Originally Posted by weepingwillow

Thanks so much for the advice and support everyone - I feel much better already! I forgot to mention that I do tube patches and tire irons so I am better off than I initially stated. I also have a place to store my bike / clothes / food at work so no worries there. I will definitely invest in lighting - I do believe that's a law here anyway. I like the idea of keeping it simple and enjoying the ride for the sake of riding. I plan to start off commuting once a week and see where I go from there. I look forward to getting into all of the bike geek talk once I learn more!