I was biking home from a meeting downtown. I was hungry and in Highland Park. I’d been meaning to stop into the Victor Bakery, but it was Monday and they were closed. Just nearby I discovered Bigg Rod’s Candy Shop was open, as open as a tiny store can be.

And what a great address: 4 Victor.

So, I leaned the bike outside and started inside.

An African-American tween asked, “What am I doing here?”

My suburban-bred-jump-to-conclusions-stereotypical thought was, is it because I’m a white guy?

Before I said a thing, she replied, “You’re an adult!”

I still have much to unlearn.

I purchased some gummy worms and funky coconut treats for cheap and hit the road.

I began thinking that if Bigg Rod was truly big, I couldn’t see him fitting inside his own store.

This also made me realize that this old time candy store offered one major dietary benefit. It might help explain why obesity rates were lower back in the day. If you ate too much candy and got fat, you could no longer get inside to buy more. Candy was a treat for the fit.

Now that’s a genius design!

I don’t recall ever having so many memorable rides in one year. Maybe I’ve been too caught up in training rather than just riding. Maybe I just haven’t been as adventurous riding around town. Maybe it’s because I’m older.

No matter what the reason, I had a wealth of memorable rides last year. Rides that have stuck with me, changed me. Rides that give me a little flush of adrenalin just replaying them in my head. Rides that make me feel fortunate. (more…)