Oh this National Donut Day, I come to you having ridden my bike to the Krispy Kreme where I acquired my free doughnut. And I have been reminded of one of the great things about riding a bicycle. Happiness.
There are not a lot of things we do in this modern world that are both joyful and useful. I have to do the dishes, but I don’t enjoy it. I love to watch old episodes of Star Trek, but it doesn’t make me any money.
There was a big wind coming from the south, and the sun was out. I passed children on their bicycles and an Italian girl on a specialized mountain bike and a runner who kept up with me for the first hundred feet past the stop sign.
Well I waited in line for my free donut, I got to chatting with the woman standing behind me. We had a lovely conversation about the ways we had gotten things for free. This is somebody that will never see again, a chance encounter that brighten my day.
That never would’ve happened if I had been trapped in a car waiting for the drive-through. Plenty of people did that, isolated, unhappy even on this the most sacred of days, National Donut Day.
After I ate my donut, I rode home and–please don’t correct my math–I burned ALL of the calories. So pleasurable and useful. The exercise helped me justify the donut.
This day wouldn’t have happened when I was car bound and down. Bikes. They make life better.
Two Wheels 