Dreaming about Bike Builds

There's a saying among the bike-addicted that the best number of bikes is (n+1), where "n" is the number of bikes currently owned.  In my "stable" (garage) there are currently a total of 6 bikes.  There's the TARDIS and the Trek (mountain bike, comments on this are forthcoming).  There's Prometheus the Grey Bike, my sister's urban bike, my boyfriend's hybrid (Trek FX 7.1) and mountain bike (Cannondale).  There's my mom's Townie in Dallas.  There's a probably-58 cm 1978 Schwinn LeTour III that's more or less in pieces, available for a price to anyone who wants it.  And yet, I still stare and ogle and dream.

My next bike is going to be probably a Mixte, due to the fact I live in a sprawling American city but want a feminine, step-through framed bike tricked out as a commuter (this was the original idea behind the Townie until it was claimed).  But then I look at the Bella Ciao Neorealista Veloce and my Italian genetics tell me I would look fabulous sailing down the road on such a refined, beautifully made little number.

Then I look at Dutch and Danish Oma bikes and am in love with their comfort, stability, and sheer tank-like ability to withstand anything.  But I'm so short!  What if it's like piloting an SUV?  But there's Pashley, making the beautiful Princess Sovereign which from everything I know is a bit less enormous in it's feel than a Dutch bike.  But then I consider that those types of bikes are known to not be terribly hill friendly, and let's face it, I live in a place called the "Hill Country".  The bike will have to go up hills.  Do I want to try that on these incredibly beautiful, but possibly impractical gigantic machines?  I've only ever stood next to a Gazelle Toer Populaire and the first thing that struck me about it was how bloody enormous the thing was.

The fact is, like any collector, it's hard for me to get bored with all the permutations of bike in the world, and even harder not to want to collect 'em all like they're Pokemon.  But finances and space constraints are very real considerations and I can't just have ALL the bikes.

Anyone want to buy a really cool, really big old Schwinn for a few bucks to finance my next project?