Is it me or a new change in the world?

I'm not sure if its because I'm just now becoming more aware are a lot of people in the world are.
I'm seeing more and more bikes in advertisements and tv commercials. It nice to see except now I wish they would mention the name/make/manufacturer of the bikes because a lot of them are really pretty cruiser vintage looking bikes too.

In my current issue of Land's End Catalog in the there is a fab bike in a photo-shoot and in some of the new Target TV ads featuring Liberty of London there is a woman on a bike too. There are others but I dont have any specific recollection ( will mention them later if I do ) I also have noticed that they really seem to be targeting women too which is awesome!

We've been carfree for almost 6 years now and only have been bike owners less than a year but I love how having and riding a bike makes me feel. I may not be too happy now with my diamond frame hybrid but I do love how it made me more mobile last summer and looking forward to this biking season too.

I really hope all these bikes in ads and commercial is a very positive subtle way to encourage more people to ride.

In a completely unrelated entry I'm hoping to get a summer sales position in a local bike shop. I think it would be awesome as a female to sell bikes. I'm not talking about manning a cash register either but actual sales. There is a LBS hiring that is close to me but I may feel out a few others too. I've always been good at sales mostly because I always make every effort to learn what I'm selling instead of looking confused, I'm sure you have had salespersons give you "that" look.

Much Love & Lots of Biking!!

Haircut

Sorry for the off-topic posts lately but the appearance of more snow this week has made me a bit blue. My bike is parked across the living room from me so I see it all the time so that also makes me a bit sad.

For a little "perk me up" I got a haircut this morning. Please note that the redness on my face is Rosacea or as my husband would say his "lie detector" hence one reason I never try to lie if I can help it;) I'd be pretty much busted anyways and I'm a bad liar too.

So anyways here is the new haircut


I'm colouring my hair tomorrow and I also picked up some mineral make-up and has really toned down the redness in my face (picture is pre makeup though)

I haven't had bangs in years but am trying to have my hair end up looking like this



My stylist evened up my length so its short that Eve Myles hair (pictured above) but I'm hoping that it will be longer in about six months:)

Starting a Business-Non Bike Related Post

I am going to be coming up with a 5-year plan to start a business here in Edmonton. I'm hoping it will be somewhere on 124th Street close to the Art Galleries. It will be a Antiques & Bookstore specializing in all things Irish but not cheesy themed.

More later but needless to say I'm quite excited about this venture

It Make Sense

Miss Sarah over at Girls and Bicycles gave me some sage advice in the past few days regarding bikes and the choice I've been mulling over. I talked it over with my husband and he also agreed with everything she had mentioned.

I think I'll be going for the Pashley Princess Sovereign now over the Oma for many reasons but mostly because I want to make sure my LBS will be able to service it as I'm not sure how much DIY I'd be interested in doing. I will however test ride the largest frame of the Pashley to see if it works better than the medium sized frame.

Now I'm shopping around for a saddlebag, some brooks leather grips. Its kinda fun doing all this pre-mature shopping LOL

A Great Day

I did get to go over to United Cycle today but we chose public transportation over taking our bikes or the work van. I had been anticipating way more shopping than we actually did.

United Cycle didn't have either basket in stock that I had mentioned in my last post though they were expecting them in soon. I'll probably pop in next week and pay for the 1st one, the Bagsket. I just really liked it a lot.

After U.C. we dropped by the huge Planet Organic and I picked up some things and then it was off to the Old Strathcona Farmers Market.

I bought this


Sorry I dont photograph well and I have this weird thing on the corner of my lip right now. I love this Tweed hat! It's locally made and will be perfect for Spring and Fall biking if I dare not wear a helmet. We also picked up some Kettle Corn lol

I think I burnt out my husband though because he is now crashed out on the sofa:)

Reason #10 I shouldn't surf the net early in the morning

Or "This is why I need more than one bike"

Aren't these cute?





Both Baskets are by Axiom. I'm not sure if they would fit on Serenity though as she has the front headlight but maybe its placed low enough that a front basket could still work. I may badger nicely asked my husband into taking me across the River this morning so I can see if either are in stock. Plus I have a coupon!!! I should dub myself the Frugal Fashionista of Biking but then again others may already claim that title.

If we go I'll update later. Our upstairs neighbors stumbled in at 2:30 waking up both of us so we were up until 4 before we could get back to sleep.

Sigh of Relief

I'm happy to announce we just received the news that we got the apartment!!! I'm so excited even though I hate packing and moving.

Here is what our floor plan will look like



Lots of space, light and storage. The living room windows are ceiling to floor so I'll be able to get some of those nice tall semi-tropical plants from IKEA and Home Depot too. I also will have no excuse to get a heavier bike YEA FOR ELEVATORS!!!

I can breathe easy again:)

The Waiting is the hardest Part

But I do guess that is par for the course in life. I turned in our rental application along with 1/2 the security deposit yesterday so now its just patiently cleaning and trying not to think about the dream apartment we may or may not get.

Today I'm cleaning and enjoying the sunshine I see outside. It is however very cold still and my toes are quite frozen as I have the living room windows open to air out the apartment. The landlady is coming over today so see what renovations she wants to do before we lists it. Umm well she doesn't know I painted a wall in the living room a dark blue or that I painted swatches in the bedroom and entryway. She had said we could paint but now I'm a bit worried. I will offer to either paint over, prime or pay her a bit extra towards repainting it herself. I do think the blue looks good so maybe she can just touch it up and paint over the swatches with some of the original paint colour.

If all goes well this afternoon I may try and fix my damaged double panniers and take Serenity out for a ride. Its a pain loading her up with groceries and having to figure out how to get them up three flights of stairs (oh I hope we get the place with elevators!!) but maybe I'll lock her up downstairs and run the panniers up and then go down and get her.

Speaking of double panniers also I found these from The Dutch Bike Company in the U.S and made by Fastrider



I also liked this little blurb about the bags

"There's no more proper accessory for a proper Dutch city bike than a set of the Fastrider Classic panniers. Like many of our bikes, these bags retain a very classic style while updating materials and subtle design elements to serve you better and longer. The Classic is nearly indistinguishable from the traditional canvas-and-leather bags popular in the Netherlands for over a century, but executes the design in modern materials that give a high degree of durability and water resistance. Also, should you use your bike and bags as they're designed to be used -- soak them, freeze them, soak them again, and leave them outside all year round -- these are guaranteed not to rot."

I think these will go on my wishlist in the Steel Blue and I think they will be perfect for grocery shopping and trips to the Farmers Market. For smaller trips I think I'll head to Red Bike for a Basil Shopper:


This way I'll be prepared for anything. In either case when I order them and use them I'll post up a review.

Red Bike to the Rescue! Like Batman, Only Better!!

So another update. Rain City Bikes can order the bike for me but even if it didn't sing to me I'd still have to buy it so I figured I'd give Red Bike a call because if I have to buy the bike regardless why not stay local.

So Cliff and Red Bikes who was very helpful said that it can be ordered through them YEAH!!! He is currently trying to figure out the right frame size for me.

For some reason the Oma is making my heart beat a bit faster than the Pashley so it may mean that a Dutch bike is in my future:)

Red Bike, You are all kinds of Awesomeness!!

Hmm

So I may not be able to find the Batavus Old Dutch here in Canada new. But I have located the Fryslan which is supposed to be a higher end bike in the Dutch style.

Also I have been conversing with a very helpful Gentleman at Rain City Bikes in Vancouver and though they don't carry the Azor Oma they can order it in for me which may still make it worth the trip there. Its costlier than the Pashley but in the end the fit and the one that makes my heart go pitter patter is the most important thing in the end.

Score!!

I found three tweed capes on eBay today and now I just have to decide which one I like the best:) Only one is Wool though. I did find another one from a U.K company but it's quite expensive but may be worth it.

Possible trip next year

So I have three bikes in mind for my next bike, The Pashley Princess Sovereign, the Batavus Old Dutch and now the Azor Oma.

The first two I can find here in my lovely city of Edmonton but the Oma I'll have to venture to Vancouver to test out ROAD TRIP!!!

So I'm scheming in my head to make plans to visit Hollywood North next Summer around hubby and mines Anniversary where I found a bike shop that sells all three bikes so I can compare. I think the Oma is going to be the most expensive but in the end if I get the best bike for me then all is well.

Rain City Bikes

Dutch Bikes

I really like the looks of the Dutch Bikes. I will take a look at the Batavus when they are in stock at Red Bike but I also found this site which also had some cute bikes. I feel like I should be in a black and white French movie with a Dutch Bike and a Baguette:)

I also read that Dutch bikes are also called "Omafiet" which means Grandma Bike. This makes it even cooler for me as when I started showing my husband the Pashleys and the Dutch Bikes he remarked that they looked like "Grandma Bikes" Well I'm not a grandma yet but I sure what a Pashley or Dutch Bike.

My Dutch Bike

I am a very visual person and if I like something that is mostly what matters to move over the specific details of a bike. I've also haven't found a definitive site to give me more information on these lovelies.

Maybe someday I'll own one along with my hybrid and Future Pashley. I only wish my husband was more into these classic looks as he could get one too but oh no...not him:)

Best Laid Plans

We're moving. Our landlady is selling the condo we live in so we are looking for a new apartment. Luckily yesterday we did find our dream apartment and within our price range. This will push the Pashley purchase to later this summer as moving is never cheap even if its just from one end of the street to the other.

I like the building we picked too. There are elevators so no problem getting a heavier bike up to our apartment, there is secured bike storage in the basement area with more to come as apparently a lot of residents bike which I love. In fact when we were looking at units we shared an elevator with a lady bringing up her bike after a trip to Safeway.

We'd still be located in one of our favorite areas of the city, Oliver District, so fingers crossed we get it this week:)

Smiles

I walked to Planet Organic today on Jasper Ave. It's fairly close to where we live in the downtown core and the sun was shining so I figured why not.

I could've have ridden as the roads were clear but I still haven't come up with a good pannier or front basket solution so I just walked.

There were a lot of people out biking and I loved checking out their bikes and smiling at how Spring like it was today. I didn't even think about the predicted light snow we're supposed to get on Tuesday. I even saw a girl in a cute short skirt riding a bike similar to my hybrid so I now know it IS possible to ride a skirt with the bike I have now. I have leggings now to wear underneath and I have seen some cute shorter biking skirts with short built in so I'll look at those further too.

Another reason why I didn't bike is that while its a great day there is still wet and slush on the roads in some areas and we store are bikes in the living room on carpet and I also need a solution to avoid ruining the carpet as I doubt my landlord would like that much