Onward.
Many, many bad things happened to that pretty pink bike, and in 2.268 words I tried my very best to describe all the horrors that my bike encountered. In the end, there wasn’t much left of the bike, to be perfectly honest, and I never felt like I were accurately able to convey exactly how violated my bike was before it went to bike heaven.
Until now.
I found this bike while I was out for a walk the other day. It had been stripped of everything useful, and then some. Much like my own bike. Some poor soul had left it, locked, chained to the lamppost, only to come back to find it molested in the worst way.
You cannot imagine how satisfying it was, knowing that I wasn’t alone.
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| I particularly like how they set the rear wheel in concrete. Forty-two points for originality. |
This post is a part of the 30 Days of Photographs II challenge. Please visit the rest of the participants for more fantastic photos: MikeWJ, Nicky and Mike, Mo, Meleah, John, aka nonamedufus, Bryan, aka Unfinished Person, Mariann, Malisa, Nora, LaughingMom, Tanya, Elizabeth A., 00dozo, Cheryl, Kristen and Katherine. *
That's just a tad too much isn't it? I think all the other stuff they did would have gotten the message thru...but to concrete it up, too. Wow. Heaven knew what they would have done had they really disliked you.
ReplyDeleteI really love the way you capture the beauty of something so horrible. But are you sure that's not a unicycle? And wow, Finland is such a nasty place to live. If you're a bicycle, that is.
ReplyDeleteYour page is just too dark to enjoy the read without a lot of effort. Can you lighten it up a bit. I have the same problem with Mo's page.
ReplyDeleteI like this for so many reasons. Firstly, after ransacking a bicycle in Turku as part of an exciting and invigorating bank robbery I'm delighted to see how far it has fallen - I hate bikes and have a bad and sour-smelling relationship with them.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, while people here (UK) sometimes lock their bike up and then take the wheels or/and saddle, I've never seen the skeletal remains of a concrete-encrusted bicycle before.
I've also never seen one captured so powerfully. It's a really good photo plus I, of course, have feelings for it.
Ouch to both of you. My husband is an avid mountain biker. His bike was half the price of my car (it's a cheap car though). Still, he guards it like a pitt bull and doesn't let it out of his sight. It's not a ride around town sort of bike but on the rare occaision it does, no one leaves it side.
ReplyDeleteYou crack me up.
ReplyDeleteBikes in Finland?? You get to ride them on one day out of the year when there isn't snow, right? I really like the picture - it's like a Mob hit on a bike- they gave it the treatment and cement shoes.
ReplyDeleteMy primary aim.
ReplyDeleteThere's nothing worse than bicycle abuse. Nothing. (Well maybe except peas) That's so sad. Nice to see the chain still there though so no one can steal what's left.
ReplyDeleteThis was you?! Tell me the truth, the beaver put you to up to it, didn't he? I knew he was going to be bad news. He's probably the one who murdered my bike all those years ago, too.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I'm finding it a tad disturbing that you're having feelings for this bike. It's in a pretty committed relationship with that cement shoe, after all.
I'm giving it two weeks before the chain is stolen.
ReplyDeleteMaybe if I'd looked a little closer I'd have found a severed horse's head in the nearby bushes...
ReplyDeleteYikes, that's an expensive bike. He better really enjoy riding it. ;)
ReplyDeleteUm, sure. You're going to have to give me a little more to go on, though. Is the text too dark? Too light? The background too dark? The contrast between the background and the text too small? Too big? How about MikeWJ's blog, http://www.toomanymornings.com/? Is it easier to read?
ReplyDeletePersonally, I find the grey on grey rather easy on the eyes, but I guess it's all about what you're used to. :)
I'm pretty sure it used to have two wheels. And I have no idea why any bike would ever move to Finland. Wouldn't it make more sense to live in Amsterdam if you were a bike?
ReplyDeleteI thought the exact same thing! I mean fine, they took everything they possibly could, I can sort of understand that, but to cast a freaking concrete block around the one remaining wheel? That's just showing off.
ReplyDeleteIn our city you often see "winter's casualties". The bikes that got crushed by the snow removers, the vandalized ones, the rusty forgotten ones, etc.
ReplyDeleteBut a tire in concrete? That's admirable and offensive all at once.
Whoa Mama! That is a hell of a thing to do to a set of wheels! It's a great photo, Ziva, but I thought today's theme was "Pots". Maybe the savage treatment of a bike is just too "dark" to be enjoyed though. I would have maybe gone with a pink bike with ribbons flying off if it! This poor bike looks more like it's getting ready to sleep with the fishes.
ReplyDeleteToday's theme is "Wheels" not "Wheel." I forgive you because you're Finnish and not a native English speaker, but still, it's not that complicated, really, is it? That said, the photo is black and white, therefore very dramatic and artsy. Kudos, although it's certainly not beavers. Beavers are awesome.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I hated my photo today. I was deperate, what can I say? Thirty fucking days of this shit is about 27 days too much. I feel like ripping out my spleen and feeding it to the cats. But I'm not going to do that, because I hate cats and they don't deserve a single bite of my spleen.
Jeez, who pissed in your cereal this morning??
ReplyDeleteI couldn't find a pink bike with ribbons flying off of it... But I thought this one was almost as good, and you know, maybe it really, really likes fish?
ReplyDeleteAh yes, the winter's casualties, we have plenty of those.. Even some cars, actually. They tend to get buried in the snow and then suddenly appear come spring, all rusty and leaky and never to start again.
ReplyDeleteYeah, a tire in concrete. At least you can't blame the youth of Turku for not doing anything productive.
I just figured this out. You chose the themes and already had the photos ready, didn't you? ;) Ah ha.
ReplyDeleteThe grey tone on the black background makes the words almost invisible on my monitor. I have the same problem on Mo's page but on Bony Mike's page the lettering is brighter.
ReplyDeleteI guess I just have to work harder to read everything.
I really enjoy this site.
love the story AND the photo! You're awesomeness, Ziva!
ReplyDeleteIt's incredible. Usually I abhor vandalism but in this case, they turned it into art.
ReplyDeleteHah, I wish! Oh, if you could only see me right now. ;) It's 11:30 at night, I have to get up at six am and I'm still desperately trying to pre-schedule something, anything, for tomorrow since I can't do it at work.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Meleah, you're even more awesomeness! I'm really glad you liked it. :)
ReplyDeleteNobody. I don't eat breakfast.
ReplyDeleteI like your photograph a lot. I'm jealous. Because you're winning, and just because. So I lash out in anger. It's unpleasant, but it's not uncommon. Are you happy now that I've shared my honest feelings?
Maybe you should give them your bike and see what they'll do to it?
ReplyDeleteSorry for my lateness here today - I ran the gamut (the "list" that I use) backwards today. I'm glad I did because after reading through all of the comments (and their respective responses), things are making a lot more sense to me than just walking into "the middle of the conversation" as I usually do.
ReplyDeleteAs for your photo, what a find! I'm still loving the black and white and knowing the story behind your own pink bike, I think you've truly captured (and probably shared) the owner's visual contempt and unspoken message to bicycle bandits.
;-)
No YOU are even more awesomeness!!!
ReplyDeleteYou do know that just because you captioned it with the word "forty-two" doesn't mean you can reuse this for that crazy prompt, right?
ReplyDeleteI see two wheels ~ one rubber and one metal with sprockets (often referred to as a gear) ~ so all that crap over on Mike's post is pure crap.
You don't win the day but you do win that particular battle. (It's a dandy shot but I'm stunned that it's set in concrete. Are you sure it's not a piece of modern art?)
Let me think about that.
ReplyDeleteNo.
OH MANNNN! That poor bike! It did worse than Pee Wee's bike! Actually that is an amazingly beautiful photo... despite the sad subject!
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry that I laughed. I mean it. The picture was perfect, as always. And... I can't believe you made a bike sensual... but it makes the post. sorry about your bike. but - the photo did give me a laugh.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about being late with the comments, Double-O, I'm pretty late with the responses myself. ;)
ReplyDeleteI couldn't believe it when I first saw the bike, I mean, cement shoes? On a bike? Who does that? But at least it made for a nice photo for the theme. ;)
Dammit! I thought for sure I'd be able to reuse it! :P
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you see two wheels, I do, too! And I'm actually not sure about the art thing.. I never even thought of that. Turku WAS culture capital of Europe in 2011, maybe they just left the bike there after 2011 ended..
I know, right? I think that poor bike deserves a proper funeral. It was standing right next to the river, maybe tomorrow I'll go back, break the chain and give it a nice wet funeral.
ReplyDeleteHah, you can laugh all you want, especially at this photo. ;) I actually laughed a little while taking that photo, too..
ReplyDelete