Resolution Update And Then Some

Resolution Weeks Two and Three
The drive to make my own damned coffee continues on. Week two was pretty easy. I only succumbed to Starbucks on Friday. Being that it was my birthday, I was just in the mood to be served.

Week three is where it got interesting. It seems that the green coffee giant has noticed my absence, and is moving heaven and earth to get me back:

Monday of last week I decided to use my Starbucks gift card from Lauren for an afternoon pick-me-up. The card reader was down, so the cashier said. She just gave me a free latte, since I hadn't brought any cash with me.

By the time Friday came around, I was out of milk, and was forced to caffeinate at Starbucks. I ordered my latte, paid with my gift card, and moved over to watch the barrista make my drink. Just then, the steamer/espresso maker started to overheat, spewing steam and milk and froth everywhere. Thank goodness someone managed to unplug the thing before it blew. Lucky for me, there was another machine and I got my latte. Because I ended up waiting 10 minutes for my drink, I also got a coupon for a free drink of my choice.

Do you see what is going on here? I'm going to get my coffee for free until I'm hooked on getting my daily brew at Starbucks again! But fear not. I won't fall for this trick. I stocked up on milk this morning and I ground my beans for the week. My commuter cups are all clean.

The straws on the spokes come later
I mentioned to Dr. B once that I needed to replace my 30 year-old Schwinn this year. It's a great bike, don't get me wrong, but the tires are thin and difficult to replace. This causes the inner tubes puncture often. The front derailleur has some rust, and one of the gears is missing a tooth.

Being the kind, giving person she is, and given that she's sick of hearing me bitch about my poor Schwinn, she gave me an overly large gift certificate to a very chic bike shop in town. After much deliberation, I decided that I would not only accept said overly large gift certificate, but that I would break with my tradition of needing several years to buy anything costing more than $50, and leave that day with a bike.

And I did it!

Meet the Gary Fisher Nirvana:



It only took me 20 minutes to decide on this purchase, as I was in love from the moment I sat on its sweet, sweet saddle. Bikes have shock absorbers now-a-days. Why didn't anybody tell me this? I was trying to act all knowledgeable about the mechanics of bicycles, and I think the sales lady bought my act until I let out a little scream of delight at how bouncy the bike was.

She: "Those are shock absorbers."
Me: "Fancy! Do all bikes have those now, or is this special?"
She: "No, bikes have pretty much had shocks for a good five years now."
Me: "Do they make coffee now too?"

Anyway, this hybrid baby features big honking thick mountain bike tires. I tested them out all the way home. (The bike is guaranteed in full for seven days, including punctures.) I navigated right through potholes and gravel like a madwoman and five hours later the tires are still inflated. And my butt? It doesn't hurt! The gears - 24 in all - shift like a dream.

The only drawback I can see so far is the "easy release" front wheel that I pretty much have to remove and lock to the back of the bike when I park it anywhere but my basement. When the saleswoman showed me how to release it, it did indeed look easy. But things are never as easy as they look when you have to do them yourself. I expect this to be a pain in the ass.

I forgot to buy fenders, but did trick it out with a rear-view mirror, a kick stand (bikes come shocks, but no kick stands!) a headlight, and a mounted Kryptonite lock. So unless it rains, I'm pretty much unstoppable.

More Goodness To Come
I'm only working two days this week and the Hucklebug Returnith!