A sunny September day

I'm feeling like such the "hip" European chick today. It's one of those beautiful September days - blue skies, a few whispy clouds, cool breeze. I slung my green suede Prada knock-off "mail bag" over my shoulder, hopped on my bike and spent an hour and a half biking my errands around Marke (our little town) and into Kortrijk (the bigger city).

I went to our local post office to mail some insurance doc.s, stopped by the bank for some rolls of euro coins, dropped Andrew's Baptism certificate to the church office (from his confirmation last spring) and popped into the bike shop. I've been having trouble with one (crank shaft?) coming loose and it needed replacing. The guy was able to do it while I waited. (He's seen a lot of business from us in the last 2 years, nice guy.) Then I rode along the back way into Kortrijk. I headed to the library first. I had about a dozen books I've read in the last year that I liked but won't read again so they were donated to the library. They have a pretty sizable English section (a lot of books from English writers, but others, too) and I've been very glad for it! While there I put in a request for the english copy of The Little Prince from the library in Gent. We have it in French, by I'm too rusty to read/translate it for the boys, so the English one will help. From there I continued further into town and found some socks for Andrew and a belt for me in one of the shopping districts. I peeked in a couple of clothes shops, but I'm not ready for the warm fall fashions on their racks. Next I headed for the grocery store to pick up the soap I forgot in my big Monday shopping trip yesterday, and on the long ride back out to Marke I picked up a baguette at a small bakery and added it to my basket. I felt pretty Euro, with my baguette sticking out of the basket on the front of my bike.

Being the beautiful day it was, I passed many other bikers enjoying the day. Lots of smiles and head nods on a day like today. I could do a morning like that every day! Loved it!