Bygone Bicyclist

So the vibe in town the last week has been crazy positive. Eugene is already incredibly friendly to cyclist, but this week is different. Yesterday (Saturday, May 8 ) dated the Bicycle Music Festival here in Eugene, where all the music was powered by bicycle power. The entire week has been a mad house of strange bicycles, working on and improvising said bicycles (including mine) and in general an enjoyable aura. Riding an ordinary already makes for happy onlookers, but when people actually have an interest in said oddities, it makes it even more grand. My spokes should get here early in the week, and then northbound I am. We’ll see how the cycle is standing up by the time I hit the border and go from there. I may need to make some provisions to the trip if I am still having spoke issues, but we are hoping to solve those problems this week before I leave. Below are some photos, as normal. Also per norm, if you wish to see more, or purchase prints, click “Photo Gallery“! Thank you.

Nothing special, but here are some random clips of my trip. The Ave of the Giants one is specifically long and boring, so sorry for that. I also apologize for the blandness of the videos, but I have little time on a proper computer for editing and other fun things, so they are straight from the camera (as are the pictures I post).

First it was May. Then it was early May or late April. Now, April 22 departure (with an April 17 “pre-departure” date – less than a month away). I’m attempting to get everything in order as quickly as possible, but sometimes things are out of our own grasp. My new spokes are being shipped out tomorrow by the wonderfully helpful Jim Spillane with Victory Cycles. Tomorrow’s task is finding some small, high strength spokes for the rear, and by the end of the week, I’m hopeful to have the machine rolling with essentially new wheels. After weeks of struggle, most of my ‘work’ came to fruition yesterday around 5am, allowing me to finally sleep like a normal person (and get some serious work done with the bike, planning and the likes – let’s hope the fixes in place stick).

With all the commotion of the trip, work and the cycle, it’s been very hard to just live life. It’s been hard to just take in the niceties of life and local fun. Above is an example of a good time killer with little taken away, but positive feeling taken from (it’s a crude video, but it was an excruciatingly refreshing trip to Conspire today). With less than a month before departing, I’m now trying to spend as much time as I can absorbing “home” (in any number of ways). I will be many months away from Arizona, and while I’m glad to once again miss the summer, there are many things here I will miss; family, friends, scene and others. It seems I’m living to avoid AZ summers lately. The last summer I spent in full here was 2007…at least I think.

I’ll post about my baggage project completion in the next day or so. It’s nice to have that finally behind me.

Strange weather really. As debates heat over global warming, we see some of the coldest temperatures for the month / year in many places. In some cases, we even see all time low records being broken – see: Alberta, Canada breaks record low by 10 degrees Celsius. While the effects of modern day humans obviously has *some* effect on the atmosphere, temperatures over the last two winters have been quite bitter – more so than “average”. Since arriving after my long commute, the average low here has been around 30. Winter hasn’t even struck yet! No, this post isn’t about the weather, global warming or what you think.

My time on research and planning has been halted a fair bit lately by work. Soon updates will be more plentiful, but until then, they may be a little sparse. The winter holidays don’t help at all in that department either. Things are hectic and days are short. The weather has inhibited my riding a fair bit since arrival, but it is supposed to be warming a little bit this week. Perhaps this weekend I will get in some decent riding time. Of the two bikes I brought with me, only the penny is functional right now. I tore apart my fixed gear (my ‘training’ bike) to give it a paint job. It’s coming out quite fantastic, and I can’t wait to get it all back together and see it done.

Coming right along. Forgive the camera-phone.

Christmas nears and I can’t help reminisce the magic years ago. Most people grow out of the magic of certain childhood discoveries, beliefs and / or mysteries. Christmas seems to be a subject drawn dismal to most as time goes by. Maybe it’s partially society. Perhaps it’s growing out of tradition. It could be the many a reason, not just a specific something. Either way, I have so many fond memories of Christmas times as a child. Some will argue the ‘reason for Christmas’ versus the commerciality of the common Christmas (while ‘reason for the season’ definitely can differ from person to person).

That said, there are things I miss and feel myself drawn to more this year than perhaps in the near past. I haven’t had a real tree in my house in over 5 years. My dad and I used to volunteer at the Christmas tree lot, and some of those times are the most fond of my youth. I don’t get to sing in the choir this year (and regret that). I haven’t caroled in over a decade, and Christmas music, overall, seems something that has slipped from my life. The last few weeks I have been listening to some of the all time (as well as some not quite as popular) greatest recordings of Christmas songs and I’m really brought back to a time of joy and comfort. It’s almost as if a door has opened, and light is allowed to shine the dark abyss, ultimately warming and pleasing the receiver. Do yourself a favor this year: listen, sing and enjoy some Christmas classics!

I know I can attest to this, and for that very reason I make such an assessment. Rarely does it seem I (or many people) have time to just sit down and reflect on things. Reflecting on things so fond and moving in your life can often be the answer to the question you feel unanswered for some time. Looking back at times of joy and cheer give insight to what could possibly give you such a feeling again. The holidays are depressing to some, but I think many could find great joy by acting out their holiday with more fruitful acts. Even if you’re happy or just neutral, try to give yourself 5-15 minutes a day to think, write and reflect. It can do wonders for the soul.

Since returning home life has been a whirlwind of nonsense. Short lived projects here and there, much needed rest and relaxation and the occasional joy ride have filled my time (but I must admit I’ve been a bit lazy since returning). As noted, this page hasn’t been updated in over 2 months, which is about 5 eternities in internet years. I’ll get back on the bandwagon, as soon as I stop hating the design of this page (and finally get it updated in a fashion that pleases me). All this said, I have been busy despite my laziness and even have something to show! Soon here I will be rewriting my whole page, trip and doing a recap on the entire summer (something I feel terribly ill over not having done). Until then, please enjoy this video I made of my trip with some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met.