Be Careful What You Search For

Have you ever searched for something on Google and later had a tough time explaining that search?  I have, and sometimes when I search for things that make sense at the time but are kind of oddball searches, I think about how I might explain that search.

Those of you who have been following my blog since the beginning probably know I have a set of wheels with spokes that come loose occasionally.  They’re great wheels, but for whatever reason I need to take them in about once a summer to have the spokes tightened.  The first time it happened, I wasn’t quite sure what to do about it.  Do I take them to a shop, send them back to the manufacturer or fix them myself?  Being a man who has never trued a set of wheels, but owns a truing stand, I went for option three.  Nothing like learning about wheels on a $3,000 set of wheels.

I talked to a local bike shop about the spokes and they told me that they use a loctite-like product on the spoke nipples called Nipple Freeze.  That should fix it, they said.  Nipple freeze.  I need to get my hands on some of that.

So I went home and Googled nipple freeze.  Believe it or not, the results weren’t filled with bike-related products.  Even worse, as I typed nipple freeze into the search bar I actually expected the first link to be the answer to my problems.  I was so focused on those wheels I didn’t even see it coming.  Clearly, I needed to refine my search.  I never did find the product they were talking about, and after learning more about the wheels I opted to send them back to the manufacturer and not risk ruining them with my backyard mechanics. 

Probably two months later, my ex-girlfriend was on my computer searching for something that started with an ‘n.’  Google gives you search suggestions based on past searches so…..

... she turns to me and asks, ‘why were you searching for nipple freeze?’

‘um….’

‘What are you planning?’

Be careful what you search for.  You may need to explain it later.