Story of the trip so far so brace yourself! Pushed off early Sunday from Geneva-on-the-Lake en route to Cleveland. About an hour from downtown, following bike lanes and paths, I was approached by another cyclist my age. His name was Andy and we easily struck up a conversation over my trip and his experiences in road, gravel and mountain biking. I believe he was originally from the Ashtabula area and knew Geneva and the area I had spent the prior day/eve. I was looking for a lunch spot when we first met and he suggested we continue into downtown Cleveland by the waterfront. He took me past the Browns stadium, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Steamship Willian G. Mather, which has a long history dating back to 1925 including WW2 wartime service on the Great Lakes. I snapped a photo of Andy there because his grandfather had proudly captained the steamship for 50 years after emigrating from Scotland. Pretty cool. After finishing our ride to the waterfront, I offered to buy him lunch for “ferrying” me into town...it clearly runs in the family! He had to head home as his wife was expecting him, but at least got him a Coke before he departed. About an hour later I was sitting at aptly named Caffeine Lakewood. I sent Andy the photos of our short journey including the pic of him in front of the WG Mather. While speaking to my wife and telling her about the hospitality I just encountered, Andy texts me back: “Apparently, my sister and bro-in-law bought your food (yesterday) at a grocery store in Ashtabula, Michelle and Doug”. MIND BLOWN! The Universe was speaking to me today.
