Tinkerblue

My new favourite toy - the iPad

This was my first birthday present from hubby.  And just like the bike, he got one too. 

 

It was a bit of a palaver to buy it. Hubby tried to buy one when he was in Lakeland/Tampa for the Aviators, but didn't have time to get to a store. 

 

 Then he tried to buy them when we were in Orlando but the Apple stores were all sold out.  So he tried to order it online from the US apple store to ship to our US address, but they wouldn't accept our Canadian credit card.

Finally managed to get one by driving down to Lynnwood (about 2 hours or so from here, not including the line up at the border), at the end of April.  It gets used a lot. I have already downloaded and read a bunch of books. Hubby's worst nightmare - now when I finish reading a book at 2:00 am I can buy the next book and wait for it to arrive in the mail!

 

And we've become a bit app happy.  I've downloaded a lot of the free apps, and quite a few that I even paid for.  I like it. Good choice honey!

Thank you to my family and friends

for some great birthday gifts. From my parents - a kangaroo and a good luck charm for my bracelet.  The good luck charm has '40' engraved on the back of it:

   

From my in-laws - a small paper weight and a supply of Japanese washi tape.  My sister in law and niece gave me a iTunes gift card, which I used to buy books.

 

From Laura, Mark and Julie - a pretty, summery scarf and some chocolate.  The chocolate didn't last long.

 

Michelle and Justin gave me a bottle of Kerner Late Harvest from Tinhorn Creek in the Okanagan.  I can see us drinking this on their balcony overlooking the river, sometime this summer.

 

And Morag sent this lovely surprise package from London.  It arrived last Friday.

 
 
Just in time for me to wear it to dinner on Saturday night in the San Juan Islands.

 

My birth month is almost over!  Turning 40 has been a lot of fun. Thanks everyone.

 
 

Coffee Table, Coffee Table, Where Art Thou?

I have way too much time on my hands.  I need a new job.  Right now in our living room we have an Ikea Lack coffee table.  We've had it for about 10 years.  It's one of those things we bought cause it was cheap, under $20.00 cheap, and it would do until we found something we really liked.  Well 10 years later we still have it. 

 
 

We have a great coffee table that Paul and Erin made for us as a wedding gift. Yep, you read that right, they made it for us.  It has a chess, monopoly and backgammon board painted on it, and a drawer that holds all the game pieces.  It's an awesome table, and it's had a lot of use. Which is part of the problem.  The game boards are starting to peel.  We need to find a way to fix it it. So we have it all covered up in storage right now. Once hubby gets his act together and finishes his office in the hangar, that's where it will live. 

 

I've been looking for a coffee table for the last 5 years.  Why is it so difficult?  Cause hubby and I have different tastes and different budgets.  So finding something we agree on is proving to be a challenge. The one I really like is from a store in Germany!  (sometimes the internet is not a good thing).  I like the shape, the curvy legs, the grain of the wood.  Now if only I could find something similar in Canada, or even the US.

 

In the mean time I guess I'll keep looking.
 

London 2012 Mascots

 

Really? Not my cup of tea. I think they are hideous. They look like something out of Dr Who.

 

   

 

Wenlock (Olympic mascot) and Mandeville (Paralympic mascot) were created from the last drops of steel left over from the construction of the final support beam for the Olympic Stadium. 

 

 

 

Read more about them at London 2012 or buy the first mascot merchandise at the London 2012 online store.

 

New to my iPod

Before we went to Florida in April I asked for recommendations for some new (to me) tunes to listen to on the flight there and back.  I thought I'd share two of them with you. I love the video for Camilo. (not so keen on the video for Soulsavers Revival, but like the song).

...And a Basket for my Bike

Most of the time anything I need (wallet, camera, phone, sunglasses etc) will be in a bag that I can sling across or my body. Occasionally there'll be something bigger, like a bottle of wine, my iPad,  or some lunch that I'll want to carry with me.  Panniers don't appeal to me, I think a basket is more appropriate for a cruiser bike.

#1 Carrie in white from Design House Stockholm.  

But this needs hardware to attach it.  I don't want anything that permanently attaches.  It needs to come off easily so it can be packed in the plane separately. And it's $80.00!

 

 

#2 This Miacomet lidded basket is adorable.  I think this is actually the kiddie size so it won't hold much, certainly not a bottle of wine.

 

 

#3 Peterboro bike basket - I am leaning towards the heftier wicker baskets, over this one.

 

#4 Avenir wicker basket with Velcro attachment. Not sure that I trust the Velcro to hold, I'm guessing it doesn't hold very much weight wise. I like the handle for carrying the basket when it's not on the bike.

 

#5 The Nantucket Cisco collection - I like the classic shape (the basket on top)

 

 

#6 The Cliff Road collection - I like that they are white.

It will probably come down to whichever one I can find on the best deal on!

Help me choose a Nutcase for my Noggin

Okay, great.  Now I have a brand new shiny bike. Do you think I can find my helmet? Not a chance. It's not in the garage.  It's probably in the hangar somewhere. Have you seen the hangar lately?  There's more chance of finding a needle in haystack.   

So now I need a new helmet. And yes, I do need one. It's mandatory in BC. Our bikes are cruisers, you sit upright, they have 3 gears, they are not meant for mountain biking or long road trips. I want a helmet that suits the cruiser and make me smile. 

 

These are Sawako Furuno designs. Aren't they pretty? But...I can't find anywhere local that carries them. And I can't buy a helmet without trying it on first. 

 

 

   

 
 
 
Then there's this one from Bern. It's the Berkeley, I'm not really keen on the white, I'd prefer it in blue. Again nowhere local to try on for fit first.

 

So that brings me to Nutcase Helmets.  A company out of Portland, Oregon.  They have some really fun designs.  The watermelon and the 8 ball made laugh out loud.  And finally lots of the local stores carry them.  I was able to try them on and now I know they fit well, I just need to narrow it down to one style. I'm at six right now.  I don't really need 6 helmets.

I like, in no particular order, the candy swirl, black hibiscus, rose hibiscus, sunburst, flower power and drippy.  Which one do you think?

 

Birthday Gifts - Bazooka Beach 3 in Baby Blue

Hubby bought me a bike for my birthday.  He also bought himself a bike for my birthday, how does that work?

 

 

It's a Bazooka bike.  Specifically a Beach 3 in baby blue.  His is a Beach 3 in orange.  Why these bikes? Because they fold up.  Yep, they fold in half.  Which means they will fit in the plane. That's important.

 

 

Now we can fly to Sidney or Penticton, ride down to the waterfront, have ice cream, ride back to the airport and fly home again. Or we can fly to Squamish, ride into town and have a grilled cheese sandwich.

 

 

Now it just needs a few accessories, like a basket or somewhere to carry a bottle of wine, so then we can tour some wineries.