I am currently facing eminent graduation and all the freedoms and responsibilities it entails. I think, as my friend espoused, both freedoms and responsibilities will be made easier by the aid of a bike. I did, of course, learn how to ride one as a kid. In fact, there were two summers during which I sped up and down the waterfronts of Tacoma on a pink, basketed, training-wheels-free contraption. Then, at the end of that second summer, I had a very intimate encounter with asphalt and promptly gave up on the whole lot.
They may say "It's like riding a bicycle," but given the twelve year time lapse, I'm inclined to be skeptical, or rather, scared. Nevertheless, I have penciled in "bike-riding lessons/memory recovery" in the weeks between graduation and the end of my lease. When I have conquered the bike and feel comfortable again on two tiny, parallel, spinning points of contact with the earth, I hope to reward myself with one of these:
Th Bloom is a small, exhaust-like device that spews, instead of toxins, bubbles. Bloom bubbles, however, are not only whimsical and smile provoking; they are also practical. The bubble solution is infused with various resilient wildflower seeds. When the bubbles pop, seeds land in the cracks of sidewalks, along the sides of roads, and beneath bus shelters. Inspired by Johnny Appleseed, the Bloom brings plant life to the concrete jungle.
The creators of Bloom, Society Creative, submitted these mock-ups to a bicycle-related design competition in 2008. Unfortunately, Bloom did not win. (To be fair, the winning entry, Pedal Power Pack, is a light-weight bicycle-powered generator to be used in disaster relief.) This means that Bloom is not available to the public. With how long it's taken me to return to cycling, however, I still have time to be optimistic.
