It was my first bike commute to my new job - it's been flooding here so I wanted to drive until I got a full access badge to sneak in and change if necessary. Otherwise an executive had to come down and vouch me in, and it could be awkward, not looking ready to work. The rain finally paused, and it's right at 0°C but no ice, and I have my badge, so it was a go! Nice ride though I felt a little out of shape.
It was also the first real test of my quick-release laptop carrier
https://www.bikeforums.net/general-c...p-carrier.html which worked as I'd hoped it would. Stopping at a store along the way it took 5-10 seconds to unhook and bring in, and was secure enough during the ride that I couldn't tell that it was there. Looked back to check a few times
The braces aren't so strange looking and I felt fine carrying it into the more image-conscious area that I'm working.
So I'm glad to be back in the bike commute!