I’m so angry, I’m shaking. This isn’t what I want to write about it. I want to write all kinds of good things about Monday night’s panel (which I will), but I’m just so over it. As seems to be the case so very often, some mundane task has to end in conflict simply because I’m on a bike. This is getting old. One of the things I said at the panel on Monday night was that you have to be thick-skinned to ride around here. I’m realizing now I’m not as thick-skinned as I thought. (more…)
On 03.05.10 | In General | By Angie
It’s not news that I struggle with my commute to work–a lot. So much so that I’ve pretty much given up on it over the past two months. But last night, I had an idea–why not put my bike on the car rack, drive the girls to school, and bike to work from there? This would cut out a good five miles and significantly decrease the odyssey-esque feel of my ride. I pitched the idea to Jesse and suggested he ride his new bike (yes, I said new bike–details coming soon!) and take the car home. For the record, I’m not some siren of car driving tempting my husband into the car–I don’t want to be labeled as the Yoko Ono of family biking. He was excited for the opportunity to switch up his routine, so it was a win for all. This won’t be our new daily routine, but will be a great way to mix things up at least once a week. (more…)
On 02.21.10 | In General | By Angie
I can’t help it–I’m feeling slightly smug. For the first time ever, I had a completely carfree day while hubby actually drove the car. This is the guy that rides in the freezing rain, so this never happens (and now that I wrote this, you can be sure it will never happen again).
Hubby woke up and took the girls to church–in the car–while I packed up for brunch with some lovely ladies over at Mme Paulita’s maison. It was only about an eight mile ride and the weather was too perfect to miss (especially after our unreasonably long winter). Plus, there were promises of candied bacon. So I loaded up the basket on the Red Ryder and set out.
Homemade pear bread in a basket
The ride was mostly perfect, except for a slight detour due to bad Google Maps directions. I felt like a caged bird set free after such a long break and the sun, though slightly warmer than expected, did my soul good. The goal was to work on some crafty stuff, but unfortunately Jesse had a school commitment so I had to head out early. I decided to head home via bus, as the bus stop was right around the corner and lets out at my street. The bus ride home was equally nice, exposing me to parts of the route I’ve yet to see.
When I got home, Jesse loaded up–again, in the car–and headed out to manage a road clean-up project with his students.
So there you have it. I’m pretty sure this will become one of those legendary he said/she said memories still battled out even as the marriage approaches the golden anniversary. But, once upon a time, I rode my bike all day while my husband stayed in his little cage.
On 02.16.10 | In General | By Angie
I am doing my best to write in a non-whiney voice when I report that we are all still sick. Okay, okay–so I stuck an italics in there. It’s been like three weeks of this junk–cut me some slack.
Anyways, I’ve still yet to muster the energy to get back on my bike. Errands have been put off when at all possible and those that can’t be delayed have turned into car trips. Even grocery trips have become car trips–something we haven’t done in I don’t even know how long. It’s depressing, honestly. I dream of hauling strange and heavy things on my X, but then the hacking starts up and even a walk to the mailbox seems out of my reach. The freakish weather isn’t doing much to help. But today, as I was once again staring longingly out my office window and daydreaming of bunnies, I finally snapped. To hell with this crap–I was going for a bike ride. (more…)
On 02.11.10 | In Family Biking Adventures | By Angie
In case you were wondering, I have not fallen off the face of the earth. The situation is slightly worse–my entire family has The Crud. What started with a cough from little Vivian has now become an entire family of four moping around, generally feeling sorry for ourselves. I finally took Viv to the doctor and it was, as I suspected, nothing more than a particularly persistent case of a respiratory virus that we can expect to be fighting for the next several weeks and there really isn’t much else to do but wait it out. The NP did put Viv on albuterol, which is serving as a type of baby speed. When remembering that Viv is already suffering from a case of being two, I hope you all feel as sorry for me as I do.
So there has been very little riding for me, aside from a short trip to a local eatery for a Mommy-Sofie date night last weekend. Poor Jesse has been stuck riding in spite of being sick and tired, as we only have the one car and his early teacher schedule pretty much eliminates the possibility of us car-pooling. I’ve suggested calling a cab, but apparently the benefit of being The Sorriest of Us All outweighs the benefit of hitching a car ride to work. Friendly competitive martyrdom aside, I really do admire his dedication. I don’t know how he does it, but his commitment to biking makes me want to figure it out.
On 01.25.10 | In General | By Angie
Saturday was a beautiful day. We woke up to exceptionally pretty weather, excited to take our weekly ride to the local farmers market. We enjoyed the perfect cup of java from the French Press and I was particularly stoked to see that the site had received a write-up from Emma over at Spanish Moss Vintage. We met Emma awhile back after she spotted our bikes at the park and came to investigate. Turns out that Emma started the Downtown Orlando Bike Club, is anti-ninja riding, and is active in the arts community; I was really excited to sit down and write about how, once again, biking had opened up our world and led us to some phenomenally cool people.
We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day to ride. It was about 11 AM on a Saturday and we were cruising the back roads enjoying some John Lennon on the new bike speaker while reflecting, as we often do, on how much we love our life. That’s when it happened. (more…)
On 01.20.10 | In General | By Angie
Just this weekend I was musing with my husband about how I was struggling to work more bike advocacy into my life, as I have already committed to another cause. Separately, I was musing about how I could use my passion for bike advocacy to benefit said other cause – and voila! An idea was born.
I volunteer as the State Coordinator for Friends of the World Food Program, overseeing WFP Committees throughout the state. Obviously, the devastation in Haiti has pushed thousands of already food-insecure citizens into a dire situation. The World Food Program is already facing a severe funding shortfall due to the ailing economy and is struggling to meet ever-increasing needs. There are a number of wonderful charities out there collecting on behalf of Haiti and if you have already donated–wonderful and thank you! If you have not, I entreat you to read on. (more…)
On 01.19.10 | In General | By Angie
I decided to push through my fears and write the op-ed and I’m so excited to announce that it ran in today’s paper! No matter what else happens during the course of this challenge, I feel good knowing I will be able to look back and say that I pushed myself outside of my comfort zone and took tangible steps (no matter how small) to improve my community. I’ve said it a thousand times already and will likely say it a thousand more: it never ceases to amaze me how much biking has changed me and my life in general.
I have mixed feelings about the fact that my blog wasn’t mentioned (I had included it in a byline). I’m relieved not to have any hateful commenters driven to my site, but then again I would have liked for people in the area to know more about going car-lite in Central Florida.
Anyways, here it is – let me know what you think!
On 01.17.10 | In General | By Angie
As I mentioned a while ago, I got a new bike for Christmas – yay!! It was technically meant to be a birthday present, but I accidentally saw it get delivered and sort of strong-armed my way into receiving it early. I did my best to play along, assuming it would show up under the Christmas tree á la A Christmas Story (hence the name); when it didn’t, well…let’s just leave it there, shall we? (more…)