Leah, Welcome back! It's so good to see you here again. Always a pleasure to read your posts and enjoy your photos. Cheers Steve
On Wednesday, November 1, 2017 at 1:49:18 PM UTC-4, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote: > > Hi, All! Thanks for your kind words. Let the barrage of photos begin! > > First off, it’s me, Leah, formerly LeahFoy. I decided to change my name to > match my Instagram @bicyclebelledingding. Same person riding the same bike, > but new (better) name. > > I’ve really wanted to write this post for a long time because it has been > a year for the books. I’ve had so many great opportunities to see the world > in 2017, and best of all, I often got to bring my bike. Though I’ve been > living in exile for 13 years in the desert, North Dakota (heretofore > referred to as God’s Country) will always be home. I married a Minnesota > boy, so that’s home, too (Diet God’s Country?). I make a pilgrimage up > there every summer to see our families, and I drive so that I can bring our > bikes. I mapped out our route this year to indulge in all manner of scenic > glory. We experienced hot springs and geysers, and bison roaming free. We > marveled at the serenity we found in lake country and shored up our > knowledge of American history at several national parks and national > monuments. We had our breath taken away by waterfalls, breathed in cold > mountain air and got nudged into a snowball fight with an elderly woman who > started it. I had the good fortune to get to set my feet on foreign soil in > both England and Ireland, and savor the sights and history there. It has > been a blessed year. I’ll include a few photos of our trips first (sans > bikes) and finish strong with bike photos. > > > > > One does not leave Woman’s Best Friend in the the car. Undignified as it > was, he consented to being stuffed in my pack. Happiness for him is > wherever I am, which is how he can be convinced. > > Hot springs. I can’t believe these are real. > > The Grand Tetons. > > > There was even time to ride our bikes along the river path in Idaho Falls! > > Now, back to bikes. Every summer I bring our bikes to my mother-in-law’s > lake home. There are wonderful trails to ride, and someday, when the kids > are older, I hope to take the famous Heartland Trail. For now, we stick to > the trails in town. Pictured here is my Betty Foy, my MIL’s Clementine, and > my husband’s Clem. My MIL has very little bike experience, but she wanted a > Clementine because she knew how I loved my Betty. The step-through frame is > absolutely perfect for her, and the upright bars are dreamy. She has no > idea how to use her gears, so she just stays in the same gear and rides > blithely around town. She tells me she loves her bike because it’s so > comfortable, and it makes me so happy. > > This is Minnesota in summer. It can’t be beat. Yes, those are socks I’m > wearing with Keens in this photo. I was forced and I blame my husband. “If > you’re coming for a ride I’m leaving now!” he said. I grabbed the nearest > pair of shoes and ran for my bike. Not my best look, but the bike is > pretty! Also, note the patch I had stitched onto my Saddlesack. Is that the > cutest or what? A blue bike for my blue bike. > > > This is God’s Country in summer. It can be beat, but only by Minnesota. My > bike looks naked in this photo; there are no rules about streaking through > God’s Country! > > After a lovely summer, it was back to school and my Bicycle Bus. Sadly, > the only members of the Bicycle Bus are my two sons and me. Oddly, the > residents of this canyon find biking to school to be admirable, and they > will often see me on campus or roll down their windows on the street and > say so. I wish they would join me, but no takers yet. > > The promised lockers at the middle school never materialized, so here I am > with the laptop, largest rolling backpack L.L. Bean makes, the little guy’s > backpack, and - new for this year - a violin. The orchestra teacher and I > are friends and I told her, “If you assign him the cello, you and I are > DONE.” We threw our heads back and laughed imagining me on Death Hill with > a cello in tow. This photo was the inspiration for me to create the hashtag > on Instagram #doesthisbikemakemelookhomeless? > > My bike is outfitted with the Nitto Big Front Rack and huge Wald basket, > and on the back is the Nitto Big Back Rack with a pair of the old-fashioned > Backabike bags. On the bars is a Multisack for my keys, pepper spray and > iPhone. Bag matching is for sissies. > > I mean, I even have the musical instrument. I lack only a bucket for the > donations. > > Well, after some miserable uphill rides with all that stuff, I got my son > a rack and Wald basket. You would not believe it, but just being able to > unload his jacket and laptop makes a difference. If anyone needs a great > kids’ bike, I recommend this Hotrock. His best friend (who was lots taller > than him) got the 20 inch Hotrock in their 1st grade year. My son begged > and pleaded and handed over all his savings to get this bike. We knew it > was too big but there was no changing his mind. After a near-death > experience involving him, his old bike, and a major artery of traffic, we > relented. He’s in 6th grade now and still riding the same bike! The Red > Rocket, we call it. Money well spent. Not pictured: my younger son and his > Islabike. ALSO money well spent. He will outgrow it by the end of the year > and the Red Rocket will be his, and then I’ll make him portage his own > backpack. For now, he is blithely unencumbered and fairly dances up the > hill while hogging the spotlight. Older son and I are too winded to get to > tell any of our stories, and my little guy knows it and talks from the time > our wheels leave campus, until the time we roll into the driveway. “I have > Lincoln Tales to tell,” he says. > > Meanwhile, this fall the saddest thing happened. My beloved 13 year old > dog developed spinal stenosis. He was in excruciating pain, and all the > meds in the world couldn’t fix him. I cried rivers over him, trying to > decide what was best to do. > > We walk, he and I. Every darn day. Usually twice a day. This was the worst > of the ordeal; he would look at me with those eyes, begging to go for a > walk, and I would inevitably give in, and within 2 houses, he would be > totally lame and suffering again. I used to make fun of dog owners who > pushed their dogs in strollers. Now I secretly longed for one! I started > using TBBITW as a dog stroller. Riding was too rough for his back, so I’d > just walk the bike - with him in his Wald - around the neighborhood. The > many uses of a rivbike. Probably not its noblest use, but it was to me for > that time period. > > > > > You’ll be pleased to know that 2 hours before I was to put him to sleep, > my dog greeted me at the door with wagging tail. Seeing this, I decided to > give him the weekend. He improved even more. By the next week, we were > walking a modified route and he was showing little pain. That was weeks > ago, and he is now fully restored and as lively as ever. I know he still > has the condition, but the inflammation must be gone, because he’s like > new. Despite being 13, he is always mistaken for a puppy, so energetic and > bright is he. To be given back my dog is a GIFT; I don’t know that I have > words for the joy. > > > That brings us to last week. My husband had business in England and > Ireland, so we paid my way and I went for pleasure. I saw this bike in > London and shrieked. I *immediately* thought of you guys and started taking > photos while my husband pleaded with me to stop being so embarrassing. A > Brooks! In its native land!!!!! It was removed from the bike and locked to > the rail. > > > There’s even a weathered copper bell! > > I posted this photo because look at my “purse.” I decided I wanted > something lightweight and rain-resistant for the trip. I can’t recommend > the Grabsack enough. It holds so much more than one imagines it would - I > had gloves, umbrella, wallet, passport, etc and the Grabsack swallowed it > all with ease. And honestly, I like the style. So did the security guard > doing bag checks, actually. This was taken in the “King’s Apartments” at > Kensington Palace in London. > > > And this, I thought it looked like a murder scene. The murder of a bike. > How come nobody but me seemed to care? > > > This was Ireland. I think there were more cyclists in Dublin than England. > They were everywhere, despite having poor infrastructure. Both bike share > and personal bikes. The taxi drivers we rode with said cyclist fatalities > are quite common. > > > Is this a real Dutch bike? I was so excited to see one in real life, > because I doubt I ever have. > > > A farewell shot. I went to parent teacher conferences and the teacher > looked at me and said, “You bike? In your jeans and boots?” You bet I do, > Mrs. G. You bet I do. > > > > > > On Nov 1, 2017, at 2:25 AM, Garth <gart...@gmail.com <javascript:>> wrote: > > This is LIFE .... is it not ? Is not Life it's own celebration in Living > form ? > All I know is Life is no "ruler" .... for who would Life "need to rule" > over when Life IS "Everything"? > > .... funny how obvious and wonderful Life is when you just listen ☺ > > > Ding a ling for photos ! > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the > Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this topic, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/V4Xjb2JUS20/unsubscribe > . > To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to > rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com <javascript:>. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com > <javascript:>. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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