Randy | Blooming Bicycle Diary

Randy 

come Shengkai Bicycle has been running for more than three months. During the operation, I met many interesting people. I would record some of them on a daily basis. Today, I have selected some clips from July and August to share with you.

Tuesday, July 23, 2024

It's quite powerful.

Today I led a parent-child tour group. There were more than twenty vehicles of various sizes. When loading, the master and I moved the vehicles up and down together. The master looked at me and smiled and said, "You are a woman with great strength!" After hearing that, I worked even harder, thinking to myself that I, as a woman, am indeed quite strong.

Sitting in the front passenger seat, the driver asked me how old I was this year. I reported truthfully. He calculated and said, "We were both born in the Year of the Horse. I am exactly one year older than you. We people born in the Year of the Horse are all very cheerful." We talked about our respective work experiences and the economic downturn in recent years. He lamented that I had reached 50 years old without realizing it. I said I had not expected that in a few years I would be almost 40.

The driver left his contact information and said we could contact him again next time we needed a car.

(Huolala co-pilot’s perspective)

Tuesday, July 30, 2024

Young people riding bicycles

This afternoon, an older customer said that she hadn't ridden a bike for a long time and wanted to try our mountain bikes. The customer said that in the city, she only rides shared bikes, and her family always forbids her from riding bikes because they are worried about her safety. Now that she is retired and wants to go out on her own, she must try this "young people's bike".

After hearing what she said I was a little worried, but I was also looking forward to her being able to ride freely for a while.

I quickly taught the aunt a few key points of riding a bike, just like teaching a child. I accompanied her to practice for a while on the road beside the wheat field. Soon she could ride steadily. She was very happy and asked me to take some photos for her. She wanted to send them to her family, "See how good I am now."

I remember the eight-year-old kid who learned to ride a bike in front of the store last time. On the day he learned to ride a bike, he told everyone he saw, "I learned to ride a bike!"

Happiness is contagious.

(Practicing riding a "young man's" bike)

Thursday, August 1, 2024

A cup of tea

In the afternoon, a sweaty young man came over and said he wanted to borrow a bicycle. His bicycle had a flat tire and he needed to deliver something to someone. He would be back in about ten minutes. I heard his accent was local, so after confirming with him, I said no problem, just pay a deposit and go, we won't charge you for a few minutes.

As a result, he was gone for 3 hours. During the journey, I was worried that he might abscond with the car. We left in a hurry and did not add contact information. Various movie plots began to play out in my mind. Later, he finally came back and explained to me that he was delayed by waiting for someone there. I said that we need to charge some money according to the time. He said no problem, and then handed me a cup of Heytea, saying that he bought it for me to express his gratitude.

I was suddenly a little overwhelmed and quickly returned the money to him. I said you treated me to a drink, I treated you to a bike ride, let's be friends, you are welcome to come and visit me again in the future. He said okay, let's wait until the next holiday to come and ride again.

(Tastes good)

Friday, August 2, 2024

Model Parents

My parents brought a pair of brothers. The younger brother sat in the bike with a rear-mounted child seat that their father rode. The older brother was about five years old, and I chose a 20-inch bike for him. When he rode on it, his toes just touched the ground, but he was not very brave to ride and wanted to sit in the back seat like his younger brother.

Mom said that he was usually quite good at riding a bike, but he was just a little cautious. Dad parked the bike and patiently guided him, and accompanied him to practice in the open space in front of the store. Mom encouraged him gently, "Look how happy he is riding. He said he didn't dare, but his face was happy!", "Look, you are riding better now than before. We can set off after practicing for a while~" After some time, the family put on their equipment and set off smoothly. They rode more than 20 kilometers along the ecological corridor, and said that the experience was great when they came back!

I wrote my brother a bicycle-themed card to congratulate him on his growing up.

(Back view of father and son)

Friday, August 2, 2024

Grandpa knows everything

A villager who lives nearby came to the store to chat with me. He was wearing a pair of red sneakers and talked to me in dialect about Marx, Engels, the three-horse carriage, market economy, the operation of the universe, etc. There were some parts that I didn’t quite understand, so he used paper and pen to write down Qi Baishi, Van Gogh, and a mathematical formula.

Talking about our shop, he said that business is not good now, and being able to pay the rent and maintain the business is enough. Don't ask for too much, just be able to hold on.

Before leaving, he told me to exercise well and eat less meat and rice so that I could stay healthy.

(Words written by grandpa)

Saturday, August 3, 2024

Brave Mom

In the morning, a mother and son came to the store. The boy looked about sixteen or seventeen years old. He wanted to rent a road bike. He said he had ridden one before, but not much, and today he wanted to try riding a longer distance.

The boy didn't have a cell phone, so he asked me to draw him a simple map around Erhai Lake. I wrote the store phone number on it, reminded him to wear a helmet, told him some tips on riding, gave him 20 yuan in cash, and then he set off.

On the way, I sent a message to my mother asking her to remind the child not to ride outside the ecological corridor when she meets him in the corridor. My mother said that she had not met the child yet, and that the child would call her if there was any problem. The child is usually independent, so I can rest assured.

When the boy came back in the evening, he had actually circled the Erhai Lake and harvested two red arms.

(A simple map I drew for him)

(Mom’s circle of friends)

Later, I thought about this incident carefully again, and I admired the boy's mother very much for being brave enough to let go. I guess such letting go is the result of accumulation.

Monday, August 5, 2024

Spreading Kindness

When I went to throw away the garbage last night, I saw a grandma rummaging through the trash can for plastic bottles. Thinking that many of our customers would leave empty beverage bottles behind when they rode back from their bikes, I put a bag at the door and collected them.

In the afternoon, grandma happened to take away a bag, and this small action conveyed kindness.

Tuesday, August 6, 2024

Have passion

I received a call at around 9 o'clock last night regarding a car. The customer sounded very anxious and asked me about the model of my road bike. Finally, he decided to come to our store to test ride it. After a test ride, he felt that some places needed slight adjustments to better suit his riding habits. However, I was not that proficient in the business at that time, so he did it himself when he got stuck. I handed him the tools and watched him concentrate on pulling the wires and tightening the screws. Soon, he adjusted the bike to the state he wanted.

He looks young, and upon asking, he turns out to be just thirteen years old. He likes riding a bike very much and also likes to study it, so he knows some techniques of adjusting the bike.

Seeing how serious he is, I am quite touched and want to learn from him.

(A boy who is very professional in shunting cars)

Saturday, August 10, 2024

Shop assistant

I received a favorable comment and was addressed as “Shop Assistant Sister”. I need to gradually get used to this title.

Sunday, August 11, 2024

The sleepless Huolala master

Today I led a team from Xizhou to Gucheng and transported some cars there. The departure time agreed with the Lalamove driver was 7:50. At around 7:00, the driver called and asked if it could be advanced to 7:30. I didn't think much about it, thinking that he was in a hurry to deliver the goods later, so I told him no problem. Later, when we talked on the way, I found out that the driver couldn't sleep, so he wanted to arrive early.

But I wanted to sleep a little longer! Brother! I smiled bitterly and sighed in my heart.

The scenery on the road today was very nice. Cangshan Mountain was very beautiful on a rainy day. I was fascinated by the scenery and chatted with the master from time to time. When we talked about the limited-time vehicle entry into Xizhou, he said some bad things and talked about the unfair things in their village. I was not surprised and continued to enjoy the scenery.

(Scenery outside the window)

Tuesday, August 13, 2024

Professionalism First

Today, we prepared a car for a team. Yesterday afternoon, the coach checked the car one by one, including tire pressure, gear, brake, bottle cage, bell, front and rear wheels, etc. Our car inspection was very detailed. When the team leader came to pick up the car, he checked it again, and also carefully checked the helmets, gloves and other equipment.

While the teacher was checking the vehicles, the teacher was explaining the riding rules in a serious tone. After that, he asked the students to repeat several important riding rules. I said that you checked very carefully, and the instructor said, "Yes, this is a safety issue."

Learn from them, safety first, professionalism above all.

Thursday, August 22, 2024

Solved the case

Yesterday, a boy who rented a car didn’t return it on time and he couldn’t be contacted on WeChat. We almost called the police. Later, with the help of two friends, we did a thorough search and finally found him.

It turned out that he accidentally lost his cell phone, and his father didn't let him go out, so he couldn't return the bike. I hope he's okay. I dreamed last night that he rode a bike to Xishuangbanna, and he disappeared on the road. I woke up with fright at 4 a.m. and couldn't fall asleep again.

However, this "case" also reminds us to think about how to optimize the car rental process.

(On the way to solve the case)

Saturday, August 24, 2024

You guys are teachers.

Today, a family of three rode from Guchengdian to Xizhou. During the chat, I learned that the child was going to enter the third grade. Seeing that he was sweating profusely, I gave him a bottle of milk. When he was drinking, he accidentally spilled the milk, and some of it was spilled on the sofa and the floor. Seeing this, his mother blamed him a little. I quickly comforted him and said it was okay and he just needed to wipe it off.

His mother asked him to get down from the sofa to help, but he was a little reluctant. Then his father said, "Look, your aunt is helping you clean up the things you spilled. Don't you feel a little guilty? Aren't you embarrassed at all?" At this time, his mother was also helping to clean up.

When I went to rinse the mop, I heard the parents still talking about the child. I felt that the child was a little embarrassed and a little resistant. I said it was okay and I could handle it. I asked him if he had learned to mop the floor at school and invited him to help. At first he said he didn't know how to mop the floor, but after a while he said he was responsible for mopping the floor at school, and then he came down to pick up the mop and mop the floor. I praised him for mopping well and told him that milk can help clean the floor. Now the floor is a little cleaner than before, and he mopped more vigorously.

My father next to me said, "You are a teacher after all." I straightened my back even more.

When we said goodbye, the boy waved to me twice, and I became friends.

(This boy is not that boy)

Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Crab Kung Fu

Today a father came with his son. They wanted to use the last summer vacation to practice riding a bicycle. The child used to be able to ride a little, but later he fell and didn't dare to ride anymore. The father came here on a motorcycle, and I asked him to transport the bicycle back first and then come to pick up the child.

While his dad was delivering the bike, I spent a short time with the kid. I taught him how to ride a bike, he told me what happened at school, and even performed the crab move for me. We had a pretty good chat.

Unexpectedly, the kid came over again in the afternoon. His father took him to ride a bicycle. He learned how to ride a bicycle! His father told me that he wanted to come over to tell me that he had learned it. It was really exciting.

I wrote him a card to congratulate him on learning his new skill. Come to think of it, bicycles are quite attractive.