Plan X

i never had a plan b, so don't go thinkin' i'm down to my 24th option, wise guy. no, plan x as in plan x-pletive, would be more correct - but still not accurate cuz no one really talks like that... i hope i got your hopes up cuz this is some bad news: my mentor, the machinist at sf state, won't be able to help me till the end of july. he explained he's going through something outside of work. i didn't press him about it because earlier this year his wife left him for his friend and maybe he has to appear in court to deny that greedy golddigga from hoarding all his gold. i can't be certain, but it's not my idea of a good conversation to bring it up.

don't think i gave up so easily, mind you. i told him i could work around his schedule, i could make any accommodations. i'd promise to pay attention, and wouldn't break anything else. i'm sure it was tough for him, but he still said no. sensitive topic, you see.

anyway, that leaves me in the obvious position of being bikeless for the trip. i'm still gonna sell my lemond, because it would be unreasonable to make that long of a trip on a bike too small for me. i did last year's trip on it - true, yes, thanks for paying attention - and my knees were sore for it. taking it this year guarantees at least 500 miles of throbbing knees. no way g.

with the money i get from selling the lemond i can buy some wash of a road bike just for the ride and then sell it again so it instantly loses 75% of it's value. that was pete's suggestion. it's not terrible, of course that's an option, but the whole point is to ride something you love. i would feel spiteful to the cheap bike the whole time, knowing in my heart that this bike is just for the time being, and that i'd drop it when it's convenient, as soon as i found my dream ride.

but i looked online anyway. i found this guy on craigslist. i wouldn't speak ill of this bike - not a great bike - but certainly a deal. i shot this guy a message asking for pix and he tells me he has none. this dude has a - at one time - thousand dollar road bike but no means of taking a picture of it and emailing it to me? the seller is from vacaville, sounds suspicious.

i didn't like that idea to begin with. that wasn't my plan x, this is my plan x: ride my other bike. my other bike, barbara, is an old, some people prefer the term vintage, '70's peugeot, px-10 that i converted to a fixed gear. i ride barbara everywhere. she's my daily commuter, my black, brooks saddle, filigreed lugs, fixed gear. thankfully, i still have all the old components that are useless on a fixed gear, namely gears and brakes to put right back on.

that's what i've decided. that'll be something to tell the kids about. my knees are tingling already.

and if you got this far, then i'm shocked at your remarkable amount of free time, but if you could spare a few more seconds then check out this blog - it's about this blog. but it's funnier. and it's authored by my terribly good friend, jon.



i found this relevant piece after much searching... why is it that youtube users insist on making youtube a miserable, miserable test of determination by uploading their genius inspired fan-slide shows set to their most favorite, most best band of all time? this example puts them to shame; he shares with us some of his thoughts, "sorry for the camra jerkyness but my dog jumped on me and i was multi-tasing so i couldnt hold it still... srry ... dwayne ..." you're okay kid. you're okay.