sus cursu: Lev de novo rides again

So the  reinvigorated Lev is about to take his first trip abroad. Tomorrow, Elly and I take Lev and Fidel on the train to Newcastle, cycle to North Shields, take the overnight ferry to IJMuiden, then cycle to Volendam. We have no fixed plans after that, except that we have to be back in IJMuiden by 4pm on 11 August. However, Copenhagen’s only 500 miles away, and we might be able cycle on to Sweden. Continue reading

The judge sits on his great assize

(This post is a continuation of this sage: Family misfortunes. Its title comes from this fabulous Roy Harper song.)

Because of last week’s snarl-up last about my sister’s appointment (which seems ages ago now), I phoned the PIP helpline on Monday morning to ensure that day’s appointment was in their records. Fortunately it was. I spied out the postcode they’d told us on StreetView – I couldn’t see any Crapita offices, so I asked if it was in the named building I could see. The reply was that it was in a GP surgery, which turned out to be in that building! Continue reading

Bike of Theseus? Thanks to @EdinburghBikes

In just over a week’s time, Elly and I continue our explorations of Euro-asphelt on Fidel and  Lev Davidovitch Bikestein. Lev and Fidel have both been feeling a bit cranky, so I put them in for servicing at the bike co-op whence they came.

The day after I put Lev in, the co-op phoned with some supposedly bad news: Lev’s frame had a small  but irreparable crack. They would replace the frame under warranty, but the new frame would be a slightly longer and grey, not black. They would re-use Lev’s original black front fork, so I’d have a piebald bike. I pondered – briefly –  renaming Lev to Jezzer Crusty Torvalds. Continue reading