I have a run-of-the-mill Trek mountain bike, which I use mostly for roadwork, with a fair amount of bridleway / towpath mixed in. In hindsight, I should have got a hybrid.

Potentially daft question: How much of a nuisance would it be to change the chainset to a roadgoing bias? Are we talking swapping the rear cassette? New rings? What about the derailleurs?

The tyres and frame/bars are pretty good for what I want, but the gearing could do with upping somewhat - I'm sure I could be making the thing go faster for the effort, and I don't have the space or the finances for a new machine.

I took my car in on Wed to have a recalled part removed from the gas tank, and experienced some problems when I got my car back. The manager on duty, Brent, had my car towed from my house at the dealership's expense and gave me a loaner car without any hassle [on a Saturday]. Once the issue was fixed, they filled my tank and cleaned my car... and they just delivered it to my work so I don't have to take time off to grab it.

If you're looking at buying a new Subaru or a used car, check these folks out. They've provided the best customer service I've gotten from a dealer or mechanic. I highly recommend them.

ONE// Shellie
TWO// 20
THREE// near Boston, MA!
FOUR// cell phone, iPod, keys, chapstick, license.

( And on to number five! )

My google fu bites. I have also checked the Chronicle, Meet,up and ACC's verson of informal classes. I am looking for groups/classes for the below.

Dance: I am looking for class that teaches basic partnered dance steps, I have seen plenty of belly or salsa dance classes, but no basic classes for people who don't want to injure their partner when dancing.

Stitching: I have been looking for a group to do some sort of stitich ~N~bitch. There used to be one for knitters that met at Book People? Can't find them now. Does any one know of a group that will allow some one who does embroidery to hang out with them?

Writing groups: I looked into Story Circle, but it doesn't look like they have any circles that are in my part of town (North Central) and fit into my work schedule. I liked the concept though of women writing from prompts about their lives, or just sharing their stories.. Something informal like that... I would be hunky dory fine writing with men.

I thank this wonderful community of knowledgeable and savvy people in advance....

So here's a question: I always buy flours from bulk bins at Whole Foods or the local co-op... and I have recently discovered when I cleaned the pantry that I have a couple bags of flour that I can't identify. I oh-so-brilliantly labeled them with some kind of bin number rather than with what they are. I have reason to suspect at least one of these is vital wheat gluten....but it's possible both are, or maybe one is bread flour, or oat flour, or who knows what. I was dating a gluten-free fella so who knows what random flours I may have purchased during that time... it could also be chickpea flour.

Is there any way to tell these apart?? I thought maybe vital wheat gluten would be more... sticky or have that weird texture if I moistened a bit of it, but when I did that it didn't seem all that different than when I added a bit of water to some (clearly labeled) regular white flour. Maybe that means it's just plain old bread flour and not vital wheat gluten?

I hate to make a recipe of sausages or something assuming this is vital wheat gluten and then have it all not turn out... and if I try to make pizza crust with it and it turns out to be vital wheat gluten...gah. I just don't want to waste it. And they are rather large bags.

Ideas? How can I tell flours apart?

I drink about 4 cups a day at work. I love it and am not going to stop drinking it, but I have heard that it can stain your teeth. Has anyone experienced staining of the teeth with prolonged drinking of tea? Is there something I can do to prevent it? I know this stuff stains my coffee mug, but a little salt take even the worst of stains away so I feel like just brushing my teeth would handle business also.

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Anyone know of any great raw recipes that feature them? I splurged because they were on sale, and I never get them. Now I want to make sure I make something extravagant with them. :-)

I cannot express how good this recipe for Spicy Italian Sausages is. And adaptable - I'm thinking tomato and garlic, apple and sage, leek and faux cheese, etc. So incredibly easy (measure ingredients, chuck 'em in, stir for about a minute, make into links or patties). And when they've been refrigerated, the texture's just brilliant. Other Half just cycled in from work, tried one straight from the fridge and said, "Hey, this means we never have to buy sausages again!" And the recipe says it makes 8, but it makes 18 fair sized sausages. Prep time... under 10 minutes; cooking time 30 minutes steaming.

I am so impressed. Full (vegan) English breakfast tomorrow morning.

Recipe under the cut, my comments in italics:

Hi everyone! I know some of you take apple cider vinegar and I was wondering if you noticed if it gave you body odor?

I told my mom I wanted to try taking ACV to help my eczema, but she told me had tried taking some a long time ago (just for health, she doesn't have eczema) and noticed it gave her horrible body odor. I said I would take at the most a tablespoon a day, and she thinks she probably had less than that.

I just wanted to know if anyone here had similar experiences before I started taking it.

Some chamomile tea with a bit of milk in my favourite mug, for the theme, plus a couple more pics of just prettiness from my room. :)


( 3 more pics behind the cut )

BikePedia - 2003 Haro Backtrail X2 Complete Bicycle

It's garbage day, and someone tossed out one of these in chrome. Needs a front wheel and other work, but I was thinking I could give it to my almost 5 year old son, who is about 4 feet tall.

Is there anywhere around town that sells dread falls? I've seen the couple pairs Secret Oktober

hi :) i'm naomi & i want to start posting in this community & make friends.

( themed things & other niceness )

sunday was fucking muddy but fun, minus getting up at 5am and having to rent a car but it was worth it. got there and got my number and fancy transponder thing, did a practice lap and man was the course muddy, it was hard just pedaling on flat ground! but i finished, got 79th out of 109 people that registered but i think only around 81 finished haha so thats pretty sweet, was a lot of fun! my girlfriend came with and took pictures so heres a bunch:


( Read more... )

I've decided to buy a new bike, well new to me anyway.

Currently I have an English 3-speed that has lately been playing the part of the money pit. The internal hub is acting up...again. I know that I can put some cash into having it repaired or it can be replaced. The hub seems to be the most expensive part of the bike though. But this is not only about money. I've had the bike for over 4 years and I feel like I've had the whole english 3-speed experience, 'Tweed Ride' and all. It's heavy, the chrome plated steel rims don't allow for sudden breaking in rain, and when dealing with unpredictable Philadelphia drivers, sometimes sudden breaking versus pumping is necessary.

I want to sell the bike to a local bike shop, preferably Via, since I know they'll take good care of it and give it to another short person who wants the 3-speed experience. The question is, when making a possible trade for a newer bike that's worth considerably more money, is it possible to haggle a bit on the price?

A few years ago I would never have thought of paying anything but the posted price of an object, any object, but now I work in an antiques market part time and it seems like 90% of the customers ask for the "best price" of an item. I'm used to giving 10% to 20% discounts on everything but precious metals and fine jewelry. Antiques are for the most part used items (new old stock stuff aside). So can I ask for a slight discount on a used bike? If so, what sort of room do I have without coming off like a complete asshole?

продам в москве или в петербурге MAMIYA RZ 67

в комплекте:
объектив mamiya-secor Z 2.8/110 + фильтр kenko MC skylight 1B (77mm) + крышка
объектив mamiya K/L 3.5/90 + бленда
задник 120 6х7
задник 120 645 + защитная крышка
замерная призма PD prism
шахта

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So, I just chased my 7-mo-old kitten around the apartment as she swallowed a piece of yarn, spaghetti-like. It was maybe 6" long? It was plain wool.

I've heard horror stories about things like this getting tangled in their little intestines, about surgery, and death. But I've also heard about them eating crazy things and being fine. So my questions:

1. Will she digest it, since it was just well...sheep's wool?

2. Is there anything I can give her to either aid her digestion or cause her to throw it up before it gets too far?

P.S. I forgot to mention some happy news!!
Benny's operation went really well and they were able to remove all his cancer :)
ahh best news ever!

Oh I love jemaine!

How could I resist drawing a hunk like that :P

+

Shane my awesome free hairdress, cut my hair the other day!

I've got to take a picture in better lighting cause he did a rad-tastic job!


the before

( and the after )

has anyone tried using very-fermented kombucha as a hair tonic? if so, let me know how much you applied, how often, and if you noticed any difference. i can't imagine it smelling very good, though i have used apple cider vinegar, and the smell fades once my hair dries.

I'm trying to do nearly all of my shopping at the farmers markets here and of course it's fairly easy to get by with food, but I'm trying to clean out all my toiletries as well and I wondering if you guys had some recommendations for what to use for cosmetic items?

Namely:
conditioner
soap
face wash
face lotion

Things like that :)

I've already found a coconut oil and salt deodorant I'm absolutely in love with (although I'm not 100% sure if it is entirely raw), and I just can't give up toothpaste.

But, if you've got any natural recommendations for the above items or anything else you can think of I'd be very grateful!

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I put the handlebar, bottles and wheels on for the picture. Still need to do some more clean up on the joints and then haul it off to get a powder coat.



( before )