I didn’t know mudguards could be so revealing. So I needed a
set of mudguards for my bicycle. They prevent dirt and mud and water from
spraying your back and front when cycling, particularly when the ground is wet
or when cycling in the rain. I wanted to get some on eBay. The cheapest and
most decent looking ones were from East Asia and therefore, would take approximately
three to four weeks to arrive. By then, I would have finished my exams and
undergoing preparations to go back to my hometown. So what would be the point? So
I decided if you want it so cheap suck it up and go to the pound stores. I
think part of me thought I wouldn’t find one and if I did the colour would be
so awkward, I wouldn’t want to get one. The first store I went to sold them in
blue, the second had them in black. I should have been ecstatic right? No, I
wasn’t. I didn’t want these mudguards from these shops. I am happy to buy a lot
of things from ‘these shops’ as long as people do not know it is from there.
This mudguard will stick out proudly behind my bicycle and advertise itself. I know
my fellow cyclists will know where I got it from. Shocking! Yes I shocked myself.
So I decided I’d rather have nothing at all, than having to compensate with a
cheap quality something. If something is worth investing in, it should make you
feel good and proud. PRIDE
I also have an obsession about having too much things,
because I can be rather disorganised, messy and clumsy but also I have a traveller’s
mentality. I try to avoid having too much clutter. I don’t like the idea of
baggage and things slowing me down. And the idea of moving my bike and its
mudguard sticking at a funny angle or, my mudguard slowing me down whilst
cycling put me off. SIMPLICITY
Then I also thought why do I need to cycle in the rain when
I actually only cycle to save time.
I remember a Business Studies lecturer constantly saying, time is a commodity, time is money, you won’t get your time back and I would
quote him as well. But one of my friends kept replying, it’s your time, how do
you want to spend it? I read a story once about a man and his colleague waiting
for a train. His colleague mentioned that there was an earlier train that would
allow them to save 20 minutes. So he agreed and got on the train. When they got
to their destination he saw a bench and sat down. His colleague asked why he
did such a thing. He said what did they save the time for?
When I was coming to university, I didn’t want to bring my
bike with me. There was a reason. When I use my bike, I rush. I want to fit more
into my day than is necessary. I wanted to use walking as a tool to slow me
down. So I rationalised that when the ground was wet or when it rains I should
not use my bike, hence no need for mudguards. I should be more organised so that
when it rains, I allow enough time to get too my destination, just like I
wanted in my first year at University. It didn’t last by the way. TIME AND ORGANISATION
Wow! So trying to buy some mudguards for a bargain price shows that, I care what people think of me and that I need to slow down.
We have a valuable lesson her. When it rains maybe we need to spend a bit more time doing fewer
things.
I bought the mudguard even though the argument for was a ratio of 1:2.
