Lack of Discretion

I look at Facebook pretty much every day...often several times a day.  I like to see what my friends are up to, see pictures, quotes, humor, art, and read about the events that surround their lives.

Unfortunately, there are those who feel like Facebook is their own personal editorial column regarding issues relating to politics, religion, and other matters I feel deserve a greater degree of discretion.

Yesterday, I came across the following quote - and although laced with humor, there is a layer of truth I can't ignore.

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Religion is like a penis. It’s fine to have one, and it’s fine to be proud of it.  But please don’t whip it out in public and start waving it around....and please don’t try to shove it down my throat.

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Incidentally, I generally feel the same way about vegetarianism, politics, and other personal beliefs. Just because you have access to a public forum doesn't mean you should haphazardly use it as a vehicle to gain acceptance for your personal beliefs. Consider that it might be more empowering to keep your personal beliefs personal, rather than to blindly seek acceptance.

The Quad Cruiser

I seem to blog so much about coffee that I have neglected another of my life's loves; bicycles.  I developed my love of bicycles in my early teens. I turned 13 in 1980, and BMX had really started gaining popularity.  My friends and I all rode BMX bikes, and every dime I made on my Washington Post paper route went into bike parts. When I was 17, I scored a job at the local bike store as a mechanic...and my love intensified.  Soon after came a road bike, then a mountain bike, and...well - you get the idea. 

In the early 2000's, I began restoring old bikes as a hobby. First a road bike, then a BMX bike...but the BMX bikes became a hobby.  In fact, vintage BMX has become an industry in itself. One of the bicycle companies that latched onto the vintage BMX popularity was SE Bikes - who was one of the very first successful BMX companies. SE began releasing bikes with old school flavor made with current technology...most called them "retro new school".

This brings me to my BMX cruiser - a 2011 24" SE Quadangle.  The original SE Quadangle (made in the late 70's) was made for a 20" wheel.  Although the 20" wheel is still the most common for BMX bikes today, us old guys seem to like bikes with larger wheels for comfort...and I surmise SE knew what the target market was when they decided to make a 24" retro Quadangle.  The first complete 24" Quad came out in 2009, and it was white with chrome accents. In 2010, they did a red framed version with chrome and blue accents.  In 2011 - they went black with gold accents with a touch of chrome...and I could no longer resist.  I waited a while after the release and scored a great online deal.

My only complaint about this beauty is this; out of the box - I found it to be a bit "overbranded".  I just felt there were too many parts branded by SE: the bubble logo grips, bubble logo chainwheel, etc.  I have a pretty solid memory of my multiple bikes and friend's bikes when we were kids, and they were customized - not bikes with every part branded by one company.  So - I started customizing this bike. So far I've changed out the bars, pedals, grips, seat, seat post, and seatpost clamp, as well as adding front brakes. 

I don't get to ride it much - my vintage road bike gets most of the exercise duties.  For the most part, I bring it out on nice, sunny days...putter around on it, and smile a lot.  This coming Sunday - April 21st - a whole bunch of people who love old school BMX bikes like me are going to gather for a cruise through DC.  If we have a turn out like last year's gathering, it'll be around 30 or 40 of us...and we'll putter around, and smile a lot.