Simple?

Today's weigh in was another shocker, 242. My last day at Petrie's before the Quest to the West, as I'm dubbing it, and an adventurous one it was. I started out with a pink girls bike complete with tassels on the bars, trued the wheels and set up the brakes, cake. Next a simple flat repair, simple my a**. First of all there was lots of pressure in the tire which is odd if it's flat. I took the wheel out of the frame and the shear weight of it told me it would be full of anti-flat compound, a slimy goo that is supposed to seal small leaks. I pressed on the valve...nothing. So I got out my trusty knife and cut off the valve as I could not get at the tube with the pressure still in it. A sticky, runny liquid like beige latex paint oozed out. I got over a garbage can and let it run. It stopped and I poked it with the knife and a 1 inch high fountain formed as the contents drained. Then it blew. Good thing I was wearing my glasses. So the 'simple' 10 minute flat repair became a 45 minute clean up. Later on I put together a new bike, trued another wheel, boxed a bike for shipping, swept up and called it a day as things had ground to a halt.

I grabbed a bike rack for the Quest to the West as Mike and Mel have decided to make the trip to BC so Eowyn will have somewhere to ride. It hold 3 bikes so Sal and I will be able to take both of our bikes a little further from the house for a ride.

Yes Virgina, Work Can Be Fun

It's been a long time since I went to bed looking forward to my next day of work.  A long time since work was fun. I spent 12 hours at Petries today, 10 working and 2 hanging out after. Not all of the work is fun. It can be frustrating, not knowing exactly what's next or how to pull it off even when I do know. Being in 'Farzam limbo' used to drive me crazy. But those times when I can't do anything because I have to wait for help or instructions or a decision are getting less and less often. I'm slowly learning enough to move on to something else until the wait is over. I still hate front derailleurs but love the whole experience. A repair can be going straight into the toilet and then something or someone comes along, we have a laugh or coffee and a  cookie or maybe a piece of garlic sausage and talk about the hockey game last night. I see at at least 3 people I know from outside the shop every day and it's okay to stop and talk to them. This may never be a permanent thing but it sure is a breath of fresh air.

week 1/4
toast, banana, 3 coffee, 3 pb cookies, 2 slices garlic sausage, handful chocolate raisins, pot roast with carrots, corn and potatos, clamato juice

2 Assembled 1 Saved

Half a day at FCD and half at Petries today. With repairs finally caught up I got to assemble 2 new bikes. First a Marin Stinson EZ Step (a path bike) and a Felt F75 road bike. The Marin went along fine until I came to the front derailleur. I just could not get it right. Finally got some help. The only other bike in the shop waiting for assembly had 'carbon' all over it. Nathan told me not to be afraid so into the box I went. Carefully went through everything and then Farzam took over to setup the shifting and share more secrets. Once I get my hands on something and understand how it works I seem to be able to think it through, just watching it done doesn't cut it for me. One of the other guys was packing bike boxes with garbage and sealing them and I gave him a hand to haul them outside. He joked that it's funny they had never thrown out a new bike. Not 5 minutes later as I grabbed one of the boxes I noticed how heavy it was and looked inside and saw nothing but the shine of a new cluster of gears. Sure enough the box had been damaged in shipping and resealed with tape making it look like one of the garbage-filled ones but actually contained a new bike. People regularly go through the garbage they put out so it would probably have disappeared overnight and wouldn't have been missed for a while inside. I guess I earned my keep today.

the Felt F75








week 1/3
2 pcs toast, banana, 2 coffee, 2 spring rolls, salad, water
week 1/2
2 pcs toast, banana, coffee, cheese, 2 hm buns, steamed rice w/pasta sauce, 5 strawberries, water and a beer

Learning

Mike leaves for Victoria BC today on a 5 day sailing trip around the Gulf Islands on SALTS with 24 students and 2 fellow teachers. The hardest part for him will be missing the Canucks games as there are no electronics allowed. He can bring his phone so he'll know the score but that'll be it. Ahh, the price you have to pay to sail on a tall ship for 5 days. Enjoy you lucky so and so...

I got out for 40km on Sunday with Jill. Not a great day for a ride because of the wind which just won't go away lately. That and my shorts keep irritating me. I did my good deed for the week helping a kid with a chain that had overshifted into the spokes of a bike he was trying to ride home from fishing. His chain was so dry I barely got my hands dirty. There sure are a lot of abused and neglected bikes out there.

I spent the day at Petries again today. Overhauled another 3 bikes and with another guy just about caught up on the repairs. I'm pretty much on my own other than the odd question but I'm still getting the worst case bikes. That's the way to learn I guess.

I'm going to try this again. No x- just put it out there.
week 1/1 - 260
2 pieces of toast, grapefruit juice, banana, 2 coffee, 2 lemonaid, (the best) spaghetti meatballs and sausage, hm buns

The Chair

My first day at Petrie's was pretty productive and the shop is a fun environment to work in. There are characters coming in and out of the place all day. Tuned up 4 bikes and started another. Lots of things to learn, lots of grease to clean. My only hangup is not being sure and having to wait to ask a question when Farzam is busy, and Farzam is always busy. In brakes alone there are about 4 different major types and then a good dozen variations of each. I need something to fill the void when I can't finish a task. Some of the bikes are in such terrible shape and everything needs to be fixed or replaced but I'm never sure how far to go, how deep the pockets are. At least when I'm done with one now I can see a major improvement in the condition.  Back again Friday.

One event that was big was the destruction of the chair. Tom bought a barber chair in 1964 from the barber shop that closed next door. It' s been sitting right across from Farzam's workbench forever. A couple and their 10 year old girl came in and as the parents were looking at a bike the girl slammed herself into the conversation piece and broke the cast steel frame in three places. Not even a word of apology from anyone. They may not have realized the shock we were all in. That chair, weird as it may seem, has been a centerpiece for nearly 50 years. I've seen lots of customers sitting in it as their multi-thousand dollar bikes were assembled or repaired. Hopefully a welder that can tackle cast can be found to fix it.

At least I haven't jinxed the H***s yet. On the winning goal I actually reacted with a quick fist pump. I guess I really don't like Ovechkin. I guess we know who's shaking now. Can anyone see the H***s running around their own end for 45 minutes a game and coming out on top for another 4 games? Against the Penguins?

Wednesday I got skinnier, today was a draw.