After El Cinco, Le Huit

 Three days ago, Cinco de Mayo was celebrated by, I am told, more gringos in Los Estados Unidos than actual Mexicans anywhere in the world.

Today is another holiday or day of commemoration, depending on where you are.  Or, if you are in the Americas, you might not be aware of it.

On this date in 1945, the Allies accepted the unconditional surrender of German forces.  Since then, in France and other countries, this date is celebrated as Victory in Europe Day.  (If you hear a French person say something that sounds like “wheat-may,” they’re talking about huit mai: this date). In Germany, it is a somber day of commemoration.  Here in the US, it was observed mainly by veterans—of whom very few remain—of World War II’s European theatre.

As I noted in an earlier post, bicycles played a significant role in the war and led, interestingly, to lighter bicycles and changes in civilian attire.

Here is a photo Robert John McNary Smith, who served in engineer and weather units of the US Army, took on the Champs-Elysées on 8 May 1945.  It’s part of the National World War II Museum’s collection.

Precisely

In a shop I frequented, a mechanic wore a lab coat and stethoscope while working on bikes.  

That was just one of his eccentricities. Turns out, he’s not the only mechanic I knew who viewed his work in medical terms: Another, who also owned a shop where I worked, told us that bearing surfaces should be “surgically” clean before lubing then.

Ironically, yet another mechanic of my acquaintance went to medical school and never talked about his work in that way. In fact, he didn’t talk about his work at all.

In case you’re wondering how the first mechanic in this story got a lab coat and stethoscope: His wife was a nurse in a nearby hospital.

Fuel Efficiency

 Today is Cinco de Mayo.

So, of course, I am going to ride--and eat Mexican food.  Which Mexican food(s), I haven't decided yet.

But I think this T-shirt might influence my choice: