Mr's Magic

Hi Dear Folk,

We are having a lovely long sunny autumn.  With everything that has been going on I have not got out and really enjoyed it as I should, at least a walk in the park, but such is life.  Today though is windy and a sharp frost tonight, so that may be the end of it.

Mr. B. worked his magic on this old record keeper that I bought off eBay, cleaning up the metal and polishing the wood.  He is very good at taking old furniture that looks dull and lifeless and making the wood live again.  He has done this with several pieces in our house over the years.

I am going to use this for another journal.

Rob has always been interested in bikes right from when we bought his first teenage bike he has worked on them and added parts to make them better.  A few months back he bought a second hand bike which would have cost several thousand dollars originally, and has since then been doing it up and adding his stamp on it.

Parts for this bike seem not to be found in all of the USA, so are coming in from all over the world.  Here is something that came in from New Zealand, and another part from Finland.  In fact the part that came in from Finland was hand made by this man, for this particular part that Rob wanted to replace.  A long correspondence back and forward was held on this.  He had had the same problem on his bike and had made two, one of which he sold to Rob.

Rob said the expense of buying bike parts, in ratio, is like buying parts to a Bugatti.

Christine

London Cycle Hire Docking Station

One of the many Cycle Docking Stations in London, this was at St Chadd's Street, Borough of Camden London.

The video shows you how it works.

Christy

The Boy Cycling To School

I did think of titling this post When In Rome, but decided not to.  Here is Rob on his way to school, he's riding what he calls his beater bike.  Usually he drives, because quite often he goes straight from school to work or has a lacrosse game. 

I know driving oneself to school is I think such an American thing, it's especially done in the last year of school, hence I was going to name this post When In Rome Do As The Romans Do.  For Elementary School I used to walk or drive him to school.  For Middle School he always walked and for most of High School he caught the bus or in the last two years rode his bike, or in the last year drove his dad's SUV. 

By the way the messenger bag he has with his books in he bought in Spain and has used it for the last three years.  I must say Rob looks after things.

Also of his own volition he decided to sell the motor bike.  The reason being it needed new tires, clutch and carb work to pass the inspection and although the bike was worth it, Rob was thinking ahead to the winter and how he probably needs a car.  After he said he was going to sell the bike, I felt bad for him and felt it would have been worth to spend the money on the bike because it was sweet and worth keeping.  But being a mum with an almost 18 year old I did not like the idea of him out on it, it's such a worry.  Also when I was in my early twenties I had one friend killed on a motor bike and the other seriously injured.  Although to be honest I had my own motor bike in the UK for a year when I was seventeen, just a small cc Yamaha, so I know the draw of owning and riding a motor bike.  Also finances are tight and he could not afford not to recoup the money.

So in any case he came out just a bit ahead of the game cash wise and will put that towards a car.  So now he's on another quest.  I said to him, it's not the acquisition with you Rob, it's the quest, he said yes I think you're right mum and laughed.

Christy

A Nice Day To Go Biking

One of the few nice days we have had this Spring and Rob manages to get out on a bike ride.


Plus a view of my back garden with cold frame and seedling planted.


Christy

Biking the Skyline Drive, VA

The Boy getting his bike ready and wearing the new biking shoes he bought.  Unfortunately he forgot to take the shoes and therefore could not ride his bike and had to borrow his friend's father's bike and his friend's father used his friend's bike and his friend did not bike. Did you understand all that?  I don't think the friend minded too much.  But it was a shame. 

Some photos he took in the Shenandoah Park, VA

Christy

Biking Boy

Update on biking boy.  He had a great time. In the end though with the saga of forgetting his cleat biking shoes.  He landed up borrowing a friends bike, with flat bar handles and carrying a bag of what Rob said was 10 lbs of stuff.  You have to understand that this is a boy where one ounce makes a difference to him.  So he completed just over 20 miles of mountain road biking, mostly ascent.  So more experience and practice on mountain road cycling, and another time he'll finish the course with all the old guys in their forties.

Christy

Shenandoah National Park Bike Ride, Virginia 104 Miles

This is where Boosul Boy is today.  He's biking a 104 mile road route through the Shenandoah National Park area.  He's there with several different families.  It looks like they have great Autumn weather for it about 54 f right now going up to 70f and not raining.  The trees should be spectacular.  He leaves from Front Royal, which; name might have originated from the French, meaning the British Front, or border of their territory.  All the way to Waynesboro.

He has been looking forward to the ride for a while, and making preparations.  I feel so bad for him because he forgot his special clip biking shoes, which he had just bought along with the special pedals which he bought on Ebay from Israel.  So he gets all the way there and realises he doesn't have them. Unfortunately I had left for work and wasn't there to check around as all mum's do and see that he had everything.  It's 250 miles from our house.  His dad felt so bad for him that he was going to drive there with them, but Rob had decided to just buy regular pedals and cycle that way.  It is a disappointment, but I hope it all works out.  And that he takes lots of photos and has a great ride.

Christy

P.S.  Boosul is a Romany Gypsy word for Beautiful

Elsenham Sweet Shop

When I was in my early teens, I would ride my bike to visit my friend who lived in Tye Green. She lived in a large old tudor house, with wonderful beams and a thatched roof. I especially remember the orchard in blossom, on a wonderful spring day.

On a Saturday afternoon we would ride our bikes to the sweet shop in Elsenham.
The building above was where the sweet shop used to be. What fun we had with all those large jars of sweets, where you would order a quarter of this and a quarter of that. Our favourites were lemon sours with sherbet inside them, and bon bons, which were toffee with a sugar powder on the outside.

We would ride up this road from Tye Green.

To this intersection, and cross the road to the sweet shop.

It was a little sad to see that the shop is now empty. These little village shops are hard to keep going. I think those wonderful front windows are just crying out for some creative enterprise.

Christy

Buying the Bianchi

Our boy R has wanted a road bike for a while; but being the picky child he is, and because he knows a lot about bike's and has higher aspirations, it can't be just from the local Wallmart.

He was talking to his friend's father about wanting a road bike and he said I bought one a couple of years ago from a guy at work and I never ride it, would you want to buy it? A figure was agreed upon, suitably acceptable to parents and child and a deal was struck.


So here he is inspecting it and trying it out. The Bianchi is ten years old, but what R can contribute to and his parents can afford.


Here he is in the garage cleaning every part meticulously. Note the orange striped runner with all the parts on. Yes that is an outside table runner, mother was too late to object to it's use. Maybe I can salvage it.

He's had fun with it this summer and he probably gets more use out of a road bike than a mountain bike where we live.

Have a great weekend.

Christy

St Michael's Mount Art Work

An old family friend gave this drawing to us of St Michael's Mount, Cornwall; which I wrote about in a previous post. DT was an architect and on holiday he would always sketch and paint. We have several of his drawings and water-colours.

One year we were on holiday in Devon and just ran into Doug and Maisie at the quayside, sketching, and Maisie always wrote poetry.

They met during WWII. They were at a dance together and Doug said I'll give you a lift home, and when Maisie got outside, there was his push bike and he rode her home on the handle bars. I've always loved that story because I can just imaging him doing that.

They are both dead, but live on on in God's memory and mine.

Christy

April Showers

Just back from a bike ride and Dear Boy was caught in an April shower.

His dad said go straight down to the basement and strip off and I'll get you a change of clothes.

Unfortunately Dear Boy put his clothes in the washing machine to wash, along with his IPOD. So no more IPOD, the ear phones work.

Christy

The Bike Boy

Blow Out While Biking

This is the bike trail, which was an old railway line. It goes for at least forty miles out of Philadelphia. Following the Schuylkill River and then the Perkiomen River. It's very nice to ride, and you can pick the trail up at various places.

Spring is so fresh, isn't that profound, but you know what I mean.

This is the blow out I had on the way back. The inner tube blew out right through the tire. It was like someone shot my tire. A big pop and Bo and Rob, who were riding behind me, said a big spray of dust. Bo mended the inner tube, and this is what it looked like after it was pumped up. I decided to go back to a diner that was a little way back. Where I had blueberry pie and coffee. The boys came and picked me up.