Tag Archives: bicycle

Jun26

Gratitude Saturday

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I think “Thankful Thursday” has a better ring than “Gratitude Saturday,” but I’ve been too busy to write a post expressing my appreciation. There’s not another Thursday in June, so if I want to give thanks this month (which I do!) I had to do it on a day that doesn’t lend itself to a catchy title.

I typed the above list the other day, but I’ve found more things for which to be grateful since then. The typed list is an incomplete one but I’m certainly thankful for everything on it. Want more details about everything I’m grateful for in June of 2021? Keep reading!

My Royal Safari Model 2. I’m so grateful for this gift!

I’m so in love with this typewriter that my sibling gave me. It was found in a thrift store and got a complete makeover at a typewriter repair shop. Did you even know there were typewriter repair shops in existence? (For a state-by-state list of typewriter repair shops in the U.S.A, see Old Bob’s Old Typewriters website.) This refurbished typewriter is such a great gift!

I’ve wanted a manual typewriter for a long time. This one is great for a traveler, as it’s a lightweight portable model. It’s a Royal Safari Model 2 and was made in Portugal, probably in the 1980s. I don’t see myself typing anything extensive on my new machine because I’m really sold on the easy editing of word-processing life, but I do love using my Safari to type bits and pieces for art projects. Maybe I’ll even eventually type letters or postcard messages on it.

If you want to learn even more about the Royal Safari II watch Alton Gansky‘s YouTube video “1980 Royal Safari II: A Peek Under the Hood.” This video offers so much information about my typewriter.

I was given a bicycle too! It was actually given to The Man while we were in the same town for a moment. He showed up at my door one evening with a bicycle. He said he had been hanging out in the park when a truck towing an travel trailer pulled in. The couple in the truck got out and went into the travel trailer. They weren’t inside long before they came back out with a bicycle. I don’t know if the people noticed The Man looking at them or if he was the closest person, but for whatever the reason, they called out to him and asked if he wanted the bike. The people said they were tired of traveling with it and were going to find a thrift store and drop it off if he didn’t want it. He said yes, even though it’s a woman’s bike and too short for his 6 foot frame. He brought it over to me and asked if I wanted it. I said yes too.

I haven’t ridden it yet. The tires are holding air pretty well, but the back brake doesn’t work at all. Have I ridden a bike without proper brakes before? Yes. Do I think that’s a good idea, especially at my advanced age? No. I’m not going to ride it until I can get it fixed. I was supposed to take it in to the bike shop last week, but I was too busy working. I’m going to try to get it in this coming week. I would like to give it a spin even though I don’t think the narrow roads in this town are the best for biking. I’m going to need a helmet…

This bike was given to The Man, and he gave it to me.

I’ll be particularly pleased to have this bicycle in the fall when I’m back at my home base in a town with wider roads and less traffic. I’ll be able to zip to the grocery store and the post office on my bike.

In other great news, I have not one but TWO new patrons on Patreon. Thanks a bunch to Muriel and Laura-Marie for pledging to support me financially each month. I appreciate you two and all of my Patreon supporters SO MUCH! I can’t even express how much my Patreon supporters mean to me.

On a similar note, my friend Brent made a monetary donation through PayPal, and as always, Shannan supported me this month too. Every dollar really helps me keep on doing what I do, and I appreciate the help more than I know how to say.

I’m so grateful that the dog I’m hanging out is a real sweetie. She is a really good girl. She doesn’t get in the bed with me, but she would like to. She lets me clean her paws after she walks in the mud, and she patiently lets me brush her, which I try to do several times a weeks. (She’s got long hair, and she sheds. I can either clean her fur out of the brush or sweep it off the floor.) She doesn’t bark much, although last week when it was really hot, I tried sleeping with the bedroom window open. I don’t know what she heard outside, but I sure heard her barking! Being jerked out of a deep sleep by a barking dog is no fun to me, especially when the dog is quite close. To solve the problem, I bought a fan so I can sleep with the window closed. Both the dog and I have been sleeping more soundly.

Doggie friend on our daily walk.

The dog has got me going on two (sometimes three) walks a day. While I don’t exactly think taking several walks a day is fun (What can I say? I’m an inside kid.) I know that walking is good for me. I’m glad to have a doggie pal who gives me a reason to get out of the house and move around, even if that’s not my #1 idea of fun. I certainly sleep better when I’m getting regular physical exercise.

It’s Smoothie Summer, and I’m loving it! When I rolled into town, one of the first things I did was hit my favorite thrift store. I found a blender for $7, and I scooped it right up. Soon after I started working for her, the woman I’m helping prepare for her move to another country gave me her extra Yeti 20 ounce tumbler. Heck yes, I was glad to accept the gift! I’ve heard about Yeti brand, but I hadn’t tried one. My friend has a Yeti cup her parents gave her, so I’d heard what she thought of it, but I had not had first hand experience. Let me tell you. I can make a smoothie at 8 in the morning and put it in that Yeti tumbler, and by 1 in the afternoon, it’s still absolutely cold. I’m not talking a cool beverage. I’m saying the smoothie is still frosty cold and thick. I love that cup!

Are you wondering what I put in my smoothies? Really, I use whatever fruit I can get for free or at a good price. Lately I’m using frozen bananas, frozen strawberries, ice, and orange juice. If I have yogurt, I throw some of that in too. Recently I’ve used half a can of pineapple and the juice it was packed in, and yesterday I threw in some fresh mango and a couple slices of cantaloupe. Everything I’ve used has turned out really good, although I was less than thrilled with the texture when I added shredded coconut. Live and learn.

My $7 blender and gifted Yeti 20 ounce tumbler.

My friend whose parents gave her a Yeti cup told me what she likes to do, and I’m dying to try it. She goes to Wendy’s and gets a Frosty and puts it in her Yeti. The cup keeps the Frosty so cold that she can eat it at her leisure without having it turn into a lukewarm liquid. I’m going on a short road trip next week, and I might stop at Wendy’s on the way out of town so I can have a treat all the way to my destination.

I feel so lucky that the apartment I’m staying in is quite spacious and comfortable. I’ve got room to spread out, and spread out I have. I have stuff everywhere! It’s nice to be able to do that here because the travel trailer is too small to comfortably leave a mess when I’m at home. I am enjoying having full size appliances here as well as lots of space in the kitchen.

The other thing about this apartment I’m enjoying a lot is plenty of hot water whenever I want to take a bath or shower. The bathtub is big too, so there’s plenty of room to stretch out when I take a bath or to move around when I shower. Staying clean is luxurious here.

I’ve been doing a lot of sticker exchanges lately and that’s been so much fun. I’m grateful for everyone who’s swapped stickers with me, and as always, I’m thankful for each person who has sent me a postcard or a letter or any bit of mail.

So, those are the people and things I appreciate this month. What are you grateful for right now? Please share your gratitude in the comments.

Thanks for reading about this month’s gratitude! I wouldn’t be here without my readers.If you want to offer some financial support, I would be grateful for that too. To make a one-time donation, click on the “donate” button at the top of the column on the right. To become my patron on Patreon, click on the “Become a patron” button just under the search bar at the top of the column on the right. Folks who follow me on Patreon get extra content that I don’t share anywhere else. Depending on at what level you chose to support me, you can receive email updates, letters and postcards in the mail from me, stickers, buttons, a custom made hemp bracelet and/or a collage I created.

Nov20

Lots of New Collages

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Collage fodder snatched from trash cans and recycling bin.

Collage fodder snatched from trash cans and recycling bin.

I’ve been on a huge collage kick during my current house sitting gig. It’s been a lot of fun. I really enjoy playing with color and working to get each little bit of paper in exactly the right spot.

I’d finished five or six collages and made a small dent in my collage fodder. When I went to the post office on Monday afternoon, I found so many catalogs in the trash can and the recycling bin. I guess everyone in town had started to receive winter holiday propaganda, but it seemed as if most people didn’t want it. Of course, I wish so much paper wasn’t used unnecessarily, but since it’s out in the world already…well, I can use it, so I gathered it up.

Clippings from catalogs

Clippings from catalogs

 

I spent several hours on Monday evening cutting images and colors from the catalogs and filing them in the accordion file I use for collage material. By the end of the night, I was restocked.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I made more collages. I have several new ones I present here to you. Every one was made with my hands and heart and brain, every one is for sale, and every one is signed. Buy one today (for yourself or as a gift), and you can have it in your hot little hands by the end of the week.

This collage, entitled Be Strong and Courageous, is 4" X 6." It is made from paper on a post card that was intercepted from the recycling bin.

This collage, entitled Be Strong and Courageous, is 4″ X 6.” It is made from paper on a postcard that was intercepted from the recycling bin. The price is $20, including postage.

 

This collage is called All is Well. It consists of paper on cardboard and is approximately 4" x 4 1/2."

This collage is called All is Well. It consists of paper on cardboard and is approximately 4″ x 4 1/2.” The heart on the upper right side is a broken button that extends from the piece. The price is $20, including postage.

 

This collage is called You Deserve the Best. It is made from paper on cardboard and is approximately 6" x 3 1/2."

This collage is called You Deserve the Best. It is made from paper on cardboard and is approximately 6″ x 3 1/2.” The price is $20, including postage.

 

This collage is called Find Who You Have Not Yet Become. It is made from paper on cardboard and is approximately 6 1/4" x 3 1/4." The price is $20, including shipping.

This collage is called Find Who You Have Not Yet Become. It is made from paper on cardboard and is approximately 6 1/4″ x 3 1/4.” The price is $20, including postage.

 

This collage is called An Adventure a Day...It is made from paper on cardboard. It is approximately 4 1/2" x 4 1/2," and costs $15, including postage.

This collage is called An Adventure a Day…It is made from paper on cardboard. It is approximately 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2,” and costs $15, including postage. The photo makes the colors look rather muted and blue. In reality, the colors are much more vibrant, and the car (for example) is more of an off-white.

 

This collage is called You Don't Have to Hold on to Your Past. It is made from paper on a postcard saved from the recycling bin.

This collage is called You Don’t Have to Hold on to Your Past. It is made from paper on a postcard saved from the recycling bin. The size is 4″ x 6,” and the price is $20, including postage.

 

This collage is quite a bit bigger than the others. It is approximately 8 1/2" x 6," and is called Explore the Wonderful World. it cost $20, including postage.

This collage is quite a bit bigger than the others. It is approximately 8 1/2″ x 6,” and is called Explore the Wonderful World. It’s made from paper on cardboard and costs $20, including postage.

This collage is called What Are You Waiting For? It is made from paper on cardboard. The size is approximately 4 1/2" x 3 3/4," and the cost is $15, including postage.

This collage is called What Are You Waiting For? It is made from paper on cardboard. The size is approximately 4 1/2″ x 3 3/4,” and the cost is $15, including postage.

 

This collage is called What's Your Next Move? It is made from paper on a postcard that was headed to the recycling bin. It is 6" x 4," and costs $20, including postage.

This collage is called What’s Your Next Move? It is made from paper on a postcard that was headed to the recycling bin. It is 6″ x 4,” and costs $20, including postage.

 

This collage is called Living the Life of Adventure and is made from paper on a postcard snatched from the recycling bin. The size is 6" x 4," and the cost is $15, including postage.

This collage is called Living the Life of Adventure and is made from paper on a postcard snatched from the recycling bin. The size is 6″ x 4,” and the cost is $15, including postage.

 

Nov13

Book Review: Chainbreaker Bike Book

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[amazon template=image&asin=B012HTVMLM] Long, long ago, in what amounts to a past life, I was a contributor to a review blog. We mostly reviewed books, but sometimes we took on music and movies and products too. The reviewers were all women, and we thought and critiqued and wrote from a feminist perspective. Today I’m sharing one of the reviews I wrote for the blog. The book in question is The Chainbreaker Bike Book: A Rough Guide to Bicycle Maintenance by Shelley Lynn Jackson and Ethan Clark. (The image to the left is connected to my Amazon affiliate link. If you click on it to shop, I will receive a commission from your purchases.)

This “rough guide to bicycle maintenance” is really two books in one.

The first half is a bike repair manual, with which the authors strive to “serve many people, from the very beginner to a decent mechanic who just likes to geek out…” I found the how-to instructions accessible, written in a way that is easy to understand, not in “high tech or cool dude language.” Although both authors have been professional bike mechanics and stalwart volunteers at the New Orleans Community Bike Project, they come across as real people who just want to help other real people repair and maintain bicycles—no bike snobs here!

The illustrations—by Ethan, Shelley, and Happy, the title page proclaims—are really awesome. They are simple but informative, slightly cartoonish, but factual. For folks who need to know what different styles of bikes or different kinds of tools look like, there are pictures here to help. There are also drawings to assist with adjusting breaks, truing wheels, and replacing cables, as well as other repair and maintenance projects.

The manual ends with two appendices. The first is a directory of community bike programs in the United States and abroad, followed by a helpful glossary of bike terms.

The second half of the book consists of reprints from past issues of the Chainbreaker zine. Shelley Lynn Jackson edited and self-published Chainbreaker from 2001-2005, but was unable to continue after losing her typewriter, clip art, desk, drawing supplies, and home to flooding following Hurricane Katrina. Lucky for readers, she was able to collect some of her favorite parts of the old zines in this compilation.

Shelley’s excitement about bicycles shows in the articles she wrote and collected for her zine. In her introduction to the very first issue of Chainbreaker, in a love letter to bikes aptly called “For the Love of a Bicycle,” she details all that bikes have to offer. “…[T]he bicycle shows a person that their [sic] are options, that there are other ways of living, new horizons undiscovered.” Romantic? Yes. True? Definitely.

Chainbreaker contains not only Shelley’s voice, but includes the art and writing of other folks too. There are instructions for making a bike tube belt from Spitshine the Eye zine, directions for constructing bucket paniers [sic] from Joe Biel of Microcosm Publishing, and art and words from long time zinester Icky Apparatus. Andalusia contributes an account of volunteering at Maya Pedal, a bicycle-recycling center in Guatemala, and Happy explains bicycle delivery New Orleans style. Co-author Ethan Clark has participated in the project from nearly the beginning as a contributor of stories and images to the zine.

This bike repair manual doesn’t just show how to fix things; it provides a lot of encouragement and inspiration as well. Shelley gives several pep talks to women throughout the book, cheering us on to…”stand up and be heard…get to know the tools and language…ask questions and look for guidance, but look to your own sense of logic as well.” That’s good advice, not just for bike repair, but for everything we do in life.

May4

Bike Theives

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During my 20s, I lived in a dangerous city. Almost everyone I knew had been mugged at least once, sometimes at gunpoint. Homes (and by “homes,” I mean the substandard housing that nearly everyone I knew lived in) were burglarized. Wheels were stolen from bicycles. Entire bicycles were stolen. The murder rate was through the roof.

As I walked or biked around the city (I didn’t have a car), in the back of my mind was always the worry I’d accidentally witness a drug deal or a murder and get shot because of my wandering eyes. I learned to navigate through the city by moving briskly with my head up, alert, paying attention to my surroundings, but not showing any interest in what illegal things other people might be doing.

One night I was walking with my male friend. It wasn’t too late–maybe 10pm. I can’t remember where we’d just left (maybe work, maybe a bar) or where we were going (probably a bar). We’d left the busy tourist area and were walking through a residential neighborhood, but we were only a couple of blocks away from a cluster of bars where people were likely partying.

My friend was pushing his bicycle. Normally, he would have been riding it, but since I was on foot, he was walking too.

I don’t remember how it happened–if they stepped out of the shadows or approached us on the sidewalk from the opposite direction–but two men we didn’t know were suddenly right there with us. Before my friend could walk past, one put his hands on the bike’s handlebars and said he was taking the bike.

As is so often the case in this type of situation, it all happened so fast.

I didn’t see a gun or a knife or a weapon of any kind. I just saw two guys–one with his hands on the bike, saying he was taking it; the other silent, acting almost as if he didn’t really want to be involved.

I started yelling. I probably screamed Help! I think I screamed Fire! (My mom had told me to scream Fire! if anyone ever tried to kidnap or rape or otherwise hurt me.) I started running in the direction of the bars where I knew there would likely be people.

While I was screaming, but before I ran, I saw my friend had his hands on the handlebars too, fighting for possession.

(For years, whenever I remembered this incident, the image I saw in my mind was that of my friend swinging the entire bicycle up and over his head. My friend says it didn’t happen quite that way. Memory is a fascinating and untrustworthy phenomenon.)

So I ran screaming away from my friend and the would-be bike thieves. I ran a couple of blocks, right up to some guys standing outside a bar. My friend is being robbed, I told them. Two guys are trying to steal his bike. I asked them to please come with me and help my friend.

The guys were slow to react. Maybe the alcohol that was surely in their systems had slowed down neural connections, making what I was saying difficult to comprehend. Maybe they feared I was trying to lure them into the dark where I had friends waiting to rob them.

Before they could decide if or how they should help, my friend came around the corner pushing his bike. He’d gotten away from the would-be thieves. He’d escaped transportation disaster.

I can’t remember now (so many years later) what made the would-be thieves leave, but I’m going to believe my screaming and running for help discouraged them.

We were so cavalier back then. As we continued on our way, we critiqued the technique of the men who’d just tried to rob us. How silly of them to try that without a gun, we laughed. They didn’t even have a knife, we jeered. The second guy should not have let me scream, much less run, I marveled. He should have had me on the ground with his hand over my mouth, I strategized.

We decided we could could be much better robbers than those guys were. They didn’t even know how to do what they were trying to do.

In my naiveté, I thought everyone lived more or less in fear. I didn’t realize until I moved away that I’d spent almost all of my adult life always feeling afraid. Some events were scarier than others, but I always felt some degree of fear. Being afraid was so normal, we laughed at scary situations.

IMG_5848

I took this (only marginally related) photo.