La Bicyclette, Part Deux

I did buy a bike. And it was gorgeous! Lavender and sleek with a beautiful comfy black seat. I rode up and down the bike paths for one day and the bike developed a clunk. So the next day we took it to a bike shop. I paid $10 for a nice young heavily tattoo-ed guy to tighten the chain. Took it out the next day and the chain fell off. I had to escort my bike home for a half-mile. Walking a bike is so much less joyous than riding a bike. I got the chain back on --- but I couldn't get rid of the clunk. And it kept getting louder. So we took it to another bike shop where a nice man in bike pants (Why God? Why?) told me that my bike was "The Clunker." It was a cheap bike from Target and it would probably always clunk. I would have to learn to accept it. I was unable to accept this diagnosis, so we went to another bike shop. Another nice young man told me the same thing. You get what you pay for. So, with a heavy heart, we took the bike back to Target. There was a brief bit of drama when the girl behind the counter said that they don't take bikes on return. But the manager changed her mind, and all was well. I left my beautiful bike behind and went home. I still had the bike helmet. But I looked pretty silly in it when I was riding my bike. How silly was I going to look just hanging out around the house in a bike helmet. I was a bit heartbroken. I had gotten attached to that bike. Like a young girl gets attached to a pony. But after some online research, we headed back out again and found a beautiful bike with a price tag that was twice as big as the first. Sold! It rides like a dream. This time I have the endorsement of the bike shop guys. "That's a nice bike," they all say. I took it out for its maiden voyage on Sunday. My shoe lace got caught in the gears -- I went ass over teakettle and ended up in a heap on the bike path. The bike came through it nearly unscathed. I skinned my knee. I look like a middle-aged six year old with a band-aid on my knee. But now with my cool bike in the garage and an official case of road rash on my knee, I can go to sleep at night comfortable in the knowledge that I'm a real biker chick now.