I laugh when people on BF call Cross-Checks and Langsters heavy. THIS is heavy. Still I rode this cheap used Mongoose Crossway everywhere for months before upgrading and it now serves as an urban warrior and grocery getter (with a quick-release Wald basket on the bars, not pictured).

My significant other is hooked on bicycling now too and this is in many ways the key bike in our household. When one bike is in the shop, this one stands in. When we're traveling somewhere too risky to lock a nice bike, this one attracts little attention. When a friend wants to borrow a bike or a house guest wants to join us on a ride, this does fine. When we need extra carrying power we can press the Golden Goose into service and not have unnecessary baskets on our main bikes. The upright position is a pain for longer distances on the MUPs, but for short hops on busy streets it's great because you sit so high and can see traffic so well. It goes to show it doesn't take a fancy bike to be a good bike - just the right bike.