Ploafmaster General

I just pre-ordered the Rivendell OM-1. I know I’ll be able to use it on some project in the future, but I also really believe in how Riv approaches #bikes, and I want to support them (with something I can actually use).

I love my kids, but thank Murphy Brown they’re going back to school tomorrow.

This morning my family was privileged to witness the early part of today’s leg of the Walk for Peace, since the monks were staying overnight right down the road from our house at Virginia Union University.

Suntour had electronic front shifting in 1991? And it was called “BEAST”!?

Hey, yes. You there. Don’t forget to watch all those videos about giving up your screens (and read this post about it) on your, uh. Your screen.

F1 was pretty exciting. Some major vibes overlap with Top Gun: Maverick.

Still not enough to make me want to watch a race, but a thrill ride of a movie.

The special cocktails at Lunch/Supper are all Spice Girls themed and it rules (also, so happy to be out somewhere for dinner this evening—tip really well if you are, too).

I kinda feel like when Hanover County has unanimous BoS opposition to an ICE facility, DHS is losing public opinion hard.

This was a fascinating and educational examination of what appears, at first glance, to be similar emergent musical styles on opposite sides of the globe, a few years apart.

Maybe I’m saying something dumb or obvious, but I suspect that many democrats are afraid of formally calling for ICE abolition because success would lead to more vigorous calls to defund the police (which, yes please).

Really pissed to discover that, all of a sudden, Marketplace is littered with eBay listings. Took me a while to notice the little icon on the thumbnails. I look on eBay already! The whole fracking reason I rejoined FB was to use Marketplace, not eBay listings in a second location!

My kids are doing school work at home while RPS is closed for the weather. My middle schooler was frustrated because of some challenging math work, and I almost said, “Don’t freak out, I’m Math Daddy” before my sanity kicked in.

Kind of astonished the city actually (sorta) plowed my street today.

I feel like my nerves are completely fraying with societal and weather anxiety, but my kids are both happy right now and my wife swam 6 events in a Masters swim meet.

And look, folks: fuck ICE forever, but I’m against the death penalty. Don’t hop up in my mentions advocating violence for violence.

State-sponsored murder, an incoming horrific winter storm (for my region that rarely gets something of this scale) and a week of freakishly low temperatures have me completely on edge.

Life in prison for all these ICE fascists.

I have a dull, persistent headache and a pulled muscle in my back, so no ride today. But I got to mock up a bunch of changes to the old Trek! Saddle is temporary, may take off the chain guard, but I’m pretty dang happy with where this is going.

Distracting myself from the ongoing domestic/global horrors by planning out my Trek restomod.

New seatpost fits the Trek! I got a cheap seatpost measuring tool, and also measured the existing steel seat pin and interior of the seat tube multiple times, but I was still relieved that the post fit. It’s a cheap 26.0 Origin8 2-bolt dealy, but it’ll do!

I am developing a sickness :-P

Just purchased an old XTR-M952 derailleur for the Trek. Gonna eventually run it 9 speed when I build up some 650B wheels for it, but it should work just as well on the existing 8-speed freewheel.

I’m working over some thoughts in my head around doomer leftist ideology and its similarity to certain end-times-focused evangelicals. Something about anticipating—even hoping to accelerate—a severe existential shift. A shift they view as a positive, but with dire prerequisite steps.

Having successfully spread the rear triangle of my old Fairdale Coaster to 130-ish mm (still gotta align the dropouts), I went to start on the same for my recently acquired 1990 Trek Antelope. I had measured with calipers with the wheel on and thought I’d need to widen the frame to fit a 130mm hub (so I could use an HG freehub wheel). I took off the rear wheel and re-measured the dropout spacing just to be safe (measure twice and such), and to my delight they’re already at 130mm! No cold-setting required! This will make my 650B conversion all the more straightforward.

This 1990 Trek has a 68mm BB shell, but the seller had put in a mountain BB flipped 180° (but very well greased). Remarkably, inside the shell is in near perfect shape, and I had the right BB with the same spindle length! Went in like it was a new frame!