Farewell Apollo

In the olden days when I cycled regularly I  owned two bicycles.  One was a hybrid mountain bike which I rode to work on and the other was an Apollo Randonneur which I used for social riding and that included two 14-day cycle tours with the Bicycle Touring Association.  This bike fitted me by every method and measurement devised to calculate bike to rider fitness, including the length of seat-post/head circumference of rider ratio.  This was the bike which I brought with me when I moved into my apartment but sadly I found that with my balance problems it was scary, if not downright dangerous, for me to ride a bicycle even on the bike path along the railway line.

I toyed with the idea of trading her in for a recumbent trike but the problem of wheel span on bike paths was a difficulty as, at the time, narrow wheel based trikes were not easy to come by.  And then I realised that with nine different bus routes and a train station all within a two-minute walk the idea of commuting by bike became less attractive and the only real need would have been to transport the cats to the Cottesloe Veterinary Hospital  -  so I changed to the Claremont Veterinary Clinic which is about five minutes walk away.

An emailed newsletter asking for old bikes to be refurbished and donated to people in need finally stirred me to pass my bike on to the Nedlands Lions Club and it was collected yesterday after sitting in my storeroom for over seven years. I was sad to see it go  -  I loved that bike  -  but at least it will be useful even if it is simply cannibalised for its gortex cables and gel seat.

Christmas is over for another year and even before Twelfth Night there were Hot Crossed Buns in Coles Supermarket.  It is a bit rude and pushy but it is the only time that I ever see fruit buns on the shelves (not that I have ever looked for them) so I will probably stock up on some anyway, even though they are somewhat out of season.  At least the Claremont Town decorations were removed in a timely manner.

Poppy is back on inti-inflammatory medication and is a happy little cat.  She is currently sleeping on a pile of pillows on my bed, something which she has not done for a while and it is lovely to see her pain-free and confident again.  She is no longer attacking Parsifal so we are all happier.  Long may it last.

The Limerick:-
Political correctness alarm.

A gay man who lived in Kartoum
Took a lesbian up to his room,
Where they argued a lot
About who would do what
And how and with which and to whom.