The bike came out of the camouflage travel case in pieces.
Frame, wheels, tools, clothes, and the trainer were spread across the floor of a small apartment in Newport Beach. A few hours later, the bike was together and sitting on the trainer against the wall.
I had started at TRX in May while living in New York. The job also required enough time with the California team that I needed a place out west. By September, that place had become a second work setup and a very practical bike-storage problem.
The apartment was functional, but it was not settled. My photographs from the first day show a ceiling light hanging from its wires, an open fixture above the closet, boxes in the kitchen, and the bicycle still folded into its case.
I dealt with the light. I unpacked the gear. Then I assembled the bike.
The work files from the same week were all TRX Training Club. There was a funnel update, a new audience document, and another document covering landing pages, surveys, and workflows. We were trying to make the digital subscription easier to explain and easier to join.
That work was the reason for being in California. The bicycle was how I kept the rest of my life recognizable while I was there.
Just after midnight, I took a picture of the finished setup. The bike was on a white trainer. A tablet was mounted between the handlebars. The trainer mat fit against the wall beside a window air conditioner. It was not an elegant home gym, but everything had a place and the rear wheel could turn.
Nothing about the arrangement looked permanent. My actual home, Amanda, and most of my life were still in New York. The apartment made the repeated work trips possible without pretending I had moved to California.
The next morning there were still lights to fix and documents to finish. The bike was ready.