I love autumn.  I’m just beginning to realize that this is probably my favorite time of the year, when the heat of the Northern California summer is reluctantly fading away, the mornings are crisp but the afternoons are still tee shirt weather.  I can sense the change in the earth’s position to the sun; the light has a different quality to it even before the leaves dry up and start falling from the trees.

I’ve had a few changes in my life this fall, and most of them are good, or at least potentially good.  We just finished painting the exterior of our house; I’ve started some new projects at work; I’ve got some new yarns and several WIPs (works in progress); and the Big Guy has bought me a new (to me) bike. So I should be feeling a lot happier than I do; but I’m still grieving for a very special member of my family.

My last photo of Gabby

After a few days of feeling that the pain was diminishing, I woke up one morning and it hit me all over again.  The house was chilly, but the morning sun was coming up over the tops of the trees in our back yard, and there was a big sunny area on the carpet in front of our sliding glass door.   At that moment it was probably the warmest spot in the house — and I suddenly remembered that every morning for as long as I could recall the winter months would find Gabby trudging from her bed of blankets out to the livingroom, searching for the heat in that very place.  This morning, that spot is empty.

Of course, it won’t be long until Gabby’s daughter, Pinkie, figures out were that sunny spot is.   Blind as she is, she’ll find it, and she’ll enjoy lying there just as much as Gabby used to.  Now she’ll have the spot all to herself.

Gabby’s sunny spot

Still, I can’t help but feel at least a little happy over my new bike.  It’s not really new — it’s a vintage Peugeot triathlon bike.

I’ve never owned, or even ridden, a road bike before in my life.  My current bike, which I’m still crazy about, is a Trek hybrid.  It’s sort of halfway between a road bike and a comfort bike.  It’s got flat handlebars like a mountain bike, and its tires are only a little fatter than road tires.  I tend to ride it like a road bike, and it’s pretty darn fast.

But this shiny red Peugeot is something else again.  It’s a couple of inches too big for me, so I was nervous getting on and off of it the first couple times.  I also need to get used to the different type of handlebars and the placement of the brake levers — not to mention the fact that the shifters are not where I’m used to finding them!

This is a completely different experience from any other bike I’ve ever ridden.   The Peugeot is a race horse, a real thoroughbred.  It doesn’t have all the fancy equipment of a brand new road bike, but it’s light as a feather and it goes fast.

I’m planning to do a bit of work on the bike.  It needs new tires and the brake levers are a bit stiff, and there are a few other minor changes I want to make.  But all I have to do is look at this red beauty and it’s all I can do to keep from dropping everything and going for a nice long ride.

Did I mention this fall weather is perfect for cycling?

Of course, I’m still knitting — I just haven’t got much to show for it at the moment.  Mostly what I have is a bunch of half-finished projects, including a bunch of squares for a blanket; a cotton blend tank top; a cotton shopping bag; a wool sweater of my own design; and some socks.   I’ll try to share more details in my next post.

Two blanket squares

I was a bit disappointed recently when two different pairs of socks came out of the laundry with damage.  My lucky bike socks (pictures to come) suffered a small hole near the side of the toe, which was easily fixed.  My beloved Koigus weren’t quite so lucky — I’m going to have to unravel part of one cuff and re-knit it.   I guess there’s a lesson for me to hang onto my yarn remnants in case I need them for repairs.

Until next time!