Nate's Bike Shop

I have recently acquired a 1973 Schwinn Varsity 10-speed road bike.  It is unrideable and in pretty rough shape, but I think it has some pretty cool features. I think it will be worth the time building it up to be rideable again for joy riding or using it as a grocery getter.

This bike was actually produced in Chicago.  Schwinn's that were built in Chicago are said to be some of the toughest bikes out there (at the cost of being very heavy, however). 

I am not going to be putting much money into this endeavor, as the resale value of the bike is not likely to be a whole lot. 

I should also note that this bike is a beast.  It weighs somewhere between 35 and 40 lbs.  A majority of people these days are looking to shed as many pounds from their bike as possible, so they won't pay much money to buy the equivalent of 2-3 bikes worth of weight.

Because I will be attempting this on a budget, I have decided not to restore it to its original setup.  As of now, I think I will be turning it into a single speed bike, which will also help shed a few pounds.

Today I did the bulk of the tear down.  It was really dirty and greasy, so I decided to pull everything apart and clean it, and then re-assemble with the clean old parts, and a few new parts as needed.

Bike technology and construction has changed quite a bit in the past 40 years, so this was also a learning process.

My favorite part of the bike is the Ashtabula crank, which is a one piece crank.  It is the heaviest crank/chainring I have ever felt, but it looks pretty cool and I am hoping the get the chrome on it nice and shiny.  I plan on re-using it to keep some of the vintage feel of the bike.

The fork on the bike is pretty cool, too.  It is a blade fork, so it is pretty thin and svelte looking. 

So, as of now, I have all the above parts and others stripped off the bike, leaving me with this...

Even the kickstand on the thing is heavy duty.  The kickstand is pretty ugly and unnecessary weight, but I did some research and found out I would need to buy a special tool to remove it.  So the kickstand will stay.

I am excited to work on this bike and see what results.  The frame is pretty dinged up, so I don't expect it to look like new, but it should still be fun to see what I can create.

I will try and post my progress as I go!

Music to my Ears

Since moving to Indianapolis, I have had to find new radio stations to listen to while in the car.  I particularly like to listen to Christian radio.   The current station I am listening to is K-Love (not to be confused with K Love). 

This radio station has what they call their 30-day challenge.  Basically, they are challenging you to listen to nothing but Christian music for 30 days, and to see how it changes you.

Usually, I hear people say they don't like to listen to Christian music on the radio because of how 'cheesy' the music is.  Quite frankly, I think this is a pretty crappy excuse.  

First of all, quite a few Christian songs written are based off of scripture.  Maybe, it's just me, but I don't see the Bible as being a cheesy book.

And secondly, every other genre of music has some pretty cheesy stuff.  Songs about dancing on top of the Hollywood sign, red solo cups, and pretty much anything Lady Gaga sings are pretty much ridiculous in my opinion.

I am not saying music outside of the Christian genre is all crap.  It's not.  I still listen to plenty of it.  I am merely arguing that not listening to Christian music because it's 'cheesy' is somewhat of a lame excuse.


I think we should be striving to be like David writes in Psalm 34 (first 15 verses below).  Blessing God with every chance we get, and letting our lungs expand in praise. 

Anyways, that's my rant on Christian music:)   I put a few of my current favorites below to jump start your 30 Day Challenge.

Psalm 34 (The Message)

¹ I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise. ² I live and breathe God; if things aren't going well, hear this and be happy: ³ Join me in spreading the news; together let's get the word out.

⁴ God met me more than halfway, he freed me from my anxious fears. ⁵ Look at him; give him your warmest smile. Never hide your feelings from him. ⁶ When I was desperate, I called out, and God got me out of a tight spot. ⁷ God's angel sets up a circle of protection around us while we pray.

⁸ Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see— how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him. ⁹ Worship God if you want the best; worship opens doors to all his goodness. ¹⁰ Young lions on the prowl get hungry, but God-seekers are full of God.

¹¹ Come, children, listen closely; I'll give you a lesson in God worship. ¹² Who out there has a lust for life? Can't wait each day to come upon beauty?

¹³ Guard your tongue from profanity, and no more lying through your teeth. ¹⁴ Turn your back on sin; do something good. Embrace peace—don't let it get away!

¹⁵ God keeps an eye on his friends, his ears pick up every moan and groan.

Family, Friends, and a Fesitivus for the rest of us!

Our first couple of months here in Indy has been somewhat of a blur.  Between moving in, starting new jobs, and the holiday season, there has not been much down time.

So, here is a very brief run down of the last several weeks.

We made our first return trip to Michigan to celebrate Christmas with my family (pictured below).  There was no snow in Michigan either this year, so we celebrated with the sun shining and 40+ degree temperatures. 

We had a great time playing games, eating, relaxing, and exchanging gifts.

The following pictures show just how good the Mejeur family is looking these days. :)

I was pretty pumped about Jillian's Six Week Six Pack

After the celebration in Kalamazoo, we headed back to Indy for our Christmas celebration with Jenna's family.  We got back down here Christmas night, and then celebrated Christmas the next morning.

We played games, ate more food, relaxed some more, and got to exchange more gifts.

Celebration of the New Year brought us the Vonks.  Chris and Erika Vonk to be precise.  Outside of my parents, they were our first visitors from Michigan.   We showed them the best of Indy.  However, I should note, that we don't know Indy very well yet, so our tour was a bit on the short side.

We rang in the new year with a tour of the Easley Winery, ate tacos in Fountain Square, then came home and played a rousing game of Farkle.  So rousing in fact, that Erika and Jenna struggled mightily to make it to midnight.

Our second visitors from Michigan were the Wilsons.  I lured Mike down here with an orienteering event that was held yesterday in Eagle Creek Park.

I had good intentions of taking some action shots, but once we got going and I never got the camera out of my pack.  We had a great time and Indiana Crossroads Orienteering did a great job of setting the course.

Here's our post meet wrap up...

So there you have it.  That is the cliff notes version of what we have been up to in the last month or so!

What are you doing in 2012?

Happy New Year!!  Hope your year is off to a delightful start.

I have recently been reading Dave Ramsey's most recent book, EntreLeadership.   I picked it up for 50% off, and used a gift card to buy it, so my reading of this book, would also be Dave Ramsey approved.

I am not very far into it yet, but one of the very first chapters is about dreams, visions and goals.   Being that today is January 1, 2012, I thought a quick blog on goals was very appropriate.  And for the record I am merely conveying the concepts from his book, these are not my original ideas.

New Year's resolutions are bound to be thrown around this time of year, but most of those don't last much past February.

Try sitting down a writing a few concrete goals for yourself for the upcoming year.   Your goals can be driven by a number of things: family, career, finance, physical health/fitness, spirituality/faith, social, or intellectual goals to name a few common areas.  Dave has a few recommendations for writing your goals.

A key component of goal writing, is to actually write the goals down.  This way you remember exactly what you are trying to accomplish, and you can visually see it as a reminder.  While you certainly don't have to share your goal(s) with someone, it would also help to keep yourself accountable.

Make sure your goals are measurable and have a time limit on them.

For example, 'I am going to lose weight in 2012' is a crappy goal.  It doesn't really hold you to anything. 

"I am going to lose 20 lbs" is better, but still lacks a time limit, to really push you towards that goal. 

"I am going to lose 20 lbs in 2 months."  Now were talking.  The goal is measurable and specific.  Another benefit of a specific and measurable goal, is that it gives you several other mini goals or short term goals.  If you know you want to lose 20 lbs in 2 months you can break that down to 10 lbs a month, or 2.5 lbs per week to help you stay on track.

Lastly, your goals should be something you want to achieve.  Not something your significant other, your mother, or your doctor wants you achieve.  If it is not something that you are really geared towards accomplishing, the first obstacle you encounter will likely shut your goal down.

I haven't fully finished writing my goals for 2012, and maybe I will even blog about my own goals when I do finish.  In the mean time go write some of your own. :)
 

Life in the Hoosier State

We have been down in Indianapolis for a little over two weeks now, and seem to be settling in.

I still haven't figured out exactly what a Hoosier is either.  There seem to be plenty of theories but no facts

Out apartment is feeling more and more like a home, and we even added a little holiday flair by getting our Christmas Tree this past Sunday.

Our lovely 6-7' Fraser Fir

We still have non-essential boxes to unpack, but they are stashed away in the second bedroom for now.

Jenna and I have both been at our jobs for two weeks now.  We are still adjusting and trying to get acclimated to a new building, policies and procedures.

I have only been in the clinic for one week now, as the entire first week was orientation for me.  I have been busy evaluating patients in order to try and build up a caseload for me to work with.

Thankfully, I didn't forget everything I knew in the two weeks I had out of the clinic :)

I still have a bit of adjusting to do, as I get used to the equipment and space that I have available to me.  While it is generally the same as before, there are some differences, so I will have to adjust some techniques or exercises that I used to be able to complete or use.

I finally found out that ATI stands for Athletic and Therapeutic Institute.  It was an unknown to everyone in orientation, and we had to check with several people that had been with the company for a while.

Another exciting development for me, is that I started ATI's Clinical Leadership Program yesterday.  It consists of three full days, spaced out over several weeks, and it covers a lot of leadership stuff, and how it relates to the clinic and business side of things, as well as managing a staff.  After completion, it would allow me the opportunity to step into a Clinical Director role at some point in the future.

This video really has nothing to do with being a clinical director someday, but I like to make everything I can relate to The Office.



This possibility was a major selling point for me as I was completing my job search.  I wanted to opportunity for growth in whichever position I accepted, so this was right up my alley.  There are a lot of new things things coming with ATI, so I am excited to see how they all play out.

I no longer have Mondays off, so my three day weekends are gone.  However, I am still working four ten hour days as of now, and my new day off is Wednesday.

It's actually pretty nice.  Work two days, get a day off, work two days, get two days off, and repeat.  Not bad if you ask me.

We had our first Winter Storm Watch yesterday/evening.  I woke up and was told be the news that we had received a whopping 0.2 inches.  There is some fluffy stuff on the ground, but I can still see grass.

Home Sweet Home

We made it!  We have officially moved into our new apartment in Indy.  We have been quite busy to try and get as much unpacked and settled as we could before we start work again tomorrow.

Jenna's parents and sister were a tremendous help with this process.  We also got a lending hand from our new neighbor, who came out when he saw us moving stuff and offered to help!

Here's a short video of a walk through of our new apartment!

My Miss List

The holiday season is quickly approaching, and most kids are probably putting together their 'Wish List' for Christmas.  Since Jenna and I are moving in 10 days, I have decided to compile a 'Miss List', of the things I will miss the most about leaving Kalamazoo. 

Other than the first two, they are in no specific order...

1.  Family -  This one goes without saying....

2.  Friends - I can't list everyone out, so you all get lumped together.   I will let my friend Michael W. Smith expound on this...

3.  Radiant Church -  If you are looking for a new church, go here. 

4.  Yankee Springs, Fort Custer, and Al Sabo - Outdoor playgrounds located within 40 minutes of Kalamazoo.  I don't know the guys in the video, but they give you a little peek at 'the Fort'

5.  Lake Michigan - There is no replacing the miles of beaches and fun in the sun!

6.  Margherita Pizza from Martini's - I added this at Jenna's request, but I will admit, it is delicious.

7.  The Lions, Tigers and Wolverines - I will still be a fan, but not being able to tune into their games is going to be tough.

8.  Bronson Hospital - I was born there a little over 29 years ago, and a little over three years ago I started my career there.

9.  Lake Affect Snow - I know some would think I am crazy, but there is something exciting about a  forecast that calls for 12 to 18 inches of snow overnight.

10.  The Adventure Racing Scene in Michigan - Indianapolis does have some good races going on, but when it comes to quantity of quality races, Michigan is tough to beat for racing in the Midwest.

Counting down the days...

October is coming to a close rather quickly, which means my time as a resident of Michigan is dwindling. 

In just over 2 weeks, Jenna and I will be heading down to Indianapolis.  We will both be finishing out our current jobs on November 4th, and then will be making the move on November 9th!

We have have decided to try and save a few dollars in the move by using the strategy employed by these people...

Just another use for duct tape

I support the creativity, but we actually have reserved a moving van.  I did scour the web to find an online coupon code to get 25% off though!

Things have really fallen in to place for us in the past several weeks, which has been a huge blessing and confirmation in our minds that this move is God's will for our lives right now.

Jenna has secured a job, after having a handful of interviews over the course of two days.  She had several offers to choose from, and we are confident she has picked the best place for her.

We have also been able to sign a lease for a new apartment!  We had thought this was going to be a tough endeavor since we would have limited time to be down in Indy before the actual move to check out different complexes and locations. 

We managed to be able to take several tours on a weekend we were down there, and found an available apartment at The Park at Eagle Creek!



Main office and pool

We initially passed over this complex because the prices listed on the website were higher than we wanted to be paying, but when we stopped by to take a tour, they happened to have a few deals going on that will be saving us a considerable amount of money on rent!

We did decide to upgrade a little bit, and get a two bedroom apartment, rather than a one bedroom which we currently have.   So, when you come to visit us, you get the privacy of your own bedroom, and will be kept company in it by my bikes. :)

One other thing I am rather excited about is that it is right across the street from the largest park in Indianapolis, Eagle Creek Park.  It is over 5,000 acres of water, trees, and trails, which will hopefully allow me to cope with being away from Yankee Springs and Fort Custer.

Trail along Eagle Creek Reservoir

The packing process is a work in progress, since we can't just pack everything away yet.  We still have to live and eat for the next 2+ weeks.

 I really do not enjoy anything about packing, except for the fact that I have about 50 boxes in our apartment right now, which are great for fort making.

Fort or doghouse??

We have actually do have quite a bit packed though, and the boxes are starting to pile up in our apartment.

Since most of the essentials are lined up and taken care of, we don't have to make any more trips down to Indy prior to moving day.  Which means we have more time to see friends and family over the next couple of weeks!

Fall Color Tour

In recent months I have grown fairly fond of a couple different HDR apps for the camera on my phone.  The app makes my sub-par camera skills make me look like I know what I am doing.

With the beautiful fall weather we have had recently, I have been able to take advantage by getting a few bike rides in.  Not only am I able to get a little workout in, but I am able to enjoy God's beautiful creation at the same time.

I have taken all the pictures below, and all but one of them has occurred on a bike ride. 

So get up off your couch, find your helmet (just in case you encounter some wildlife), and go out for a ride before the fall color turns to snow piles!






The One Where They Move...

For anyone that came to this blog expecting me to announce that Jenna is prego, I am sorry to disappoint you.  She is not currently with child.  I am also not announcing the arrival of the iPhone 5.  Sorry.

The big news is actually that we are moving!  We are going to be moving down to Indianapolis in mid-November.
 

Why Indianapolis?  The primary reason is family.  Jenna's parents and sister live down in Indy.  Jenna has lived in Michigan for the past 9 years, which is much longer than she originally planned.  I take the blame for some of this, as she just couldn't resist my advances and ended up marrying me, giving her reason to stay in Michigan longer :)

Thankfully, we have been blessed with wonderfully versatile careers, where job opportunities are plentiful.  Last week I was offered a position at ATI Physical Therapy.  I had applied and interviewed at several places and ATI was my top choice, so I was excited to be able to accept the offer.  There is great opportunity for further career development, and the company values the same things I do when it comes to patient care.

Jenna is currently in the process of job seeking and has several interviews set up.

This big change isn't a decision we made on a whim.  We have put a lot of thought and prayer into this move. 

This big change also isn't easy.  My family is in Michigan.  We have many friendships, started our careers here, and have been involved at an awesome church..

I will still be a Michigander at heart.  The Lions, Tigers, Pistons, Red Wings, and Wolverines will always be my teams, regardless how poorly they might perform.  Plus, when the Lions make the Super Bowl this year I will already be down in Indy!

And as crazy as it sounds, I will miss the lake affect snow, and all the outdoor fun it provides.   Believe it or not, going 200 miles south and away from Lake Michigan reduces the annual snowfall to about 20 inches per year, down from the 80 inches per year that Kalamazoo averages.

The good news is that you will all now have a good reason to drive on down to Indy.  It's less than four hours, so it easily doable in a day, or a weekend.  We will welcome all visitors!  Also, since my family is here, we will be back often.  So, we aren't just disappearing off the face of the earth.

We will be sad to be leaving family, friends, co-workers, and everything that is Pure Michigan, but we are confident God has great things in store for us in Indianapolis!

Apple Cider Century 2011

This year I decided to ride in my first century bike ride.  I have been wanting to complete one for a while, but it has never really taken precedence with time or financial resources.

I decided to throw in the towel for all running and adventure racing in mid-July due to some injury concerns.  I was still able to bike without any pain, so I decided that a century ride would work out perfect this year.

The Apple Cider Century Ride was recommended to me by several people.  I recruited Doug VanDyk to ride with me.

I had been riding all summer, just nothing real long.  Doug and I also did a few early morning training rides together to try and prepare a little.

I was never too concerned about finishing because the pace of the ride is whatever you want it to be, and since its not a race, there is no need to push it to the limit.  Also, there are built in SAG stops along the way.  (SAG = Support and Gear)

I found out the week of the ride that friend, Daren Wendell, and his friend Jake Boley were also going to be riding. 

The weather forecast the week of the ride looked pretty awful.  Cold and lots of rain.  I was counting on the weather forecast being wrong, as it often is in Michigan, but it wasn't.

It started raining right as we started the ride.  We were still hopeful at this point, as the forecast called for scattered showers.   The 'scattered showers' ended up being consistent showers, with scattered pouring rain.

We made it through the first 28 miles and arrived at the first SAG stop.  Our spirits were lifted with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, apple cider, and hot potato soup.

We enjoyed the stop a little too much, and because of the rain and cool temperatures we stiffened up a bit.  Of course, we had a couple of hills to climb after the first stop, and then had a long, rainy stretch straight into the teeth of the wind.  We were out in the country and amongst the farmland, so there was nothing to help block the wind.

We reached the second SAG stop which was about 54 miles into the race.  It was pouring rain.  We were cold, wet, and tired.  Daren reached the stop first, and as I rolled up, he asked how I felt about the Apple Cider 62 mile ride.  At this point I had no problem cutting our ride short, as I was pretty miserable, being so wet and cold.  Jake and Doug were down with the plan too.

Thankfully, this ride had multiple routes, just in case you needed to turn off early.  We took full advantage of this feature, along with plenty of other riders who had originally planned on completing the 100 mile ride.  The mileage wasn't measured correctly, so the 62 mile route was actually 66 miles.  So, we still completed a century ride, it was just a metric century (100 kilometers).

We finished the ride, and then the sun promptly came out.

All in all it was a good time, and despite the poor weather, we still had fun.  I should also note, we had out own personal, amazing SAG crew, Jake's wife Amy and friend Adrienne!

I now have a two hour cleaning project awaiting me, as my bike is absolutely filthy after riding through the rain for 4+ hours.

 Hopefully, the next time I decide on a long ride, the weather will cooperate. 

We were all smiling at this point, prior to the ride, and prior to the wet and cold!

Yankee Springs Recreation Area

A few weeks ago, we ventured out to Yankee Springs Recreation Area for a weekend of camping with Chris and Erika Vonk.   This was the second installment of what has become a yearly event for us.  This years trip, did not disappoint, with perfect weather, plenty of bugs, and off-key worship songs.

We headed up to Yankee on a Friday after I got out of work.  Chris and Erika go there before us and warned us that three of the neighboring campsites were occupied by a Youth Group on some sort of camping retreat. 

Our site in the foreground, and their setup in the background.

Now, I fully support these types of adventures for students to get them into the outdoors, however, they set up ‘central camp’ 10 feet away from our fire pit.  It made for a rather awkward set up.  We were quite involved in their weekend.   We heard conversations, watched games and listened to some not so on key a cappella worship songs.  

Outside of the awkward set up it was a nice weekend.  The weather was perfect.  The temps hit the 80s during the day and down into the 50s at night.

We tried a little orienteering; however, the mosquitoes and spider webs thwarted that attempt.  We also did a little geo-caching, which was successful as we found 2 different caches!

We rented kayaks for an hour and explored Gun Lake.

We also enjoyed s’mores, hobo pies, and numerous games of Farkle, which everyone won at least once except for me.  For a game of luck, I am pretty bad at it.  

 We even had an attempt at making some jiffy pop over the fire (epic fail).  However, the kids next door were mesmerized, and clapped when Chris had finished.  Little did they know that not a single kernel had popped, but Chris had only managed to get the foil to expand.

It was a great weekend at one of my favorite places in Michigan.