Jeans and Sneakers

So yesterday, just like every Sunday, Rob and I went to his parent’s house for dinner.  But this time. . .as we pulled up to their house, this was waiting for me outside:

Ok.  So maybe she wasn’t waiting for *me*.  Maybe Rob’s parent’s neighbors felt like doing a little spring cleaning, and were THROWING OUT THIS BEAUTIFUL BICYCLE.  The picture doesn’t do it justice.  You have no idea what kind of awesome color green this bike is.  That’s ok though.  I have more pictures.

So the entire time we spent at Rob’s parents, I was thinking about this bike, and how I’m going to restore it.  Because, although it’s in really good condition for being almost 35 years old, there’s still some rust, there’s nicks and scrapes in the paint, and some of the decals are mostly rubbed off.

The handlebars, fenders, and wheels are a little rusty.  Rob says he needs to take apart the coaster hub in the back wheel because it’s not working properly.  This is the kind of bike where you backpedal to brake.  It needs new tires and tubes, a new chain, and a whole lot of love.  I believe I can recondition the leather of the seat, because aside from a little flaked paint, it’s in really good condition.  I might end up re-cushioning it, but I haven’t sat on it yet, so I’m not sure if I will.

The handlebar grips have green sparkles in them.  And they’re actually in pretty good condition too.

I found a place where I can get replacements, and might get another pair, just in case these don’t want to come off, or if they get messed up or something.  I joined a Schwinn Bicycle forum, and found all sorts of nifty things, like a place that matched the original paint colors, so if I need to, I can repaint the dope green color.  I looked up how to paint on leather, and what kind of paint to use, and was happy to find that I can actually use the same exact paint I use to paint the StatYous I make.  I can’t wait to make this bike as beautiful as it originally was.  I’ve got to take her apart, but first I want to take good pictures of it, showing where exactly all of the decals are.  What a steal.  I don’t care if I spend as much money on fixing her up as I would buying a new or used one. . .it’s all about the experience you get, and the satisfaction in the end when you see what you’ve accomplished.

And in taking on accomplishments. . .my Rowan book is here.  I’ve started to cast on Birch, but it’s slow going.  My arms are all weak because earlier today I started up our new weed wacker for the first time, and attacked our lawn.  Now my arms are all gimpy.  IT sucks because I need steady hands for this lace cast on in this yarn with plastic needles.  And casting on so many stitches!!  I wonder if I’ll get the cast on done tonight!

My reservations are made for the Bed and Breakfast up in Rhinebeck.  Come October, I’m going to the Sheep and Wool Festival!!  YAY!  And what’s better, even though it’s more expensive, the room we were going to reserve was taken, leaving only the most expensive, and the cheapest rooms left.  We got the one with the jaccuzzi!!  WOO HOOOOO!!  I can’t wait until October!!  The only thing is, the owner is looking to sell her B&B as a turnkey business.  She took our reservations, and is hoping to sell to someone else who will keep the inn going, but she admitted that someone might just buy it as a house, in which case, she’ll let me know and try to help me find other accomodations.  I hope that doesn’t happen.

I’m off to knit!

This entry was posted on Monday, May 1st, 2006 at 8:28 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.