In which the author finds a bicycle...

Dear Reader,

This blog is for me to remember that I am a whole person, a living and delighting soul, an artist as well as a thinking brain. It is for the practice of my forgotten art and to revive my joy in writing. It is to bring a mental break and be a metaphorical window, into and out of my daily work and study by refreshing my spirit of awareness of the surrounding world in which I walk and breathe. Finally, I write in hopes that someone else may also be inspired to try this same experiment and try biking to work...and find your life (and the environment!) even a little bit better for it.



Without further ado, here begins the account of my little blue bicycle...

It all began in hopes of beating the soaring gas prices in my little college town just outside Portland, Oregon the summer of 2008, when I dreamed up the idea of zipping down to the grocery store on a little roadbike. Long after I'd calculated the miles and miles I'd have to ride and just how much gas would have to increase for me to ever recoup my cost, the vision stayed. (Native Californian that I am, the whole Portland-er urban hippie image still had its allure.) After learning a bit about road bike sizing, I haunted Craiglist every day for a very small affordable roadbike. Finally, that September I climbed into my car with 2 adventurous college freshmen from my floor (cardinal rule of Craigslist--bring friends!) and my very saintly roommate (whom I convinced to live as my roomate our senior year while I was the resident assistant to 20 freshman girls) to go for a test ride.

Trying out the bike, I made a fool of myself...the seat was a too high, couldn't get my feet in those toe clips, and had to ask if it was a fixie (fixed single-gear) bike, cuz where were the gear shifters? -Apparently in front of me on the frame, not on handlebars like my childhood mountain bikes. This location in itself provided challenges (look where I'm going; or look at my gear to change it and risk falling?). Regardless, as I glided in staggered spurts around the neighborhood; I fell in love; ended up handing over more cash than I'd ever see come out of my bank account at one time to the former owner, who after watching my stilted performance, sent me off with a seriously concerned, "be careful."

I drove home ecstatic. ...I had found my little blue bicycle...just my size.