Every time a bell rings

I found a vintage cruiser in a junk heap outside our apartment building that no one laid claim to, so i decided to fix it up. Paul helped me with the rusted nuts and bolts and i degreased, cleaned and de-cobwebbed the rest of it to reveal an electric blue J.C. Higgins classic cruiser. There was one part that we needed to order so we took it to a logical place, the REI bike shop. I could have taken to a bike shop that was closer but since Paul worked at REI it seemed more logical. First, they said that they just needed to re-build the axle on the front tire...3 weeks later they decided they needed to just order a new front tire...4 weeks later, forgetting to put the order in they said they'd expedite at no cost...1 week later the "new tire" comes in and Paul puts it on my bike. The next morning I carry my newly working cruiser down 3 flights of stairs and throw my bag of teacherly goodies in the rear baskets and push off. The front wheel weebles and wobbles and I nearly crash. Clearly the axle is loose and the front tire is not working. Having lost 2 months of riding I decide to take her to a different bike shop. They take a look and tell me that the "new" front tire is not new and that the axle had been stripped. Not cool. Return parts to REI along with some unpleasantries. A "for real" new tire is ordered and less than 5 days later she's up and running beautifully, complete with a bike bell that says, "I love my bike" a gift from my friend Beth before she returned to New Zealand. This morning I take her for her virgin voyage and look down at the newly shined handlebars...some punks stole my bell.

I'm not sure what the moral of the story is here...i'll get back to ya after i kick some thieving booty.