Michelle May

Elmer is a foster dog from Pets Unlimited (www.petsunlimited.org).  I am told he hails from Turlock, AKA the “Central Valley” (whatever that means).  He was rescued about a month ago, after nearly being put down due to illness. Elmer has pneumonia.  He was in isolation for about a month recovering.  I find this so hard to believe now, because he is such a sociable loveable dog.  He wants to be on your lap, or on your shoulder (like a parrot!) 24/7!  Still, Elmer is about 10 years old (maybe that is off though, don’t let the grey hair fool you ; ) so he is very well mannered and refined, if you will.  A real distinguished gentleman.  What he could teach us humans about love & manners!  In addition to pneumonia he has some unknown non-contagious skin disorder which has caused him to lose all his grey hair.  He may look like he has grey hair, but on closer look, you will find it is in fact grey pigment.  So adorable!    He gets very cold so he has this silly gold lamee cape to keep him warm.  Some folks at pets unlimited think he looks like a pimp in the cape.  I think he looks more like a trekie.  In addition to that quirk, he often walks, hops, or runs on only 3 legs.  He looks a bit like a jackalope when he does this.  He may do this because his legs are sore from all the IVs he had in while really sick in the hospital– or maybe he is even arthritic- but i find that hard to believe.  No matter, Elmer is both a dog & human magnet.  We have been having so much fun meeting lovely people but avoiding sweet dogs, since we do not want to get them sick.  This is against the grain of who Elmer is- he loves to interact, especially letting those bigs dogs know who’s boss!  However, rite now Elmsie has dug under some covers- his favorite places to lay are in direct sunlight (Should he be wearing some sunscreen given his bare skin?) , or as far under a  pile of blankets as he can get. He is a darling welcome bunk mate here in my studio.  How am I ever going to be able to give this little guy up?  Alas, Iran beckons… 

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After much shopping around all sorts of SF bicycle shops, i finally stumbed into Roaring Mouse Cycles (www.roaringmousecycles.com) on Irving Street (@15th) in the inner Sunset on my lunch break one tuesday… What a dream. …Small shop, chock full of bikes, extremely knowledgable staff, & general good vibe.  Chris Lane the British owner had experience travelling in Syria & other parts of the Middle East & also did some bike touring around (Eastern Europe I think)..  I had tried the Surly Long Haul Trucker at other shops, but there was something about the other places that carried the Surly that i did not feel comfortable with.  Or perhaps it is just because in comparison Chris & the team at RM are so damn good that everyone else looks pale in comparison?  On that brief 30 minute lunch break, I decided that Roaring Mouse was finally the place I wanted to do buy my bike from.  Although the LHT was not in stock there I felt very happy to pay extra is shipping to have it sent there– to buy from a team that I feel good working with, supporting with my business, and also being supported in return via their extensive knowledge and practical guidance.  When the LHT came in Chris spent much time teaching me how to ride “clip-less” which is actually riding with those bike shoes that clip into the pedal- a daunting task to me– but after about 15 minutes riding on their trainer in the store, i was actually able to ride home all the way to mountainous pac heights without falling once…  we’ll see how I do with that in Iran.  I love the Roaring Mouse.. and my Surly Long Haul Trucker- a beautiful 26 pound sturdy STEEL bike.   

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