Bike seats

My parents came out two weeks ago to visit. It was nice to see them. While I may not be the most openly affectionate person towards them, I do love my parents and am quite grateful for everything they've done for me. Most recently what they've done is bring my bike out for me.

When I was 14 I was biking everywhere. I couldn't drive till I was 16 and eventually convinced my parents to buy me a really nice bike. I rode it a lot. When I started driving I rode less. After my freshman year of college I decided I wanted to get in shape so I got my bike from my parents' garage and started biking for about an hour every morning, followed by a liter of water and about 80g of protein (moderation and serving sizes didn't really occur to me then). I biked a lot that summer and I think I got in decent shape.

After Jared married Marvia (seriously good choice on his part) I left my bike at his house and they were gracious enough to not complain or demand I remove it from their garage. It stayed there for about 4 years. Then, as I said, my parents did the far-too-kind thing of going to Jared's house, picking up my bike, and brought it out here and left it at my brother's. On Monday last week I walked to my brother's place and picked it up, rode it home, realized I left my hoodie at his place, rode it back, picked up my hoodie, and rode home again.

That was a week ago.

My butt still hurts.

Apparently when I was younger I had a much less sensitive butt or at least one far less prone to bruising. I want to bike regularly and more often--it's great exercise and something I love being outdoors--but if the seat hurts this much I may need to replace it. Looking around, it looks like I managed to get the one bike that has a seat originally designed for splitting wood. Most bike seats are wide, cushioned, and rather plush. With minor changes mine would be best used for propping open doors.

I think I'll give this seat another week of regular riding to see if I can adjust to it. Obviously I was ok with it for 6 years so I think I can adjust again.

I'm on my way to this future

I also need to do some maintenance to my bike--I don't think I've ever greased the chair, oiled the tires, or looked at the brakes. Should be a fun side project to work on. I love working on mechanical things--even something as simple as a bike. It feels manly.

I feel like Calvin's Dad.