Turning a new wheel

Blah Blah Blah.

I got a new rear wheel. The old one stopped turning and was irreparable.

I took the old wheel to bike shop downtown. The axle was wobbling really bad and I could hear parts inside grinding. I wanted to see what the problem was. They said no major issues, said they could fix it just by centering the axle.

I was skeptical, but they said if they couldn't fix it, they would put the wheel back and not charge me. I agreed. Half an hour later they tell me my bike was fixed and so then I had to pay them, wait and see. After two days, the wobbling came back and got worse. A week later the wheel completely bust.

Monday (yesterday) the wheel stopped turning. I rolled the wheel backwards to get it unstuck, then a few hundred feet later, it got stuck again. I heard cracking noises and then the wheel turned slowly, like there was a lot of friction. I couldn't ride it. I walked the bike about a mile and a half down the road.

A legit bike shop south of town got me back on the road. There was a lazy old dog lying inside the shop at the door. The bike mechanic wore a dirty tee-shirt and his hands were covered in black grease. That's the kind of shop you want to get service at! Mechanic took my wheel apart on the spot, showed me the broken parts, and slapped a new wheel on in less than an hour.

Today I went to the downtown shop to get my money back, that's why my old wheel was on top of my bags. They wanted proof that their "rear hub cone adjustment" didn't fix my problem. So after getting some snooty comments and no apology, the manager refunded me. "We don't usually do this...", those problems weren't there when we looked at it, and "You ride your bike a lot, I saw you riding all over town."

Only the kid who worked on my bike apologized, and I told him it was okay. He wore a polo shirt and latex gloves when servicing bikes. Clearly an amateur. He may have messed up my bike, or didn't understand how to make repairs, but he was a good guy and the only one who cared.

The damage.

The cup inside the old wheel hub was "crushed" into the center. One side of the cup was in deeper than the other by about an inch.

My bike made a loud squeaking noise that sounded like a bird. I thought my bike was telling me to fly out of Savannah. Turns out the axle got sheared in two pieces, and nut on my axle was constantly grinding into the metal frame.

Squawk!

New wheel feels real sleek. I feel safe riding my bike now. I can go explore the national parks in the area.

Definition of Irony:

Why is it ironic? The sign is intended to state that there are bicyclists on the road, not that there literally is a bicycle under the sign.

I like this example of irony because it does not technically satisfy the primary definition of "irony": "The use of words to express something different from and often opposite to their literal meaning." Because the sign is just a picture, it's not words, so it does not have a "literal" meaning. Hehe.

Literal is defined as: "in accordance with, involving, or being the primary or strict meaning of the word or words; not figurative or metaphorical." Yet we often understand "literal" to mean "in accordance with the primary or strict meaning," whether that meaning is stated in words or not.

More scenes around Savannah

Basketball court at Lake Mayer Park. Savannah, GA.

45 confirmed mosquito kills at Pooler Recreation Complex. Pooler, GA.

Bazemore Park. Garden City, GA.

Pond on Mohawk St. Savannah, GA.

It was cold for a few nights. 40F lows. You can see mist rising from a pond in the morning.

Tom Triplett Community Park. Pooler, GA.