A different kind of secret

This is the kind of weather I like. In the low 80’s to mid 90’s during the day and in the 50’s at night. And the plants like it as well. Speaking of plants and growing things…I was harvesting cherries yesterday and already have the small tree stripped of fruit. The larger tree is almost ripe now and not a sign of bird vandals? This is the first time in 3 years that I’ve been able to eat cherries from the orchard. The birds have always beaten me to them. The second year here I tried the flashing reflective tape to scare the birds away and that was a failure; this year I have loaded the tree with old CD’s, spinning in the breeze. Is that the secret? And I remember one tip that didn’t work…put a small battery powered radio in the tree and that was supposed to keep the birds away. Denise tried it and had the same luck I had with the tape.

Bicycles are the subject; new and old. I got my bike down from storage last week and bought a new seat for it. An ‘age appropriate seat’. It’s wide and comfortable. I also bought a speedometer but that was a mistake. The instructions for it left me in the dark and so now I have to wait for my son to arrive and help me install it.

Denise bought a new bike and the seat looks like it is already ‘age appropriate’ so she probably won’t need to customize it. It’s a most cool bike. Here’s a small photo of it. The image doesn’t really do it justice. The red spokes and big whitewall tires are quite splendid! It’s also loaded with flowery images on the frame and fenders. It’s a 3-speed, hence the name; Electric Gypsy 3.

Now; where do you ride your bike? Don’t say “on the road”. To tell you the truth, I don’t feel very safe sharing the road with the drivers I see every day. That bike lane doesn’t have any barrier to keep a 2-ton car out of it. It’s always popular to advocate the use of bicycles (It’s Green!) but our infrastructure isn’t made for their safe use. Whenever you’re out driving, keep an eye on the cars ahead of you and see how many times they violate the restricted space of the bicycle lane. Me? I'm heading for the safety of Bidwell Park.

Memo to Shannon; if you read this, please contact your mother. She wants to make sure you have drain holes in your new planter!