2 posts in a month?? I know, I'm on a roll!

So I was talking to a friend last week and she's been telling me for years I should write down my 'stories' or just things that happen to me because they're usually quite dramatic. I thought about it but I don't, usually down to laziness and also I'm always thinking, who'd want to read this crap? But forget all that, last week when I wrote about my fabulous running debut, it was really therapeutic! Plus I had fun writing it..laughing at myself for most of it.

So I thought I'd write about this...this happened a little while ago but now when I think about it..it really was quite funny...

My work, like many other jobs, started the Bike to Work scheme. Now I'm not much of a cyclist..no, I'm not a cyclist and every weekend Jez suggests we go on these gay bike rides (he has some super duper Roll-Royces of a bike..I have a dingy bike that I got from a secondhand shop..) and it's just not appealing to me..sweating buckets while attempting to ride up Highgate hill..it's not a pleasant feeling..or image...So when I told Jez about this scheme, he said I should use this to get a really cool bike. Well, I've really run out of excuses to tell him so I thought why the heck not. Our company has a deal with Evans Cycle and I'm suppose to fill out all the paperworks, go to the shop and pick out a bike. Easy enough.

One day after work, I told Jez to meet me at the Evans Cycle in Chalk Farm. He was, of course, late as usual so I decided to browse around on my own. I walked in, first sales guy came up to me and offered assistance, this is how the conversation went:

Guy: Hi miss, can I help you?
Me: Yes, I'd like to have a bike please.
Guy: Sure, do you know what type of bike you'd like?
Me: A pretty one! (I'm serious...)
Guy: Um...right..a pretty one..would you like a road bike, a mountain bike, or a hybrid?
Me: Uh...one that rides on the road...to work..and stuff...but it has to be light because I'd be carrying it upstairs (Jez's great suggestion, not going to happen of course) and it needs to look pretty...
Guy: right..well, I don't know if this one is pretty but let me show you this....
Me: Oh..that's not very pretty...but it is light..oh oh, can I look at that baby blue Dutch bike with the basket? Its called Poppy? That's way cute!
Guy: But that's really really heavy..you're going to have problems lifting that off the ground..
Me: Oh...but..it's blue..and it's got a name...
Guy: How about this one? This is a Trek bike, a hybrid (mountain + road apparently), it's got 27 gears but you really only need about 5..it's light and pretty fast but the great thing about this is it's got Dior gears.
Me: Wow..Dior gears..that's pretty cool...I didn't know Christian Dior made bicycles...Gucci doesn't, right?
Guy: ......um...no...D-E-O-R-E gears...not Dior...
Me: Oh..OH! Um...right...of course...ha..

Then Jez walked in..and I told him what I said...he just looked at the guy and said..you see what I'm dealing with here?

I'm sure the guy thought I was an abolute idiot..and I think I really was..but c'mon, if Jez were to walk in to a Gucci store, he wouldn't know what to do either! Anyhoo, I picked out my bike, got all the info, and left. I'm not suppose to leave with the bike till I have the voucher so no bike ride home that night.

Forward to last weekend...two days after the run, I finally got my voucher and went back to the shop on Saturday with Jez, all psyched up to get my bike...my bike is not there...they don't have it in stock anywhere in London...so a different guy showed me another bike...a better and faster and meaner looking bike..and and..it's Italian! It's called Bianchi..or something..and it is..PRETTY! See pic below:



It's not this exact bike but it's very very similar. Isn't it hot?? So I thought..this is great, asked the nice salesman, Bart, 'can I put a basket on the front? Like a cute little basket?' I swear the man looked at me like I've just murdered his first child...he just said..really? It doesn't really fit...looked at Jez..Jez shrugged..said again..'you see what I'm dealing with...'. I didn't throw a tantrum or anything but I did make him try to fit a basket on it..and he couldn't...so there goes my sweet fantasy of sunday gay bike rides in my white dress, a baguette in the basket and maybe if a lost puppy if I found one on the side of the street...the alternate is a rack on the back of the bike...and he gave me these bungee stretchy cords to tie things to the rack...lame...

I actually forgot I was in pain from the run and only occurred me towards the end of the transaction that I now have to ride this damn bike home...thank God Jez was leading, it was scary!! The last stretch up Archway Road was torture...but I did it..and my poor sore bum paid for it over the weekend. This weekend, hopefully Jez will take me on a dry run to work and I can start honoring my 'Bike-to-~Work' contract...

my journey continues...