Oy vey!

I haven't been very good at writing. I think about doing it, then I forget. Blah! So we went on vacation to Gatlinburg. Had a great, relaxing time. We did a 7 mile hike to a beautiful waterfall, shopped, and ate way too much! Apple Barn was amazing, as always, and a new place that I had never been, the Old Mill was really good. Ugh, I think I gained 10 lbs that weekend. I didn't want to come home and have to go back to work.

Since then, we have been trying to get into shape and loose some weight before the marathon eating season. I pulled out my old bike, a Huffy that is over 10 years old. The tires were a little dry rotted, but not so bad I can't ride it around the yard. The back brakes haven't worked in over 5 years either. About a week ago I bought a new brake cable and new tires and tubes. I played handyman/woman and got all those things replaced. I was hoping for the bike to be like new again, but it wasn't so. The spring in the brake isn't "springy" anymore, so when I squeeze the lever, the brakes slow the bike down, then they stay there and proceed to vibrate the entire bike. Argh! I was hoping that my fixes would solve all my problems.

There gets to be a breaking point where I have to decide if it will be more worth my time just to go buy a new bike. After much thinking and weighing of my options, I decide that its high time for a new bike. This old one got me through 5 years of college, numerous wipe outs resulting in a few bent tires and hurt pride. Its time, old friend. But, I'm still going to keep the old bike and eventually get a new back brake assembly and maybe try to sell it, or just keep it for later down the road.

So the new bike! We got it yesterday afternoon! It is a pretty pretty blue Schwinn mountain bike. I absolutely love it! It has front shocks, the gears shift so smoothly and quietly, and its even got a little zipper bag for putting stuff in, like my license, etc. It is a 21 speed (big step up from my 15 speed) and I can completely stop the back tire while moving! I haven't been able to do that in I don't know how long. I am having to re-learn how to use the back brake since I have been using only the front for so long. At least I'm a pro at using the front and not getting thrown off. If you are in the market for a new bike, I highly recommend this one. They also have it in bubble gum pink and light purple (both of which was not my style). Next stop, the Silver Comet Trail (go here: http://www.silvercometga.com/ ). We will probably start with a 12 mile round trip ride. I am really excited about it. 2 weeks to go!