New Things

Last Thursday I dropped the scooter off at the shop for its annual inspection.  I was going to be away for the weekend and wouldn't miss the down time without it so it seemed fine that they said they'd get to it on Monday.  On Friday they called, though, to tell me that I needed a new front tire and to give me a price quote on a broken piece of plastic that I wanted to have replaced if it wouldn't be too costly.  They said it takes about three days for things to come in, so I did figure that I wouldn't get the bike back from the shop till later this week.

I got the call to pick it up this morning while I was out on my daily walk, and I was thrilled.  Not only was it done, but the price wasn't TOO bad either.  No wonder I looked so happy after I went down to get it and then rode around to nowhere in particular for about an hour.

The plastic piece that had been broken hung around my neck like an embarrassing albatross because I knew (and only I knew, but nevertheless was chagrined by it), that it had broken when I dropped the bike after locking my front wheel by grabbing the brake way too hard because I was coming down an exit ramp much too fast.  It was the housing for the starter switch and I had it patched together with electrical and duct tapes.  The crack had happened a few years ago, but it continued to get worse over time and it had gotten to the point where the starter switch was either hanging by its wires out of the housing, or getting pushed too far back into the housing when I fired up the engine.  The new piece is just beautiful to me.  It's SO smooth and sleek looking!

The new front tire fills me with glee as well with its thickness and deep treads. 

And it probably served me quite well this afternoon when I slipped into an alleyway after seeing that the street I was on had been milled and I was coming up on the ground up area.  The alley seemed to be made of dirt, dust, and gravel and I typically freak out when I end up on a surface like that.  I figured that the look on my face was one of terror as I navigated over the grit didn't look too pretty had anyone seen me, but I managed to get to the other end, praying the whole time that I'd stay upright and maintain some semblance of dignity.

And that pretty new red inspection sticker is so shiny compared to last year's green one that had gotten dingy looking after a whole year of exposure to the cruel elements (like air, wind, and a little rain now and then.)

Sometimes it's the little things that make all the difference!

(I AM smiling.)