The Bicycle Thief

Don’t worry; my bike is still in my possession.

My title is referring to the 1948 Italian film of the same name, directed by Vittorio De Sica.

I watched the film for the first time about a week ago. I’ve just joined Netflix so I’ve been watching a lot of films. Mostly foreign.

This really is a lovely film, with such a simple plot. In my playwriting class I’ve been talking about how all characters in plays, films, novels, etc go on some sort of journey. Whether that journey takes the character across oceans, to the moon, or down the street to fetch a pint of milk doesn’t matter. It’s what happens to them on their journey, what they learn about themselves along the way and how or if they are changed in any way at the end of their journey. The journey in this film is not a long one, but boy is it an important one.

As I’ve been told in the past that I often spoil films for friends by revealing the ending before they’ve seen it, I won’t say anymore about the film. Although there’s a big clue as to what happens in the title and if you haven’t already seen it you should as soon as you can.

Incidentally, my housemate Tom almost had his bike stolen this week. He was visiting a couple in our neighbourhood and came out to find a guy about to ride away on his wheels. The bike wasn’t locked up so I guess you can’t really blame the guy (I think my viewing of the aforementioned film has made me a little more sympathetic towards bicycle thieves) but I wish we did live in a neighbourhood where you can happily leave your bike outside knowing it will still be there when you return.

I love my bike and don’t want to take any chances of it getting stolen, which is often why I use two locks when I leave it out for an extended period of time. One is my old D-lock I used with my previous bike in London. The other is a Mega chain lock that must weigh about 10-15lbs and cost me half of what I actually paid for my bike! If someone was able to break through both of those locks and take my bike, I guess I’d have to take my hat off to them for their excellent thieving skills.

In other news, this week I’ve finally got around to exploring part of the Flint River Trail, which has been on my cycling to-do list for a while. Yesterday I rode down to the Farmers Market to pick up some fresh milk, bread and a few veggies. The glass milk bottles made it home safely in my panniers, much to my relief. I can make pretty much the whole journey there and back on the trail as it winds through the UM-Flint Campus towards the Market. Then last night I ventured out a little further on the trail towards Kearsley Park as I was going to a concert there. I have to admit the ride there and back was more enjoyable than the concert itself, but it was nice to see a lot of people out in the park making the most of a rather overcast summers eve.

With the addition of cycling lanes downtown and the soon to be completed bike path on the west side of the city, it’s good to know this city is starting to take cycling a little more seriously.