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June 8, 2006
V is for Vendetta 
I can't believe how hard bicycling can be. I want to be a bike jock, and when I'm, say, heading to work, it's easy to feel like I'm king of the universe. And then I ride back home again, or ride to a meeting, and I'm nothing but a panting, granny-gear spinning, pile of sweat.
Anyways, I've bicycled all week. On Pinky.
I "fixed" the old Specialized, but it still isn't any fun to ride. It's markedly not fun. I don't like to think of myself as a fussy person, but obviously I am. Sigh! It's time to pass it along to someone who will love it and use it.
...
Daphne, our outdoor cat, has gotten herself into a scrape. She now has a quarter-sized bald spot on her side. She's probably 12 years old, and a robust cat, but I worry about her, and I think it's time she comes and lives inside.
Of course, Daphne is the cat who eats fabric. And plastic.
I see a lot of cleaning in my future.
...
Our friend Sue mentioned a new bar on Williams Street called Vendetta. We went and it was just lovely. The place has this elegant dog-trot/breezeway feel to it, with two garage doors opening to the street and into the garden and back porch. The beer selection wasn't great, but the food looked decent.
It was just this serene urbane place. We sat on the back porch, looking out at the garden, and at the kids playing along Skidmore, and man, all was right with the world. Do they have wifi? If so, I may have to move in.
...
Pedalpalooza begins today. Tonight is the Kickass Parade!
I started really thinking about decorating the bicycle this morning, which was several months too late. I gathered the silver scooter boa, and all the pink yarn I had handy, as well as some lavender giant knitting needles, and I think I'll put that in the basket.
I may make a trip to the dollar store over lunch to see if they have anything to accessorize Pinky. I'm game for some cheap garish pink things!
...
Last night, I had a meeting for the Multnomah County Bike Fair. I had gotten two emails about it, and it just never occurred to me that each email might specify a different time.
So I eat a fast dinner at Rose and Raindrop (note to self: happy hour mac-n-cheese is huge, and pretty good, and the mini-hamburgers approach greatness), and then pedal down to Colonel Summers Park. I get there at 6 sharp.
It's uphill, so I'm all pathetic, and out of breath when I get there. I look for bicycle-types... and don't really see anybody. There's a woman who's dumped her bike and her satchel on the ground and is talking on her cellphone, pacing back and forth, who won't make eye contact with me.
I sit there, in the wet grass, for twenty minutes, and finally I get up and leave. Riding home seems to be entirely uphill, and I feel like I have an ongoing opportunity to be a panting mess. A nice man on a tandem flirts with me; the neighborhoods are beautiful; it's breezy and sunny, and the weather really couldn't be better. If I wasn't all cranky, it would have been a great ride. And so finally, after an eternity, I get home.
I check my email, and yes, the email I had read said 6pm. The other email said 7pm. So I go back outside, jump on the scooter, and head back to the park.
You know that while I was waiting at the park at 6pm, I was thinking all those thoughts, you know, I'm not cool enough to be in their club, I'm too fat, I don't look like a bike messenger, I'm too capitalist, I'm not vegan, I'm fat, I don't have candy colored hair, I have a newish brand-name bike, I don't ride a fixie, I'm a wuss, I don't ride enough, etc...
And when I got there to the meeting, yes, I was the only fat person, but there seemed to be a mix of bike-messenger types, and spandex-wearers, and street clothes wearers. They were really friendly, really fun, really politically incorrect, obviously having a great time, and they seemed really happy that I was there. I felt relieved and relaxed almost immediately.
So when I came back home, I came back energized. This is gonna be good! I can't wait!!
Posted at June 8, 2006
Comments
Hey, girl - we're coming to Portland the 3rd week or so in July. Any good Veggie restaurants to recommend? Want to do lunch?
Posted by: Misty at June 10, 2006 5:57 AM
Being a sweaty panting mess -- that's NORMAL, isn't it? I have had more and less hardcore phases of bicycling throughout my life and have never not been a sweaty panting mess on a bike ride. Except maybe when I was a freezing-cold panting mess sometimes on winter commutes.
Posted by: Fran at June 12, 2006 12:39 PM