so...i've been down lately, and today, my girlfriend and i were out running errands (recycling center, getting food for her frog and such), when i ask if we can go to this place in berkeley called "urban ore." this place is amazing. it's a salvage warehouse and they have pretty much anything you could possibly think of, including bikes.

when we first moved here a few months we went there to pick up some stuff for our new apartment and i spotted this old, cruiser-type frame. a monark. i pick it up, and it's a little beat up, the finish has long since dulled, but otherwise it's in great shape. i had been to urban ore a few more times over the intervening months and the bike has always been there. and today was no exception. so, knowing that i've been in a pretty bad mood lately about not having a job or friends here, heather suggests that we find out how much they want for it. we take it up to the front counter, ask, and the kid says "how about five bucks?" i look at heather, totally wide-eyed and she says "how about we'll take it!"

so i have a new project, and a new incentive to get a job (to make money to build this up). YAY!!! and now: pics!


i like this one. the lens got a little foggy, but it looks all dreamy and stuff.


the headbadge. it looks really sweet in person.

it's a 54cm, which is a bit too tall for me (i normally ride a 50), and it takes 27" wheels (or 26" with full fenders, i can't really tell) the dropouts won't take a normal 3/8" axle, which makes me a little sad, and the fork will accept an old-style spaced front hub (like off a 26" cruiser), but not a modern-day BMX hub. all of the labels are painted on, not decals. it appears to have been really well taken care of (except the headset is missing a bearing race, i'll probably replace that anyway).

but YAY!!! i'm so happy and lucky that my girlfriend supports my addiction (i have 7 bikes now, and she has 2)!!!