Day 27 of Daily Footprint Project. The day to pick up my bike from the store. I finally found a used one a few days ago. Despite the owner’s protests that ‘No, we don’t have any used bikes other than the ones in the front’, I pointed to the lot far in the back. ‘Oh, those you mean. Go ahead, take a look if you want.‘ ‘Those‘ turned out to be what I had been looking for. I fell for a blue English bike with old fashion fenders. It had some soul, and I found myself wondering about its previous life. There was no seat, so the shop guy had to borrow one from one of the other abandoned bikes. I am not sure about the one he picked. It’s a bit big, but the man assured me, ‘Better bigger than smaller for that part of your body. Trust me, you’ll like it.‘ It is my great pleasure to introduce you to ‘Pervenche‘:
‘Pervenche’, like periwinkle. As a child I used to be very fond of pervenches, and I remember making bouquets out of them during our family outings to the park of the castle nearby. From now on, I am taking ‘Pervenche‘ with me, wherever I go, assuming it is not too far. I even got baskets to hold groceries, and lights for the dark winter evenings.
Now, there are a few tips I would like to share with you, as a result of my days spent looking for the perfect used bike:
- Think of what you will be using the bike for: flat, hills, town, country, mountain, short distances, long distances, etc.
- Keep in mind, you need the right size bike for your height.
- Ask around, maybe one of your neighbors or friends has a bike that they would be willing to donate.
- Before leaving the comfort of your home, make calls to your local bike stores and ask for their recommendation, explaining what you are looking for; use that information to guide the rest of your search.
- Next visit the store, and as proven by ‘Pervenche’, challenge them when they pretend to not have any used bike for you.
- Look on Craigslist, make sure to not overpay, compare with the price of similar new bikes; also see if the bike comes fully equipped, or not.
- If you have time, look into garage sales.
- Take into account all the extras; I paid $150 for ‘Pervenche‘ but ended up paying twice as much with back and front lights, rack, baskets, helmet, and lock.
- This is an important purchase, it will become your good friend if you are happy with it; don’t settle until you are perfectly satisfied.
- Take your bike for a test ride before having all the extras installed; make sure it is the right size and fit; try out several bikes.
Daily Footprint Project Daily Log Day #27 Water personal: flush toilet 2 wash face 2 brush teeth 2 wash hands 5 shower at pool 2 mom: communal: rinse dishes Electricity/gas personal: electric toothbrush 4’ microwave tea 2’ microwave milk 2’ laptop on all day microwave oatmeal 4’ microwave soup 2’ mom: communal: lights Food personal: tea organic milk organic oranges 2 organic chocolate oatmeal leftover takeout soup whole wheat bread lunch out with friend mom: communal: Waste personal: toilet paper orange peels mom: communal: 3 newspaper plastic wrappers Recycling personal: mom: communal: 2 papers junk mail Transportation personal: drive to pool 6 miles drive to friend’s house 4 miles mom: communal: Non food shopping personal: new old bike bike rack baskets helmet lock mom: communal:
La Marguerite 
I did not know where to contact you, but I am an avid reader of your blog. I just launched a shop on Etsy where I sell 100% recycled telephone wire jewelry, and thought you might want to take a peak at some GREEN shopping this season. http://CourtneyWatson.etsy.com
Also, while thinking GREEN, Go Handmade this season. Check this out http://buyhandmade.org/
Thanks Courtney. Any effort to recycle or make things needs to be applauded. All the best in your new venture!
buy handmade is a very cool org
what totally cool bracelets too courtney !!
well marguerite — this bike has YOU written all over it – how very very exciting it is and how much I have enjoyed being part of your journey!!
I have a story about a wonderful artist who had a terrible bike accident last summer – all turned out well but to bring the spirit and soul back to her bike she rstored it and then flamed it out – basically airbrushed it – I can’t quite explain it but it altered the entire feeling of the bike – like don’t mess with me I am indestructable – you’d have to see her style to understand — http://www.studiostylehousegallery.com
anyway – it would be a great conversation piece to have
“pervenche” painted on —maybe it would bring you safety as you ride !!
and BLUE is my most favorite color ever
Mother Earth aka Karen Hanrahan
http://www.bestwellnessconsultant.com
Thanks Karen. I do love my ‘Pervenche’. Who said going green has to be a chore? I am totally excited about my new purchase, and can’t wait to ride it tomorrow to my appointments.
That’ll be good to see you riding around on your bike. I have one myself but rarely use it. We live close (under 400m) to shops, and relatively far (10+km) from work, so walking or public transport work better for me, I make few journeys in the “good to bike it” range of 2-10km.
Yes, all my errands are usually within biking range, so ‘Pervenche’ makes a lot of green sense!
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