Parklet at Freewheel

I was walking down Valencia today as I often do, and I noticed something different going on in front of Freewheel bicycle shop.


They're putting in their Parklet!

Instead of someone parking their private property in front of this business, the business has chosen for the space to be enjoyed by the public as a whole. Hurray, Freewheel! Hurray, San Francisco!

Celebration is this weekend:

Don't miss their Taco Party this Saturday, March 12th.

punk homeless BART chic

This woman totally blew my mind. I don't even know where to start; so, I'll let the photo speak its thousand words.

Ride on, girlfriend.

typical in Portland?

I saw this in Portland, OR last fall. Given that the city is a US bicycle Mecca, I wonder if the people prefer unicycles even more because one wheel is less resource intensive than two?

Pregnant Chic

My sister snapped this photo as we were biking around Golden Gate Park when I was about 7 months pregnant. Sometimes your best asset is the person in your uterus (as opposed to the person on your arm as the saying usually goes).

But seriously, one of my personal campaigns to promote bicycling as a mainstream form of transportation is to help people to understand that it can be safe for our more vulnerable populations (children, pregnant women, etc.) if we just have the infrastructure in place and drivers learn how to share the road. To do that, I am "acting as if" it is -- since it is for a seasoned cyclist like myself. Someone has to set an example!

I stopped biking a few weeks after this photo was taken mostly because I got tired of my knees hitting my belly when I peddled. I'm hoping to get back to it, sans baby (who can't ride until her neck is strong enough to hold up a helmet -- about 1 year), next week when I am no longer "disabled" per gov't policy for women who have had a normal delivery.

Summer is just a few months away.

This one smacks of summer. She's even riding in flip flops, which I do NOT recommend! In these dark days of winter, remember the time when we can comfortably ride our bikes with bare arms and toes. It will return!

red tights on Caltrain

You can't miss the florescent red tights...

...but also notice that her handlebars match her purse, and her purse is rigged up to attach beautifully to her rear rack.

Ramona Wheelright

You probably already know Ramona. She's a fellow bike enthusiast and blogger.

Check out her awesome Soma drop-bar frame bike, too. I think she told me she customized it herself! H O T, hu?


PS, I'm at home with my new baby for now, but she no longer requires me undivided attention 24-7. So, I'll be housekeeping photos and blog entries too. Enjoy!

Yes, the baby came.

...just two days past our "guess date". I am delighted to report that we are both healthy, and the birth was 100% natural.

Hello, EDD.

My baby is due today (my "estimated date of delivery" or EDD). But she's not indicating her actual date of debut.

She does continue to be very active and elegant in her own dancerly way. (I'm supposed to "count kicks", but she never kicks. It's more like she mimes. Fortunately, any motion counts as what they call a "kick".) In the meantime, I finally stopped working due to inability to sleep. (I would have kept going because work is fun, but alas!)

Why am I telling you this? Because it explains why I've been so quiet lately. Being enormously pregnant is like having a second full time job. That said, I have no plans to become a different person. I still don't own a car, and I still believe that sustainable transportation will save the world. I'm also still taking pictures and thinking artsy thoughts as exhibited by the self-portrait above. I still love music. And I will continue to blog.

[Some words about the photo: I probably wouldn't wear a dress like this even without the additional weight and human life. But it arrived with my maternity hand-me-downs, and it seemed a shame to let it go to waste completely. So, I included it in my photo shoot the other weekend.]

overheard on the Portland MAX

Dad said: you like the train don't you?
Little boy: yeah
Dad: why do like the train so much?
Lb, a bit thoughtful but enthusiastic: because it goes there
He made a shoosh noise and motion as he said it.

Contra-flow

Here, my sister has stopped to admire one of the City's contra-flow bike lanes. See how it says "Do Not Enter. Except Bicycles." It's a quick and lovely way into Golden Gate Park.

Slice of Mission Life

Beattle Lights

Months ago, Chloe and I went to a special event at the SF MoMA. So did a lot of other people, including a surprisingly large group (I recall at least 4) who arrived in this vibrantly lit VW Beattle. Of course, I had to record it.

Happy cyclist....

Sometimes people just pose for me. I like this photo because she's sort of framing the massive white GMC with which she's sharing the road. It's like "cars cars cars cars cars... oh, and a smiling cyclist." You choose!

Red Onion Lottery

I got some groceries last weekend -- everything fit in one pannier and one tote bungeed to the top of my rack. Half way home, a red onion rested in the bike lane on Harrison. Since nothing seemed to be wrong with it, and it was quite beautiful, I stopped to pick it up. Then, I noticed another one nearby. I picked that one up too. Thinking I had won the Red Onion Lottery and that was a bit strange, I glanced around.

Another cyclist was on the sidewalk nearby. He looked up at me and saw me holding the two red onions. "Oh, that's mine," he said. "My bag broke." And he motioned towards the sidewalk where a huge, broken bag of granola rested. What a bummer. He explained that not everything fit into the one bag he had left: his backpack, now bursting at the seams!

So, I gave him my extra tote. It was gifted to me when I volunteered at Sunday Streets. I keep it in my purse at all times in case of unplanned shopping because it folds up so small. He was very grateful and promised to return it (I gave him my address), but I didn't really expect him to.

Low and behold, the next day, resting in my entry hall, not just my tote, but also a little thank you note and... you guessed it! A red onion!

Baby Registry: All Other

Now that you've heard my stroller brain dump (for which I apologize), I think the rest is pretty simple. Again, I would love any hand-me-downs you think I might find useful.

I've registered on Amazon for some things that I'm not expecting as hand-me-downs. Just search for my real name. Also, feel free to find the items listed on Amazon used and just let me or Ilana or Laura know so we can take it off the list.

The Diaper Service I've selected is Earth Baby. If you would like, you can click on the green "Gift Certificate" box on right hand side. Again, all you need is my real name... and possibly my email address. (The account is under my Yahoo! email address.)

Finally, I need a glider and ottoman.

Thanks.

Baby registry: Strollers

Babies can have a significant environmental impact. In an effort to reduce the impact of mine, I'm hoping to provide for her with hand-me-downs and used items. Of course this makes it difficult to "register" since craigslist doesn't have a registry (hmm... business idea, someone?). Also, in most cases multiple types of an item will fit the bill as well as each other.

Strollers are tricky because not just any will do. I'm tall. When I push Laura's stroller, I have to walk like a duck to avoid kicking it and it wrenches my back. There are also a range of other considerations such as weight and size since baby can't bike with me for the first year. We are likely to be riding the bus a lot! While the stroller must be big in size to fit me, it must also be light and fold small for the bus. Like anything, these are natural trade-offs.

Finally, not all strollers accommodate infants which I understand need to be completely flat -- something to check for. Not all the strollers listed below accommodate infants -- not necessarily a deal breaker since I can carry her at first as well.

Having now test-pushed about 300 strollers, I have news. I don't kick the following strollers when I push them making them desirable choices:
* Bugabuoo
* Bob (aluminum instead of plastic wheels makes it much lighter)
* City Elite
* Aprica
* Graco Alano flipit
* Mountain Buggy urban stroller
* Combi Cosmo Ex
* Pliko P3 Peg Pergo
* Chico Capri

So, if you have one of the above to spare or if you find one used for a good price, I would love to have it. Thank you!

[Special thanks to Young for taking me all around to push these strollers in stores. You are a true friend!]

Commandments for dating

I like this list for dating: The Millionaire Matchmaker's 11 Commandments of Dating for Women

I would only make one change: If your first date is a blind date (of any variety) no drinking at all. It completely changes the dynamic.

I strongly agree about
* not texting or IMing,
* returning calls in a timely manner and
* honoring your commitments.

Solving Caltrain's financial problems

My job responsibilities include keeping up on the news. I was just reading this article on Caltrain's financial crisis, and the numbers at the end inspired me to pull out my calculator.

CALTRAIN NUMBERS
$2.3 million: deficit
35,000: daily riders

My calculation: $2,300,000/200 commute days per year (a conservative estimate)/35,000 daily passengers (or do they mean trips? I bet they mean trips.) = $0.33 (the amount they would have to raise fares per ticket (or possibly per passenger which means it's only half as much) to cover the deficit

BTW, demand for transportation is relatively inelastic. This means that people won't stop riding very quickly as the fare increases.

I don't know about you, but $0.33/day isn't a lot of money to me. Heck, raise the fares $0.50/day just to be on the safe side. Just accompany it with better service like more space for bikes and bullet trains on the weekend and even in the middle of the day.

Adventure to West Point Inn

After Meli's profile of me as a woman "who rides the distance", I was inspired to share this story with you.

Last fall, K and I planned to bike up to the top of Mt. Tam and spend the night at the West Point Inn. Here she is in Sausalito getting some air.

As we climbed the hill, the view got lovely.

We stopped to enjoy it!






While you see us smiling here, the trip was not a complete success. Once we reached the West Point Inn, right exactly at the end of check-in time, we learned that a lightning threat meant the mountain needed to be evacuated!

Sadly, there was no way of making it back in the light, and we weren't carrying any. So, we dawdled, snacking on our dinner and enjoying the view until the very last moment and then biked home in the dark.

The moral of the story? Maybe don't plan to stay at the West Point Inn in the fall and ride your bike to get there. Otherwise, we'll just have to try again another time in another season.