ACT: Brief Encounter

Marketing works. I wanted to go to this show because the Bicycle Coalition partnered with ACT for a "bike to the theater" night. That night didn't work for me, and neither did a whole bunch of other nights, but eventually we were able to select one.

This production was fantastic. I loved the whole multimedia thing they did, making it sort of like an old movie but then fading back to live and back again. The other thing I loved were the vaudevillian supporting characters. They rocked.

That said, the story kinda sucked. Let me run it by you: man and woman meet accidentally; they meet again. They start spending time together even though they are both in other relationships. They fall in love, but it doesn't change their home lives in any way. They realize this can never work, and agree to stop seeing each other over copious tears. Excuse me while I vomit in the corner.

In addition, main characters' acting was weak. The woman came across as very simple; maybe that was their intention. When the man spoke, I thought (after 20 years of dating) "he's lying. don't believe him", which makes the plight of these lovers a difficult situation to empathize with.

Naomi said that's her experience with ACT. They put on amazing productions of mediocre plays with bad acting. She's feels like they're wasting that talent.

Lilia Pilia on Bikes21

My photo is on Bikes21 today. Vote for me.

Not what a bicycle was designed for, but so wonderful anyway

Thanks, Kathy

[Streetsfilms] Sands Street Gets a Sassy, Center-Median Cycletrack

I really like solutions like this where cyclists are completely separated from traffic, pedestrians and parking. The separate level and sloped curbs also show a magnificent attention to detail and understanding of how cyclists use the road.

[Scientific American] Women = indicator species of cycling

How to Get More Bicyclists on the Road, To boost urban bicycling, figure out what women want, By Linda Baker
OK, so the title they gave the article gets it backwards, but the study brings up excellent points: cycling won't become a truly mainstream part of our society until women feel save riding on a city's streets. Women are the ones who are likely to feel unsafe. The solution is easy: prioritize bike safety.

It must be a big relief to know what to do. ;-)

[Dylan K] collector's corner

Dylan said: Saw this bike near my office a few days ago and had to
take a picture for you. Notice that the generator appears to have an
integrated wire (comes out of the handle-bar post), and even better -
check out the little camera holder on the handle bar!

Gift idea for me

Fusion Jacket from Terry Precision Cycling
Oops! I wanted it in pink, and they appear to be out of that color. :-( Never mind.

San Jose Bike Party Review

Someday, I'll make it to the San Jose Bike Party. In the meantime, here's a review someone else wrote.

David Byrne on Cities

First, the WSJ published his essay A Talking Head Dreams of a Perfect City where he identifies the best part of every city. San Francisco, he says, is beautiful but too small. The following week, last week, his book Bicycle Diaries was released. My pal Chris Carlson reviewed it in the SF Chron. Sounds like a sweet read.

Circus Bella

Last month, I had the good fortune to see Circus Bella at Fort Mason. All the performances took my breath away, but I'm still thinking about the guy who juggled downward, bouncing balls against things on the ground in combination with beepboxing towards a complete musical composition. Looking at the program now, I'm guessing his name was Bronkar Lee, but I could be wrong. David Hunt's slack rope performance is also still on my mind -- worried that he's going to fall.... Go see them perform again at Yerba Buena Gardens on October 18th.

Park(ing) Day: The Noodly Appendage (Pirates!)

Across the street from the Park(ing) instillation shown in yesterday's post, the excellent folks at 826 Valencia represent with a pirate ship installation. (Speaking of which, I believe tomorrow is talk-like-a-pirate day. I don't know why we need a special day to talk like a pirate -- we should do it every day we're moved to do so!)

In case you're wondering, "826 Valencia is dedicated to supporting students age 6-18 with their writing skill, and to helping teachers get their students excited about the literary arts."

When I shot their photos, residents of The Noodly Appendage "arrg"ed at me enthusiastically.

Park(ing) Day Map

Click here for the map

Park(ing) Day: Valencia

Valencia is my favorite "bicycle boulevard" in San Francisco, not just because I live near it. It has a quirky cool quintescenital to the City -- independent shops, restaurants and cafes line the sidewalks which team with gritty, real folks, and every one rides a bike. Yeah, we are a cliche of ourselves, but we like it that way.

Epidemics of our lives

NYT: Are Your Friends Making You Fat?
Study shows that health, weight gain/loss, smoking, drinking, having a family and being happy are contageous. What I liked most about the article is the idea that you have a responsibility to be the best you can be for your larger community which will then be heavily influenced by your healthy, thin, non-smoking happiness. Sadly, selecting friends who have the qualities you desire doesn't seem to make a difference.

[fixedgear] (Not a) Mixtie

Oh my word

This from fixedgear on flickr

[Bicycling] Dhani Jones lives carfree in Cincinnati

In an interview in Bicycling Magazine, we learn that Dhani Jones, the Cincinnati Bengals linebacker, lives carfree in Cincinnati and rides a fixie to practice even in winter.

(Cincinnati is close to my heart because my mother is from there.)

Park(ing) Day: String (or SF Public Library)

This one caught me by surprise, but I think it was intended to be an old barn with hay bales and string representing cobwebs. Its users certainly seemed to love it! There's barely enough space in there for everyone to sit!
I found it by accident when I swung by the public library to return some books. This is 24th Street and Bartlett just up for the 24th Street BART station.

Park(ing) Day: Bridge

Park(ing) day is wonderful for several reasons:
1) it engages local artists in the re-design of public space.
2) it makes a critical statement of the role of public space. For example, I have never understood why it is in the public interest to provide public space for people to store private property (their cars). I mean, it can make sense for short-term uses in commercial zones to promote economic activity, but beyond that....
3) it beautifies our streets.
4) it provides us an additional reason to ride around town to see our beautiful city.
5) it provides us an additional reason to interact with each other, creating community and building relationships.

This Park(ing) instillation was near the Bay Bridge along the Embarcadero. It looked like such a sweet spot below the dramatic infrastructure that allows cars and buses to get across the Bay. (I'm looking forward to a time of equality when bikes and pedestrians can use this massive investment as well.)

Park(ing) Day!!!

PARK(ing) Day 2009 is Friday, September 18th!

"Originally created by Rebar, San Francisco art and design collective, PARK(ing) Day is an annual, one-day, global event where artists, activists, and citizens collaborate to temporarily transform metered parking spots into “PARK(ing)” spaces: temporary public parks.

"Anyone can participate in PARK(ing) Day, though it is strictly a non-commercial project, intended to promote creativity, civic engagement, critical thinking, unscripted social interactions, generosity and play."

This week, I'll post new photos of Park(ing) day 2008 instillations each day.

French work ethic

The Car Talk guys just shared that France is now fining employees who work too many hours. Government workers have a 35-hour work week in France. If people work more than that, it takes work away from other people. In these difficult times of high unemployment, maybe Americans need to look at our work priorities too.

(To illustrate this point, I have added a photo I shot in Paris last month of a beautiful cyclist.)

Improvements coming to Market Street

SFGate: Pilot program to limit traffic on Market Street, Heather Knight, September 10, 2009

I was really excited to learn about these improvements planned for Market Street and the restrictions of cars there as a step in the right direction. However, I didn't like it when Heather called Market Street "dirty"; it's only really dirty between 5th and 7th Streets and anyway that's a subjective assessment. Don't dog my boyfriend!

decorated bikes

In Paris, last month, I spotted these gorgeously-decorated bicycles on two separate occasions. Decorated bikes always make me smile.


My town bike, which I bought used in 1997, has a front basket where I have woven cloth flowers and a lei from my Hawaiian vacation several years ago. She's out of commission right now after the cable to my rear break snapped early one Saturday morning when I was on my way to clean the beach. I rode her the rest of the day with front brakes only. But considering that both cables are the same age, I won't do that again.

Potentially Rad

Li-Young Lee

KQED Radio over the weekend played a program called Sacred and Profane including Al Green. I enjoyed that part, but Li-Young Lee's poetry, as always, moved me nearly to tears. He read a poem about how, when he speaks, his wife falls asleep. I believe the reader is supposed to initially think she is bored by him. But I never thought that. The poem went on to describe how he speaks to her when she has insomnia and it calms her. He loves her so much that his ego doesn't get caught up on the calmness he brings to her. He is clearly brilliant with words, but she is moved more deeply, subconsciously, by his presence. I'm also an insomniac who can sometimes only fall sleep in the arms of someone I love; I found it so refreshing to hear described in loving words the other side of that.

[BBC] Fueding Mayors block traffic

Mayors in two Paris suburbs decide that a single road is one-way in opposite directions. Signage directs cars in both towns towards each other resulting in gridlock.

I love the absurdity of it!

[The Sartorialist] Cycle Chic in New York and Paris

Everyone has probably already noticed that the Sartorialist is cycle chic blogging, but I thought I would make an official proclaimation.

Sunday Streets slideshow

The summer's final Sunday Streets is tomorrow at Ocean Beach, and I'm so looking forward to playing in the streets with children, dogs, and other friendly faces. The slideshow below is from one earlier this summer in the Mission including both new and already-posted photos. Enjoy!

Money CAN buy Happiness!

[Boston]Happiness: A buyer’s guide

While material wealth doesn't correlate with happiness, what people spend their money on does. Spending on experiences (vacations, bar crawls, meals with loved ones), gifts for others, and charity does make people happy.

Sunday Streets: The Next Generation

Pretty much the greatest thing about Sunday Streets is that it makes it possible for children to fully enjoy urban space and San Francisco's fun community.

Little girls can scoot around independently without threat of massive motor vehicles.


Little families can share one human-powered vehicle together.


Training wheels can come off...

...Or stay on, clad entirely in pink on a pink bicycle.


Mom's can look gorgeous in platform shoes and floppy hats while transporting their little ones through the fun!


Finally, these angels were kind enough to pose for me looking unbelievably cute. They didn't need Sunday Streets to do that. They just needed the safe place to ride their bikes that Sunday Streets provides.

Sunday Streets: Lovely Ladies and Friends

This post contains another series of photos of a Sunday Streets event in the Mission earlier this summer. I'm getting excited about this Sunday's event at Ocean Beach.

Amsterdam allows "beer bike".

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The beer bike will ride on in Amsterdam.

The outsized bikes, seating groups of people around a central bar, are something of a fixture in the city's center. But two accidents within two months prompted the city councillor responsible for transport to launch an investigation in June. [article continues]

Sunday Streets!

This week, I'm getting excited about Sunday Streets. This Sunday is the the last one of six this year. It will be on the Great Highway at Ocean Beach. "Sunday Streets creates a safe, fun, car-free place for people to get out and get active in San Francisco neighborhoods. ...opening the streets to San Franciscans to explore four different neighborhoods and participate in a wide variety of activities, including: dancing, biking, skating, walking, hula hooping, yoga, and just people watching." I couldn't make the most recent one at Ocean Beach, but I am taking this opportunity to post photos I took at a Sunday Streets earlier this summer in the Mission.

(Love the sunglasses, girlfriend.)

You know that I love taking pictures of beautiful people on bicycles. This post contains photos of beautiful women. I'll post photos of the Mission Sunday Streets with a different theme each day this week.

OK, can we all agree that not enough is said about about beautiful people petting dogs. I know several people who met their long-term partner while out with the dog.


Most people don't bother with a helmet at Sunday Streets because there aren't any cars to hit you, but if it's part of your outfit...


More proof:
Bicycle + you = Happiness

Plus, isn't this an awesome dress?