Share the road

I have been passing this recently felled sign every day on my bike ride home (Cornwallis Rd westbound, near NE Creek Pkwy, in Durham).

Dancing with cars is a rush, but has its risks.

Inside Hilton Head

Hilton Head Island is a beautiful island paradise, 12 miles in length, just offshore from southern South Carolina. It has sparkling white wide sandy beaches, gentle ocean waters, lush trees and vegetation, and a large network of walking and biking paths, along with an overabundance of gated communities, trendy cars, fake lighthouses, championship golf courses, dozens of private jets, hundreds of tennis courses, and thousands of handsome obnoxious rich people.

It is beautiful. And most rich people disappear after Labor Day.

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/sagittandy/HHI#

Cleaning the shed/workshop

After filling two huge garbage canisters and taking one carload to the dump, I can see the floor of my little shed, I can walk to the back, and I can almost see the surface of the workbench. The bike pile is gone, projects never started, parts for cars I no longer own, wood cutoffs, metal scraps, plumbing parts, beach umbrella poles, gone, gone, gone. I'm on a roll.

Next, the jam-packed attic overhead.

Bicycling in Umstead Park

A triathlete friend from the gym took me biking in Umstead State Park near Raleigh this morning. Three hours, perfect weather, mostly wide crushed gravel trails, mostly manageable hills, and she was mostly patient with me.

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/sagittandy/BikingInUmsteadPark#

Tie dye, or not tie dye?

I was tempted to buy this, but I don't think it is me.

(Centerfest street arts fair, downtown Durham)

Flat tire in the driveway

WTF? How does a tire on the junker truck get an inch-long slit in the tread while it is sitting motionless in the driveway for three weeks? Then the nuisance: dig out the jack, the lug wrench, the spare tire, whine, whine, whine. I am finally ready to sell the beast, as soon as I sell the railcar and its flatbed trailer.

It's time to unload all the junk. Soon...

Return to bicycle commuting

I returned to bike commuting yesterday and today (Thursday and Friday), my first time since the summer. Weather was mild and perfect. Took it slow both days. 9 miles one-way. I survived. Traffic was cordial. Most traffic light sensor loops worked well. Riding both mornings in the dark, I encountered only about 8 joggers on the trail with no lights or reflectors. Not bad. One jogger had a bright headlamp; I thanked him as I passed.