I just lost my drain of thought

Before all the hype about gas rising to four bucks, I was looking at folding bikes. It wasn’t because I wanted to save money on gas, since I don’t drive, and it wasn’t because I had any difficulty getting to places I needed to go, because there is a shuttle that stops right around the corner from my apartment that takes me to campus, which is really the farthest place I need to go during the week. I wanted a bike just because. I wanted the option to bike somewhere if I felt like doing so, thinking mostly about bringing it to campus for when the shuttles stop running.

Thinking about biking is a lot easier than actually doing it. Duh. I rode around a lot as a kid, but I kind of stopped when I sold my soul to the computer and started spending most of my time online. We’ve got a couple bikes back home, but I wanted something more BA, something not that common but easy to transport. That’s when I got to lookin’ at folding bikes. I wanted one of those cool, shiny ones that fold in 15 seconds, but they were pretty expensive. I thought I needed something fancy that changed gears and whatnot and I was on the verge of calling this person on Craigslist when I thought I found the perfect deal until I saw another Craigslist post with pictures of this guy. I can’t resist something fun looking AND vintage. Are you crazy? So I went and bought it and it is a BA piece of pre-loved awesomeness.

The first week I had it, I thought it would somehow enable me to beat traffic, but I seemed to have forgotten that it is powered by my ability to ride it. Because I leave for my sister’s work during typical LA rush hours, I thought I would gain the upper hand in traffic by riding my bicycle part of the way and then boarding my normal bus when I got too tired to go on. I did not account for my out-of-shapeness, the hilliness of Wilshire Blvd, and the fact that Wilshire doesn’t really get so packed that a bike would outrun a bus. As I trudged along, watching bus after bus pass me by, Wilshire began to bend. I figured it would be a shortcut if I took some local streets and then met Wilshire again later. Unfortunately, the moment I turned onto a street, it was all hill. I figured after I went over one, that would be it, but no, there was more. I eventually made my way back to Wilshire, probably only moving up one block, and gave up. It was beyond hot and my legs were butt tired. I had barely put a dent in my nine-mile trip but wasted probably at least half an hour.

To make matters worse, the driver of the bus I boarded was SUCH a jerk. It was my first time using a bike rack and I had no idea what to do, so I asked the bus driver and he, with a scowl on his face, impatiently told me there were directions on the rack. I fought with the bike rack for a minute or so (mind you, I had a large duffelbag and heavy backpack to carry, as well) and I looked up to the bus driver for a little sympathy but there was none to be had and his scowl just turned more sour. Finally, this nice man on the bus got off and asked if I needed help and he put my bike in the rack for me. I was already running late to my sister’s and all the previous events of that day had just put me in such a bad mood. At least I found out the rack thing on my bike can hold my duffelbag without needing bungee cords. That was pretty impressive.

But anyway, when I’m not pressed for time and carrying a buttload of stuff, biking is a pretty cool, relaxing, and sustainable way to get around. Speaking of sustainable, sorta, I actually read somewhere that some old Royce Union bikes (don’t know about mine) were made from scrap metal from cars, which I thought was interesting enough to share with you. Anyway, for longer commutes with heavy items, I suggest just taking the bus if it is more convenient (which, for me, it is, since the bus stop is very close to my apartment and drops me off a couple blocks from my sister’s work).

I don’t really know anything about bikes, but according to my friend, I am in desperate need of a new bike chain, because mine could potentially kill me. I have made few mods to it since its purchase (by few, I mean adding a bell that says “I <3 My Bike”), but I am going to clean it up some more during the summer and decide if I want to give it new parts or keep it original. I’m considering a new seat because my bum really hurts after riding a while. All this talk of biking makes me want to ride around the block, so I am going to do that now. If anyone wants to join my bicycle gang, feel free to ask me.