I've done this on my helmet. Sometimes I wear it at work and just draw with crayons all day.

Sure.

I can't believe you don't want to hear about a Soma! What have you got against them eh? What's so special about your bike eh? I bet you don't even own a bike! I bet you can't even ride and you wear and dress and your makeup is really bad and you smell and *mum took away my keyboard*

hippy is a bumhead

At least I don't cry when MY mum makes me eat brussel sprouts!

You can't have sprouts now - it's not Christmas !

They only make me cry when she makes me put them notinmymouth...

Yeah, you're right, I don't have a bike, but check out my muscle tone, it's awesome!

haaaa.....he did have lovely muscle tone:)~

one wrong post and your future on this forum is bleak !!

It's a sad day when perfect muscle tone can ruin your t'internet career.

Luckily, I have no muscle tone at all....

like that nathan fabian on fixedgeargallery one picture posted up of him doing a track stand and he became a national figure of derision poor lad same goes for the fat starwars kid one of the most watched youtube videos

Global derision awaits!

Fat bloke doin a track stand.

YoutubeTastic!

Or this kid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhRlfAFUves

yeaaaaaaah.....fat shit

i was gonna say how does a fat lad like that move with such grace & elegance but then the end bit happened the clever stupid balance is restored !

langster deptford (in absence of rebuilt bike photos)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9431750@N03/650181547/

chain has since been tightened

edit, obviously need to reread the photo upload instructions

if he can move like that why is he still fat?

every time he wins a dance comp, they give him 10 burgers

"I simply think it is human nature to want some sort of exclusivity, to be unique, be it in the way they dress, the music they listen to or the bike they ride"

Speak for yourself!

the music you listen to or the band-name tee shirts you wear say absolutely nothing about you....except that you're just another empty-head concerned with your "image".....the London disease.

Inclusivity!

winston: I want a Rollapuluza shirt.. is that bad? :)

in this case, no

I saw a London Langster in a shop window in Covent Garden today....not really my thing but I went in and poked it around a bit....it's not too bad really...it's even got a tube map on the down tube.

"it's even got a tube map on the down tube."

your takein der piss yes?

does it have the AA and RAC numbers too? and the web address for paying the congestion charge?

That's kinda cool although the A-Z would be more use on a bike..

Maybe internally, from your perspective. But externally, image says everything about you. Whether that image actually represents who you are is irrelevent. I see it more as an human infliction rather than a London diesease.

It only says you're concerned about image, you're wrong to assume everybody is like you....also there's a big difference between wanting to look good or wearing clothes that suit you to projecting an "image"...."pretending" seems very common in this city amongst all ages...not just teenagers... they're all exhibiting the same behaviour / personality just in a different coloured shirt / jeans / hairdo /bike......they're not in the least bit unique. Living a genuine alternative lifestyle however is actually unique and interesting......working for the man, paying rent / mortgage, shopping at Tescos, then in your free time seeking out "alternative" or obscure music / clothes / bikes / scenes....is achingly normal, millions of people do it and will seem unbelievably pointless when you're on your deathbed.

Yes it really does have a tube map on the downtube.....!

interesting, although i'm curious as to what you mean by 'genuine alternative lifestyle'.

I don't lead an alternative lifestyle myself but I admire people who do....we probably see very few people who do, no matter how "way out" they look.....I see some real freaky looking people in Tescos but they're just buying bread and beans on the way back to their bedsit to watch Eastenders or listen to xfm like everyone else.....alternative lifestylers are out there, they may not cross our paths very often in the city, or they may not stand out in a crowd?

How about:

Living in a Tantric yoga commune.
Giving everything up to go and work as a volunteer in Africa.
self-sufficiency
not owning a TV

too tired to think of anymore.

..alright.

Like I said, whether you intentionally project an image or not, your image is still percieved and judged by everyone that see's you. This judgement may not be critical it may just be the way we as people make are intial impressions. In fact you exhibit said behaviour: "they're all exhibiting the same behaviour / personality just in a different coloured shirt / jeans / hairdo /bike......they're not in the least bit unique."

Why would you admire someone who doesn't have a TV? In what way do they deserve your admiration over someone who does own a TV? On your deathbed pretty much everything is pointless. All you can hope for is that you had (what you percieved to be) a good time while you were here.

hmm yeah, i don't own a TV. i dont think that's too alternative really. just that i think spending time on the saddle or spending time here or listening to music is better than watching crap shows, since i have all the control.

I think it's almost impossible to live a genuine alternative lifestyle, because all your actions which one would consider to constitute an alternative lifestyle are actually just the same as all other actions when you take them out of the situation that they arise in, i.e. the people that you are around, the city you're in, the clothes you're wearing.

To illustrate, my behaviour as an 18 year old is considered mildly peculiar in Basingstoke from the perspective of, say a 50 year old or a 16 year old: I ride a SS (which is about to be fixed) absolutely everywhere, I don't want to drive, I like philosophy and politics and I'm going to do a chemistry degree (which always stumps people when I tell them if they ask!)

Basically you end up with actions or no actions, you do or you don't. The eccentricity or centricity of the person only arises in context.

Not owning a TV is alternative by definition, purely because such a tiny per cent of the population shun them...
TVs are the number one weapon in the arsenal of advertisers and media corporations whose sole aim in life is to convince us to consume...refusing to allow them into your living room is admirable.

A person who spends their life doing altruisitc works will possibly feel more "fuller" than someone who spent their life making sure they had the latest jeans or consumed themselves with their image.....there must be something in the bible about this, maybe I'll convert.

You're right, I do make initial perceptions of image conscious people, unfortunately for them my perception probably isn't what they'd wish ....ooh they look alternative / unique /trendy /interesting......my perception is more like ....just another image obsessed, self-conscious dullard.

Personally, I don't really bother about what complete strangers think of my "image"...it's totally meaningless....unless of course there perception stops me from getting a job or something like that, then it becomes discrimination....

t'internet is the 21st century TV

> winston saided stuffs like..
> How about: not owning a TV

Tried that. It was great for 6 months but then I realised I would miss the Tour. LCD tv and Sky+ box to the rescue! Yeah, I'm shallow consumer scum. Bite me.

> A person who spends their life doing altruisitc works will possibly feel more "fuller" than someone who spent their life making sure they had the latest jeans or
> consumed themselves with their image

You are forgetting the fact that people who are only interested in owning the latest jeans are not going to give two shits about altruism.
Owning the latest jeans IS their fulfillment and on their deathbed they will still only care if they're dressed well for the occasion.

> Not owning a TV is alternative by definition, purely because such a tiny per cent of the population shun them

So, what about the tiny percentage of the population that ride their bikes everywhere? If it's a matter of percentages, aren't they 'alternative'?

My mate lives in a caravan - does that count?

yes

don't more people own bikes than cars?

I've run out of things to say now.....I'm off to register for the etape....in the rain....shall I go to Greenwich by bike and catch a cold before tomorrow?