My husband was the recipient of a "good karma" bike. About 6 or 7 years ago, he wanted to start bike commuting to work. At the time, I didn't actually take him too seriously, and didn't think he would stick to it. (What did I know? He proved me very wrong, and look at me now) We didn't have too much extra money to spend on a bike, but a friend mentioned that her father had passed away and had left 6 bikes. One was an older Miyata touring bike. She just gave him the bike. He rode it for over two years- thousands of miles, before acquiring other bikes he wanted to use for commuting.

It was such a generous gift, and made a huge difference in his life. We recently passed the bike on to another friend, and just asked that she return it if/when she stops using it or decides to replace it.