Buy a new bicycle

Okayy, I posted my old bike on craigslist and I’m going to pick up the new one before the sale at Wal-Mart ends. Yay!

If you’re interested in a hardly used 18-speed mountain bike and you live in the Milwaukee area, check out the one I’m selling on craigslist!

http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/bik/1238387155.html

Since I’m not taking my car with me to college (tear tear) I’ll need a bike to get around campus. Now, I do have a pretty nice bike, but it’s more for sport/mountain activities. I really want this cruiser that I saw at Walmart- it’s got old school handle bars, an awesome purple color, and a rack on the back to bungee cord my books too. First paycheck this summer, I’m going to get it! Hopefully I can get like 20 bucks for my other bike to help.

I like to ride in the summer

I’ve cycled to work today after picking up my new bike yesterday.
She’s all shiny and new and I swear I will never, ever EVER again forget to lock her!

It’s a lady’s city bike with three speeds, no A-brand, so only 300 Euro, plus a 80 EUR voucher for accessories as a heavy lock and bags.
I’ve filled in all the papers, I’ll be paying it off to my company with 8 holiday hours, and for the next 4 months I’ll have a salary reduction. Money saved in total: EUR 156.90!!!
The only disadvantage is that I’ll have to wait for the burocracy to chew through the application form, first the company, then the National Bike Plan organisation. Only then can I go to pick up my bike. This might take up to three weeks!

I’ll buy a bike of my choice through my company, which gives me this advantage:
The company will buy the bike.
I will pay the full amount back to my company by means of salary deductions, spread over 8 months.
In return, I won’t have to pay income tax over this amount, so, bottom line: depending on my income tax, I will have a 33 – 41 % discount on the buying price.
On top, I also get the same discount on insurance and up to 80 Euro worth of accessories (lock, shopping bags etc.) per year for three years. The only condition is that I ride the bike more than 50% of my work days to work. Easy, as I rode my old one to work for 100% of my last working year here. Up until the 10th of March, that is… ;o)

Next week, my company is expecting to receive approval for a bicycle buying scheme. I hope it comes early in the week. I might get a tax break or even some cash to buy a brand new bike!
Well, let’s not get my hopes up too high. Knowing the Dutch tax office, they will do anything to throw a spanner between the spokes, so to speak.

...including walking miles to a DIY store, still no new bike.
My hip pain is back, but I still didn’t like the bikes they had on sale there. They were all EUR 149 each, so not very expensive, but I don’t want a mountain bike, and the grannybikes didn’t come with hand brakes, which I insist on having.
The hunt will continue on Thursday, when I will got to this obscure place in Kinkerstraat.

I’m down 36 EUR just by replacing the lock which, last night, I’ve basically given away, along with my bike. I’ve also surfed to some DIY markets websites for a special offer, but the only one I FOUND was a (white!WTF?) granny bike. It being Sunday, I had no chance to go and buy it, I’ll need to take a holiday to do this this week. I also scanned the 2nd hand bikes done up by the bike shop on the corner, but I reckon it’s silly to buy a done up wreck for a minimum of 160 EUR (and I want hand brakes, thank you very much), if I can buy a new one somewhere for 150, if I can only find the right offer.

But here is why. Bike thieves are scum! I hope there is a seperate hell just for them.