New bike

Rarely do I buy myself something big, but this year I wanted to buy something for my (planned) upcoming trip: a bike.

I've been looking around and comparing prices, and found a Giant dealership nearby which give me everything I needed at a 10% discount. I bargained hard, and that was the best they could offer me, but the guy and his mother did offer me many useful tips on how to survive the long road trip.

So I went to pick up the bike today, a beautiful and speak black bike with blue lines. I added all the essentials: a carrier bag, lights, tool kit, bottle holders (two, because there are sections where there are no shops for dozens of kilometres...). And for the first time I bought a helmet, a bike jacket, padded biking pants, gloves, and even fashionable sunglasses. All together for around NT$ 28,000 (some $950). It's a lot of money I'm spending on myself in one go, but there are organised bike tours that charge that amount, if not more, and in the end you don't have a bike.

I happily rode my bike, the first 1.5km home. Mum greeted me, and i showed her my latest purchase. On the way home I bought some red bean soup and bean curd dessert, and gave some to mum as a little dessert.

She ate everything quickly. But within minutes everything came out quickly as well...

She held onto the toilet bowl and vomited again and again. "I'm so bad," she said apologetically, "That's the freshly squeezed juice from lunch..." It was so painful, so very painful to hear mum blame herself for vomiting...

Just as I thought the vomiting stopped, she coughed a bit, and again rushed to the toilet. This time even more came out. Mostly liquid form, but she threw up at least five times, everytime endless flows of liquid and food just poured out. I patted her back, but inside felt such pangs of pain, such a deep, deep sense of helplessness... Everything it seemed came out. Mum washed her mouth, but there was even more to come. Something is wrong I fear with her digestive system. It has been over three weeks since she began vomiting almost daily, and just yesterday I was saying how she seemed to be getting better, she apparently is not.

Weakened, she sat down, looked so very tired... I too sat down, somewhat guilty at the excitement and happiness I felt on my first brand new bike purchase in perhaps fifteen years...

I looked at mum, who looked so unwell, who was struggling to open a little package of her herbal medicine with her now clumsy hands and fingers...

Can I really go on this trip and leave her here all on her own? Can I leave her at all...? My bike stood in the corner and no longer looked so new and bright.