Soggy Solution

So the best moment of my week was when I realized that I have a bicycle seat that holds a lot of water. This is a bit of a problem when it rains 98.7% of the time here, and my bicycle was stored outside. I already have become a pro at packing everything into a backpack for the day, but i did not think I would need multiple pairs of pants. So on my first day of professional bicycling (this refers to when you tuck your professional dress pants into your wool socks and running shoes-it's a technical term!) I rode home with some pretty soggy pants. Let me clarify that it was no longer raining, so I have no good reason to be soaking wet. Usually when it is dry outside, your bicycle seat would also be dry, but this was not the case. In fact, I'm pretty sure my seat had gained 10 lbs. in water weight throughout the day. I stopped at a major intersection and when I stood up on my bicycle to gain more power for the surge into the intersection, I was probably being laughed at. And rightfully so. It would have appeared that I had wet myself, and was just casually riding around in it. Great.

So today I problem solved. Garbage bag over bicycle seat secured with a hair elastic (obvious solution)! This combined with the wool socks over dress pants (well, only one pant leg!) and running shoes makes me one of the classiest people in Langley, I'm sure. Let the adventure continue!

Clarification: How I Lost my License

It has come to my attention that I need to make a few things clear(er) on here. First, I should probably explain a little of the story behind losing my license, because this naturally makes people think that a) I got a DUI or b) I was driving 200 km/hr somewhere (and got caught doing it). Neither of these are true, and are actually quite far from the truth. The story is a little bit ridiculous in my opinion, so please excuse me if I rant a little. I am diabetic and had some issues with low blood sugars in the mornings after switching from an insulin pump back to needles. It had been 11 years that I was on the pump, so the transition for my body was a truly rough one. At the end of November I ended up in the emergency room one morning with the help of paramedics to assist me out of a low blood sugar. For months (even before all this low blood sugar stuff started happening) I had been trying to book an appointment with an endocrinologist (diabetes doctor) with no luck. Then, when things got out of control and more drastic, I REALLY needed this appointment. Unfortunately after many many attempts to get an appointment, our health care system truly disappointed me by having me wait 3 months from the time that I was hospitalized until I got an appointment. I even went into an office one day after not waking up from my sleep and told them I would sit there until a doctor would see me. I was bawling and so frustrated, and according to their "protocol" they could do nothing. So I finally got this appointment, and was desperate for some diabetic help. Really unpredictable and not normal things were happening with my diabetes, and I needed some input from a diabetic expert. I walked into the appointment very excited and eager to talk with the doctor, but this excitement soon faded.

As I explained some of the very strange things that were happening, this doctor looked at me and could give me no explanation. He told me that this is strange, and doesn't make sense. Believe it or not, I already knew that before seeing him, so I didn't need to be told that. I know that I can't depend on doctors for the answer to everything, but he provided no insight into the situation, and what came next was even more alarming. He didn't offer me any help in fixing the problem, but he notified me that he was obligated to report me to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) because of the episodes of Severe Hypoglycaemia I have had (extreme low blood sugars). He then told me I had hypoglycaemia unawareness, and this means that I will likely lose my license. Unfortunately, there is a misunderstanding here, because I do not believe that morning episodes (while I am sleeping) of severe hypoglycaemia and hypoglycemic unawareness are synonymous. I told him that he would not wake up if his blood sugar went low in the night, and he told me that I should be waking up. I do not drive without checking my blood sugar or having sugar in my glove box, and would never get behind the wheel of my car with a low blood sugar. I have recently been informed that what I have is NOT hypoglycaemia unawareness, but is called nocturnal hypoglycaemia, and is much more common. I understand the dangers of driving with hypoglycaemia unawareness, and if I had that I would hand over my license.

So I cried in the office to him and asked him to put himself in my shoes. Try going to someone to get help and get absolutely no doctor's advice on how to fix the problem, but be told you are going to lose your license because of the problem. Definitely not one of the best days of my life. I will admit that I was really upset after that, because it was the last thing that I was expecting after a diabetic appointment. So I went home and thought about what was going to happen. At first I just got upset, but in the morning I had a plan. Maybe if I surrender my license before they take it away, then this won't be an issue at all. If I choose to not have my license, they can't take anything from me.

So it had been months since that appointment, and I opened up my mail the other day to find a letter telling me that the minute I read this letter I no longer have a license. Most people would read that and pretend they didn't see the letter, but the next line said that either when I read it or 14 days after it was sent, my license is void. This does not exactly give a girl time to prepare her life without a motor vehicle. I did not have a bike at the time, and have been so graciously lent Louise (the bicycle) by a great friend (thanks Sarah!!).

Life takes some interesting turns sometimes, and this is just another one in my life. I am choosing to view it as an adventure, because each day presents a new challenge and often something new for me to face (one of my favourite things in life....doing new things!). Here's to a new challenge and the excitement that lies ahead!

Up Hill Both Ways

I am starting to understand my dad better now that I ride my bicycle everywhere. This is for a couple reasons. Number one, my dad religiously rides his bike to work every day of the year, whether the temperature is +42 degrees (celsius) or -42 degrees (celsius), and it doesn't matter if there are three feet of snow on the road or not. Second, my dad always refers to his childhood walk to school as something that is logistically impossible. "Chrissy, I walked 43 miles to school every morning, up hill both ways." is something he would tell us as we complained about sprinting to the bus stop every morning! I used to think he was lying, but I am starting to feel this phenomenon of "up hill both ways" more and more.

In case you haven't noticed, Langley has a few hills. I just happen to live at the top of one of the larger (largest?) hills in the area, so every time I leave the house a new challenge is presented. I have come to the realization that nothing in BC is flat, so this hilly phenomenon in Langley should come as no surprise to me. But I never said I was a quick learner. I recall going cross-country skiing for the first time here, and wondering where the miscommunication happened. It is called "CROSS-country skiing" for a reason. Not "UP country skiing". Someone was just clearly confused when they decided to adopt that sport here.

So, everything is hilly. And it's not only the large hills that I notice ("Large" referring to the hills where my car maxes out at 60 with pedal to the floor (not like that's saying much)). In fact, every slight inclination is noticeable on a bicycle. I feel so in tune with the earth and the roadways. We are one. In fact, sometimes I feel so connected that I consider getting off my bicycle so that my feet can be connected to this roadway even more. These moments of connection and closeness to the roadway always seem to happen at the largest hills, but I don't think there is any connection there ;)

Freedom

Freedom. It's a funny thing. We so desperately want it, but often aren't thankful for it when we do have it. It's important enough that people throughout the world are risking their lives to defend it, but other people in the world are so easily taking for granted this freedom. Don't get me wrong....i am most definitely one of those people that takes my freedom for granted. It is something that I feel that i deserve. When I had my license revoked, it made me angry. Having my license taken away is completely unfair and doesn't make any sense. All of the sudden the size of my world has significantly decreased. When you go from the freedom to be able to go anywhere at any time, to all of the sudden limiting your world to anything that fits within the distance that you are physically capable of riding a bicycle, your perspective shifts. All of the sudden you feel a little claustrophobic and boxed in. It's not that I am used to going on extravagantly far road trips all the time and driving all over the country, but its the difference between being able to do that if I wanted to, and all of the sudden not having that option. I so quickly have realized all the small things that I took for granted. Going to the grocery store, whipping over to the gym after school, and quickly going to the library to pick up some teaching resources. The grocery store now lies (well, I guess it has always been in the same place!) at the bottom of a large hill, which means that I have to drag every ounce of weight (myself included) back up that large hill when I finish shopping. I am learning the definition of necessity, that's for sure! No longer is anything a quick jaunt away. Instead it is a workout of some sort, and often takes far longer than I would want.

Our definition of freedom is so tainted though. I was thinking about what we so often think of freedom as, and then the freedom that Christ has given us, and the difference between these two definitions. Some would say that we are talking about two completely different things, but I believe that freedom has been skewed and made into a selfish thing, when this was not God's intention for freedom. I don't believe that freedom in Christ means freedom from the presence and struggle with the flesh or indwelling sin. Instead he is referring to the provision of the Spirit as God's means of victory. So our salvation and freedom in Christ is not to be considered freedom from servanthood or from service and loving responsibilities to others (Romans 14-15). In Galatians 5:13 it says: For you were called to freedom, brethern; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. This verse hit me hard. The injustice I felt over losing my license was and is completely freedom over something of the flesh. I live in a free country where I am able to freely speak of the love of Christ, and I am concerned with losing my drivers license? That's a reality check. What exactly is freedom, and why is it that the definition of freedom has become so skewed by society (me included)? I think it's time that I start living in this new found freedom that I have always had, but have recently rediscovered. All of the sudden the loss of my license is not a loss of freedom, but a gain of freedom in the revelation of the true meaning of freedom (in Christ)!

I recently lost my license due to some very unfortunate circumstances, and have been forced to use a bicycle as my main mode of transportation. Let me make it clear that the last time I used a bicycle as my main mode of transport was when I was 10. In those times I would only really need to travel to my friends house and perhaps the convenience store to get a popsicle on a hot day. Then, it was totally acceptable to cruise along the sidewalks and avoid the danger of the wide open road. Fast forward 13 years. I am now 23 years old, and it is no longer acceptable to ride on the sidewalk.....shoot. In fact, I'm pretty sure it's also illegal. Darn. So without any reasonable training, I am supposed to navigate the streets on my bicycle (correction: I didn't actually own a bicycle, so i am borrowing one for my main mode of transport). Am I the only person in the world who gets sweaty palms thinking of making a left hand turn into a major intersection? To make things even more fun, I just happen to live moments (or should I say pedals?) away from a very large intersection. Just thinking about it makes me nervous. Needless to say, the start of this cycling lifestyle has been a fun one.

As I have begun this cycling adventure, I have had a lot of time to think. There have been an array of thoughts that have crossed my mind, from the utterly ridiculous, to some more thought provoking issues. While cycling you have a lot of time for thinking, and through my blog I would like to share some of the thoughts that I have while riding. Please bare with me as some of these thoughts may be direct translations from my inner dialogue (scary stuff) ;)