So I have been tirelessly researching bicycles for the last two weeks. I didn't realize that I knew so little. The bike I was riding before was so old and obsolete that there isn't anything equivalent to it in these modern times. So I have had to relearn bicycles.
I have been consumed by my quest for a new bike. I have been reading and reading and reading about cranks, cantilevers, cranksets, cassettes, and carbon fiber. I have been to three different bike shops; one of them I visited twice. I consider cost. I consider usage. I even consider which one is least likely to get stolen. I think about bicycles all the time. I dream about bicycles. I just can not figure out what to do.

But today I had a breakthrough. I discovered cyclocross and cyclocross bikes. I discovered that they are very versatile. I discovered that versatility is important to me. A cyclocross bike is like a roadbike but with a heftier frame and clearance for bigger tires so that it can ride off-road. I could put smaller tires on it and use it as a road bike. I could put racks on it and use it as a touring bike. It can do just about everything that I want a bicycle to do. Eureka!!!!
Now I can refine my search to cyclocross bikes and maybe that will get me closer to the day when I can ride again.