what was that? is that all there is? who is this? this is it.

Nine months ago we were welcoming the student population back to campus. Now finals week is wrapping up another academic calendar year. Graduation ceremonies abound. Caps & gowns all around. 50,000 people will soon disappear from the 98195…

summer time      and the

living is easy    it’s snot

rocket surgery 

roundtrip complete

full circle

cyclical cycle

via bicycle

out & back

inside out

taken out of context

and put back in

silkscreened on

free tote with

subscription

Architectectural Digest

kickstand

inside 

outside

come around

(who’s that?) 

the  Retrospec Beaumont City Bike

Step-Through  7-speed

$299.99

$120.00  assembly fee + IPA

$    0.00  shipping

______________

$420  total

This bike cost about $69 to produce in China. But it will cost you about $420 to have it shipped to your front porch and then have your local former bike-mechanic former bike-messenger assemble it, including a 6-pack of IPA he requests with his assembly fee. 

In the end you'll have a WalMart level bike as well as 1.5 cubic yards of packing material, plastic, cardboard, garbage and empty beer cans.  

This is based on a true story that began to unfold yesterday in my neighborhood and in my garage. I was referred to a neighbor by another neighbor.  I threw out a three digit assembly fee because I didn't really want to do this. I’ll let you know how it all turns out. 

If the Lauf fork is the antithesis of my steel bike philosophy. This bike is the antithesis of all my years working at Bike Works refurbishing hundreds and hundreds of sweet used bikes and keeping them out of the landfill. 

$420 at Bike Works will still buy you a solid used...

I never had a paper route as a kid. But as a messenger I gained a special appreciation for the work good old paperboys and girls did on bikes. And now that I'm a glorifed electric ass bathtub paper boy schlepping AMAZON horseshit all around the 98195, my appreciation has grown even more. 

This paperboy personal history piece in the New Yorker is a keeper. I will not spoil the story, but the author is my age and his words speak to me on several levels...

...to the old me now as well as the young me then.   

if i waited for lessons in true confessions

that could take all day

but im here to stay

gold star for robot boy

well then that's my move 

“gold star for robot boy”

– Guided by Voices

denying

deflecting

defending

diffusing

shifting

ignoring

avoidance

distortion

procrastination

rationalization

misdirection

misinterpretation

miscalculation

minimization

over explanation

over  compensation

intellectualization

explaining it away

rub some dirt on it

walk it off

suck it up

no big deal

get over it

just ignore it

it’ll go away

...today is Thursday

20+ years  ago I got some business cards printed up.  As I was selling a few T-shirts here and there. This site started as a way to sell shirts and avoid the charges eBay started tacking on to every sale. 

“steel bike philosophy” whatever that is, is open to interpretation. But if there’s a product out there in the bike world that epitomizes the polar opposite of my steel bike philosophy, 

it’s this fork

Yesterday I saw this bike leaning on the wall free-locked outside the Miller Library.  It caught my eye enough to take a picture and make it last longer. Later, I showed the shot to Alistair and he knew right away what it was, where it’s made and how long it’s been around. I still haven’t looked at it in cyberspace. 

This is not a bike I’d like to own. This is a bike I’d like to test ride into a retaining wall.

Fork off

Fork you

What the fork?

Stick a fork in me, I’m done.  

I read the first book a few years ago when Catarina recommended it. Then one day before yesterday a neighbor placed both books neatly in the free library. So I plucked them both out, keeping the set intact. Now I’m into one more book of more delights. As it jumped into the queue leap-frogging its way to the top. Perfect backpack book of bite sized train ride reading material. 

Thanks Cat.

Thanks too to the literally literary little free library.

it's neither here nor there

it's a chair

One year ago this Wednesday I was at Sea-Fab getting an iced americano when my phone rang. I very rarely answer my phone. But I did that day because I was expecting a call from Junior’s school about her poor attendance. 

That phone call sent me down a rabbit hole for a couple hours of stress, fear, helplessness, anger, rage and embarrassment. I did not tell anyone about that phone call for nearly a year. 

Then the Spokesman Review ran this story a few weeks ago and I read it on my lunch break when the Seattle Times had it up on their site for a few hours. I read it and I cried. I cried and then I wrote a letter to the editor. 

About 17 minutes later I got a call from a news editor at the Spokesman Review to verify that I’m an actual human and I actually wrote that letter. I am and I did. I said thank you to the editor and got all choked up again. 

For a few hours I thought they might publish my letter. But I’ve since learned that their letters-to-the-editor are very brief, political and...