Beautiful Bikes at the Boston Flower Show

A yarn bombed beauty.

In honor of the first day of Spring, I'm sharing a few images that my sister-in-law and niece took last weekend at The Boston Flower Show.

There is a topiary dog on the rear rack. And a Provencal picnic in the front basket.

Obviously, they thought of me.

Spring biking...bring it on!

Errandonnee - Day 4

I braved 6F for the quick jaunt to school and discovered my cable lock doesn't work well in cold weather. Like me when I forget to stretch out my back early morning, it was difficult to unwind, thread through the bike frame, and secure again. A herculean task!

By noon the day had warmed, I visited the lake, bought beautiful earrings for a friend, and treated myself to a delicious mocha and chicken with brie sandwich—all after riding loops on quiet residential streets to pad mileage. Then I swam a half mile, rode some more before returning home. I finished the errandonnee—just barely—ending with 9 miles for the day, 30 miles total.

Errandonnee Scorecard
March 18
Category: Coffee or dessert- New Moon Cafe for a mocha, plus lunch.
                Personal care & health - YMCA to swim
                Work - School counts too. I went to class again.
                Any store that is not the grocery store - Apple Mountain to buy earrings for a friend
Observation: The cable lock doesn't work too well when it's 6F. I wrestled with the coil, struggling to unwind it enough to wrap around my bike frame.
Miles: 9

Errandonnee - Day 3

Shredded pork burrito at Chipotle. The meat was a little tough. Next time I'll stick with chicken.

I waited until early afternoon when the temperatures climbed to the teens, then scampered to a local outdoor shop to buy several more chemical handwarmers. We are still in winter's clutches and having warm hands and feet are integral to my participation in the Errandonee.

Fortunately the sun is bright and wind is nil. It's certainly invigorating, pedaling in such cold. My throat felt raw when I exerted myself climbing hills, so I took it easy and dropped into lower gears. The errands are easy; it's the miles that I find difficult. I'm riding circuitous routes, just to tack on as many miles as possible.

Errandonnee Scorecard
March 17
Category: Breakfast or Lunch - Chipotle for a burrito
                Store that is not a grocery store - Outdoor Gear Exchange
                for chemical hand warmers
                Grocery Store - Price Chopper for cereal
Observation: It seems odd to be buying more chemical hand warmers in Mid March, but Spring is far from here.
Miles: 11

Errandonnee - Day 2

I left home at 8 a.m. to get to school on time. It's not far, 1.5 miles, however school is at the bottom of a steep hill and with melting snow the day before, morning temps hovered near 10F. I'm nothing if not adventurous! I made it without having to dismount and walk; the roads remained dry. I pulled into the covered bike parking area with plenty of time to spare.

While locking my bike, I noticed the cigarette butt litter. Seems the bike rack is also smoking area. Go figure.

The Ross outside City Hall.

When I left class three hours later, it felt like Spring. I shed heavy gloves, unzipped my down parka. This time around I made it to the Police Department to renew our resident parking pass then stopped by City Hall during open hours to fork over city taxes. How I dislike both deeds!

I lug the basket inside the store and fill it as I go. That way I won't buy more than I can carry.

Then I tootled to City Market for groceries. As I left, I realized I'd forgotten to use my Bicycle Benefits sticker for a discount. I'm out of practice.

My Ross is a strong, capable bicycle, perfect for errand rides, a perfect step through style to keep my center of gravity low for grabbing the bars to stabilize a mountain of groceries. She's my hero.

Errandonnee Scorecard
March 11
Category: Work - School counts too. I rode to my class.
                Wildcard - Police Department for a parking pass
                Wildcard - City Hall to pay taxes.
                Grocery Store - City Market for eggs, milk, vegetables and such
Observation: You never know where you'll run into neighbors. I chatted with an elderly lady (I shovel her front walk during snowstorms) while waiting in line at the Police Department.
Miles: 7

Upcycled Bike Bags

Playing around with Tumblr.

While I'm not exactly out ticking off bike miles, not all of it has to do with our recent onslaught of 18" of snow. Instead, I'm learning about marketing and website analysis. Upcycledbikebags has grown from these two classes, following my love for refashioning interesting bags into stylish and practical carriers for bikes, which many of my readers have seen on this blog. The site is not "real" per se—I'm not currently selling bags—but I am writing content that I hope will attract subscribers. It's a Tumblr blog also—a prerequisite for one course. It would tickle me to no end if my regular anniebikes' readers would take a look. Or even better, make a constructive comment or reblog, share on social media, etc.

Now, back to Errandonneering...