Bike shops and mustard seeds

I finally got my bike back from the shop today. It had a broken spoke that put the wheel way out of true so I had to pay $1 for a new spoke and $25 to have it put on. Yeesh. It really has me thinking I need more than just an allen wrench when it comes to bike tools...I could use a bike stand, a wheel truing stand and a spoke wrenchy thing for a start. And maybe a spiral bound book on how to fix your bike. Oh, and a refresher course in bicycle maintenance. You might think that a former bike messenger and commuter would know more about fixing their own bike, but the thing is when you're surrounded by other bike messengers it seems you're always surrounded by people eager to FIX YOUR BIKE FOR YOU and I was always eager to let them. Same with bike shops...I once had a bike shop employee finish building and truing the wheel I wanted to put on my fixed gear bike - I had left it in their DIY repair shop to finish later and it was winter and I guess he was bored - and then actually deliver it to the offices of the bike messenger place I worked for just totally randomly and unexpectedly. "Tell that girl I finished her wheel for her and here it is." So yeah, I barely know how to change my own tires much less fix or build a whole wheel.

I don't think today's bike shop employee appreciated me paying in mostly dimes, not to mention a couple dollars worth of nickels, several dollars of quarters and a bunch of pennies. It was kind of awkward and he was kind of looking at the money like it was dirty and he hated the thought of touching it. It was like that visa debit commercial where everything is running smoothly as people just swipe their card move on and then someone pulls out a checkbook or some cash and totally messes up EVERYBODY else. I don't care, though. I needed my bike back and that's what I had to pay for it with...if they didn't like it they could have given me a discount or something. Actually, if it'd been about four dollars cheaper I would have just waited for them to fix it on Saturday and taken it home on the spot. See? It's their fault for charging $25 in labor for about 15 mins at most of work. And how do they think I feel? I no longer have any laundry money OR bus fare!

I've been obsessed with mustard lately. I wanted to buy some mustard seeds and I found lots of really cheap seeds and many variaties on eBay but I didn't buy any because I needed to get my bike back. Then I found a brand new package of brown mustard seeds in my pantry. I wanted to grow mustard that has very tasty and beautiful leaves as well as great seeds, but I decided for now to just try planting this stuff and see if it sprouts and if it's any good. Mustard is more of a winter crop anyway, so I'm not losing much. Oh, but once I grow lots and lots of mustard seeds I am going to make lots and lots of homemade mustard! Yum!

I also finally had a cilantro seed sprout from the BEST CILANTRO EVAR plants that we got from Baia Nicchia last year. I tried to sprout six of them but so far only got one. I think I'm going to plant some more and then put the pot I plant them in into the fridge wrapped in something that blocks out light and leave it there about a week and THEN put it on my balcony and see how it does.

Anyway, I need to read about 7 books in 10 days and I'm getting close to finishing book 3 which is a very depressing book about our bond with animals AND all the cruel things we do to them, so I better get back to it.

Garden, Pottery and Biking

I'm reading a book right now about how we're all way too connected digitally to each other ALL THE FREAKING TIME and I need to finish it, review it, read another book and review that one ASAP, so I thought I'd procrastinate and write a blog post.

Since a year and a half has gone by, I have both very little and a frigging lot to say. I'll just summarize a few things for now...

1. We started expanding our garden and then let it fall into almost complete disrepair, although it's funny how it just sort of keeps growing on its own somewhat. The hops have really taken off, the swiss chard went to seed and is popping up all over the place now so it's very easy for SBM to go out and cut some at any time to make a green smoothie. We got an apple tree and we never even properly potted it, we just threw it in a half wine barrel and barely covered the roots with some dirt but it looks totally healthy and thriving. The two grape vines are thriving as well, and the avocado tree although it has never flowered, and the aloe plant which IS flowering. We got 3 exotic hibiscus plants and they all died, and a nopales which is doing well.

Finally we are starting our summer garden. We are about to plant 7 kinds of cucumbers because we are obsessed with making fermented pickles and I have sprouted a lot more things on my apartment balcony, so it will be rather late in the season but we will still be putting things like tomatoes, tomatillos and golden watermelons in the ground. Oh, and peas but they will grow all winter long so it hardly matters how late we plant them. OH...and today I think I finally got a cilantro seed to sprout which is very exciting because it's from THE BEST, TASTIEST CILANTRO EVER.

2. I am taking a ceramics class. Actually, I am taking one all-day class by myself and then I am taking a 2 1/2 hour weekly class with SBM but he doesn't enjoy the class so I don't know if we'll finish it, but I LOVE my other class and am hoping to sign up for the fall version which is TWO FULL days of class every week as soon as they open up registration.

That leads me to...

3. It's been 4 1/2 years since I had clip-in or clipless pedals put on my bike and I was scared to ride it, but with the ceramics class being a very nice ride from my apartment (about 8 relatively scenic and flat miles each way in a nice breezy shoreline climate) I just HAD TO try riding my bike. Finally. So I did and I didn't even fall off but I AM horribly out of shape. Strangely I've riden twice now, 16 miles or so one day and about 30 the other and I wasn't sore after either time. Very hungry, yes. Sore, no. Then I broke a spoke and missed my last ceramics class and I was rather heartbroken about that, but I get my bike with its re-trued wheel back tomorrow and I'll be back in bidness. If I'm organized enough, although I can't make up the all-day ceramics class it is possible for me to make up the 2 1/2 hour one, even though I'll probably have to do it all by myself.

I'm very excited about biking again and also about the ceramics. Since I do 3d computer art, I find it very inspiring and fun to be doing actually physical-world 3d stuff and I have a bunch of ideas about what I want to make and I am trying to find a time when I can go to SBM's offices and use the rubber stamp making machine he basically gave me but which is still at his offices for now at least until we test it out and then maybe after as well - so I can make rubber stamps not for the originally businessy purposes I'm supposed to but to make stamps I can use in my ceramics!

Also, my mom paid my library fines (that's a bit embarrassing maybe...) so I can now use the library again and I checked out a half dozen books on pottery/ceramics and everything about it has me soooooo excited!

Okay...going back to reading that book now...