The Bike Life

I love my bike.

Today on my way to work I saw a mom teaching her tiny son how to wash his bigger-than-he-was toy fire truck in the sprinkler. They even had a sponge.

Tonight on my way home I saw two teenage boys sitting on the high wall surrounding someone's house and yard. Their legs dangled several feet from the ground, and their feet were too big for their lanky bodies. They were drinking tallboys and texting on their cell phones. The sight made me grin so hugely that they saw my white teeth shining in the dark. When they called to me, "Hi there!" I laughed and yelled "Hi!" back.

I told a girl at work my semi-secret dream of maybe someday moving to Austin. She's about the sweetest thing in the world, and clipped me an article about Mellow Johnny's bike shop in Austin. Lance Armstrong opened it. It's a bike shop/coffee shop/commuter stop (with showers and lockers so folks can bike to work easier). Tonight I requested job information.

Today I ran into a lady who I used to see at the coffee shop all the time but haven't seen much this summer. She said to me, "You must be riding your bike a LOT!" I laughed and said that yeah, I do, but how'd she know? And she said to me, "You have lost so much weight!" (I don't know about "so much," but she's right--riding an hour a day has me looking pretty hot in a halter top.)

I would really like it if I could never own a car.