Headed over to the Provo bicycle collective to get a bike I am working on cleaned up and disassembled before it heads off for some fresh powder coat. Still working on snagging some pics, but I will post em next time.
For the disassembly things went pretty smooth. Had some snags with removing the crankset and bottom bracket but it was a cool experience to get some grease on my hands and get up close with some of the parts and tools.
Really looking forward to getting some replacement parts worded and seeing the powdercoat on it. I am thinking of getting it done in a nice cream color. While I don't know the history of the bike and how it ended up in Provo I do know that at one time it was registered at Harvard which is kinda cool. Zac had the great idea of stenciling "Harvard" up on the top tube which i think would be a great touch to add to the bike once we get it all put together.
Saturday, November 19
Bike update
Friday, November 18
Check out this web page...
Dead cat
Saw a cat get run over today while on my bike.
Laying on its side, mouth open.
Blood pooling.
Tail twitching.
Yelling
Had some close calls on my bike lately.
1. Approaching turn off for parking lot next to UVU library and as I was anticipating to turn a car pulled forward out of the parking lot and had failed to signal. This caused me to become uneasy as I was executing my turn as I was at a complete loss as to how I was to anticipate what this driver was attempting to do. So as I drove by I kind of barked at him to signal next time, looking back I am worried that I overreacted a bit and was too harsh and should have kept my cool.
2. Riding home from the winterize your ride class from the collective and had a car with a) their lights off (I was on my way home after dark) and b) they failed to signal as they pulled away from curb. Thankfully as the driver was executing the turn they looked my way and noticed me coming. This caused me to again have to bark at the driver to get their lights on.
I have never had to really get drivers attention around here so it is odd for me to have to yell at someone as it is out of character for me to do so and makes me feel like I am being overly cranky or rude.
Wednesday, November 16
Updates
I haven't blogged in quite a while so I thought I would do a quick update of my activities of late.
While I dislike posting day to day activities here, I think it needs to be done for the sake of getting back in the groove of things.
(What follows is not in order of importance, just whatever came to mind first)
Gadgets: yes, I finally got my touchpad in and have had the chance to get comfortable with it. I really like Web OS on it and find it a shame how it did not see greater adoption. It simply has the best muli-tasking interface when compared to Android or iOS. It has some awesome speakers on it that make listening to music far from painful, which is so often the case with mobile devices these days. The web browser is also a highlight to mention as it renders web pages in their full flash featured glory. While developer support is woefully missed I still like having it around.
Of other notable gadget news I finally updated my phone and am now rocking Android and loving it. It is so useful to have a smartphone with the latter actually functional! There are some quirks that still are not very intuitive for me coming from Web OS that I am still wrapping my head around. But overall I am impressed with it and look forward to the coming ICS update.
having these gadgets around have made me realize and think just how much of a distraction they can be! It makes me realize how easily the novelty of things can get the best of us and make us lose sight of what is really important to us. Is my life really that much better with the addition of these device?
I would like to think that yes, my life is much more convenient with all this access to information improves my life. But at the end of the day there are more important things for me to devote my talents and energies towards (like school). I find these gadgets all too often interfere, beep, or buzz my attention away from more pressing matters. I just need to find more balance in my life and find the positive ways to leverage technology into my life. (As a side note, I think keeping perspective is going to be key in understanding and balancing the long-term goals I have with the short-term nature of technology.)
School: school is pretty rough these days and I am having a hard time coming to terms with it. I often think what is so different about this semester that has made it so difficult for me to find enjoyment in my studies. To keep it short I have felt kind of burned out with my studies. Everytime I get a second wind of motivation and energy towards school I am faced with the seemingly insurmountable obstacle of past material that I am behind in my classes. It makes me realize just how foolish it is to have the attitude to take a day off and to "just do it later" is. One simply does not just get caught up overnight. And as I have so regretfully often vowed to do in the past I am again vowing to never get behind. It simply does not pay off to put something off.
Work: I have been without employment for the past two weeks which has allowed me to get some much needed rest in but I find myself missing it sometimes. Maybe I miss the money, or the cute chick at the kiosk, or even the routine it gave me but I would like to try and find something else. But until then I have some nice savings squirreled away.
Chicks: they seem like they are more trouble than they are worth....
Bikes: I still am so very thankful for the health that I have to enjoy. I am glad (on most days at least) to have the opportunity to ride my bike around. But things change, among them the seasons and I have the bitter cold winter on the doorstep. I still would like to get some gear for this season. I would like to for sure pick up a new jacket and possibly some studded tires (but I am unsure as they seem like they might be overkill to ride with them everyday). Also the bike collective opened this past Saturday so hopefully I will be able to take advantage of some of the resources there.
Well, that is all for now. Excuse any punctuation errors as this was composed on my phone and check back soon
Test
Blogging is a precarious activity for it put your opinions and thoughts out in the spotlight for others to scrutinize. Also this is just a tests