Thread Drift

Jesse's parents came to the apt today. They were in front of our doors, talking to the apt manager. Yes, I was eavesdropping but it's hard not to when 4 people are talking right in front of your door.

The manager is giving her a month free and clear to get everything taken care of and moved out. The manager will help her find another apt (transfer her lease) within this complex or in any other complex owned by the same company. Insurance will cover haz-mat to come in and take out the wallboard and carpeting and furniture in the room. She will be staying with her parents, and doesn't intend to come back. They will move her stuff.

She did come back this afternoon with 2 friends to get a duffel bag. They saw me outside and stayed in the car until I went back inside. She kept her head down and her sweatshirt hood up. I didn't bother her.

I'm so grateful her family is taking care of her. She's young, far to young to have to deal with this. (I'd guess early 20's)

Thanks, guys, for telling me not to feel guilty I stayed inside with SKnot. He said he's glad I stayed in the apt with him, and that he would have been very upset if he woke up hearing her screaming and not finding me in the apt.

Tell the ones you love that you love them.
Knot

Wow, Knot, that's crazy. My ex threatened to kill himself, when we were on the way to a 4H meeting. I told him to get his azz into therapy. A year later- divorced.

On my Cornsnake forum, they describe Cali Kings as bipolar, piss poor attitude, unpredictable, "rattles and flings poo every time I hold her," (that one is also "drop dead gorgeous") full of personality and spite, insane feeding response- sounds great, huh? I like a challenge...

Congrats Nanci. Cigars all around....

Knot - what a mess. I am glad the landlord is being so accommodating to your neighbor. What a huge nightmare for her. Hug SKnot for us.

I love three day work weeks! I had Monday as a holiday, and am taking Friday off, to drive down to Satellite Beach for the 200k Saturday. It's too hard to take half a day on Fridays...Woo hoo!! Plus, I suckered some new tech into taking my (mandatory) Veteran's Day holiday in November, where I was supposed to work 2-10, but had to be in Coral Gables that evening for a ride the following morning (that was originally scheudled for Sunday, but moved to Saturday, because the RBA is less than organized, shall we say.) Thank you God!!!

Funny thing at work- the new rad is looking at all my ride maps that I have hung up on the bulletin board- like the 600k in particular. He says, "Who does all these rides?" I say I do, and before he can help it, he gives me the up and down look...I say "I know it's hard to believe" and everyone around bursts out laughing and he is totally embarassed. But he's sweet, so no hard feelings.

yeah, what was it, men are 6x more likely to actually kill themselves in Suicide attempts?

clearly the male of the species is endangered.

they die more at every stage of life.


I just joined the Bianchi club, and found a design a bike contest on their website. If you win, they paint a frame to match the design you made.

So i am going to try.

Nanci, why on earth would you like an unpredictable unfriendly beast that bites?
I can see that some snakes are sort of friendly, but an unfriendly one?

It is fun that we bikers are so unassuming. People can't believe it when I mention some of the rides i've done (and i've done WAY FAR less than you Nanci)
It's hard to get your brain around someone bicycling for 25 miles let alone 100 or 200!

It dawned on me today in neuroanatomy class that it was a poor choice to skip the reading for this week :D Whoa, my brain hurts. I seriously need to get organized.

I ended up buying that Bianchi Pista! I'm so excited. I'll post a picture soon, once I get her all set up. Her name is Sloane, to go with my 2 boy bikes Ferris and Cameron :cool: No, I don't like the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Whatever gave you that idea?

Knot - what you did was what a lot of people do. So don't feel guilty. You didn't know at the time and you followed what your gut was saying. Suicide is always tragic.

Time to go decompress.

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Originally Posted by betagirl

I ended up buying that Bianchi Pista! I'm so excited. I'll post a picture soon, once I get her all set up. Her name is Sloane, to go with my 2 boy bikes Ferris and Cameron :cool: No, I don't like the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Whatever gave you that idea?


Time to go decompress.

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YEAY!!! is this your first Bianchi? congrats!

Nanci, that Snow Cali King is GORGEOUS. You are making me want to have snakes, which I've always admired. So far I've had cats all my life, but that's it. Not sure how my elderly cats would feel about a snake. Or Mr. Salsa either, come to think of it. But I love them. Are they a LOT of work, or no?

beta, congrats on your new Bianchi! PIX! WE WANT PIX!

mimi, I am with you on the hostile snake thing. I can appreciate a snake as a creature, but something about moving with no appendages has always given me the creeps. I like lizards much more. They have appendages. :rolleyes:

I told one of the nurses at the clinic that I rode 40 miles yesterday (which is like a sneeze distance to most on this board!). She could not get over it. She kept saying "40 miles!" Finally she said, "But what if you got hungry?" (as if it were 40 miles in the desert). I said, "I had a PBJ in my pocket." She just shook her head. On the bike she probably has in her garage, 40 miles would be an all day, or two day event. On the Green Hornet, it was about 3.5 hr with several bathroom breaks, one phone call, and a PBJ stop. :D

Lise,

when the weather's nice on the weekend my co-workers don't ask anymore. :rolleyes:

What we TE gals do floors most people whether you ride 10-20-40.....250 miles.

Knotted so sorry about your neighbor, but you what's most improtant, protect your kid.

I've been extremely down at one time long ago in the past so you'd think I could understand it but I can't forgive suicide. We had a manager at work killed herself recently, he left 3 kids, very sad. She was not one I knew though I probably saw her but never knew her. But she was very close to my best friend. It's very sad.

Off to bed, haven't felt rested so turning in early.

Thanks. It is my first Bianchi. I'm amazed at how light it is.

This isn't mine, but this is pretty close to what it looks like:
http://jotpuree.com/images/photo/03_...sta_042703.jpg

Black frame with the celeste green lettering. I put a black Terry butterfly saddle on it. It had this old...old...old brooks saddle on it. SPD pedals.

beta, I love that color scheme!

ooooh, puhrty. is that steel I see? :cool:

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Originally Posted by betagirl

Thanks. It is my first Bianchi. I'm amazed at how light it is.

This isn't mine, but this is pretty close to what it looks like:
http://jotpuree.com/images/photo/03_...sta_042703.jpg

Black frame with the celeste green lettering. I put a black Terry butterfly saddle on it. It had this old...old...old brooks saddle on it. SPD pedals.

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what did you do with the old old old brooks saddle?
the bike is beautiful!
welcome to the CLUB Bianchista :)

It is.....

Ok, pictures!

Sloane the Bianchi:

http://www.demitassedesign.com/bianchi_1.gif

http://www.demitassedesign.com/bianchi_2.gif

I figured the other bikes might get jealous since I've never posted their pictures up on TE before. You know how boys can be.

Cameron the Trek (my current commuter):

http://www.demitassedesign.com/trek_1.gif

Ferris the Lemond (my baby):

http://www.demitassedesign.com/lemond_1.gif

And here's the frame I thought I was going to convert. Notice the large crank shell :D I did paint it a pretty blue. Alas, no dice. My dog Mia posed for the picture as well.

No-name frame:
http://www.demitassedesign.com/frame_1.gif

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what did you do with the old old old brooks saddle?

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It's sitting in my garage. I was going to sell it on ebay. Why you want it? I'm taking the Bianchi into Performance to get the chain installed. The front brake is on order. So I should be able to try her out next week some time.

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Originally Posted by betagirl

It's sitting in my garage. I was going to sell it on ebay. Why you want it? I'm taking the Bianchi into Performance to get the chain installed. The front brake is on order. So I should be able to try her out next week some time.

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okay, so long as you don't just toss it or something. Do you know what kind of brooks it is?
(model?)

Lise
I don't have a problem with animals without legs, I used to play with worms and slugs...
but they didn't bite ME... or threaten to.

WOO! Goin' camping, and bringing Miz Cakes and DGF's so-far unnamed bike. see y'all Saturday night...

FINALLY finished negotiating with my new/old place of employment...got all the stuff I asked for AND 20 days of vacation!!! http://QB.smugmug.com/photos/49063420-Ti.gif

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Originally Posted by Queen

FINALLY finished negotiating with my new/old place of employment...got all the stuff I asked for AND 20 days of vacation!!! http://QB.smugmug.com/photos/49063420-Ti.gif

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Is that better than what they gave you before?

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

Is that better than what they gave you before?

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Yup, they called me here in AZ and asked if I'd consider coming home to IL for a job. As the discussions unfolded the position moved up a couple of levels and the pay increased by almost 30%. It put me in unfamiliar territory (having skills someone really wants), so I did some negotiating instead of just saying ok to the first offer...very fruitful experience. :D

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Originally Posted by Queen

Yup, they called me here in AZ and asked if I'd consider coming home to IL for a job. As the discussions unfolded the position moved up a couple of levels and the pay increased by almost 30%. It put me in unfamiliar territory (having skills someone really wants), so I did some negotiating instead of just saying ok to the first offer...very fruitful experience. :D

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Far out!! so not only did you get a way better job, you got to see parts of the west!!
:)
congrats!

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

Far out!! so not only did you get a way better job, you got to see parts of the west!!
:)
congrats!

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Thanks!

Of course now I have to go shopping and start buying a more professional wardrobe...Liz Claiborne here I come!! :p

Wow, Queen! Great work! 20 days of vacation--very sweet. They must be really happy to have you back.

Kitsune--have a fun time camping!

beta--I love the new bike (and the "old" bikes, too) (and the pup, too!). What do you know about the Pista? You got it specifically for a winter commuter? What makes it well suited for that role?

It's a good morning--I am on VACATION as of 10 AM today! :D :D :D I even had a pretty quiet night on call. Did some work this morning, and on the way home I went to the library and picked up three mysteries by my new favorite, Stuart Kaminsky. He's a prolific writer. I've only read his Abe Lieberman books so far, and not all of those. Lieberman is an older Chicago cop, whose partner is an older Irish cop. I really enjoy the personalities, and the story lines are complex but not silly. It's fun to read about Chicago and have it mostly be "right". I dated a Chicago cop for awhile a few years ago, and I kind of see Tom in Abe Lieberman. Kaminsky has series about other detectives, so I picked up two in the Russian series. You know you're on vacation when you can pick up three mystery novels at one time!

Then I went by On The Route, my LBS, to return the Terry Fly. I was dreading it--it's the third saddle I've returned. John, who's helped me in other ways, hasn't been too helpful on the saddle issue. But today Dennis was there, the shop owner, who sold me the bike. He was fine with me returning the saddle. I was talking about how much I like the WTB saddle on my Larkspur, but that it's too wide to ride with the Bianchi. He had a WTB Deva saddle on hand that he loaned me for a test ride. It's the women's design road saddle from that company. Wasn't that nice? I didn't even think to look at that line. Here it is: http://www.wtb.com/saddles_deva.html

Came home and the cats had an epic battle on the dining room floor--puffy tails, rolling around, hissing, and then...it's over! Lots of fur to vacuum up. I watched them, laughing as silently as I could, because if they hear me laughing, they'll stop and both look at me. They are such wonderful little beasts.

Nice pics, Beta. Does the Bianchi have bolt-on wheels or QR? With rear-facing dropout, you'll have to break the chain to fix a flat, right? Unless the dropout is long enough to slide the wheel forward, slip the chain off the chainring, and then slide the wheel back and out. Make sure you know the right amount of slack to leave in the chain when you reattach the wheel. I read Sheldon Brown's "dangers of working on a fixie on a stand". Be very careful.

Your Trek reminds me of a superhero with cape flying in the wind.

Lise, it's WTB- Wilderness Trail Bikes. That was the saddle on my MTB when I got it- I liked it alot until I got a prettier saddle. Someone here rides that and likes it. There is a thread about them.

I think the little snake will be ok. Did I already tell you guys the owner says he was the second prettiest Cali King at the largest reptile show in the US? He might be faintly yellow (banana) instead of pure white. With tiny hatchlings like this, you can handle them with rubber gloves- like surgical gloves- if you're afraid of bites- that's how tiny their teeth are. It's just startling if you don't expect a bite- not painful. Poor little guy- the last choice of the three my friend bought (both some kind of tri-colors- milks or something.) He's just in the snippy hatchling phase (I hope!) I think I get him Sunday.

He's eating pinkie mice (frozen thawed.)

Salsa- Cornsnakes are super easy. They come in a million colors. Google Sunglow Motley- that's my favorite, though Bloodred is gorgeous, too. So, for an adult, which is roughly 3 feet long, you need a 20 long tank, with a secure cover, an under tank heater, a rheostat or thermostat to regulate it, and a thermometer to check the temp- mine records max and min and humidity. It was about $20? No overhead light needed. Aspen bedding. A water crock. Maybe some plastic vines. Two hides, at least, as simple or fancy as you want. (Maizey has a hollow stone, a half log, hollow, real, a fake half hollow log with little leaves and mushrooms on it. So- $30 and up for the snake, depending on how fancy. $150-$200 for furnishings. One-two food items every 7-10 days- $1-$2. If you buy a hatchling, they are kept in sweater boxes or 5-10 gallon tanks. I'm not sure how you'd heat a sweater box- but cornsnakes.com has a huge forum, kind of like TE. Cornsnakes are the most popular snake, because they are so agreeable, easy to care for, easy to breed, don't get to an unmanageable length like boas or pythons. Kings are the second most popular. Also a manageable size, but not as predictably docile as a Corn. Similar requirements. They live 15-25 years.

I'm not even thinking of a name till I see him in person.

I printed out my route sheet for the 200k Saturday, and color-coded the turns and laminated it! Unfortunately, I wasn't smart enough to laminate two sheets back to back...thought of it too late. But still!

Queen, that's great! Promotion, even!

Sloane sure is good looking. You should post a pic of the Brooks, just in case someone here might like it.

I finally got my August SS stuff boxed up. It has a long way to go. I think it is my masterpiece- the best SS accumulation ever! I hope customs doesn't tear it apart too badly. (I don't think SS reads this, but who knows...) As a final touch- there's this whole color theme- they were selling these adorable little zipper pouches at work today- and I bought one to keep my bike computer in, but it matched the other things so perfectly, and in fact, the whole theme, that I sent it to SS instead...But I got to keep the three most beautiful custom pillowcases in the world!! What a relief. Now to start worrying about September...

Yeah, Beta, please post a pic of the Brooks, and if you can read any numbers on the skirt (model number or other info) please post that, too.

(the Brooks cult is salivating)

Hey there all! I've made it back from my trip to SF! What a great trip - tough to match. Meeting the TE SF crew was fantastic! They are quite the tour guides and hosts!

I made it to the airport on time (navigating BART) and I had good flights home - all on time! Then... I'm driving home from the airport (in a bad part of town) and one of my rear tires blows out. I couldn't stop where I was, so I limped to the nearest Walgreens. There, a really nice security man helped me change the tire. The tire looked like someone shredded it. Not pretty. I finally made it home around 10pm. Long day, but so good to be home. The fishlets were in bed. It was so wonderful to see their faces light up this morning when they saw me. :D And it felt so good to hug and squeeze them!

Now - finish prepping the house for it's debut showing tomorrow! Lots of work ahead!

Glad you had a great trip! The pictures were so cool.

I saw my toad last night.

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Nice pics, Beta. Does the Bianchi have bolt-on wheels or QR? With rear-facing dropout, you'll have to break the chain to fix a flat, right? Unless the dropout is long enough to slide the wheel forward, slip the chain off the chainring, and then slide the wheel back and out. Make sure you know the right amount of slack to leave in the chain when you reattach the wheel. I read Sheldon Brown's "dangers of working on a fixie on a stand". Be very careful.

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You mean the pics of the missing finger tip? :) It does have bolt on wheels. I'm not sure yet about changing out the back tire and chain situation. Once I get the chaing put on correctly (LBS is doing that), I'll practice taking it off/putting it on at home. I've learned not to start the learning curve while out on the road. The hard way of course.

I'll put up a pic of the brooks. I don't know how old it is. It just looks that way. The guy I bought the bike from said the guy who he bought it from put it on there. So there's 2 degrees of separation in what I know about it. I'll look for a model, etc.

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I saw my toad last night.

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Did you lick it and get a buzz? :D

Is that a total urban legend?

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Originally Posted by betagirl

Did you lick it and get a buzz? :D

Is that a total urban legend?

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eeeewwwww! :eek: :p

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Originally Posted by betagirl

You mean the pics of the missing finger tip? :)

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Yes, but that wasn't the smilie I was going to associate with it. Maybe :( or :eek: or :face of pain: or :churning stomach:

I think it's not an urban legend, and no I didn't lick it, but I would if there was a reason to. I kiss them all the time. Maizey, too.

Ok, so in my shed, up on the highest shelf, there is a small pile of sawdust, with very tiny black droppings. I can't find _anything_ to tell me where the sawdust came from- but it's gotta be a roof joist. Any ideas? Carpenter bees? But would I see droppings? I'm not thinking termites- don't they live underground, so I wouldn't see signs up in the highest part of the building? Help!

Do you guys find yourselves getting hooked on a song or 2 for a while and listening to it all the time?

I'm currently stuck on 2 sex pistols songs: God Save the Queen and Anarchy in the UK. Maybe I'm angry?