First try at bike commuting

My bicycle suffered from sitting unused for a year, and one of the tire sidewalls was decomposing.  I started yesterday by walking to the nearby bike shop to see if they could fix it.  First trip.  Then I pushed the bike to the shop very gently -- both tires were significantly deflated, and I could not find the pump.  I waited while they replaced one tire and tube, bought a new helmet, picked up some bike maps, and took the bike out for a spin.  Second trip. 

One of the brakes squeaked terribly, so I took the bike back to the shop.  Third trip.  He replaced the brake pad for free, and I brought the bike home for the night.  Considerable rummaging did not turn up any of the keys to the bike lock, so I stopped on my way to work to buy a new lock (and keys!).  Fourth trip.

I had studied the bike maps, and set out for work.  In the process of shifting, the chain came off the sprockets, and peddling was frozen.  The bike was able to coast downhill, and I walked it on the uphills to return home to call a cab. 

Metro back home at the end of the day was not entirely straight forward.  The regular fare machines do not sell Smart Cards, so I asked for help.   When I got to the right machine,  I had a $20 bill in my pocket to buy the Smart Card, but the machine only took $10s -- so I fished out my credit card to get the Smart Card.  This was rush hour, and the first train only had room for a few people -- so I did not get on until the next train. 

The total door to door Metro commute, with walking home from Clarendon was almost 50 minutes.  Then I got the jammed bike, and walked it back to the bike shop.  Fifth trip.  He took off the pedal, unjammed the chain, and put it back together.  Unfortunately, the chain came off the sprockets again in testing, and since it was 7:00 closing time, he said I needed to leave it overnight so he can figure out the problem.  So tomorrow I will not have the bike until later in the day when I make my 6th trip to the shop.

I am very motivated to try the bike commute, and I was going to sign up for the City Cycling Class this Saturday in Arlington.  Unfortunately, the class is actually in Alexandria -- I am not sure I want to bike 9 miles each way for this class.