Scooter Practicality

Sure it gets 80 miles to the gallon and is just plain fun to drive, but "is a scooter practical" the grown up inside you asks. If the ability to haul home "stuff" is included in the list of what makes your transportation practical, then worry not--a scooter will do.

Among the things my husband and I have carried by scoot: the weekly groceries (each driving our own scoot), gold fish (not recommended), luggage and camping gear for a weekend rally, all the essentials for a day at work including a full change of business clothes and, most recently, two sad shrubs.

What do you need to get the job done?

Many modern scoots include ample under seat storage--great for holding your helmet while you're in the store and hauling your stuff on the ride home. My little 50 cc Vino is great for trips to the library. Oversize books, DVDs and paperbacks all find a home under the seat.

Have a vintage bike, Stella or Bajaj with a pesky engine under the seat? No worries. Just pack your trusty bungee cords. They're great for strapping things to whatever part of the bike is handy.

If you've got a glove box, fill it up! I once made a lunch run to Campero Chicken and safely brought back my meal, including a fountain soda, in the glove box.

If you've got a front or rear luggage rack, add a cargo net to your bungee collection and you're pretty much set for life. You name it and you can quickly strap it on--just be careful not to get too carried away and overload things.

The much maligned purse hook also really comes in handy for holding your purse (duh) and any other bag, paper or plastic, with a handle.

And when all else fails, there's always your trusty back pack! That's scooter practicality.

Chasing butterflies

It doesn't get much better than this. Morning temperatures in the 50s; temps in the 70s/low 80s for the ride home. And maybe best of all, no humidity! Ah, if only fall lasted a little longer in our nation's capitol.

Forget playing hooky during the dog days of summer--hop on your bike and bask in the shady splendor of autumn. Chase a butterfly or two.

On the road again

I may only have one ear (luckily the other was found and just needs to be reattached), but I'm finally back on two wheels. My ankle isn't 100 percent better, but it's close enough.

To celebrate my mobility, after some yummy lunch at a local Labor Day festival on Monday, we took a 50 mile ride out of suburbia. We explored a "new" tree lined and twisty road to its end before heading back home. For once I left the camera at home and was probably the better for it. It's really amazing what a ride through the country can do for you.

Ho hum

So life has been pretty boring for me of late. A nasty head cold followed by a sprained ankle have had me feeling rather "ho hum." And, worst of all, have kept me off my scooter for almost three weeks now--needless to say, I'm getting a little stir crazy!

This lack of mobility has left me feeling rather sluggish on the creative side as well, but I did manage to get a piece finished (all be it a week late) in response to the creative challenge in the Etsy forums. My entry, some hot new stickers (pictured above), feature cayenne, purple haze, nectar, mint leaf and corn silk from the fall color chart.

My ankle is slowly getting better and I have high hopes for getting back in gear soon!

Mark Your Calendar!

Be sure to save a spot on your calendar for the UNusual Suspects Arts & Crafts Festival on Saturday, Nov. 3, in Bethesday, Md. Polly Scoots is excited to take part in this awesome show presented by the D.C. Craft Mafia.

Guess I better start making my "to do" list!

Postcard from the road: odds, ends and oddities

As our journey north began two weeks ago (and finished just a few days after that), I figure it's about time to wrap up this set of entries. Ryan has promised to provide a post about small displacement motorcycles available outside U.S., but in the meantime, I'll finish with some additional images from the road.

A grape squashing frog in North East, Pa.

Great stuff for your yard

A noble chief in Dunkirk, N.Y.Llamas at the Toronto Zoo

Warnings at the local church

Beautiful centerpieces at the reception

Public recycling options in downtown TorontoSage advise at Dunkirk

Postcard from the road: Toronto Scooter Shops

It's always a treat to visit a scooter shop when traveling someplace new. Sure, they usually have a lot of the things I'd find at home, but there's always something that I haven't seen before (and generally must have) and new scooterists to meet.

If you're in town, I highly recommend a visit to Motoretta (Vespa Toronto). The shop has two locations: we visited the one on College Street in the heart of Little Italy, not far from the University of Toronto. If you've visited the shops in the D.C. area, you'll understand Ryan's description of this great store: "it's a combination of Vespa Washington and The District Line." A number of great looking new Vespas were featured along with some hot classic bikes and loads of books, clothing and assorted merchandise for the scooter enthusiast.

For me, the decor was just perfect for a scooter shop. Scooter art lined the walls (some for sale and some not), memorabilia of all types was tucked onto the shelves and there was even a lighted display running along the front of the store detailing the history of Vespa. And merchandise wasn't limited to Vespa branded apparel. There were books on Lambrettas, general scooter tomes, and clothing lines from Fred Perry, Ben Sherman and Adidas.

Needless to say, we left with a bag of goodies (a Lambretta model, an awesome Adidas bag and a Motoretta t-shirt). Well worth the stop in!

After our visit to Motoretta, we spent an enjoyable afternoon exploring Kensington Market were we spotted these fun jackets (pictured below). I was already feeling a little guilty about overindulging on scooter stuff, so I resisted taking one home--put I did snap a picture!

One shop we didn't make it to, and didn't even know we were near, was Vespa Markham. During our visit to Toronto we stayed in a suburb about 20 miles north of downtown to be close to the wedding that was our real reason for the journey north. On our last night in town, we decided to visit Main Street in neighboring Markham, which looked to be lined with good places to eat. Low and behold it was also home to a scooter shop. Alas, we got there after closing, but still took a peak inside the windows--there's always next time!


note: travel log not posted in real time