Are You Hungry?

I ate lunch a few times over at Manora Thai at Folsom and 12th in San Francisco. The Blue Angels are in town for fleet week. They did a few flybys


Rahd Na with Chinese broccoli.


Basil Chicken.


Basil Beef.

Calling all Single Guys

That's my kind of tune -- playing over at More Than Just Another Bike Blog. I am not sure I can make it -- however -- some of my friends might. Saturday next -- Menlo Park Caltrain station, 35 miles, moderately paced, with minestrone soup lunch at Barrone's afterward, I'll have the minestrone soup and Peter's Panini. Thank you!

The ride home today included a movie, The Illusionist. One of my friends managed to catch me on my bike as I was passing the theater in San Mateo. I didn't really manage to review a restaurant at lunch today (it was sad -- the restaurant). The movie was good and I enjoyed the company. Two thumbs up. Should I start reviewing movies?

3 October 2006 PM/October Total

Swimming: 0 yards/500 yd.
Riding: 3.28/13.10 Miles
Running: 0/0
Walking 0/3.6 Miles
Weather; Sunny 59° F.


On the Way Home.

According to this the weather is going to degenerate tomorrow into rain. Do I believe them? NO.

Kissling

Do you notice anything odd about this?


And this? 

Train to Work

Bean Street Cafe for the double espresso.


Here's the commuter on the train. The train accomodates 32 bicycles so it's kinda nice. It's a bit like segregation, only it just effects bicyclists.

I sit reading The Journey Home, by Edward Abbey. I don't exactly know where he's going yet because I just started it. "Across the river waited a land that filled me with a strange excitement: ... a vast and silent emptiness smoldering with heat , color and indecipherable significance, ... For the first time I felt I was getting close to the West of my deepest imaginings -- the place where the tangible and the mythical become the same."


I am sure it wasn't here he was talking about.

So here is the bike graffitti, where the tangible and the mythical become the same. This was taken through the window of the train -- in case you're wondering.

3 October/October AM

Swimming: 0 yards/500 yd.
Riding: 3.28/9.82 Miles
Running: 0/0
Walking 0/3.6 Miles
Weather; Sunny 60° F.

Train, train, train.

Photo Credit
I saw some cool bike graffitti yoday from the train -- Caltrain -- not that vandalism is acceptable behavior or anything like that. I am going to take the camera in tomorrow and see if I can get a picture of it ... I bet you can't wait. I had Thai for lunch, and then I had Chili Tofu (also Thai) for dinner. The rice is always important.

2 October/October

Swimming: 500 yards/500 yd.
Riding: 6.54/6.54 Miles
Running: 0/0
Walking 0/3.6 Miles
Weather; Foggy AM/Sunny PM. 62° F.

Ride, train, ride, Thai
Ride, train, ride, Thai
Swim Train
Dont think to complain.

The Route to Work, or The Road Home

Depending on how you look at it.


To the train station, 1.2 miles. Stop for coffee not included.


1.4 miles ...

Link to the actual Google map, where you can see me in the picture on my bike on Townsend Street. Just kidding. This is not the best route for a bike, but it is pretty close to my actual route. It is much better to get off Division at 11th and head to Harrison. Division is noisy and busy and although it wants to be bike friendly, it's not.

That's 2.6 miles x 2, or 5.2, each day. The hardest part of the ride is the endless stairway at the end, carrying the bike.

Seven Hills -- They Told Me

The great cities of the world have Seven hills. Rome -- San Francisco ... etc. That's what every one told me ...

This guy (Tom Graham) says there are 43 hills in San Francisco. Have you got you're hillclimbing gear running?

"At the very beginning," city archivist emeritus Gladys Hansen says, "San Francisco was a very small city and we had only seven hills -- which were copied (figure that one out -- if you can -- copied???? Hello.) from the seven hills of Rome. There was Telegraph Hill, Nob Hill, Russian Hill, Rincon Hill, Mount Sutro, Twin Peaks and Mount Davidson. " He cites. But what about Potrero Hill, and that ungodly thing that funnels the wind into Candlestick Monster™ park (talk about wrecking history -- grumble -- monsterpark) . OK, so it's the hilliest city outside of La Paz, Bolivia (37000 ft, serious verticle -- like that). 43 hills. Second hilliest city in the world.

I particularly like this bit -- about San Francisco is a great center of world-wide commerce in 1859. Have a gold rush and become a center of world commerce:

When Dana returned, he wrote:
On the evening of Saturday, the 13th of August, 1859 -- the superb steamship
Golden Gate ... bound up from the Isthmus of Panama, neared the entrance to San
Francisco, the great centre of a world-wide commerce .

There are streets with stairs in San Francisco. Ride your bike up that. There are stairs all over.

He's right. It's a hilly city. I spent all day uphill in it.

But the Burrito at La Cumbre -- was worth the walk. If you didn't read that link, there is way more about the San Francisco Burrito than you ever wanted to know. The burritos at La Cumbre in San Francisco are famous the world over. The truth is -- if you want a really good burrito -- you need to cook a steak and throw it in. Carne Asada -- Salsa Caliente. Sweat. Eat. Feast. Add cheese.

San Bruno Mountain Summit Loop Trail

San Bruno Mountain Summit Loop Trail

September 30 2006 - 111 Photos

The hike went well and was good. The weather was super.

Happy Birthday Critical Mass

Ok -- I missed by a couple of days. It is the last Friday of the month and this is San Francisco, which is where this says the first critical mass ride was , to wit:

The first San Francisco ride, with
48 riders, began at 6 p.m., Friday, September 25, 1992, although it did not come
to be called Critical Mass until the second ride, on Friday, October 30, 1992
(with 85 riders).

I particularly like this bit,"analyzing the tactics of the ride, as part of an evaluation of decentralized decision-making for potential military battlefield use." Wow -- I don't know if that person had enough to do.

Critical Mass is 14 years old. Next time.

San Bruno Mountain

The hike. Tomorrow, methinks. 3.5 miles, 650 ft up and down. I am going to try to break my 581 mph speed record. Here's an interesting pictureMap showing the edges of this little bit of wilderness.

Take one of these

And ten of these.

And call me in the morning.

I had a good workout and now I am tired.

Teds Market

Fresh Roasted Turkey and Swiss from Ted's Market on Howard at 12th in San Francisco. Although it has more meat, John, it just doesn't taste as good as the one from the Ravioli House. I don't know why. It's still a good sandwich.

The Ravioli House

Years have passed, many years, and it is still a good lunch. Fresh roasted turkey with cheddar cheese on a sourdough roll from the Ravioli House on B Street at 5th, in San Mateo. Just as good as I remember it. Who could ask for more.

Working it Out.

So I managed to swim my seven laps today without any real breaks. This is a substantial improvement. It was a lot more of a workout than I have had so far. Why? You might ask.

1. I hurt.
2. I inhaled water.
3. I feel like I went for a swim.
4. I am tired.
5. Crossroads was playing on the swimp3 player.
6. I feel great.
7. I didn't wear the helmet.

Today, one of my work mates asked why I haven't been riding my bike. He rides the same route as I and meets the same train. Maybe he misses me. If I start riding again and then swim I might end up training eating continuously.

Today I saw video of Bobby Kielty celebrating because the Oakland A's (I was born in Oaktown) have cinched their place in the playoffs. Amid all the champagne pouring, splashing and spilling, here is the red headed Kielty (great name after all) wearing goggles like mine -- but cooler. They were polarized. Mine play music though -- so there.

It's a new trend I think. All Kielty's wear nutty goggles.

Suburban Life

I swam 7 laps last night and 7 laps on Sunday, and 5 on Saturday. I tried out the underwater Finis® swimp3™ player -- it's marvelous
when underwater, otherwise it's kinda sucky. Swim (good sound), breathe (sucky), swim (good), breathe (sucky), and so on. I remember the bone conduction technology of the BoneFone sounding much better on dry land.

So I am disappointed. It will never do for riding on a bike. Update: However, if you manage to get them positioned well -- the sound is better when the head leaves the water.

Holy Cow

I like this cow. Notice the halo. It's in front of a place called Holy Cow, of all things.

Another Boring ...

Day ... post ... whatever. I ordered one of these. which I will want to test out. I swam 7 laps yesterday, which should be 350 yards. I haven't been riding my bike this week. Grumble.

Talk All You Want, It's Free

(Crossroads ringtone music playing from my pocket)
Me: "&*%$, that's the phone."
L: "Hello."
Me: Breathing heavily.
L: "Hello, Shawn?"
Me: "Hello."
L: "Are you on your bike? (meaning riding)."
Me: "Yes."
L: "I wish I could do that."
Bring brriririinbggg! (bike bell).
Me (screaming): "HEY!!! -- Lookout -- Bike coming!!"
Me (at surprised driver that just tried to run me over): "Quit talking on the phone, would you?!!"
L: "Shawn?"
M: "Yes, sorry."

Today laws were passed in California to make it illegal to hold a phone to your ear while driving. I must quit driving. Maybe I could tape one in place. I would really believe that it couldn't possibly be true that talking on the phone is dangerous while driving, if I hadn't seen so much obvious evidence that it were true.

Some people will never be able to drive (and talk on the phone). Others will always manage to.

Argument follows.

P.S. I usually don't answer my phone while riding my bike -- it's very hard to do; not to mention dangerous. If it's very (extremely y'know -- bike path protected from cars -- no peds or bikes coming -- don't try this at home -- etc.) safe, then I do. Typically I stop and pick it up.

On to the swimming and riding parts. Last night, I met a girl at the pool with a pink water bottle (hereinafter -- the girl with the pink water bottle) who swam 40 laps in about 45 minutes, which she tells me is 2000 yards. Ok -- that's a mile, plus. It also means that the ten laps I swam were actually five. so I swam six tonight. I.e., 300 yards. I need to find some rythm here. She was very surprised to hear that I could ride a hundred miles but couldn't manage to swim across the pool (with out choking on my own sputum running out of breath).

Date: Lately, September 2006
Miles Riding: 14.43
Max: 22.8
Bike: Commuter
September Bike Mileage: 70.21

It seems I am going to have to work harder to get alot of miles in.

Sunday's hike was different though -- we hiked 4.52 miles and our max speed was 581 mph, according to the gps. ... go figure.

Stilts

Another Shot

This Seems to Speak for Itself.

I have never quite seen habitat restoration that started out like this. This is an area near the city of San Mateo's Shoreline Parks seeming just beyond the San Mateo border into Foster City.

When I was younger this was all wetlands.

Pelicans

Rrr-r-r-r-ring, ring. Rrrring ring.

I think Roadie might be a bit jealous. It will be a lot more attractive than screaming out "Lookout A**hole" "Bike," which is the method I was using. I am fond of my new bell, I carried it in my pocket all day yesterday and tested it out on pedestrians while I was walking around sight seeing in Half Moon Bay. It seems about half of the tourists I dingled my bell at would rather be struck by a bicycle than bother to look. Go figure.

I so wanted to buy a mermaid floor lamp I found in a shop there, which my good friend was seeming horrified by. Perhaps it was the overly exaggerated boobs that horrified her, but it was the $810 sticker price that stopped me altogether.

I Ride to Work Everyday ...

And I wanted to do it ... dang.

Date: 12-13 September 2006
Miles Riding: 11.34
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: Seems to be lost after the move
September Bike Mileage: 55.78

It's awesome. I ride to work everyday.

Blogging from Home ...

Without a desk can be a pain. I am sure that many of you find it quite comfy sitting about on the couch with your laptap in wireless mode. Me, I am on my knees in the bedrooom trying to find a way to get comfy. Besides which -- I can't remember the passphrase (is that a word?) to my own miserable wireless network. Finally, though, I have an internet at home. Now I can finally stop wasting company time blogging at work.

While we are on the subject of couches, take a look at my new one. It's spooge free so far. Spooge is a word I learned from Gilby's blog about couch shopping. Gilby and I can both count on being able to find a good place to sit.

If I type brookssaddles.com into my browser it will take me to a great description of a selle royal™, which is why I am finally going to take that ball breaking Selle Italia gelsnot seat off my road bike and replace it with a Brooks™ saddle. There was a fairly agressive complaint right here in the text about who might redirect brookssaddles.com, which I took out to replace with this bit about Brooks being bought by Selle Royal in 2002. Although I don't particularly like my Selle seat, I shouldn't go off shooting arrows into the night sky. Regardless, I shall be free of padded shorts in no time. I think it might finally be payday tomorrow and a new brooks saddle is in order.

I have been sidetracked by a small rant.



It's move day 795.63256901234 or I lost track. Remember this. Me too. I have a lot of scrunching to do. No really small apartment is complete without a few bikes and an unmanagable stack of boxes. There's a lot left to do, but finally I can sit on the couch.

I have never had a new couch, and this one happens to double as a bed. Plus what, the flat squishy matress part is totally natural fibers which are grown organically, and the cover smells like linen and new car smell (not organic). The last time I had a new bed was when I was barely married and my wife and I had a new queen size bed. I never had a new couch. I have never purchased a couch.

How do you get these couches you use if you've never purchased one? One might feel compelled to ask. By having a truck. A truck assures an abundance of spoogy couches. " Can you help me move?" Sure, as long as you don't try to give me a sofabed. "Want this old spoogy couch?" Yeah, sure.

I saw this girl on the train with a Surly Cross Check. It has fenders. I might need fenders this year because we having an El Nino Moment on the news. I forgot about rain while I was in Arizonia.

Notice: I had to modify this post, because I was wrong about it, and the error checkers found it ... and branded my seat.

Of All the Things

The sun was out this morning ... so I should stop complaining. Once I remember reading somewhere that there are 3508 restaurants in San Francisco. Talk about your dining paradise. Eat at a different restaurant everyday for 9.6109589041095890410958904109589 years. Now that is making me hungry.

Date: 11-12 September 2006
Miles Riding: 4.0
Weather: 66°F., 70% humidity.
Average: n/a
Max: n/a
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: Seems to be lost after the move
September Bike Mileage: 44.44

Since I swam 10 laps yesterday, I am considering replacing the ipod with this. It's an underwater mp3 player.

Manora's Thai Cuisine

Manora's Thai Cuisine at 12th and Folsom in San Francisco.


The view is typical of the neighborhood.


Red Curry Beef


#15. Rice Noodle with Beef Stew

The food was excellent, the service was good. It was a good lunch

Date: 8-11 September 2006
Miles Riding: 8.51
Weather: 54°F., 94% humidity.
Average: 9.7
Max: 20.8
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
September Bike Mileage: 40.44

Will practices his skills at finding something to eat.

Last night I went out looking for a Thai restaurant to replace my regular haunt of the Thai Food Corner in Mesa and ended up downtown in San Mateo at the Thai Satay Restaurant where I had the Sweet Basil Beef. It was good. I got home well after dark last night.

So this morning I put on a jacket. It was a good thing too, as this was a very typical San Francisco morning with fog and drizzle and a stiff breeze in my face. Even here in the Sun belt ... Mark Twain was right, apparently.

Date: 7-8 September 2006
Miles Riding: 7.10
Weather: 54°F., 88% humidity.
Average: 9.4
Max: 21.5
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
September Bike Mileage: 31.93

Some Photos from the Redwoods

Madrone

Lady Bird Johnson Grove in Redwoods State and National Park

Apparently a 63 year old cyclist was struck and killed yestterday by the caltrain in Redwood City. Read about it here. Be sure to honor the crossing gates, and you won't get hit, too.

Despite the potential for me to get off at my regular stop as a result of the delay -- I was on an express train and had to get off early. So I got a chance to stop and get some adjustment to my headset, and to ride an extra couple of miles. This is both the commutes of the evening and the morning.

Date: 6-7 September 2006
Miles Riding: 10.61
Weather: Some fog -- some sun ..
Average: 10.0
Max: 24.5
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
September Bike Mileage: 24.83

Back and Forth

Date: 5 September 2006
Miles Riding: 4.74
Weather: 64°F., 68% humidity..
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
September Bike Mileage: 9.48

Date: 6 September 2006
Miles Riding: 4.74
Weather: 56°F., 87% humidity..
Average: 9.1
Max: 18.3
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
September Bike Mileage: 14.22

Ride to Work

Date: 5 September 2006
Miles Riding: 4.74
Weather: 53°F., 92% humidity..
Average: 8.1
Max: 18.5
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
September Bike Mileage: 4.74

Big month so far ...

Swimming is Fun

No, it's not ... I went for a swim yesterday. Did a measly 10 laps -- 250 meters if I have everything correct. It went ok. I ran out of breath, I had to resort to a side stroke so I could rest. I had to actually stop and rest. More than once.

But I swam ten laps.

Hey -- Get Out of the Road

This Gentleman has some weeds in his hair. Quite a few people were standing around looking at this bull elk, when I noticed this mama black bear crossing the rod with two cubs.


Redwoods State and National Park, near Crescent City, California.

More Fog ...

Eureka! California. Vacationland, America. Tomorrow ... Redwoods. This is the Days Inn desktop. Laptop case, mini amp ... computer hook up. Life's good.

More at that.

I applied for an apartment in the burbs today. 1x1, big deck, clubhouse, pool, gym, sauna, hot tub, theatre, putting green, ball washer. Swimsuits, Chicks. Gosh. Party. Ball Washer? Travel agent?

Date: 23 August 2006
Miles Riding: 17.60
Bike: Road
Ipod: No
August Bike Mileage: 139.47

Date: 21 August 2006
Miles Riding: 9.64
Bike: Commuter
August Bike Mileage: 121.87

I grew up (on a bike) here so I know more about the neighborhoods and address locations than most of the realtors. Me: "The cross street is Cypress?" Realtor: "No, Second." Me: "Are you sure? Is it right across from the Baptist Church?" R: "Yes." M: "That's a stretch." It was a lot for a sh*thole that smelled like stale cat in a somewhat marginal neighborhood.

The Fog

The view out toward San Francisco. Since my last post I have logged another 750 miles of in the air time and 750 miles of trailer towing time. I am officially in California with all of my stuff, although I am still feeling homeless, despite staying with my parents. For those of you that are interested -- that's 1 hour and 50 minutes in the air and 13-15 hours on the road.

This shot is a look directly at SFO from a spot further south on the peninsula. In the fog there is San Bruno Mountain. That's right ... fog.

I feel like I am at home. Because I am. 

Apartment Shopping.

Date: 17 August 2006
Miles Riding: 6.74
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
August Bike Mileage: 112.23

Grumble.

Commute to Work

The commute went well and I was early. 2.2 miles to the train, 25 or so minute on the train and another 1.5 miles to work. Piece of cake. Cycling here is a little more dangerous interesting than in Mesa. For the most part in Mesa there isn't much on the street parking and almost no angled parking, so getting doored is rare and cars backing out into you is pretty uncommon.

There is an endless list of hazards in San Francisco, including pedestrians in the street. I'll need to get a bell, and am happy to entertain suggestions.

After work I looked around for an apartment on the bike.

Date: 16 August 2006
Miles Riding: 17.75
Weather: 59°F., 73% humidity..
Average: 9.5
Max: 23.8
Bike: Commuter
Ipod: No
August Bike Mileage: 105.49

I Can't Leave You Alone for a Minute

While I was away, it seems that nothing has gotten done at all -- especially if you use the quality of the roads as a standard. Frankly Arnold, what have you been doing while I was gone, because it certainly hasn't been taking care of the roads. It's probably been good for you to have moved your life to Sacramento -- because the freeways around Hollywood suck. I felt like I had gone to Pennsylvania. I think I hit some potholes the size of New Hampshire. Didn't any one suggest that it might be nice to repair the roads? Really, what exactly are you doing? Pumping Iron?

The worst of it was driving this piece of shit Budget rental truck which would rock back and forth when I hit a bump, and get worse and worse , like it was going to self destruct, unless I put on the brakes or accelerated violently. Driving the eleven sixteen (27 in metric hours) hours here from Arizona was a real chore. I want my money back.

I'll need to go over to the Seven Eleven right away and register to vote. So I can vote for that Warren Beatty guy -- or Clint Eastwood. I know -- Warren Beatty and Clint Eastwood for Governor next time -- I want to see those two duke it out. It will be like the Fight Club. To hell with running the place. Did I mention that the place was on fire when I got back. Geez!

I want two things from my next governor, to fix the potholes, and to get those dangerous Budget trucks off the road. And put out the fires. I know I am being hard on the Budget trucks, but I had gone just 20 miles before that damn truck threatened to kill me forced me to brake quickly and pull over and make sure I was still ok. There were times in places like Pacheco Pass where I had to drive 45 MPH -- so I wouldn't tip over crash.

High today in San Francisco? 54°F. Are you hot? No. Are you wearing shorts? Yes. It's a habit I picked up in Arizona. Do you have to ride to work tomorrow? Yes. How far? I'll let you know. I think it's two miles to the coffee and train riding book reading hour, and then another 2-3 miles to work once I get off the train. Commute time with coffee? 1.5 hours. Can you take the bike on the train? Yes, the train car closest to San Francisco -- is for bikes. Can you ride and drink coffee at the same time? yep.

Meet the question man ... and ... welcome to San Francisco. I have to go now and find some bike riding clothes for my first day at work.

Picture This

It's move day four. Shawn has managed to find the camera and snap a picture of the truck trailer and volvo, with him at the wheel and the AZ sun behind it. He's waving out he window. That's what you'll see if you are here in the morning.

Currently everything is packed into the truck. This is clearly the best time to rob me. Just figure out how to drive off in that truck.

When I say everything I really mean everthing. Except some things that wouldn't fit. Everything from the regular house is in. All of the soap, toothpaste, clothing, bicycles. So today when I spilled some gross liguid all over myself, I literally had to stand naked at the sink while I washed them. I waited until all the helpers had left, so that it wasn't as exciting. Now they are in the dryer (the clothes not the helpers), sans cling free ...

Honk, honk, Miss American wave out the window of the float truck as I go by. Big trail of dust as I leave the wild West. Bonnie Raitt singing "The road is my middle name" on the Ipod.

If I want clean clothes now I will have to wash them in the sink of some motel, or drive to California,

Scorpion

 
This is a scorpion. It's not in the house, but almost got packed. I don't know what kind of scorpion it is, but it meets the basic description of a Bark Scorpion, which are quite poisonous. They get kinda riled up when you poke at them with a stick.

Standing Myself Up

Rode about 2.9 map miles today to fetch this. Today was the last day at the industrial military complex for me, sad as that was. So now I am going to move into this truck and be home free for a few days.

It's threatening not to monsoon (look, it's a verb) outside and just kill us all with humidity, and right at the critical time when we can't take any liquids on planes. I know everyone thought those were bottles of water, they weren't. They were an inflammatory liquid, vodka. How on earth is everyone going to get drunk enough to put up with flying?

Thankfully, I'll be driving, too.

Date: 11 August 2006
Miles Riding: 2.9
Weather: Hot, humid and sweaty.
Average: N/A
Max: N/A
Bike: Road
Ipod: No
August Bike Mileage: 87.74

Alison Brown plays on the stereo, Mambo Banjo. I'll get there ...

... and ride

Today's ride was an odd replay of this ride, minus the breakdowns. It wasn't as much fun as this ride (just so seemingly a faked ad for Specialized), but was a great close to a while riding with the happy hiking guy.

This chapter of this book is slowly closing. I remember a faster closing shapter ... once I made a phone call, borrowed some money, then rode a bus and bought a plane ticket, and flew home, having changed continents, and traded chopsticks in for a fork, all in about a day. I mean -1/2 day in real time.

In retrospect this is a gradual change.

Date: 11 August 2006
Miles Riding: 6
Weather: 103°F.
Average: N/A
Max: N/A
Bike: Road
Ipod: No
August Bike Mileage: 84.84

The Crack of Thunder

The Smell of Ozone. I rise tumultuously from decent sleep. Lightning strikes repeatedly very near the house. A light show rages out the windows. Stark shadows flash against the walls. It's muggy. It's not yet dawn.

The Question is ...

Will there be a Monsoon soon? This is East and slightly south from my house and is the obscured Buck Moon.


This was taken well after dark and is ... very interesting to me. It was taken just after the one above and towards the Northeast in the direction of the Usery Mountains. It reminds me of a painting. To the trained eye, there may appear to be spurious light flare in the upper left. It's from the lightning I guess. I was hoping for the rain itself.