The heartbreak of saying goodbye and Admiral Fred

I decided that I would sell the Monster. I posted her to Craigslist and within a few hours a woman replied that she loved the bike and wanted to see it ASAP. I priced it fairly for a bike that had so many bells and whistles. It really is a gorgeous bike. Someone should be riding her.
The morning of the day the prospective buyer was to see it, I removed the distinctive purple chain that locked the seat and basket onto the bike. It was sinking in. I may never see the Monster again after tonight... and I became rather verklempt.

Later in the afternoon when she arrived, I learned that she'd just bought a car rack from another Craigslist posting so she could bring the Monster back home and she installed the rack onto her car right there in the parking lot. She told me that she'd recently been to Florida on vacation where she'd borrowed a bike and re-ignited her passion for cycling. She was very excited to be getting a nice, comfortable bike with all the stuff she wanted on a bike already added. She was also in love with the color coordination of everything, especially the yarn-bombed basket. She perked up when I told her the bike had a name.

She even purchased a purple helmet earlier in the day. 

Wow.
If this wasn't the perfect owner for My Monster, I don't know who is.

She was also delighted to let me take her photo with the bike that would now belong to her.

I'm so happy for them. *sniffle*

Afterwards, I went for a ride with Ruby and contemplated my (albeit temporary) existence as a one-bike-woman.

I headed over to Thick to see if they had a replacement seat for the computer I'd cracked when the bike fell a few weeks ago. Sure enough, they did and refused to charge me for it. I didn't feel so guilty taking it because I managed to find a half-off pair of bike shorts. Sweet. To make my feet happy too, I found a nice new toe ring at a shop a block away, I'd broken one recently and needed a replacement. I need to stop breaking stuff!

How NOT to lock your bike: 

When I returned to the bike, I discovered I'd made a fatal flaw in my locking technique.

Oooops.

Left for the South Side trail in a downpour. I encountered a cyclist coming in the opposite direction who was clearly enamored with the rain cape. It just makes some people smile. He sat up from his hunkered riding position to get a better look as he approached and with a gigantic smile, he saluted me.
Sheesh.
Yes, salute Admiral Fred in her dorky rain cape!

A faint rainbow appears above Homestead after the storm.

Passing by a ballpark full of fans cheering is so very, very odd to me. I'm supposed to be IN THERE with them!

I enjoyed a car-free Clemente Bridge.