It seems like every February and March, I get a little depressed, become very unproductive, and generally hate life. Maybe its the weather. Maybe it’s something about planning for the next school year. Maybe I just get worn down from school. I don’t know. But I do know that every February and March, I get a more depressed than at any time of the year, and there seems to be little I can do to escape it.
Fortunately, the weather has been outstanding for the past couple of days, and I was able to ride my bicycle through to work today. It felt great. And as I am getting re-aquainted with my bicycle again, I am falling in love with biking again, as I do every year. My biking skills are already back, and when on the road, bicycle and I are one inseparable being: I feel the road as surely, or more surely, than I feel the socks on my feet. I maneuver and weave while riding with no hands. I fly through traffic without slowing, so confident and capable that I will sail through narrow cracks like gliding through Charibdis and Scylla.
I will post more about my biking adventures, but there are a few rules that I live by:
1. The number one most important safety device is not your helmet. The top three are, in fact, your eyes, your maneuverability, and your annoyingly bright flashing lights.
2. Cars are like big, dumb, herd-like animals that are generally passive, but each is perfectly capable of destroying you if you do not respect them. They are generally predictable, but just like stupid animals, they can be extraordinarily unpredictable. And the rider must always be prepared for when it is unpredictable, or they will destroy you.
3. If the helmet fatigues you, and makes you even the slightest bit resistant to looking all around at all times, don’t wear the goddamn helmet.
4. Fixed gear bikes, especially those without breaks…wtf. Sure, your Hipsterishness is already ridiculously unpractical and the result of never facing real struggle. But don’t even pretend that you’re safe on one of these things. Some people have claimed that they are better bikers without breaks because they are forced to be more aware of the situation. Sure.
5. Then again, I claim that I am a better biker without a helmet. I am probably just as ridiculous.
Natural Causes 