Just a quick update on my local alternative transportation efforts. After the first bus debacle, the next week I was certain I had it figured out. I walked to my corner on time but the bus sped past me without stopping. I was a few feet from the curb and gave the driver the benefit of the doubt that he didn't expect me so didn't see me.
So the next morning I was waiting there again. This time the bus drove on a parallel road, not my road! I stomped back to my house (again) and called Columbia Transportation on my way (yes, I had the number). I was directed to the dispatcher. The dispatcher explained that the 7:25 and 8:05 101 North buses do not go on my road because of traffic. First of all, that is not printed anywhere on any maps or schedules. Second, traffic on my road is ONLY an issue when Mizzou is in full session and it wasn't on that day! I watched the bus sit at the parallel road's intersection for at least as long as he would have waited on my road.
That day I had a good conversation with the Transportation Supervisor. He assured me the bus would return to regular routes the following Monday.
It has, and for the last 2 weeks I have finally enjoyed trouble-free rides on the bus. I have found it more beneficial to me to sit quietly rather than use my iPod or read. I enjoy a peaceful 20-25 minutes twice a day when I ride. The bus ridership is a community. I enjoy learning about their community, but have not been included. I believe they think I suffered a DWI and I will quit riding as soon as my drivers license is returned.
It has rained a lot the last few weeks, but I have managed to ride my bike to work one day a week as well.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Thursday, May 15, 2008
You Never Knew Love Until You Crossed the Line of Grace
The California Supreme Court today decided that a CA statute that limited "marriage" to man-woman couples violated the CA constitution. The statutory scheme under review, and passed by the CA legislature, gave both opposite-sex and same-sex couples the right to enter into an officially recognized family relationship that afforded all of the significant legal rights and obligations traditionally associated with marriage. But the union of an opposite-sex couple was officially designated a "marriage" and the union of a same-sex couple was officially designated a "domestic partnership."
I cannot begin to describe the vagaries of CA law, especially CA case law (written by their courts). I generally don't bother to read CA court opinions. Today I still take little notice of the court's reasoning, though I did skim the 121 page opinion. But I do take this opportunity to address, lightly, the issue of same-sex marriages and to seek your opinions.
Legally, it is certainly within CA's rights to allow same-sex marriages. Personally, I don't mind if they do. I have read and contemplated the objections to allowing same-sex marriages and most of the objections are rooted in a belief that homosexuality is a sin. I'm not convinced it's a sin, but that is not my point here.
So let's assume for these purposes that being gay or lesbian is NOT a sin. What are the remaining objections to allowing same-sex marriage?
I cannot begin to describe the vagaries of CA law, especially CA case law (written by their courts). I generally don't bother to read CA court opinions. Today I still take little notice of the court's reasoning, though I did skim the 121 page opinion. But I do take this opportunity to address, lightly, the issue of same-sex marriages and to seek your opinions.
Legally, it is certainly within CA's rights to allow same-sex marriages. Personally, I don't mind if they do. I have read and contemplated the objections to allowing same-sex marriages and most of the objections are rooted in a belief that homosexuality is a sin. I'm not convinced it's a sin, but that is not my point here.
So let's assume for these purposes that being gay or lesbian is NOT a sin. What are the remaining objections to allowing same-sex marriage?
Friday, May 9, 2008
I'm Ready for What's Next
The weather could hardly have been worse for Bike Walk and Wheel Week. I've already said how Monday went, but Tuesday was pretty uneventful and the only nice weather I had the rest of the week. For Tuesday, just a nice 25-minute bike ride in to the office. I coasted down a steep hill as fast as it would go, enjoying the wind, feeling fast. I heard a sound and looked over my shoulder just in time to see a woman whip by me on her road bike. "No one likes a show off!" I tried to remind her, but she was already out of earshot.
Wednesday was rainy and muddy, I reluctantly drove my car. But I knew that Thursday the buses were free all day, so as I was leaving the office Wednesday I told my department colleagues, "I'm riding the bus tomorrow." They all started laughing. I huffed a bit, then someone said, "You have a 9 o'clock meeting, you know." Now I was upset. There was no reason to worry about that. I had studied the schedules and maps. I assured them I understood the system and could make the transfer. The word "transfer" sent them into hysterics.
Thursday morning was very light rain, almost a mist. I wanted to get to my bus stop, only 3 tenths of a mile from my house, a few minutes early. I arrived at the corner at 7:45 am, 5 minutes ahead of time. And it was a good thing, because there was the bus! I hopped on and settled back to enjoy the ride. I love mass transportation when I'm in larger cities, and honestly it has just been that "transfer" that has kept me from riding it here at home. We picked up about 20 more riders, all young college age kids. At what I estimated to be halfway to the bus station, and maybe a minute or two ahead of schedule, the bus turned onto campus. Uh-oh.
The bus stopped at the student union and everyone got out. The bus driver looked at me and asked, "Where are you trying to go?" I told him I was headed to the downtown bus station. "Wrong bus," he said. I was stunned. He explained that on university school days, they run an additional bus that only goes onto campus, then back to neighborhoods. No map or schedule I looked at had this special Gold Route bus on it! From every map I looked at, the only bus that would come by my street was the Orange Route bus that would take me to the station!
Talking with the driver for 5 minutes was more helpful than all my map and schedule studies. He even apologized, "It's on me. I thought maybe when you got on, and I should have asked. Maybe if you were 50 pounds heavier and your hair..." I took that as a compliment. He told me I could go back one block and catch the Brown and it would take me downtown.
I waited on the corner a bit, then realized I had no idea when it would come and (having already missed one transfer) I could not afford the time to miss another transfer. I was only a mile from the bus station so I walked it (with a quick stop at a downtown coffee shop I rarely get time to visit anymore). I arrived at the bus station with about 15 minutes to wait for the next bus going the direction I needed. With the specific instructions from the first driver, I had no trouble. The bus dropped me off a short jaunt from my office at 8:56. Four minutes to make it to my 9 o'clock meeting! I hustled and walked straight into the meeting right at 9 with my bag still on my shoulder. It was my department that was meeting, the people who had laughed the evening before, and my reception was great fun.
My ride home was uneventful and much faster, only 35 minutes from getting on the first bus and arriving at home. I felt like a pro already and bought a 25-ride bus pass. And that was only Thursday, Friday was Free Breakfast Day!
Friday morning it was raining, but I had only biked once this week and I really wanted that free breakfast for walkers and bikers. I wore my waterproof hiking pants and jacket over my work clothes and headed out on my bike in the rain. After just a couple miles my ass was wet. Just what does waterproof mean, anyway? I passed the first breakfast station without stopping because I wanted the one hot breakfast being offered and it was downtown. Free Broadway Diner breakfast made the wet, muddy ride worthwhile. I sat with a county judge and enjoyed flaky biscuits, sausage gravy, hot eggs and orange juice. A newspaper reporter interviewed us, but (in my opinion) she wasn't writing down the right things to include in her article. I stopped at one more station and huddled under a canopy with a few other bikers and hot cups of strong coffee. Having a wet ass at work is rather annoying, but there you have it: Bike Walk and Wheel Week.
I will call this BWWW a success for me. It has certainly motivated me to ride my bike and the bus to work more often. My commitment is to ride the bus at least once every week, and to get the boys on the bus regularly.
One more thing, did I mention that next week is National Bike to Work Week?
Wednesday was rainy and muddy, I reluctantly drove my car. But I knew that Thursday the buses were free all day, so as I was leaving the office Wednesday I told my department colleagues, "I'm riding the bus tomorrow." They all started laughing. I huffed a bit, then someone said, "You have a 9 o'clock meeting, you know." Now I was upset. There was no reason to worry about that. I had studied the schedules and maps. I assured them I understood the system and could make the transfer. The word "transfer" sent them into hysterics.
Thursday morning was very light rain, almost a mist. I wanted to get to my bus stop, only 3 tenths of a mile from my house, a few minutes early. I arrived at the corner at 7:45 am, 5 minutes ahead of time. And it was a good thing, because there was the bus! I hopped on and settled back to enjoy the ride. I love mass transportation when I'm in larger cities, and honestly it has just been that "transfer" that has kept me from riding it here at home. We picked up about 20 more riders, all young college age kids. At what I estimated to be halfway to the bus station, and maybe a minute or two ahead of schedule, the bus turned onto campus. Uh-oh.
The bus stopped at the student union and everyone got out. The bus driver looked at me and asked, "Where are you trying to go?" I told him I was headed to the downtown bus station. "Wrong bus," he said. I was stunned. He explained that on university school days, they run an additional bus that only goes onto campus, then back to neighborhoods. No map or schedule I looked at had this special Gold Route bus on it! From every map I looked at, the only bus that would come by my street was the Orange Route bus that would take me to the station!
Talking with the driver for 5 minutes was more helpful than all my map and schedule studies. He even apologized, "It's on me. I thought maybe when you got on, and I should have asked. Maybe if you were 50 pounds heavier and your hair..." I took that as a compliment. He told me I could go back one block and catch the Brown and it would take me downtown.
I waited on the corner a bit, then realized I had no idea when it would come and (having already missed one transfer) I could not afford the time to miss another transfer. I was only a mile from the bus station so I walked it (with a quick stop at a downtown coffee shop I rarely get time to visit anymore). I arrived at the bus station with about 15 minutes to wait for the next bus going the direction I needed. With the specific instructions from the first driver, I had no trouble. The bus dropped me off a short jaunt from my office at 8:56. Four minutes to make it to my 9 o'clock meeting! I hustled and walked straight into the meeting right at 9 with my bag still on my shoulder. It was my department that was meeting, the people who had laughed the evening before, and my reception was great fun.
My ride home was uneventful and much faster, only 35 minutes from getting on the first bus and arriving at home. I felt like a pro already and bought a 25-ride bus pass. And that was only Thursday, Friday was Free Breakfast Day!
Friday morning it was raining, but I had only biked once this week and I really wanted that free breakfast for walkers and bikers. I wore my waterproof hiking pants and jacket over my work clothes and headed out on my bike in the rain. After just a couple miles my ass was wet. Just what does waterproof mean, anyway? I passed the first breakfast station without stopping because I wanted the one hot breakfast being offered and it was downtown. Free Broadway Diner breakfast made the wet, muddy ride worthwhile. I sat with a county judge and enjoyed flaky biscuits, sausage gravy, hot eggs and orange juice. A newspaper reporter interviewed us, but (in my opinion) she wasn't writing down the right things to include in her article. I stopped at one more station and huddled under a canopy with a few other bikers and hot cups of strong coffee. Having a wet ass at work is rather annoying, but there you have it: Bike Walk and Wheel Week.
I will call this BWWW a success for me. It has certainly motivated me to ride my bike and the bus to work more often. My commitment is to ride the bus at least once every week, and to get the boys on the bus regularly.
One more thing, did I mention that next week is National Bike to Work Week?
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
I'm Ready for the Gridlock
This is "Bike Walk and Wheel Week" where I live. BWWW is "a weeklong program of events designed to encourage all Columbians to use active modes of transportation to get to work, school or wherever they need to go around town."
I usually try to bike to work every day this week. It is a 5-mile commute, which is an easy ride - if it weren't for the hills. Columbia is very hilly but I have figured out a route that includes only 1 big climb and adds little distance. But it's really the hills that keep me from biking to work more often. It's not the work of the hills, it's the sweating. But BWWW is always in May and usually the perfect temperature for riding so I try not to let excuses stop me this week.
Monday morning I got up a little earlier than usual and was ready to go. Of course, I had not prepared; what's to prepare? I'm riding a bike. I couldn't find my helmet. I asked Aaron (yes, the 5-year old) and without hesitation he said, "It's in the box with our helmets and pads." How does he know these things?
My bike was hanging on the ceiling hook I use for storing the bike. I lifted it off the hook and let it swing to toward the ground. Unfortunately, my car was parked closer than I thought and the tire bounced off the bumper sending the bike back up at my head. It hit me in the mouth hard enough to start bleeding.
Being the first ride of the year, the tires were flat. No biggie, I have a pump. Sadly, the pump hose sprung a leak. So I had to pump furiously and quickly pop the nozzle off to gain a net increase in tire pressure. The tires managed adequate firmness.
I need a bike chain to park my bike at work, and I have two. I could not remember the combination to one, no matter how many times I tried. I should have told Aaron the combo last year, he would know it. My other chain was a key lock and I could not find the key.
I never did find the key or remember the combination, and at some point I realized I was supposed to be at work 5 minutes ago. I did not ride my bike to work on Monday of BWWW.
But I did today! And I will all week, unless we have thunderstorms Wednesday or Thursday as they predict. Fortunately, the weather for Friday morning looks clear because on Friday of BWWW there are several locations that offer free breakfast for active commuters. Last year I managed to stop at 3 (although 1 of those turned out to be a stop for school kids, but I didn't find out till I was sitting there eating my muffin and sipping my juice box and looked around and it was all school kids, and there were the busses, and the teachers were looking at me strangely, and it WAS a juice box after all...).
Maybe I'll let you know how breakfast goes this year, I'll try not to take some kid's muffin this time.
I usually try to bike to work every day this week. It is a 5-mile commute, which is an easy ride - if it weren't for the hills. Columbia is very hilly but I have figured out a route that includes only 1 big climb and adds little distance. But it's really the hills that keep me from biking to work more often. It's not the work of the hills, it's the sweating. But BWWW is always in May and usually the perfect temperature for riding so I try not to let excuses stop me this week.
Monday morning I got up a little earlier than usual and was ready to go. Of course, I had not prepared; what's to prepare? I'm riding a bike. I couldn't find my helmet. I asked Aaron (yes, the 5-year old) and without hesitation he said, "It's in the box with our helmets and pads." How does he know these things?
My bike was hanging on the ceiling hook I use for storing the bike. I lifted it off the hook and let it swing to toward the ground. Unfortunately, my car was parked closer than I thought and the tire bounced off the bumper sending the bike back up at my head. It hit me in the mouth hard enough to start bleeding.
Being the first ride of the year, the tires were flat. No biggie, I have a pump. Sadly, the pump hose sprung a leak. So I had to pump furiously and quickly pop the nozzle off to gain a net increase in tire pressure. The tires managed adequate firmness.
I need a bike chain to park my bike at work, and I have two. I could not remember the combination to one, no matter how many times I tried. I should have told Aaron the combo last year, he would know it. My other chain was a key lock and I could not find the key.
I never did find the key or remember the combination, and at some point I realized I was supposed to be at work 5 minutes ago. I did not ride my bike to work on Monday of BWWW.
But I did today! And I will all week, unless we have thunderstorms Wednesday or Thursday as they predict. Fortunately, the weather for Friday morning looks clear because on Friday of BWWW there are several locations that offer free breakfast for active commuters. Last year I managed to stop at 3 (although 1 of those turned out to be a stop for school kids, but I didn't find out till I was sitting there eating my muffin and sipping my juice box and looked around and it was all school kids, and there were the busses, and the teachers were looking at me strangely, and it WAS a juice box after all...).
Maybe I'll let you know how breakfast goes this year, I'll try not to take some kid's muffin this time.
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