more about that bike riding

I don't think I mentioned two things about yesterday's bike ride to my parents' house.

First, it is one and one third mile to their house and one and one third mile back from their house. That is (yes, I can do the math, but we statswomen like to use approximations) over two and one half miles of bike riding in one day! Can you feel the burn? Advil will help with that.

Second. I forget to tell you about the incident with my bike basket. Yes, my beautiful pearl pink Roxey Schwinn has a lovely white basket that attaches to a bracket on the handlebars. Only, yesterday, Jr and I weren't quite sure about how to connect it firmly. He thought I should leave it home, but I thought it would be okay even if it wasn't firmly attached, since afterall, we weren't going riding in the dirt and I wanted to show off my bike to my parents in all of its bell-ringing, basket-carrying, pink-pearlishness glory. So off we went.

All was fine on the way over, unless you count my sweatiness and heavy breathing.

All went well for half of the journey back, but then, we turned a corner and the asphalt suddenly became bumpy and downright rough, and all of sudden, my basket leapt from my bike and began bouncing on the ground directly in front of my bike and me. Of course, I let out a squeal and a scream and another AAAAHHHH, which got Jr's attention and while I may have been more than a bit nervous about running over the basket and crashing, my feelings about it were nothing compared to Jr's. At least judging from the look on his face, which displayed an equal mix of horror and fear.

For some odd reason, the basket kept bouncing back in front of my tire, then off to the side, then back in front of me, with each bounce eliciting yet another EEK! from me. While it seemed to go on for about five miles, it all lasted less than the length of one yard of one house, because by that time, I came to my senses and used my brakes to slow to a stop, and Jr hastily turned an about face and was back to swoop in and scoop up my basket over his arm, come to a sudden stop next to me, and ask if I was okay.

I was amazed by how quickly slo-motion action happens.

And then, just like that, we were back on our pedals, Jr refusing to put the basket back on my bike, and me waving at everyone we passed.