Liz Randall's Cycling Blog - a life behind bars

"With ordinary talents and extraordinary perseverance, all things are attainable"



Thursday 17 December 2009

My week for volunteering

I'm somewhat agin people who take heaps out of their sport and give nothing back, but how can I, me, myself give something back to the cycling fraternity? I'm not sure I want to coach, I think being a commissaire is waaaaay beyond me (eyesight, age and don't really know the rules anyway!) and so I'm dipping my toe in the volunteering pond.

Last night I sold programs at Hisense during the "Revolution+the Austral" event. As the newbie, I got the "least likely to sell anything" position, and although I got to see plenty of people I knew, without exception they'd bought their progams from someone else. I tried suggesting they take them back for a refund, but to no avail. I think I managed to sell 39 by the end of the evening. And what did I gain from all this? Positive:free T shirt, food, entry, and car parking and "giving something back" negative: sore feet, sore back. Actually the crowd wasn't very big......was it promoted enough or was it the stinking hot weather......the 39 programs I managed to sell were promoted as being a great fly swat as well as good reading value!

A glutton for punishment, my halo goes back on tomorrow at DISC for the Madison...ushering in the front straight...different shoes I think and at least my back wont get so sore...standing still is not one of the things I do with ease, so maybe next time I specify no program selling.

I'm busily harassing my travel agent to organise my flights to Italy in May as I think there are some good deals happening and once she's got that in gear, then I can book hotel rooms in Palermo for the day or so before the ride actually starts and in whichever city I'm travelling from before I fly out. I'm excited!

I'm also starting to learn Italian much to the enduring amusement of all at work. I've got a teach yourself Italian CD which I play in the car and then practise what I've learnt on an Italian co-worker. The only problem is.....by the time I get from the car park into the gym, I've forgotten what I've been listening to! So far I can order a bottle of wine (red/white/house) and bread...that I CAN remember! I can also say hello, goodbye and is everything ok! and I'm a whizz at various food items..you know them too...spag blog, pizza, espresso, cappuccino.....and I know the word for a bicycle!..bicicletta. Impressionante!

2 comments:

Lawrence said...

Good luck with the Italian. I am learning Portuguese :-) Important stuff, like where are the horses? And today's word verification security: toesser. How appropriate :-D

Liz said...

or "Lo! the postilion is on fire"!

good luck with the Portuguese... I can't imagine for one moment why you're learning that language;-)

tutto bene is my latest phrase...brought into play at the drop of a hat.....and I'm trying to remember to gesture a bit more than usual!

tut sigh...little things, blah blah blah