Cell phones… nokia and iPhone…
I love nokia phones. I really like the symbian OS too. I think I just like the concept of an OS where I can install apps and whatnot and do whatever. Oh, and it isn't an MS OS, which I won't do. So I have a nokia. My wife has a nokia. My kid has my on of our old nokias as a toy. My mom has one. My sister has one. I tell everyone that they need nokias. When people who bought RAZR's finally get fed up with that piece of crap phone, I tell them to go nokia.
So when the iPhone was announced I was conflicted. I also love apple. But the whole lack of installable software pissed me off to a degree that I knew I wasn't going actually get one. I took the money and bought car parts and bike parts instead.
As the iPhone hit the market and I got more into it, there was a tinge of desire there I will admit, but then I remembered, while I sat on the can playing solitaire on my nokia, that I could do that on an iPhone, but I would have to be hitting a web page. Meh.
Then I got this link today, and I found it really funny. And really the points are all valid. Sure, it is a bit over the top, it is all valid. And really pretty in line with my feelings and thoughts. Sure, he does better animated GIFs than I do, but I am ok with that.
City Sticker Time
Attention all your chicago readers... city stickers should all be on today... just a friendly reminder.
Mash Ups Rule
So I am sure I have mentioned this to anyone I have spoke with in the last 6 months, but I love mashups. LOVE. It gets funny when I go somewhere and I hear an original, not the mashup, and I am all confused because the song is all wrong. My current listen is this Iron Maiden Mashup Album from Celebrity Murder Party that I got word of from Mashuptown. It has the Call Me Phantom track that I was jonesing over the last couple weeks. I mean, I still think the Party Ben stuff is better overall, but CMP is good too. It is fun to have the more metal angle though versus the more dance stuff.
Took the bike to work…
So my parts came thursday... I managed to scuff the tube enough to give it a tiny leak... So on saturday I ended up at Rapid Transit on north for a tube and to ask a few single speed/fixie questions. I was asking about a flip flop hub so I could run both fixed and single gear... they recommended the White Industries Eccentric Hub, which would be cool cause I could use it on any frame (since this frame isn't the best). The nice thing about that hub is it works with both vertical and horizontal dropouts, so when upgrade I am good to go...
So sunday morning, I put the new tires on, pulled all the derailers off, picked a gear, and turns out the combination I chose already lined up decently well. I chose a gear setup that is a bit hard, but I am ok with that. I also chopped the handlebars a bit, so it is a narrower ride.
This morning, I pulled it out, put the helmet on, and headed to work. I left a bit earlier than usual, and needless to say I was quicker than the bus. Honestly, I felt like I was super fast. Granted, it is a 2.2 mile ride, so nothing too hard. But I really can tell how much faster this bike is over my full suspension Gary Fisher.
I think the gearing MIGHT be a bit hard, but I think I'll keep it for now. Also, on the way here, in the last 2 blocks, I was getting some noise... I think that the rear wheel might have slipped a bit in the rear, thus throwing off the the chainline. When I got to the office and put it in our storage unit, I played around a bit and it was about to fall to the lower gear in the rear. I'll check it before I leave work today.
Eventually, the plan is to get that hub... but in the shorter term, I think I will get a BMX rear gear (vs. a the cassette gear I am using now) so the chain won't be as likely to slip off. I would also like to swap the front to a single too (not too hard I don't think).
I am also not in love with the brakes. I am willing to bet that I just need to replace the cables. But then again, swapping to some V-brakes would be a nice upgrade... but I am trying to not dump money into it.
Check my previous post for more on the project...