Still More Reflections on Not Riding

I've written a couple of times about the fact that I kind of feel like a really lucky little son of a gun, because I have had and continue to have unusual, fun, and awesome jobs.  I am going to have to express that same flavor of gratitude again.

After my accident last Wednesday, DD brought my road bike down to the shop to get it checked out.  The guys at the shop proceeded not only to put the bike to rights, but also to change out all the cables and tune it up for me.  On Wednesday, when I took Quicksilver home, I asked Billy what I owed him.  His answer?  "Don't worry about it.  We're good."

Not only that, but the very first question everyone at work asked me wasn't, "When will you be back on the job?" or "What the hell were you thinking?" -- it was, "Are you okay?" followed by, "Are you sure you're okay?"

It means a lot to me -- a whole lot -- to work with people who actually care about each-other.  In the final analysis, if you asked me what makes me keep working for our little courier service, that's the key element: the shop is like a little family, and I feel like a valued member of that family.  It's a pretty awesome feeling.

One of the best things, I think, about the cycling community in general is this sort of sense of camaraderie -- while there is some degree of back-biting in some parts of the cycling world, bike people are really good at coming together when the going gets tough.  In a culture that seems ever-more-divisive, I think that's a pretty awesome thing.
 
In other news, I am banned from the bike for a couple weeks, which is a giant pain in the ... er ... neck  (well, actually, the shoulder) ... for a number of reasons.

First, I ride my bike for a living, so that's a bit of a problem.  Fortunately, I can work dispatch part-time for the duration, so I'm not entirely without income, here.  Which is good.  I am in the fortunate position of not really having to worry about my living expenses right now, but I am trying, at least, to cover my own school expenses and personal bills.

Second, riding the bike is my 'drug of choice.'  I'm actually somewhat upset about some of the fallout from the outcome of my accident (nothing particularly serious, so don't worry; it's just a very annoying situation that makes me mad), and normally I would manage this particular frustration by riding the bike.  Since I can't ride at all for another week (argh), and will probably be somewhat restricted for a bit thereafter, I'm stewing.  Occasionally I'll find myself thinking, "I think I'm going to go jump on the bike and ... oh, right."

I'm wondering -- do the rest of you out there on the Webz ride as a form of stress relief?  If so, what do you do when you're forced to not ride for medical (or other) reasons for a bit?

I have been reading a lot and working on a novel that's been hanging out in my head for a while but wasn't getting written because I had too much going on.  Reading seems to help at least a bit, as does laughing at stupid stuff on the internet, which is probably like the #1 pass-time for people in my age bracket in the United States anyway.

I wonder if I'd be allowed to ride on a trainer, since I could do that without actually involving my arms...