NEVER AGAIN!
Lol, so just a funny story I thought I might share.

I have been craving chocolate, and with my sister gone all day at work, I decided that with no car available I could use my bike to ride the 2 and a half miles down the street to get to the pharmacy for some chocolate. 1/3rd of the way there, huffing and puffing, I realize I will most definitely need water on the way back, good thing I brought extra cash.

2/3rds of the way there.....
"I really thought it was much closer than this."
I am already pretty tired, but I know it's just past this building here-err...nevermind, still a ways to go.

Almost there, I can see it just around this big ole' swerving road...yet another 5-8 minutes pass before I reach my destination.

I enter the pharmacy, gasping and panting, and I'm pretty sure my face is red as a tomato as I collect my drink and a baggie of dark Dove chocolate. I get a few wary glances and confused stares to confirm my frazzled appearance. My lock doesn't fit around the bar that keeps your bike secure so I just have it stuck there in a way that looks like it's safeguarded and all the while I'm waiting in line with a vitamin water and my coveted chocolate, hoping someone doesn't decide to get nosy and poke around with my bike only to find it's ripe for the taking. 

The people in front of me finally finish, and I pay for my purchases....but I gave her $6 instead of $6.96 and I thought I had handed her 2 $5 bills, whereas I had handed her a $5 and a $1.
After a confusing back and forth:
"$6.96, please."
"Huh?"
"$6.96, please." thankfully she seems patient.
"Um..." *glances at the register, glances at my purchases, and finally at the cash*
.....*eyes widen in dawning realization and I swear she smirked in amusement*
"Oops!"
Correcting my mistake, I rush outside to find my bike still well and intact, and after an embarrassing (and likely hilarious from a bystander's viewpoint) hassle to undo my stuck lock and free my bike, I take a decent gulp of my drink before I make my way back up the hill, telling myself, "1/3rd of the way there!" at the appropriate time. But at this point my legs are giving out when I walk my bike up hills (not joking, my knee literally buckled and it startled the hell out of me) and it's completely dark out. I am a girl, and I'm on a bike, so I'm a little paranoid at this point, having thought I could make it there and back before the sun set completely. The pocket knife and pepper spray in my pocket don't offer as much comfort as they did when I left. And the chocolate doesn't feel like so much of a reward anymore.

And yet, after another 10 minutes or so of riding, I finally see the turn. And lucky for me the road down to my house is a nice steep incline, I nary have to pedal on the way down.

Needless to say, I got there and back safely, and in the end the chocolate was well worth the trip...but MY WORD! I am never underestimating the daunting distance of 2.5 miles by bike ever again.

I need to get a car.

(This actually turned into a little mini-story and I had no intention of it doing so)