and ride carefully, but there are just too many unknowns, so it's just par for the course. In the past i've broken my clavicle and bruised my ribs, but this is my first head injury. I seem to be getting better every day so no reason not to expect a full recovery. Still hoping for some bike camping trips latter in the summer. In the meantime it's one day at a time.

🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Cronemiller Lake Date: 2026-05-08 Distance: 25 miles Bike: Ravn

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🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Town - Garden Date: 2026-05-06 Distance: 14 miles Bike: Soma Saga

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🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Town Date: 2026-05-04 Distance: 17 miles Bike: Soma Saga

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🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Albany Date: 2026-04-25 Distance: 30 miles Bike: Grando

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🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Hiatt Date: 2026-04-24 Distance: 40 miles Bike: Ravn

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🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Philomath Date: 2026-04-23 Distance: 22 miles Bike: Soma Saga

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Life makes Life

Awhile back I read a fascinating book called Becoming Earth [1]. Conventional wisdom has it that our planet evolved through geological means until it was suitable for life. The theory presented in this book is that it was life itself that brought about the geological changes needed for life to thrive and evolve. For example before our atmosphere contained enough oxygen for air breathing life to evolve, more primitive life forms evolved to add oxygen to the atmosphere. >Life and its environment have coevolved for billions of years, transforming >a lump of orbiting rock into the cosmic oasis we call home. Life breathed >oxygen into the atmosphere, dyed the sky blue, concocted the modern oceans, >and converted barren crust into fertile soil. > It's a fascinating book and I encourage everyone to read it. Now comes news of a recent discovery [2] that certain fungi, using DNA that they appropriated from bacteria, can seed clouds and create rain. Basically the soil itself influencing the sky to send it some rain. Many years ago while walking through a Redwood forest in central California I had an illuminating experience I will never forget. It was drizzling rain. The ground was covered with moss and ferns and all the kinds of things that only grow and a cool wet environment. But then I came to a clearing and walked out into the dry sunshine. It was a clear day, not a cloud in the sky. Looking back at the forest I could see that it was holding in it's own fog like moisture layer. A few years later I moved to the Oregon Coast where I witnessed huge swaths of clearcuts. I could see the rain clouds coming in from the ocean would pass right over the clearcuts until they hit a standing forest which slowed them down so they could dump their rain. Years before climate change was a well understood phenomenon I could see how clearcut logging was upsetting the coastal environment. Planet Earth is one big interconnected organism. Our survival as a species depends on our ability to understand and work with the natural systems that makes life possible. [1] https://www.ferrisjabr.com/book [2] https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aed9652

🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Jefferson Date: 2026-04-18 Distance: 54 miles Bike: Grando

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🚲Lieb's Ride Log🚲

Route: Hiatt Date: 2026-04-17 Distance: 39 miles Bike: Grando

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