Early Preparations For Southeast Asia.

Just lately the vegetable garden has taken a back seat to roof painting. The winter weather also has not been encouraging. I know, these are just excuses for a pretty poor show at growing spuds and salad type things for the dinner table and I’m going to do better come spring. But that’s no reason for the neighbour to rub my nose in it and show off by bringing in the heavy artillery. I woke up the other day to the sound of sods being turned and there was the neighbour beginning a vegetable garden I’m sure is  designed to put mine to shame. I’m glad he took the Kiwi Fruit out because I was getting a bit sick of it but I hope he doesn’t plant the same veggies as I’ve got. What then would be the point of all my hard work when I can just eat his ones? I suppose my token vegetable garden will help me to plead innocence when he mysteriously loses the odd cabbage or broccoli. I might suggest he plants carrots because I seem to have a lot of trouble getting those to grow properly. Some of my more law abiding friends may have wondered at the logic of me putting a gate in the picket fence between the neighbour and I  but once those little fellas are growing up lush and sweet next door I’ll have easy access to one of the biggest veggie patches in my street.

Hey, thats not Playing Fair.

While the neighbour was busy ploughing the garden I took myself off to the opening of the new Brightwater cycle suspension bridge. The blessing was today and since I had never attended a real blessing before and since it seemed likely that I would bump into fellow cycling types I was keen to attend. The Maori blessing seemed to go without a hitch and there was a good turnout. I couldn’t help but notice a few technical hiccups with the cycle bridge though. One hiccup being that it is currently un ride able. This could be a problem in the longer term if left un addressed. Overall I think that the cycleway and bridge is an immense achievement for all concerned. As soon as we find out who the infiltrator is within the cycleway organisation who hates cyclists having a good time and riding their bikes, and run them over with their car we’ll be right. I wonder how those engineers would fare if they designed and built a vehicle over bridge that motorists couldn’t get across without getting out of their cars and pushing them across! Never mind though because it’s nothing that a late night working party can’t put right if the council don’t see the error of their ways and put it right beforehand. I will still however have to install a tree climbing gear to the Mercian to get up the ramps once the batons have been removed.

Talking about fine tuning the Mercian. I have removed my touring forks and have had low rider rack mounts fitted. Andy the bike engineer did this for me once I had explained to him what a low rider rack was. This was the only modification I wanted to perform on the bike after my last jaunt across South America. I’m sold on low riders now and want to be able to fit them quickly and with minimal paint damage once I arrive on foreign shores. In six weeks’ time the foreign shores will be Hanoi Vietnam! Adi and I have bought our tickets and one of us is ready to go. The other one of us still has to not only get her Visa but also get fit after her foot and knee operations. I have jokingly asked Adi who I should take if her Visa is denied. Apparently that is not a joking matter.

Kitchen Bike Work. Best completed When Your Home Alone.

 Nor is my choice of ovens for baking the enamel on my forks once the new mounts had been tig welded on. I feel quite justified in using any household appliance for the benefit of my cycling pleasure as Adi knew I was a cyclist before I married her and still went ahead with it. She should have realised at that stage that there would be bike tracks on the carpet, grease on the wash hand basin , light switches  and that I would be unable to produce an heir after spending too many hours in the saddle. (Actually I realised that a child would never be able to keep up on Sunday group rides so have never  bothered with one. The old roadie motto holds true. Those that fall behind should be left behind. Since its illegal to leave kids behind its best to not have them in the first place.)