Sweet! I Lived! (Adventures as a Bike Commuter)

My car had to go into the shop today after being hit by a very angry old lady in the parking lot of Noodles a few weeks ago. I live less than a mile from my office now that I've moved into my new apartment, so it's a bit ridiculous that I was driving to work anyway. So today began my life as a bike commuter; I'm hoping it sticks.

There were several challenges to me becoming a bike commuter:

1. I haven't ridden a bike in quite a while.
2. I'm completely uncoordinated.
3. I don't have a bike (minor detail.)

So newly armed with a borrowed bike from Molly (thanks!) and a borrowed helmet from my roommate (thank God!), I set out to practice last night and discovered . . . it's just like riding a bike! I remembered how! And then I rode about two miles because I forgot how much I actually LIKE riding a bike.

I was also introduced to the Greenway, a glorious invention that is right behind my apartment and means I can bike all the way across Minneapolis without ever seeing a car, which makes me a lot less nervous that I'm going to die.

The Greenway came in especially handy this morning when I had to ride home from the body shop where I dropped of my car on Lyndale and Lake. If I would have riden my bike down Lake Street in the middle of rush hour, I have a strong feeling disaster would have ensued.

So I survived the trip back to my apartment, showered and ate my Corn Pops, and biked off to work in the stellar outfit of dress pants and tennis shoes. I'm not sure what's going to happen if I decide to wear a skirt, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

The next step: getting my very own bike with a basket. Then I think I could ride to Target and eventually achieve world domination.