My recent bike project

So a very good friend of Heather and I's (see her blog here) has graciously agreed to be our "day of" planner for the upcoming wedding. This is such a huge task to take on and we are so grateful because she is doing this out of just kindness and a good heart. Said differently, she is asking no monetary compensation...amazing!

Heather and I (as I've commented before on this blog about our Neighborhood friends) have enjoyed a good life with amazing friends along the way. This most recent event with Mairead and Sham helping organize our wedding, letting me live in their house, spending endless hours helping with projects and hanging out is just another chapter in what I would call "our good friends".

So when Mairead came to me awhile ago with an old Nishiki that her mother had that was...shall we say...in less than great shape and asked if I could help her out...I couldn't say no. Not to mention this gave me a great chance to test out my bike mechanic skills and build something beautiful.

 
The modifications weren't that big of a deal...but the work needed to be done! So we decided to convert it into a fixie/singlespeed. Replaced the crankset, brake handles and cables, new set of wheels, new handle bar tape, some new brake calipers, and a deep clean.
I have to say I am proud of the finished product

With a clean set of White Deep V's and some baby blue this bike really sparkles...and runs like a dream. I did a blue/white 1/8" chain combo and she runs great!
I learned a lot during this job (I hate doing breaks!!!!) and if I had to do it over again I would change my approach and focus on getting the paint job first and done early. But for a job for a friend and a learning experience I have to say...good deal!
Building a new Neighborhood isn't just about bikes, fun, and favors...but is also about life and doing for others and spending time doing what you love. Sham and Mairead teach me this every day and I am looking forward to a fun wedding coming soon

One of my favorite TED Talks

7 TeV Collisions seen at CMS

We have arrived! The era of the LHC is finally here with the official conditions for collisions at a center of mass energy of 7 TeV!!!
Needless to say there is a lot of excitement in the particle physics world and many people (especially our Texas A&M Group) are working feverishly to provide feedback and prompt analysis in this new era of particle physics.
20+ years of work on the LHC has paid off for so many with this successful event. Unfortunately, now comes the even harder part of understanding the detector, the physics, the beam...and many other of the unknowns before you are able to say anything about the world of the tiny particle colliding at these energies.
The LHC will work constantly for the next year to squeeze their beams into tighter and tighter formations with more consistent environments so the many experiments around the ring can better calibrate and understand their detectors while working very hard to be on the lookout for anything new.
Very happy to be part (if only a spectator) in this monumental human achievement.

Doing less bad is still no good (Part 3)

Update following week 12 and we are on the rise again!
Total miles driven this year is 1746.6 and we again had a large fluctuation up during a two week period.
Interestingly enough this does correspond with me having a lot of time at Fermilab for work and other related activities.
I'm hoping that over this next month this graph will have a very uncommon dip for three reasons.
1) NICE WEATHER HAS ARRIVED! It is a lame excuse for not taking my bike, I know, but when it is cold a rainy the 15 mile bike ride back and forth from the train station to the lab (along with the 50 min train ride) has very little appeal.
2) Gas is right at $3.00 per gallon. Like I said before, my environmental impact has a lot to do with the economy of being friendly. Now that it is more economical to ride the train then to drive I expect this to be a dipping graph. 3) I am considering doing an iron-man in August and I need to get my riding (and swimming) much better if I have any hope.
More thoughts on being environmental to come....