my amazing bicycle baskets

So I know I have told you about my cool new bike baskets. And I'm going to talk about them some more.

I LOVE them.

Nowadays I am doing what I call The Bike-Bus Routine. Brad got a bus pass for me, which has opened up some new options. I can ride my bike all over town without concern that I will tire and be stuck many miles from home with no recourse.

There's always the bus, baby. Every half hour. Steady as a heartbeat pulsing through town.

I keep my bus schedule on me at all times, and wherever I am I can just find the nearest bus stop, fold up my baskets, and wait. Then I load my bike onto the rack, and enter the nice, cool, air-conditioned bus, where I meet lots of different people to converse with and learn from. Or I sit and zone with my iPod on. My choice. I am thoroughly enjoying myself.

The thing that's great about my bike baskets--in addition to allowing me to carry books, bags, groceries, etc-- is that they have been the catalyst to many a lovely encounter.

People think my bike baskets are quite extraordinary. Because they are.

I mean to say that people are positively compelled to stare at them in wonder, to circle around them to get a better look, and to exclaim to me how spectacular they are, and question where I got them and if I love having them.

This has given me many great opportunites to meet people I would never have met. A couple of times Jesus found his way into the conversation, which of course sweetens the deal immeasurably.

Some encounters include:

--a young gentleman attired completely in red, including wrist bands, socks, shoes, sunglasses, and bandana. All red.

--an old old (or just street-worn) man with bike baskets of his own.

--a sweet little Polish woman who had never heard of ebay and was delighted to learn of it.

--a handicapped couple riding motorized chairs.

--a drunken and boisterously friendly man (with only one eye) sitting outside the Salvation Army Thrift store.

And this is just a few. And in only two weeks.

And I'm (hopefully) going to be doing this for a very long time. Imagine the potential. I have so much to look forward to.