OnTheBounce InTheSaddle

Paladin. Have Bike, Will Travel.

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 37

Last night was the first decent night’s sleep I got, post-plague. So I...well, I kinda slept in this morning. By the time I got underway to The Cyclists’ Haven it was nearly noon, and I’d forsaken my plans of getting plumbers involved today. 

I did make some progress on yesterday’s fiberglass project: 

The section on the left is a work in progress. You see, I need to seal up what used to be a vent duct. I don’t have any wood that’s appropriately thick, so I’ve been sawing a piece of packaging wood from the workbench in half, lengthwise. The instructions said to discard the packaging wood. Personally, I’d say it’s better to reduce, reuse and recycle. 

While I was working on the fiberglass and getting sidetracked by various other things, I had this nagging feeling that I was forgetting something. Like, something important, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. As I packed up to leave, I realized what it was: to eat lunch. I just finished my dinner, but I’m thinkin’ my two tuna sandwiches are gonna be a nice little snack here in a bit...

What bike did I ride today? The Brompton, of course, ‘cause my other two bikes are nestled safe-and-sound in the bike shrine. I’m not sure, but I think they’re both pining for the Brompton. 

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Handwriting Thing

I was tagged by @julierthanyou !

name: John URL: onthebounce.tumblr.com favorite music: Bad Religion and Aimee Mann, and a whole lot in between favorite drink: dunkeles Hefeweizen, Mountain Dew, Coffee, and Tea crush: The Cyclists’ Haven (She has all of my loving attention.)

tagging: @n2qfd @freshrosemary @disassociation @brightlyandwithbeauty @danisacyclist @pleasepassthesalt

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 36

Since today is Sunday I figured there was no point in trying to round up plumbers. Still, I didn’t want the day to go to waste by simply loafing around, so I set out on the Brompton and headed over to The Cyclists’ Haven. I’m not quite over the plague dragged home by my nephew yet, but what better way to get rid of the biological warfare agents than by dumping them via my integumentary system. 

In case you didn’t know, you can order road signs here. They will also do custom versions for you: 

I was going to take it with me today, but it wouldn’t fit in the Brompton’s bag. So rather than toss it in a box or a backpack, I simply blew it off until the next grocery run. I’m pretty sure it’ll fit in a GoGetter with no problem. 

Once on scene I set about doing this, that and some more of the other. While I did get sidetracked by other things, I did get some fiberglass hung: 

Hey, the bike shrine has started to take shape. Lots more left to be done, but tomorrow’s goal is to put some stuff on order at Home De(s)pot and kickstart Operation Deluge. 

Other than that I concentrated on some other eyesores and trip hazards. Not much perhaps, but it still felt good to be moving despite last week’s plague episode. That and this was the first time I’ve ever worked with fiberglass insulation, and it’s always nice to take theoretical knowledge and let it flow through your fingers into actuality. 

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 35

Needless to say, I’m not really feeling any better today, but it’s Friday, which meant it was time for a grocery run. The weather definitely conspired to make that more miserable than it needed to be, since the morning started off with freezing rain. 

By the time that had abated and I had gotten ready it was just after noon. I hopped on my Brompton and headed over to The Cyclists’ Haven to pick up the Mundo. Although the freezing rain had gone away and the icicles were thawing on the tree, to my sick self it was still pretty durned frigid. 

On arriving at The Cyclists’ Haven I found the trash containers that I had ordered yesterday. They migrated into the bike shrine: 

Don’t get too used to seeing them there. There are sitting exactly where the French doors will be once I get the garage door is ripped out and walled in. You know, doors wide enough to roll a loaded cargo bike through with no hassles whatsoever. 

Once I was done with that, I hopped on the Mundo, and did the grocery run. Of course it’s a bit more involved having to go and pick up the Mundo first, but I’d say it’s a case of doing what needs to be done to keep my stuff away from other people’s sticky fingers. 

Groceries dropped off at the apartment and bottles and cans picked up I headed back to The Cyclists’ Haven, deciding to blow the Bottle Drop run off until next week. (It’s not a big deal, considering I have something like a dozen or more reusable grocery bags sitting around.)

Once I’d dropped off the Mundo I puttered around for maybe an half an hour before I called it a day. I have to say that the ride back was no fun, since by that time I was officially cold, tired, and hungry. 

Funny thing about today is that it actually warmed up once the sun had set. If’n ya ask me, that’s just plain weird. If you ask the meteorologists it’s because warmer weather is moving in. Although the next few days will be rainy, they will be significantly warmer than it’s been. Hopefully I’ll be feeling better and can get some nifty stuff done, like fiberglassing the bike shrine and kickstarting Operation Deluge. 

Yours in Sick, Tired, Cold, and Hungry Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[mishafer]

If you DON'T LIKE pineapple on pizza, reblog this post.

And if you DO like pineapple on your pizza, reblog THIS POST.

I’m doing a census on this ongoing argument please help it’s obviously important. 

[onthebounce]

Responses, Vol. VI, No. 17

n2qfd said: Beautiful workbench & vice! One of the first things I did here too was to get a shop established.

Thanks. Of course, it’s missing two things: a truing stand and some paint. I think I’ll drop the truing stand off after today’s grocery run when I nestle my Mundo back in its stable/shrine.

n2qfd said: I miss the day’s of police dressing like police not soldat.

Jawohl!. I remember the days when they first started wearing body armor. Pretty non-obtrusive stuff, and only good enough to stop a 9mm SMG round. Nowadays they waddle around with stuff that looks every bit as thick (and heavy!) as the Interceptor Body Armor we wore in the Army. 

disassociation said: Oh fuck, your camera!

:lol: Yeah, tell me about it. A camera that I’ve had since September 14th, 2009 and took pretty much every picture I’ve ever posted here on tumblr. 

cubedweller said: Grr. Bike thieves. Grr.

Yup. Hey, do you think that maybe it’s time to start treating bike thieves the way they used to treat horse thieves, i.e. by hanging them? I mean, the argument for hanging horse thieves was that you were depriving someone of their livelihood. Doesn’t a bike fall into the same category? That is, assuming that someone is living a car-free life.

n2qfd said: We have the plague in the east as well. Slept 12.5 hours yesterday, still went to bed tired. Very nice to see the stable lit up. Hope we can get past the biological warfare part of the season with no more down time. At least we’re thru the cross quarter day & half way to equinox.

:lol: Yes, I definitely want to get past this bio-warfare portion of the season. Of course it’s not helping that we got hit with more freezing rain the morning. At least it wasn’t nearly as bad as the episode back in September. 

I hope you recover soon. Maybe a pocket full of posies will help? 

Yours in Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 34

Although I’ve been anxious to get plumbers working on The Cyclists’ Haven, the bike thief episode followed by my immune system doing combat with something or other has really brought things to a crawl. 

Who is to blame for my immune system’s woes? Well, most of you would refer to him as my nephew. I, on the other hand, refer to as “The Plague Bearer.” He’s been here in the Emerald City for a little over 6 months, and he gets sick an average of once per month. Generally speaking my immune system is not taxed too badly warding off the series of plagues he has picked up, but I spent the last two days not going outside other than to check the mail, simply because I figured the come-and-go symptoms of some ague or another combined with cold and wet would have opened the door to sleeping all day and going through scads of tissues. (You know, like the Plague Bearer has been all week.) 

Today I ventured out, since I was feeling better, not to mention that I really need to make some progress. I hopped on my Brompton and headed over to get trash service started. After I had taken care of that -- yes, I could have stayed at home and done this by email or phone, but I really do prefer to conduct business face-to-face -- I pedaled over to The Cyclists’ Haven. 

On arrival I noticed that I’d been overdressed. Rain gear with a base layer underneath and a long-sleeve t-shirt were just too much. So I downgraded to the work clothes that I keep onsite and made sure nothing had disappeared, then busied myself with some oddities, and also deposited the rest of the things that were liberated by someone’s sticky fingers last Saturday, the rest of which arrived yesterday. Since I replaced my Canon PowerShot D10 with a used one I figured that it would only be appropriate to make this the first picture I took with it: 

Yep, there’s my Yuba Mundo nestled safe-and-sound in her new resting place, complete with the Ortlieb trunk bag from my touring cycle. Tomorrow I need to go and pick her up and do a grocery run. Then -- hopefully -- I can get the plumbers lined up for Operation Deluge. 

If there’s one thing that’s really gotten on my nerves about this winter’s weather, it’s that it doesn’t seem to be able to make up its mind. Oh well, at least the thermometer was heading south when I rolled away from The Cyclists’ Haven, so I wasn’t over-dressed any longer. 

Yours in House Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

P.S. Don’t forget to celebrate Black History Month.

[onthebounce]

Cargo Cycling, Vol. I, No. 16

In the interest of avoiding another incident like I described in my last post, I put my cargo bike to good use today, and secured it elsewhere. Since I have a running board for towing bikes, I loaded my GoGetters -- one inside of the other -- onto the right side of the Mundo, then strapped my touring bike to the left. Then I pedaled on over to The Cyclists’ Haven and left both of them in the garage bike shrine. 

On the way over a guy passed me and said, “That quite a transportation system you’ve got there!” To which I said, “Yes, and if you should breakdown I can tow your bike for only a small fee!” 

Once both bikes were nestled safely in The Cyclists’ Haven I headed back to my apartment on foot. So, here I sit, only my Brompton within arm’s reach, but my cargo bike is safe from sticky fingers, and my touring bike isn’t cluttering up my apartment. From here on out until moving day I’ll have to swing on over to The Cyclists’ Haven before hauling anything bigger than the O-Bag on my Brompton will handle, but that’s just the cost of doing business away from the sticky fingers of others. 

Okay, back to doing some homework for tomorrow’s Home De(s)pot run, coupled with a renewed effort to get Operation Deluge kickstarted. Come Hell or highwater I’ll get plumbers working no later than Friday...erm...I hope. 

Yours in Bike-Towing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

Cargo Cycling, Vol. I, No. 15

Saturday morning I was planning on getting some house-related stuff done involving a Home De(s)pot run, only to have it all come screeching to a halt. After doing some of the requisite homework I headed out of my apartment to hop on the Yuba Mundo, only to notice that it was leaning up against a wall. 

I used to park the Mundo in the bike room in the apartment building, but because so tired of having to squeeze the 6′ 11″ (210 cm) long monstrosity in there that I started parking it outside of my apartment a couple of weeks ago. With a u-lock securing the rear wheel to the frame, and thereby immobilizing it I figured it would be safe from theft. Cargo bikes aren’t exactly high theft items, especially when stealing one would involve getting off of the second floor of a building. 

Unfortunately the same thing can’t be said from the things attached to it. It seems someone helped themselves to the following items: 

Avenir Trunk Bag (7 years old, held together by my sewing)

Nightrider Headlight

2 cargo nets (for use on the Burley Flatbed trailer)

5 cargo straps

Map of Eugene and Springfield, OR

Topeak tire pump

Alien 2 bike multi-tool

17mm combination wrench

Adaptor for Yuba bike-towing running board (allows towing of bikes with wheels smaller than 700c/28″)

Canon D10 Powershot camera (the one time I leave that out on the bike...)

I looked around to make sure it wasn’t just a prank, or that I had removed the stuff and brought it into the apartment only to forget about it. Unfortunately that was not the case, so I headed down to Arriving by Bike and picked some stuff up. What wasn’t there I put on order. 

Most likely this was an act of casual theft. I say that because nothing that was removed required any tools. In fact, the taillight was still there. I had mounted it upside down since the fender didn’t leave enough room to mount it right-side up. Another indicator being that although the air pump was taken, the mount for it was left behind. The mount would have required an allen key. 

Yesterday (Sunday) I headed back down to Arriving by Bike to exchange the Ortlieb trunk bag I’d picked up. It seems they changed their newer model, and it wouldn’t fit on a Tubus rack on my touring bike. Fortunately they had an older version sitting around, so my Mundo is now wearing the original one, and my touring bike is wearing the brand-spanking new one. 

On the way home there were about 100 people demonstrating against the Muslim ban enacted by some orange, sexual-predator, fascist guy. Yes, there was police presence, assumably in case it turned violent. All the police presence did for me was to have me musing about how militarized law enforcement has gotten thanks to their high and tight haircuts. 

After I’d gotten back to my apartment, I got a call from Arriving by Bike, letting me know they’d located 4 Yuba cargo straps. So I hopped on the Brompton and picked them up. 

So, the upshot of all of this is that I’m pretty much back in business where cargo cycling is concerned, but I have to say that I’m rather irritated at having someone throw a wrench in my plans by helping themselves to my stuff. Thanks for costing me time, effort and money, just so you can sell it for a fraction of what I paid for it, just so you can buy your next high. (If it was who I think it was, that would be what he did with it.)

Yours in Highly Irritated Cargo Cycling, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 33

Today I headed over to Home De(s)pot in order to pick up some stuff that will come in handy while getting The Cyclists’ Haven up-and-running, not to mention come in handy for years to come. As I rolled up to Home De(s)pot I noticed that my usual parking space had been outfitted with bike racks: 

Very nice of them, especially since I seem to be the only one that frequents the place mounted and not caged up in a steel-box-of-death. Maybe there are others, or maybe it’s a legal requirement. I’m not sure. (I also don’t really care.) 

What happened after I checked out turned into the most trying/acrobatic cargo cycling experience I’ve ever had. Why? Well, I was hauling a 6′ (1.83m) ladder, and a 72″ (183 cm) long work bench in addition to some other things like a set of track lights, a vice grip and what not. 

Sorry, I don’t have a picture of the bike fully loaded. It was such an awkward load that I couldn’t manage to get a picture of it. In fact, biking the mere 1.6 miles (3.05km) was pretty trying. At an intersection the load decided to shift and it was everything I could do to get it right again. A woman leaned out of her SUV and offered to give me a ride. “Everything would fit in here,” she said. While I doubted that a 6′ 11″ (2.1m) long cargo bike would fit in the back of her SUV, I also wasn’t in the mood to throw in the towel. I get myself into the situation, so I couldn’t allow myself to have to be rescued. I thanked her for the offer and declined it as well. Pity was written all over her face and she asked me if I was sure. I informed her that I was, and as she left I got back to wrestling the load while simultaneously trying to keep the bike upright while getting the load back how it was. 

When I arrived at The Cylists’ Haven I unloaded the workbench so I could get a picture of it:

Soon thereafter I set the stage for work to come in the Bike Shrine: 

Yes, I will be mounting my wheel truing stand there as well. I really does feel nice to finally be in a position to do the things that I’ve been wanting to do for so long. You know, silly things like not having to work on a bike in the kitchen of your studio apartment or the landing of your upstairs apartment. Instead being able to work on a bike in a space designed to house two steel-boxes-of-death. 

Lesson of the Day: when carrying a really long load on a cargo bike, have something heavy to put in bread basket to help offset it. That or take the trailer on the run...

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 32

Early this morning I was on the road. Well, early in terms of civilian life. Once I hopped off my Mundo I set about getting The Cyclists’ Haven I noted that the drop box dumpster had been removed, then began to ready the place to receive a delivery of sheetrock and fiberglass. 

I expected the stuff to be delivered with a simple truck. To my surprise an 18-wheeler rolled up, with a small forklift riding piggyback. The driver turned out to be a former Air Force member, and it turned out that we’ve been some of the same places. One of the main differences being that while we both spent time in Korea he came back married to a Korean. 

After the truck had been offloaded I started moving the sheetrock into the bike shrine. After three sheets I figured it was time to call my nephew and get some help. While I waited on him to hop on the-Dahon-that-is-no-longer-mine I moved the fiberglass. 

Once my nephew was on-site we made the bike shrine look like this: 

Since he was there we knocked out a couple of other things that were practically impossible alone. Then I set about cleaning up here-and-there and other things like removing the last bit of carpet from The Cyclists’ Haven, namely that in the laundry room. 

What’s in the cardboard box at the left edge of the above picture? Well, it’s what I guess you could call a homework assignment: 

Yes, that’s wiring. It’s either remnants of the house’s original network, or remnants left behind by electricians. Before I haul it off to recycling it will be stripped, like the stuff in a small box in the foreground. Stripped wire is more richly rewarded than unstripped. Um...that is if you consider $2.00/pound rich. 

Stripping all the wire will undoubtedly take a while, but there’s no rush because I have every intention of waiting for the rate to get a little higher before the copper is re-sold into electrical slavery. (Yes, it will be transported by bike.) 

Funny thing is I did have some other plans for today, but none of them came to fruition. Why? Well, I got a little carried away puttering around in The Cyclists’ Haven, not to mention that I showed my nephew just how much has been done as well as explaining some of the things that I’ll be needing his help on. 

Well, that’s it for now. Tomorrow I’ll do more things, and enjoy the high of 52° F (10.5° C) we’re supposed to have. 

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

Responses, Vol. VI, No. 16

It’s been a while since I did, so lest some of you feel like you’re typing into the void...

julierthanyou said: 

this is all so exciting!!!

That and a bit nerve wracking. I’m glad you’re enjoying it, though julierthanyou. Or should I call you pepperseed? :P

julierthanyou said: 

holy snow!!! bike safe, friend!

Mission accomplished...well, except for biffing it once. That hurt my pride more so than my body, so it doesn’t really count, though. Right? 

n2qfd said: 

Here I installed a different saddle and a more powerful headlight on the dumpster bike. Held off on studded tires again. Mostly cold this winter for us, although there is a fresh dusting of powder down now. Want to return to making a few commutes by bike a week. Morning temps are teens to twenties and rather windy of late so that’s the real challenge here.

I keep telling myself, “This is not a typical winter in the Emerald City,” and I’ve been able to get through it. Of course it helps to change routes, like avoiding the bridge at Roosevelt and Chambers: 

That’s my nemesis as seen in GoogleEarth. Sorry, I’m usually too busy fighting my way up it to take pictures. During the worst weather I wouldn’t go anywhere near it. The bike lanes were too clogged with debris, and then factor in the ice...well, it should be pretty obvious why I avoided it. It’s been usable for the past week or so, therefore I’m back to attacking it and not allowing myself to downshift more than one gear. (So I climb it in 6th gear, while on the big chain ring.) Hey, if I can make it up this bridge while hauling 300-500 lbs. (136-236 kg) of landfill-bound carpet, pardon me if I laugh at anyone who walks their unloaded bike up it. :P

n2qfd said: 

Ordered studs today after a near skull-pavement hook up in my own driveway this morning! Glad to read it wasn’t too severe a fall there.

As bad as things were here for a bit I was sorely tempted to do the same. Where you are I can see how they would be handy, though. You should GoPro them in action. :P

You know, I remember in driver’s ed (more years ago than I care to admit) they said that 95% of accidents occur within 5 miles of the home. It seems you took that to a new extreme...

cubedweller said: What a day! Glad you survived it. But why do cadets need heating?

Thank you kindly, good sir!

Cadets need heating because the moon is a harsh mistress. 

n2qfd said: 

I can’t decide if I like the ceiling fan and smoke detector or the ice breaker/rake and blinds better! Wimping out this morning. 18F and freezing rain.

Personally, I like the lighting/ceiling fan/smoke detector load better. The best part about it was how amazed the electrician was that I could do things like that. I chuckled at that because its’ not like it was some sort of outrageous load or anything. 

A pox on freezing rain! (This goes doubly for those of us living in areas that are ill-equipped to deal with ice and/or snow.)

n2qfd said: Nice horseshoe. Have to give it a scrape and a dash of paint and hang it in the stable. Thanks for the update, you’re in a new phase of busy, I understand completely.

I’ve been trying to decide about the horseshoe myself. I mean, the former owner had it hung correctly, too. You know, with the open end facing up, so the luck doesn’t run out. Then again, it seems her luck ran out, so maybe I should just ditch it...

cubedweller said: 

Nice! Is that an AC unit in the kitchen window? Any plans for central AC? Nice to have the view from the kitchen unobstructed whilst doing dishes (says one who stares at a blank wall).

Yes, that is an A/C unit in the kitchen window. One that will migrate to the landfill once I get the window replaced. I have no plans for central A/C, nor do I need a window-mounted one. It’s the Emerald City, nestled in the Willamette Valley. When people start whining about the heat I just chuckle and shake my head. 

When the window is replaced it will be nice, clear glass so I can look out into the backyard while I scrub dishes. I refuse to put some opaque thing up there. This is a kitchen, not a bathroom! You shouldn’t be prancing around naked as a jaybird in your kitchen! (Cooking and nudity are usually a bad combination...)

n2qfd said: What a job you have ahead of you! Things will be coming together before you know.

:lol: You ain’t kiddin’! 

Still, progress has been made. Although things are going more slowly than I’d like, a lot has been done. It’s not like I walk into the place and feel like it’s all been for nothing. A journey of 10,000 leagues truly does start with a single step. 

n2qfd said: Tour de Anarchist ride with all the masks?

:lol: While there are Anarchists in these parts, the ones I saw masked up yesterday were simply weather wimps. 

Yours in Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 31

Today I hopped on my Yuba Mundo and visited the electricians that have been slaving away at The Cyclists’ Haven in order to get to their favorite part: payment. The boss wasn’t in, but the receptionist assured me that she was working on the bill, and could email it to me when she was done and the boss had signed it. 

So I hopped back on the Mundo and hit Sanipak, to coordinate for the pickup of the drop box dumpster. Since the load has to be tarped and the contents extended over the rim I headed over to The Cyclists’ Haven to set that up for tomorrow’s pick-up. 

The way the load was situated was partially my fault thanks to the ice, snow and rain we’ve gotten here of late, but not mine entirely. Apparently some of the neighbors have taken advantage of the dumpster’s presence and have tossed their bags of trash in there. While correcting the load I removed the trash bags, and one of them came open. The fact that used Huggies came tumbling out kinda narrows the suspects that need to be targeted for revenge. 

In addition to that I cleaned out the garage bicycle shrine, consolidated the wiring left over from the older wiring as well as discarded from installed wiring, and did some general cleaning up, hopefully making the plumbers’ job that much easier as soon as the get to work. 

It was after 1700 hours (5:00 PM) when I left. Upon arriving at my apartment I fed the cat, and checked my email. Sure enough, the receptionist had made good on her word and the bill was waiting for me. It’s pretty steep, but I think it’ll be money well spent, and well worth it in the years to come when I don’t have to worry about an antiquated electrical system being on the fritz constantly. So tomorrow’s mission is to get a cashier check to cover it, then I’ll head on over to some highly recommended plumbers so see if I can get Operation Deluge jumpstarted. 

Funniest Thing Seen Today: cyclists wearing face masks when the thermometer was in the mid-40s. I saw at least a half-dozen like that. Maybe they’re college students from SoCal or something...

Well, that’s it for today. Time to refuel the bike (i.e. eat), the prep for tomorrow. 

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 30

Just so you don’t think you’ve been abandoned, I’ll even give you a second update for today! 

Hopping on my Yuba Mundo I hit Home De(s)pot and put in an order for drywall/sheetrock/whatever-we’re-calling-it-this-week, and picked up all of the things that I’ll need to make this happen. Silly things like a drywall hammer, t-square, staple gun, and a scad* of nails. 

The person at the service desk offered to ring up all of the things that I had in a reusable grocery bag, and in accepting I forgot one item. What was it? A 6′ ladder, which is kinda crucial in getting some of the things I’ll be working on, not to mention that I’m sure to need one in the upcoming years. Oh well, I’m going back to Home De(s)pot tomorrow to put in my initial order of doors and windows, so I’ll make sure and pick it up then. Yes, it’ll probably look at least semi-comical strapped to the side of the Yuba Mundo, but it’s not like I haven’t gotten some funny looks over the years while doing the whole cargo-cycling thing. 

Once I had finished all of that I pedaled over to The Cyclists’ Haven and dropped my ill-gotten booty off. Since I didn’t want to let the day go by and not get anything done there, I took the boarding down from the patio door. It is currently secured with a stick, but that’s pretty much as secure as it was before. 

The small, brown square in the lower right corner of the door is a doggy door. I finally understand how these things work, i.e. after you install them you can’t close the door all the way. I also understand that I don’t want one. With 1,694 ft² (157.37 m²) to romp around in Moon Rocket doesn’t need to be going outside in a cat-rich environment. Not to mention that it really ruins the aesthetic of the door with so many lines running through it. (The door is currently open, so there’s one fewer lines than there would be if it were closed.) 

So nice to be able to get into the backyard from the dining room and not have to walk all the way around the house. Mmmm...progress. Now to get a replacement door in order...

Okay, time to do some more homework so that I can get everything knocked out tomorrow that I have on my plate. 

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 29

And so we come to the end of yet another delay in posting an update. Lots of stuff got done this week, including the completion of Operation Fiat Lux. I now have heat, lighting and working outlets. 

I’ve also changed some of my plans. For instance, the cabinets in the photo above are going to be salvaged. While there are some issues like doors being out of alignment and handles being bent, that can be corrected by replacing them. I’m not a big fan of the color, but that can be corrected by sanding them and repainting them. Of course the counter tops will have to be resurfaced. All of which will be considerably less expensive than replacing them, and will preserve the hardwood hardware rather than having it migrate to the landfill and replacing it with the particleboard that is so prevalent today. 

The electricians are basically done. The only thing remaining for them being to hook up the water heater and get passed by the inspector. The rough inspection took place on Wednesday, and the inspector had nothing but nice things to say about their work. They really have done a lot for The Cyclists’ Haven, repairing the Great Hobo Copper Rape incident, and modernizing an electrical system that dates back to before the Fair Housing Act. 

Today I will head down to Home De(s)pot and put the drywall and fiberglass on order and arrange for delivery...and get some other silly things like goggles and work gloves so my nephew slave labor can lend a hand. 

Tomorrow I will hand the electrical contractors a cashier’s check to cover the outstanding balance, head back to Home De(s)pot to put some silly things like a water heater,  3 windows and 5 doors on order, and coordinate to have the drop box hauled off. While I’m sure the upcoming operations will generate more trash, I think it will be more cost effective (and adventurous!) to haul it off myself. (What a bike can do!) 

Of course the collection of oddities found has continued to grow. I am currently up to $1.06 in coins, the oldest being a Wheat Penny dated 1954 and a Nickel dated 1958. I also found this: 

So, lots of progress made, but still more to come. Of course you get to any objective one step at a time, and steps have been made. I should be moved in no later than the end of February, but the place will definitely still a work in progress at that point. 

Okay, time for brunch, then I’ll be mounting up and pedalling away to Home De(s)pot. 

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 28

Appy-polly-loggies for not having posted for something like a week, but things have been moving right along, even though the winter weather has been conspiring against me. 

Last Monday I set off with my Mundo to get the curtains and rods over to The Cyclists’ Haven. I sent a text message to the electrician I was supposed to meet at 0730 hours (7:30 AM) letting him know I’d be a few minutes late thanks to the icy roads. After wrestling my way about 2/3s of the way there I checked my phone which had been buzzing away from an incoming text message. Although I expected a response along the lines of “okay” I instead found a text informing me that he wouldn’t be there because he was sick with the flu. Being so far along I went the rest of the way and dropped off the curtains and rods, then got to work prying up plywood flooring. 

Tuesday through Thursday there were two electricians and for a half-day there were even 3. They got a lot done in that time. Personally, I’ve been finding things to do that don’t interfere with that they’re working on. Silly things like prying out door frames, stripping linoleum. The appliances were dropped off on Thursday. Of course nothing’s hooked up yet, but having them there is yet another step in the right direction. 

Friday I headed down to Home De(s)pot once the electricians were at work. I made my Mundo look like this: 

Not too long before it was time for the electricians to knock off for the day, I was carrying a door frame out. Of course there were nails in it, and of course I snagged my Marmot jacket on it. Homework for tonight is to wash it and hopefully the Ortlieb patch kit will be able to keep the thing serviceable. 

After the electricians left I hoped on the Mundo and did my weekly grocery run. As I rolled up to the apartment building one of the women who works in the office came out and handed me a package that the amazon.faerie had sent me: Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 3. Of course I watched an episode or three before turning in. I then watched some more yesterday since I really wasn’t feeling another Home De(s)pot run. (I needed a little break after this past week.) 

Today I went back to Home De(s)pot and picked up some stuff that I had forgotten to add to my list of lighting stuff. I made the Mundo look like this: 

Yes, those are 2nd generation GoGetters, and today was the first time I used them. I left them at The Cyclists’ Haven, that way I have bags there in case an unforeseen need for them arises, and they’re out of the apartment. You know, the apartment, which looks more like a warehouse than a home...

I also told my nephew to get used to the rake, since I bought it for him. That yard needs some intention, not to mention when you say, “All I can do is simple stuff like moving boxes,” rather than learning how to do new things...well, I’ll find something simple for you to do. I’m pretty sure raking qualifies.

So, it’s time for dinner, laundry, and so forth, and so on. Tomorrow I’ll only get one electrician, but the prognosis is that it should all be done by the end of next week, to include the inspection that they are legally required to get. Next in the chute will be the plumbers...

Yours in Home Refurbishing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB

P.S. This phase has been known as: Operation Fiat Lux. As an added bonus the heaters are in place and running. 

[onthebounce]

The Cyclists’ Haven, Pt. 27

Yesterday I planned to do a Home De(s)pot run. The alarm went off at 0600 hours (6:00 AM), but I turned it off because I figured that the electricians would not be available today, so I’d just go back to sleep and get up when I was good and ready. 

An hour later my phone started ringing. It was an electrician asking me if I’d be at The Cyclists’ Haven. I told him that I could be there by 0800 hours (8:00 AM) and set about getting ready, only to text him and push it back to 0830 hours (8:30 AM) since the roads were iced up pretty badly. 

Once I was on the road I was glad I’d pushed my arrival time back, because things were indeed pretty bad. I even planned to go along an alternate route that avoided the bridge across the railroad. (Ice and steep climbs just don’t mix.) The flatter route was nice, excepting for having to deal with some craptastic pavement from time-to-time, and everything was going fine until I hit the intersection of Roosevelt and Garfield. A t-intersection where I was making a left-hand turn. The bike shot out from under me going into the turn and went down fast and hard. Good thing I had a helmet on since my head bounced off the icy pavement. 

Injuries were pretty minor. The worst part of it being my pride for having biffed it and holding up traffic. (Traffic which was nice enough to stop and not use be as a speed bump.) 

Only a couple hundred yards from the objective I got up and remounted and got back underway. Soon I was face-to-face with not one, but two electricians (a Journeyman and an Apprentice). They got to work and soon reinforcements arrived in the form of another Journeyman. 

Damage to the Yuba Mundo was negligible: 

With three electricians hard at work, I did my best to get things done and stay out of their way at the same time. I soon moved outside where I began giving little love taps to the ramshackle toolshed with the Hobobasher. The drop box is now pretty close to full, and since you’re not supposed to load it above the waterline I ended up just piling some stuff up so that once things aren’t quite so icy I can reorganize things and level it all out. The toolshed ended up looking like this: 

Once the electricians were done for the day I pedaled away to the Bottledrop and got rid of the cans and bottles I’d lugged along. A couple I had to bend back into more-or-less round shape since they’d been crushed in the morning’s biff incident. After that I headed down to the grocery store for my weekly run. 

The grocery run took me into parts of town with multi-story buildings that had kept the sun from melting the ice on the roads, so a couple of time I had to dismount and walk the bike on the sidewalk. When it was all said-and-done a lot had been done on The Cyclists’ Haven’s electrical system -- to include installation of Cadet heaters! -- the toolshed was by-and-large demolished, Bottledrop and weekly grocery run were complete. 

Eventually the UPS guy showed up and handed me the first of the curtain rods and the second season of Star Trek: The Original Series the latter of which provided my evening’s entertainment. 

So came to close a long but very productive day filled with ice-biking-biffing, frigid temperatures, recycling, and gathering of comestibles. 

Yours in Ice-Biking, Home-Refurshing Bikeyness, 

-- OTB