>Two More Beauties (and a something a little odd).

>

OK, first a couple things, and this is to my fellow Yuba Mundo riders out in the blogesphere. I am not planning on selling my Mundo, nor am I comparing these bikes to it…I love my Mundo and think they are truly unique and versatile bikes (not to mention the most comfortable bike I’ve ridden). But I am living vicariously as a rich man…you know the type, the guy who has a ten car garage to house all of his sports cars. Only with me it would be bikes. If I were wealthy I’d probably own a lot of high-end cargo bikes (but then I’d probably feel guilty for my greed and give them away).

Anyhow, I came across these bikes a while ago and think they look awesome, particularly the second one. Both are sold by Henry WorkCycles. The first one is called the Monark Truck (Baker’s Bike), and the second is simply called Fr8 (a phonetic play on the word freight, no doubt). Click here to see more specs for the Baker’s Bike, and here for the Fr8.

Now here’s the thing that I find a bit odd. Take a look at the photo below. This is taken directly from a WorkCycle Site (but a different location), click here to see it.. It’s their page advertising the Fr8 as their industrial bike (which it seems to be). What I find odd is that while the driver has that beautiful and plentiful front rack (oddly no rear rack) he is carrying his cargo in his hand. I don’t know about you, but the reason I want a cargo bike is so that I don’t have to carry stuff. And I’m also no marketing genius, but it seems to me it would be better to show this bike loaded with stuff rather than the rider driving one-handed carrying something with his front rack empty.

Maybe I’m being picky. It’s just an observation but I felt like expressing it. I still think these are truly beautiful-looking pieces of machinery and would gladly own one.

Thing That Can Be Carried On A Bike (#189)

A plastic bag of sweaty work clothes (it was freakin’ hot in the kitchen today!)
A gym bag with wet clothes.
A canvas book bag containing, among other things, four books and a day planner.
An extra shirt.
An Artvoice newspaper.
A Block Club magazine.

Q&A with Deepak Chopra

This clip is only a little over four minutes long and it’s an interesting but brief interview. I’ve read a couple of Deepak’s books and have watched some of his full-length programs and have always found him not only insightful and inspiring, but also his humor and enthusiasm contagious. To read a short bio of him, click here; to go to the Chopra Center website, click here (or click the link in the sidebar).

>Q&A with Deepak Chopra

>This clip is only a little over four minutes long and it’s an interesting but brief interview. I’ve read a couple of Deepak’s books and have watched some of his full-length programs and have always found him not only insightful and inspiring, but also his humor and enthusiasm contagious. To read a short bio of him, click here; to go to the Chopra Center website, click here (or click the link in the sidebar).

Howard Thurman Quotes

Click here for his bio.

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” 


“There is something in every one of you that waits and listens for the sound of the genuine in yourself. It is the only true guide you will ever have. And if you cannot hear it, you will all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that somebody else pulls.”

“During times of war, hatred becomes quite respectable, even though it has to masquerade often under the guise of patriotism.”

“It is very easy to sit in judgement upon the behavior of others, but often difficult to realize that every judgement is a self-judgement.”

>Howard Thurman Quotes

>

Click here for his bio.

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” 


“There is something in every one of you that waits and listens for the sound of the genuine in yourself. It is the only true guide you will ever have. And if you cannot hear it, you will all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that somebody else pulls.”

“During times of war, hatred becomes quite respectable, even though it has to masquerade often under the guise of patriotism.”

“It is very easy to sit in judgement upon the behavior of others, but often difficult to realize that every judgement is a self-judgement.”

Do-It-Yourself Side Panels For The Mundo

I came across this at the Yuba Mundo blog. They are offering free and very simple plans to make your own skirt guard (pdf download). They’re promoting it as a tool to make it safer to carry people on the back of the bike, which it surely would, but I think it will probably be an excellent tool to aid in carrying cargo on the side boards, to keep items from hitting the tire or spokes. If I make these I’ll post the process. Well done Mundo…thanks! Click here to go to the updates page with the instructions and download.

>Do-It-Yourself Side Panels For The Mundo

>

I came across this at the Yuba Mundo blog. They are offering free and very simple plans to make your own skirt guard (pdf download). They’re promoting it as a tool to make it safer to carry people on the back of the bike, which it surely would, but I think it will probably be an excellent tool to aid in carrying cargo on the side boards, to keep items from hitting the tire or spokes. If I make these I’ll post the process. Well done Mundo…thanks! Click here to go to the updates page with the instructions and download.

A Real Beauty

If I were a wealthy guy–which I’m not–or if I had a disposable income–which I don’t–I’d buy one of these beauties. It’s a Batavus Personal Delivery Bike…looks like a shorter version of a cargo bike to me. Never rode one but have seen them in a bike shop in Toronto…they’re like a work of art. I almost bought one, actually, before purchasing the v3 Mundo. Over recent years I’ve been trying to ascertain what is a want and what is a need in my life…I definitely do not need one of these bikes (or another bike of any kind, for that matter), but surly I’d like to have one. And hey, nothing wrong with looking, right?

>A Real Beauty

>

If I were a wealthy guy–which I’m not–or if I had a disposable income–which I don’t–I’d buy one of these beauties. It’s a Batavus Personal Delivery Bike…looks like a shorter version of a cargo bike to me. Never rode one but have seen them in a bike shop in Toronto…they’re like a work of art. I almost bought one, actually, before purchasing the v3 Mundo. Over recent years I’ve been trying to ascertain what is a want and what is a need in my life…I definitely do not need one of these bikes (or another bike of any kind, for that matter), but surly I’d like to have one. And hey, nothing wrong with looking, right?

Lobster Killer!

This post is part shameless self-promotion, but also self-interest. It’s self-promotion because it refers to–and is linked to–an article I recently wrote for Artvoice weekly paper. The article chronicles my chagrin at having to kill 120 lobsters (yes I had to do it if I wanted to keep my job). This may not bother some people but it did me, and I stated this in the story. Anyhow, as aforementioned, this is also self-interest because of what one reader had to say. Firstly, I have to say (regarding her comments) is that I am glad that she said them…I always find it awesome when a reader is so moved to respond to something I wrote. I also liked some of her comments. She said, for example, my writing had a “hip and flip tone,” and that the story was like “a razor in an apple.” The only real problem I have with her comments is that she never stated if she were a vegetarian…because as we all know–whether you want to deny it or not–that if you eat meat, poultry, or seafood something dies before it hits your plate. If, on the other hand, she is a vegetarian then that is another story. And if that is the case, my dear reader, please accept my humble apologies…I feel your pain.

Click here to go directly to the article (which includes recipes), click here to go to the letter to the editor. The somewhat gruesome photos below were not published in the story.

>Lobster Killer!

>

This post is part shameless self-promotion, but also self-interest. It’s self-promotion because it refers to–and is linked to–an article I recently wrote for Artvoice weekly paper. The article chronicles my chagrin at having to kill 120 lobsters (yes I had to do it if I wanted to keep my job). This may not bother some people but it did me, and I stated this in the story. Anyhow, as aforementioned, this is also self-interest because of what one reader had to say. Firstly, I have to say (regarding her comments) is that I am glad that she said them…I always find it awesome when a reader is so moved to respond to something I wrote. I also liked some of her comments. She said, for example, my writing had a “hip and flip tone,” and that the story was like “a razor in an apple.” The only real problem I have with her comments is that she never stated if she were a vegetarian…because as we all know–whether you want to deny it or not–that if you eat meat, poultry, or seafood something dies before it hits your plate. If, on the other hand, she is a vegetarian then that is another story. And if that is the case, my dear reader, please accept my humble apologies…I feel your pain.

Click here to go directly to the article (which includes recipes), click here to go to the letter to the editor. The somewhat gruesome photos below were not published in the story.

It’s the Little Things

I saw this sign after walking across the Golden Gate Bridge last week with my son. It’s at the entrance to a stairway leading under the bridge and to the other side (so you don’t have to cross the hellish traffic). The stairs are long and steep so there is a ramp provided for bicyclists to walk their bikes…otherwise this would be inaccessible to many cyclists. It really is the little things…we (cyclists) need more inclusion such as this. The ramp is nothing but a board really (on the left side of the below photo), but it really makes a difference (and made me feel good when I saw it…and a sign explaining it). It reminds me of a much longer version of my plank of gratefulness that I use to enter my house with bikes, especially the Mundo (click here to read about that). I first got the idea when I saw a mechanic at a local bike shop walking bikes up-and-down their basement stairs…”Do you have any idea how many bikes I’d be carrying up these stairs everyday if it weren’t for this plank,” he snapped at me when I commented on it.

I know that there are a few people from the bay area that read this blog, and I just want to say that you should feel truly blessed to live in a city that is not only breathtakingly beautiful (picture-perfect…like a postcard), but also one that is increasingly welcoming to bicyclists.