Bike Date

After all the fun I had riding on the back of Lynn's bike yesterday I realized it was time to haul out my own and get riding again. There are lots of stories I tell myself about why I don't ride more often. These have to do with time and energy and my neighborhood (where the only way out is up). There's some truth to each of these but there's more, too. I really can only ride on the weekend because someone needs to stay with The Princess. And if I go for a ride when The Spouse is home then that takes away from the very limited time I have with him. So today I woke up and pestered him until he agreed to go with me and then got the boys to agree to watch their sister. It took some work, but I'm a champion nag and eventually I won.

He rode The Dark Lord's bike which isn't a bad fit now the the son is as tall as the father. He immediately began complaining about the seat but I just kept on pedaling. We went first to the library and then decided to ride further for a coffee. By the time we got near our coffee destination we were starving and changed plans in order to get a proper lunch. We sat outside, chilly and hungry and very happy. Well, I was happy. My husband was still grumbling but he tried to be cheery. Given that his idea of a perfect morning is more likely to involve a newspaper and a cozy house than a bicycle and helmet I think he was rather a good sport. I couldn't get over how cool it was that we'd taken our first ever bike ride together in nearly 20 years of marriage. I know, I know, kind of ridiculous, isn't it?

Our return ride was right into the east wind and not ideal, especially when there was nothing to do but ride in traffic. I wish there were more low traffic roads out of our neighborhood, but an interstate freeway and a rather large chunk of rock force us to use the higher traffic roads for part of nearly any ride. I don't much like sharing the road with speeding cars but my poor husband was quite worried. Eventually the shoulder widened out as we approached home and we arrived tired but quite pleased with ourselves.

When I asked if he was glad I made him go out with me he insisted I didn't make him do anything-- it was his choice. Fair enough--I hope it's a choice he makes often in the near future. because I can't think of a whole lot that's more fund than a cycling date with my sweetie.

A Perfect Day

I probably shouldn't say this, but I'm kind of loving these global warming days. Sixty degrees and sunny in early March in Portland? It's crazy but good.

I spent a couple of hours battling roses today. The rose garden came with the house and it's become more of an obligation than a pleasure. I don't love roses, but ignoring them doesn't accomplish much so I pruned all 15 shrubs to get them in shape for spring. Oddly satisfying it was.

Later....the first proper bike ride of the year. Beth gave my sweet bike a little love and off we went on a pleasant and mercifully flat ride. I love riding my bike--it makes me feel like I'm eight years old again and free as a bird. But it also surprises me how much harder it is than walking. I can walk at a pretty good clip, even up hills, without huffing and puffing but by our midpoint I was winded and my legs were good and shaky. After a refreshing drink and a pause in the sunshine we headed back, ran into friends, looped through the park and had a great downhill coast back to Beth's house. Did I mention I love riding my bike?

While riding, I kept thinking about the bikes I've had over the years. The first: a purple Schwinn Fair Lady with orchids on the banana seat and a white wicker basket adorned with plastic flowers which I received as a gift for my sixth birthday. It took me a while to learn to ride that bike. It lived in the garage and I remember sitting on it while my dad did whatever it was he did in in the garage, chatting with him and getting used to the feel of it. I was seven going on eight when I had my two-wheeled epiphany and one Saturday everything just clicked. I rode all over our little subdivsion until dark, tumbled into bed, and got right back on the next morning before anyone else woke up. I hit a parked car and worried the heck out of my dad who had no idea where I'd gone. I never really got the brakes on that bike and was more likely to jump off at the end of a ride than stop properly. But that bike took me all over the place and lasted a good long time until I was 12 or so.

Bike #2 was a beautiful silver Raleigh 3 speed. But I was a fool and wanted an infinitely cooler 10-speed at that point. I realize now that my parents spent a fortune buying those beautiful bikes for me and my sister (hers was a lovely chocolate brown) an many times in my adult years I've wished to have that lovely bicycle back in my possession . That bike got me back and forth to school until I could save up enough babysitting money for something more fitting for my uppity teen self.

Bike #3, purchased when I was 14, was a red Echo 10-speed, slightly too large but somehow the perfect bike for me. I have no idea where it was made as I've never seen another, but it was my companion all the way through high school and it was my only transportation during college. That bike was a reliable workhorse, heavy as iron, and not at all fussy. I rode that thing through rain and snow, often with a cup of coffee and a lit cigarette on my early morning trips to campus. I gave up the cigarettes long ago but I never should have given up the cycling. I left it behind when I left Eugene and I have no idea what became of it.

Somehow in all the ensuing years, bicycles drifted out of my life. Only recently did I realize just how much I missed the freedom and joy of riding and on a whim bought an old but virtually new eighties-aqua Miyata last summer, too late to put it to much use before hibernating all winter in the garage. This year I really want to spend more time on my bike. I don't think I'll be going car-free anytime soon (even at $3.50/gallon) but I really, really want to trade four wheels for two a lot more often.

Makeover

Yes, we've redecorated for spring here at Casa Magpie. MonkeyBoy helped me make a new header from one of yesterday's photos. That boy is brilliant. I told him what I wanted and he managed it in just a few minutes while I just stared.

Both boys are completely self-taught when it comes to software and they can manage complex applications like Flash with complete ease. Meanwhile, The Dark Lord is forced to sit through painful sessions on Microsoft Office for complete beginners as part of his required Future Focus class. Why they can't test out of such mind-numbing classes is beyond me.

I could go on and on about my boy's high school experience but I think I'll drop it for now and think of more pleasant things like the year's first bike ride tomorrow. I'm badly out of shape and hoping my cycling companion doesn't leave me in the dust.

Consolation Prizes

I lost one of my dearest friends last week and I hear another friend will be packing up to leave soon. I don't handle changes well, especially when loss is involved, so I've been rather sulky of late.

But.....and thank goodness for the but......there are consolation prizes and I want to recognize them:

It turns out that my impulse-purchased second hand bike was rather a score and is worth a bit more than I paid. This fact is neither here nor there as have every intention of holding on to it because every time I ride the bike I love it more, but it does make me feel rather clever.

Yesterday's ride was to the Montavilla Farmers Market where I had one of the most memorable peaches of my life, an Elegant Lady grown by the Baird family of Dayton. This really was a fantastic peach, and I enjoyed it sitting with The Dark Lord, juice running down our chins. He's a teen, he simply had to act blase, but even he admitted it was delicious. The peaches were that much tastier for our having biked a few miles to buy them. We ended up taking a big bag home and making a pie.

My boys are being unusually sweet and agreeable. Dare I even say...helpful? It's quite wonderful.

Yes, I've lost a good friend, but I am re-discovering others and that's a wonderful thing.

A long lost member of our knitting circle is closing down her yarn store and giving everything away. Everything. I did my part in helping her liquidate and I have yarn for years and years of projects. I have long dreamed of making my first sweater for myself out of this in plum and I am now the owner of 18 balls!

We headed to the beach over the weekend expecting the usual cool weather and overcast skies typical of the Oregon Coast. Instead, we had brilliant sunshine, warm breezes, and hundreds upon hundreds of pelicans. It was a perfect day of kites and sandcastles, shells and tidepools. No one argued and no one snarked until dinner (which really was truly snarkworthy--why bother starting up a restaurant of you're just going to serve nasty food but I digress...) . We'd planned a beach trip the weekend before but it was rather abruptly canceled due to fraternal squabbling so this peaceful, sunny day was a rare pleasure.

I tell you, when you're flying a kite, everything looks good!

Whee!

An antidote to the sadness: I bought myself a sweet little bike yesterday.

I was an avid bike rider as a kid. I regularly rode my bike to high school and my bike was my only form of transportation in college. I was quite the road hazard in those days, pedaling off to class with a both a cup of coffee and a cigarette to manage.

I always loved that feeling of racing along but somehow I lost touch with my inner cyclist over the years. I was never willing to drag kids along in a trailer but now there are those tag along bikes and I think The Princess might be about ready for such a thing. I realized the other day that I could make about 90% of my commute to work without riding in traffic and that got me thinking that it really was time to get myself back on a bike. I've always felt guilty driving alone to work and I do think the time is coming when we'll all be forced out of our cars so I'd prefer to be prepared.

I was advised against buying used from strangers but I just couldn't help myself. Of course I should have brought Beth along to check it out before I handed over the cash, but she was a little busy this weekend and I am terribly impetuous. She is going to chew me out but surely she'll understand love at first sight. The bike is not new, but it seems to be in exceptional condition and everything works as it should. More importantly, the frame size feels just perfect.

I took an inaugural spin this morning to my favorite cafe. The trip was about 4 miles during which I was mostly on a dedicated bike path. I spent only a few minutes riding in traffic and it all felt quite safe and manageable. After a good visit with a friend, a bagel, some coffee and, yes, knitting, I was off again to buy a well fitting helmet and a proper lock. At that point I was tired and my legs were shaky so I wimped out and called The Spouse for a ride home, but I still managed over 6 miles on my first jaunt out on a bike in years. And, surprisingly, nothing hurts which I take as a very good sign. Clearly this sweet little bike and I were meant for each other.