Senior Discounts

Almost exactly three years ago, a fast-food employee thought I looked old enough that I qualified for a 'Senior Tea'.  My wife teased me about it for months.  I created a video and told the story here.

Well, it happened again.  But this time, the discount was given to my wife.  When she brought our food and I saw the receipt, I immediately shared the good news : "Look dear, you got a senior discount!"   Of course, some fireworks ensued.

But it was fun.

Up on the roof

Warning:  Another non-bike story...

The last time I did any roofing work, which was last century, I slipped, slid down the roof, and went flying.  Luckily, I was only up one floor, the ground was resilient muddy clay soup, and I landed and tumbled perfectly.  I got up unscathed and continued roofing.

I fixed some damage on my parents' roof from Hurricane Sandy over the weekend.  I didn't fall.  But when I knocked over a full box of roofing nails and watched half the nails slide all the way down to the ground (click the photo to enlarge), I decided it was time to fashion a pretend safety line.   Such a wuss.

Here are a few photos.

Dr. Ruth

Warning:  Non-bike story...

I first met Dr Ruth when I entered college in the mid-1970s.  She was hired to lecture the incoming freshmen about hazards of impropriety.  She definitely caught our attention.

I find it incredible that my daughter and her friends are equally enamored today with this amazing woman and her timeless message.

Tar Heel 200K

I rode the RUSA Tar Heel 200K in central NC today.  Autumn cold is definitely here.  I've been commuting in the cold dark mornings, but 7+ miles has not been enough to thicken my blood yet.

And there was 'some wind' in the afternoon.  Not strong enough to warrant the dreaded aero tuck, but enough to be annoying.  And it seemed to keep changing directions.  Meh.

Most drivers were incredibly courteous as usual, but I had fun with a few.  Good to keep the blood flowing.

I ran into a dozen uber roadies leaving the Stedman Marathon at the same time I did.  It looked like they were all wearing colorful zentai costumes, head to toe.  One was friendly, he asked me to ride with their group.  I declined, not being fast enough (plus didn't want to nix my RUSA credit).

I usually don't take photos after the turnaround, but I was feelin' it today.  Enjoy a batch of unusual photos.

Thank You

A car driver said 'thank you' to me.   That doesn't happen very often.

I was biking home from work today, climbing a short steep hill, on a curve, on a moderately narrow lane constrained by curbs & gutters.  As urgent car drivers zoomed around me, I spotted this water valve cover sitting in the street.  It was about 8"/20cm in diameter, 5"/13cm tall, and heavy like cast iron.  If a small car rode over this, it could do some serious damage to the car.  And if the drivers saw it in time, and swerved to the side, they could do some serious damage to me.

So I stopped, got off the bike, and decided to put it back in its hole.

I crossed to the far side, stood poised on the curb, and waited for a break in the packs of lemming cars going by.  Within a minute, a driver figured out what I was going to do.  He slowed to a crawl and drove far to the side.  I darted out and reseated it.  He yelled 'Thank you'.  Very nice.

Too bad the lemming drivers behind him didn't know what I was doing, or didn't care, and glared at me over their cellphones.  :-)

Spooky Morning Ride

It was unusually foggy here on Friday morning.  I stopped to take this photo on Cornwallis Rd in RTP when I saw the spooky lights in the sky ahead (click to enlarge).  It wasn't daybreak.  It was just light pollution from a small parking lot.

Now I say that I stopped to snap a photo...

...but the goosebumps also subsided.

Burroughs Wellcome Headquarters Tour

I ride past the former Burroughs Wellcome pharmecutical research & development campus every day on my bike commute.  The headquarters building, finished in 1971, was the architectural highlight of the then-new Research Triangle Park.  Architectural aficionados have always loved this futuristic building.  (Click left photo to enlarge.)

The building was so futuristic, that many scenes in the 1983 science fiction movie 'Brainstorm' were filmed inside and outside the campus (wikipedia) (trailer)  And one of the characters in the film commuted to work on a Ryan Recumbents Avatar (backstory).   In homage to the film and to the recumbent, I posed my bike in front of the main entrance (Click the photo at right to enlarge).

Fast forward to 2012, and the campus has been empty for ten years due to corporate acquisitions.  The campus has recently been bought by yet-another company, who graciously allowed the local Triangle Modernist Houses society to sponsor a tour today before major renovations begin.

We went on the tour.  We walked through several floors inside the headquarters building and roamed the grounds.  It was very neat.

Enjoy two photo albums:
Outside of the building:  the futuristic exterior and lush grounds
Inside the building:   the lobby, auditorium, executive suites, conference rooms, roof decks, cafeteria, etc.