LRT Adventures.

Here's Dexter all excited about the day we're about to have on the train! I'm still working out the kinks for transporting him by bike, so baby and I are still in public transit mode on our outings. I did, however, put him in our chariot trailer thing and towed him behind me (on the Amsterdam) last weekend. Quick review:

Trailer was surprisingly light, barely felt it was there.

One must be careful with turning radius.

Baby looked safe, albeit sort of wedged with the bumper pad thing I bought for extra stability.

Looked like everything was perfectly sound until I went over bumpy roads (which are unavoidable here) AND I was riding incredibly slow. Like, somebody could have been briskly walking the same pace I was riding.

I can honestly say I gave it a try. If you want to wait until your kid is old enough to sit back there and play rock paper scissors with his sibling... then fine. Get a chariot and knock yourself out. I am impatient and I really think the thing is ugly. I am convinced now more than ever that a cargo bike is for me. My main hesitation is that there is no dealer in my city. The nearest I know about is a bakfiets in Vancouver or a nihola in Toronto. They are both expensive (I've sort of blown my bike budget with my road bike, the Pashley, and my many other bikes). I'm thinking Madsen is the solution... I believe one of you fine readers recommended these cargo bikes to me! Will keep you updated. If you guys have more tips on cargo bikes that are already on the continent and that will ship to Edmonton, I would be thankful for any leads.

Back to our Friday. We went on the train to meet a friend for lunch downtown. I've always been telling people that Dexter is super easy to take care of. I am a little concerned about what's in store after seeing my friend's 1 year and 4 month old kid. The mobility... is terrifying. This kid is running around and eating naan bread and swatting at the mango pudding and demanding water from the glass because it's cooler than drinking it out of his straw and water bottle. Intense. Dexter takes 20 minutes just to roll over. On the other hand, the older kid is way more interactive for longer periods of time. And the kid can also FEED HIMSELF. Wow!




My friend Connie wanted to come back to my place to check out the pad (we moved here just over a year ago) so we loaded the kids up in their strollers and headed to the train to go back to the bungalow. While waiting on the platform I asked her if people ever failed to vacate the priority seating on the train. She said most of the time people get out of the way so she can park the stroller and sit down with her baby. Just after telling her that much of the time people DON'T pay Dexter and me this courtesy, we get on the train and the couple sitting in the priority seating move over so she can sit down and park her stroller. Oh the irony! On my side there were these two louts parked on the bench, oblivious to what is happening even after I roll Dexter past them and park the stroller right beside them. There they are. Just sitting there with their legs spread out so wide. Using "fuck" as every second word in their dialogue. Listening to rap out loud on their cell phone(s). "This is so fucking hard!" says the guy on the left. "Put on some Tupac," the other replies. One word. DOUCHEBAGS.

Just look closely at their expressions!




SO PAINFUL. I got Connie to photograph the situation for your entertainment. If any of you follow me on Twitter you probably caught these images yesterday, and although they are bad photographs since the train was moving and they aren't in focus... you can perhaps relate just a little to the lack of chivalry we experienced. Barf.

Anyway, back at the bungalow Connie takes another picture of me and baby.





And she also caught me playing the 6-7 chord progression I know on the ukelele.





We actually took the train out again. This time I was meeting Raffaella and Lisa for some snacks, dinner, what-have-you. The girls are contemplating their gelato choices while I click away with the iPhone.




My shoes are the blue ones. Lisa's are the salmon.




So it was a food, friend, and train filled day. Sure, we encountered some losers. But such is life:) Dexter and I keep on with the walking/rolling. The more I walk, the better my old clothes fit!