Thanks Jerks!

On July 7th I posted the following along with a pictue of my tool ladden bike. The next day my bike was ban from going in any school building. Oh yeah, I fixed the bikes and tricycles our special needs students use too. Helping kids got me noticed, and busted:

Ive been teaching summer school and noticing that many of the student have bikes in unsafe and unsavory condition. I saw one student walking her bike to school. She had two flat tires, no brakes a red chain and formerly attached cables wrapped around her bike to keep them from being tangled in the moving parts that still move and the stationary parts that move too.I spent some time after school with my mobile repair station servicing their bikes. It was fun for both the kids and me. I remember being a kid whose flat tire would keep me off my bike for weeks.I would like these kids to ride and enjoy biking.

Shorpy the 100 year old photo blog

I pulled this image off of Shorpy the 100 year old photo blog. It is a search able data base of many cool old pictures.

Art and other bikes

Here's a page of wacky bikes I came across. I don't appreciate the taste of all of the bike builders, but think the creativity is worthy. The link is bikerodnkustom. I'm inspired by Q's Frankenbike and some of Jared's posts. Another link is to a page full of interesting bikes.

Alligator Gar Skull

While camping along the shores of Lake Pepin just North of Lake City the kids and I found the skull and decomposing skin of an alligator gar. Claire says, "It's smooshy and smelly, but cool." Harris commented, "It's interesting and cool. I wonder how it died."

This is a fish little changed by time since dinosaurs were around. The link below gives more info.
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/snapshots/fish/longnosegar.html

What the Hell?

Teachers Can Carry Guns?

HARROLD, Texas — A tiny Texas school district may be the first in the nation to allow teachers and staff to pack guns for protection when classes begin later this month, a newspaper reported.

Trustees at the Harrold Independent School District approved a district policy change last October so employees can carry concealed firearms to deter and protect against school shootings, provided the gun-toting teachers follow certain requirements.

In order for teachers and staff to carry a pistol, they must have a Texas license to carry a concealed handgun; must be authorized to carry by the district; must receive training in crisis management and hostile situations and have to use ammunition that is designed to minimize the risk of ricochet in school halls.

Plagiarized from the AP

P.S. The gun follows you in case you feel lucky punk.

Family Bike Camping

We did our first ever whole family bike camping trip. The kids and I had a great time. Ling-Hui enjoy the ride and the camp but found she had a a few lumpy rocks under her sleeping bag. Sunny both days and rained at night. Here's Harris and Claire near our tents, the pre-ride family, my loaded bike, and Claire reading to Harris in camp. Life's good. Notice the kickstands.

Pirate Girl

I saw this pirate girl van. Thought it was cool, but didn't see any booty.

Biking with Harris

Harris and I completed our first bike camping trip together. We rode, camped and picked wild gooseberries. The world slows down when traveling on a bike. Sights, smells and little things come into a different focus. This is especially so when traveling with a 6 year old. Great trip!

Monster update

Here is a newly published photo of the Montauk Monster, the strange beast that recently washed ashore on the South Shore of Long Island, New York. Sadly, it appears that the monster's dinosaur-like "beak" visible in the previously-seen photo may just be a decomposed snout caught at a weird angle. (all of this text is lifted from boing boing. See link in entry below.)

It's good to see monsters for what they really are.