On thieves and milk crates

I was dismayed to come down my outside steps this morning and see that in the night some s.o.b. had stolen the milk crate from the back of the Castafiore. He (or she) had undone the rear straps that held it to the rack before likely getting frustrated and cut the front straps, leaving the latter behind. I was very annoyed on a number of levels. First off, I will have to replace not only the crate but also the straps. However these things are replaceable.

Secondly and more importantly, it decreases my confidence in the neighbourhood, something that I had previously held quite high for such a relatively scruffy area of town. I have been leaving my bike out at night off and on since I moved here in the fall of 1998. When I moved into my condo in 2003, I began leaving the bike out most of the time owing to the lack of an convenient place to store it inside. I have never had a problem because of it, aside from the odd bit of rubbish thrown into the crate. I have even been known to leave it unlocked in fits of absent mindedness! I hope I will be able to convince myself to not let the s.o.b. change my ways.

My ride to and from work today felt odd owing the presence of my backpack on my back. I was somewhat surprised at just how sweaty my back got. This reinforces my position on the merits of the milk crate for backpack technique of cycle-commuting. The ease of use is remarkable.

As I mentioned earlier, I didn't have a suitable milk crate available. Consequently, I ventured into Chez Claude et Claudette, the corner store in search of a replacement. I had the luck to fall on a cashier that has been around a good deal therefore he knew that wasn't some total nut job. Once we established what I wanted, he deferred the question to the Korean owner who was in the back office. After, a bit of discussion and my firm assertion that I was prepared to pay the $8 deposit on the crate, he went into the back cooler where the "extra" milk is store and found a suitable one.

As I am lacking suitable straps for the time being, I am going to attach this crate with zip ties. I am also tempted to use my cable lock to secure the crate to the Castafiore. On the other hand, I would rather not given in to fear and loathing.