Bicycle

This morning I took the bicycle with N to find a shop to install a back seat so I could ride it with N sitting in the back. The bicycle is a free gift from S’s previous applying for a new credit card. It has been put unused for over two years. Then I decided to make it pay.

The process of the seat installation, however, was quite to my surprise.

We went to the first two bicycle shops only for embarrassment. The shopkeepers, well, were snobbish to say the least. They just cast a gaze at the bicycle before bluntly refusing our request. The reason? The bicycle, as a free gift, is a piece of junk and not worth the efforts. In addition, we could not find the kind of seat that can fit to the poor structure of that junk. Though they may not expressly used the word “junk,” their speaking tones and facial expressions could never make it more plain.

I and N felt mad about those snobbish people. Really mad. They should have helped us solve the problem, but instead they even suggested us to buy a new one. Oh, yes, thank you very much, as___le. We are not so stupid as not to have that really good-for-nothing idea.

Finally, we entered a shop whose keeper and his daughter warmly welcomed us with kind help to install the seat. We were so well treated that in the end we equipped the bicycle with more gadgets to make it more comfortable and prettier.

I and N have a very good time from then on riding our little bicycle to bookstores, to snacks, to schools, fully enjoying the fun of free riding.

Capitalism, who can deny, easily makes people look nasty, even nastier than is expected to be.

I and N have made a common decision that next time when we need a new one, we will go to that warm and hospitable shop for sure.