ChiWhoBike #23
I use my bike for truly everything. I take it to go get groceries, I take it to work every day, and I take it to just go explore, like going to find a new coffee shop. I’m a musician, too, so there came a point where I was trying to figure out how to do farmer’s markets in the summer, so I had my big backpack that’s also a bike pannier on the side, and put my stand and all my stuff in there. And then I had my guitar on my back, and I’m biking with all of that, so I’m getting a lot of stuff on this thing.
This is my first group ride with Femmes and Thems, and I think biking is such a great community thing to do. It’s great for the Earth, which is awesome, but also biking to work is my favorite part of my workday. I think getting up and moving before going to work, and just moving in general, can make you a happier person. And I think it’s hard to understand that if you’re not doing it. Getting up and doing something, I think it adds a lot to daily life value. Like I got up and I biked to work today, I feel really accomplished. I think it can bring a big sense of accomplishment, and just overall make you feel better.
I think it can be scary to bike in Chicago, where people are afraid to do it for the first time. I know the first few times I was biking, I was all up on Google Maps trying to figure out where I can go so I’m not on a super busy street, but, once you get going, most people are really nice, most drivers and everything, and it’s easy. You’ve just got to try it for the first time.
