There's a lot to be said for offices and a good balance between work and not-work.

Fortunately for me, I was a bit of a mess prior to the pandemic, so my current state of disorganization isn't really a problem. But I do miss the gym that I had access to on lunch breaks.

My office was maybe too close to a place that sold chicken tenders and fries, but it was very definitely a better place to work.

I would semi-regularly go in to the office on a Saturday or Sunday for a couple of hours for just this reason. The fact that I was going in "off hours" when I had frittered away massive amounts of time during regular work hours in the previous few weeks added impetus and focus to my efforts.

I wonder if the St. Louis-gun-pointing assholes aren't going to get pardoned. Trump promised to pardon someone and they are supposed to speak at the Republican convention, which seems like a really bad idea for people expecting to be tried.

Oops. Wrong thread.

Were they charged with Federal crimes?

No idea. I don't even know what thread I'm in. I should probably sleep.

I miss Leather Lane market--I could get really good, healthy, hot food, cheaply every lunch time--and I had a gym near the office that was quiet any time after 7pm. I also miss chatting with my boss. He and I did a lot of brainstorming together, and it was really pleasant (as a working practice) and really productive (he's a very smart guy).

We are potentially reopening our London office, so if I can get hold of a decent bike,* I might cycle in once a week or so for a quiet day of solo working. I am used to working from home, and have done it a couple of days a week for years, but doing it every day for months has been starting to drive me crazy.

We have no obligation to go into the office, our company is just reopening it to give those of us who have a need for a quiet place to work a place to go. The office also has a big balcony with tables on it, so I could go in there and work outside.

* it's quite a long way, so I'll need a decent road or gravel bike, rather than the semi-broken 20 year old mountain bike I currently have.

I haven't cycled that far, through a major city, in years. It's about 14 miles each way if I take a route that hasn't go too many sections that the cycling route planners label as "hostile". I can't imagine doing it more than once a week, but once a week it might be fun/challenging.

I have one place I go that has office space for me in the basement because their social workers are remote and would like me to come in, but I would have to take public transportation. The place with parking has no space for me.

but doing it every day for months has been starting to drive me crazy.

I think maybe half of what worked so well for me yesterday was just the change of scenery. It's not like I'm not capable of procrastinating at my office.

Maybe I'll try to go in on Saturday mornings or something this semester. It's about a 30-40 minute drive, which is enough that it feels like the commute is time sunk, though.

ttaM, I bought last month and can thoroughly recommend, a Cannondale Topstone (the least expensive aluminium model) which would be great for that kind of cycling on horrible London roads. I got a huge discount, which makes me suspicious, but it was not registered anywhere as stolen. It sails over rough surfaces and stops very quickly indeed thanks to the disk brakes. I never had those before, and they are a revelation.

Less use in heavy traffic, but quite enchanting, is the radar-equipped back light which flashes more brightly as cars approach, and also shows their relative position and velocity on the phone screen. Very reassuring on country roads.

I pride myself on being able to procrastinate anywhere, but I have certainly noticed a loss of productivity now that my sister is staying for a fortnight and I can't just wander into my office when I need to because it is also the guest bedroom.

Bike shops here just have nothing in stock. Supply chain issues in China, I'm told.

Sometimes people leave them on the porch unattended.

You can't take them if they are chained, because that's stealing.

I've realized that the noise level in the ad-hoc home office is really a problem. There's a window AC unit about six feet away, and it's really kind of oppressive-sounding. The alternative, of course, is oppressive heat.

(My employer did a survey recently about "what do you miss about the office?" but HVAC was not one of their listed options. Californians!)

Seriously? That's an oversight. I definitely go into the office for AC that I don't feel guilty about.

Hi Ttam,
I gues you could go quite a bit of your route along the canal towpath? Debouch at York Way? Cut out some hills at the price of more congestion?

Ttam, I got an internal-hub Genesis Day One for a 17km each way commute a few years ago, and it's very good for that. Although if the roads are really bad, I'd consider trading some speed for suspension.

Bikes are trickling back into stock here now, but the supply chain issues we hear about are in Cambodia and Vietnam. Certainly my new bike was made in Cambodia/Kampuchea.

My bike is British-made.

22: the bridges on the Camden stretch of that canal, though, are narrow, low, and twisty. I never knew whether I was most afraid of hitting a pedestrian, lobotomising myself, or pitching into the water.

24: that's my commuting route, or was, and I think I'd still rather do that than go on the road.

Useful tips above.I basically have three routes. Loop north, loop sort of south, or the direct east/west route.

Loop north, I'd go up from where I live through Ealing and Acton, Willesden, Kensal Rise, north past Primrose Hill and down through Camden towards Farringdon/Clerkenwell from the north.Loop south, would be to head down towards Brentford and along the A4 and associated cycle routes through Hammersmith, Kensington, Hyde Park, and round the Embankment and up at Blackfriars. Or, the more direct route through East Acton, Ladbroke Grove, Paddington, and through Mayfair and Soho. That has some fairly busy/hostile stretches.

re: 21

I have looked at a different Genesis model online, actually. I used to admire one that was parked outside my office, although I can get something a bit lighter for the same cash, too.

re: 13.1

Those are in stock in a few places, and are on my list, too. I definitely want disc brakes, and drop bars, and something that's not too heavy. I can use the cycle to work schemes to offset the cost, and I'm currently saving in commute costs (because of working from home) the entire cost of the cycle to work scheme, every 8 - 10 weeks, anyway. So I don't mind spending (although I'm not going to stretch to full carbon on 2K+ fancy bikes).

Speaking as a bicyclist who's a lot heavier than the skinny little dudes who compete, I really like steel frames. Hard to find with disk brakes though, and those definitely make sense for a commute in city traffic. Bianchi makes one.

re: 28

The Genesis bikes linked by x.trapnel above are mostly steel frames with disk brakes. I've not ridden enough recently to have any preference. The road bikes I had 25+ years ago were all steel. The (past its useful life) MTB I have now is alloy.

My garage is really damp (Wet-Ass Parking), so there's mold on my bike tires. I should probably check the brakes of I want to ride it again.

re: 28

I'm also on the heavier side. Over 200 pounds. Admittedly, barely over 200 pounds these days.

and through Mayfair and Soho. That has some fairly busy/hostile stretches.

Not to mention werewolves when it rains.

15: According to my local bike shop guys, it's basically a perfect storm. Projected inventory is done the previous year, so before there was a coronavirus. Shutdowns in China affected the supply chain so they couldn't ramp as demand in the U.S. skyrocketed. Every bike under $2K is gone here.

Tire width is going to make the most difference to comfort if the roads are bad. I have a steel Marin for commuting (although I also did a century on it even though it's quite heavy) with 32mm tires and it's great. Disc brakes are nice mostly for facilitating larger tire widths, unless one regularly rides in the rain. I'm on the fence about disc brakes for my next roadie bike. They're getting really common at all price points.

re: 33.last

Yeah, that's why I've been mostly looking at gravel bikes, so I can get 30+ mm tyres and mudguards on it.