>It’s the Little Things

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I saw this sign after walking across the Golden Gate Bridge last week with my son. It’s at the entrance to a stairway leading under the bridge and to the other side (so you don’t have to cross the hellish traffic). The stairs are long and steep so there is a ramp provided for bicyclists to walk their bikes…otherwise this would be inaccessible to many cyclists. It really is the little things…we (cyclists) need more inclusion such as this. The ramp is nothing but a board really (on the left side of the below photo), but it really makes a difference (and made me feel good when I saw it…and a sign explaining it). It reminds me of a much longer version of my plank of gratefulness that I use to enter my house with bikes, especially the Mundo (click here to read about that). I first got the idea when I saw a mechanic at a local bike shop walking bikes up-and-down their basement stairs…”Do you have any idea how many bikes I’d be carrying up these stairs everyday if it weren’t for this plank,” he snapped at me when I commented on it.

I know that there are a few people from the bay area that read this blog, and I just want to say that you should feel truly blessed to live in a city that is not only breathtakingly beautiful (picture-perfect…like a postcard), but also one that is increasingly welcoming to bicyclists.

Really Good Food From A Really Small Garden

If you’ve been to this blog before then you know that it is mostly about using a bike as a regular form of transportation, but it’s also about food (that I grow and cook), and about living simply (which is the most difficult thing, I think). At-any-rate, I am a proponent of getting rid of your lawns…yup tear ’em out and plant gardens. It’s way more fun, you don’t have to cut the grass, and you get food to eat. I have a teeny garden and I grow enough vegetables for myself and my teenage son to last the summer, plus I ferment and freeze some for the off season. It’s still pretty early in the season (no tomatoes yet!) but I have been eating out of the garden for a few days. Before I show you what I made I have to show you what I made it with (peppers and green beans above).

Crisp Romain lettuce.

Japanese eggplant

Cauliflower

Basil (amongst other herbs)

These are just a few of the things that are ripe right now. Yesterday I made a whole wheat pizza (and a loaf of bread) with eggplant, basil and cauliflower. For a recipe with pictures on how to make this see an earlier post by clicking here.We also ate it with a small Romain salad.

Tonight I was home alone and made myself a sauteed vegetable sandwich (on homemade bread, of course). For all of you carnivores out there don’t knock this until you try it. I eat meat, but not a great deal, and a sandwich like this does not need meat (trust me). I sauteed a bunch of vegetables in olive oil with garlic, fennel, basil, and sea salt. After layering it on bread with lettuce, cheese, tomato (store-bought), and mayo I drizzled it with Sriracha sauce…my mouth is watering just looking at the photo.

Alright now I have to get back up on my little soapbox about urban gardening, and I’ll get straight to the point: Just do it. It’s easier than you may think and the rewards are tremendous. I have a very small area to grow and the amount it yields is incredible. And trust me, my garden(s) is/are not pristine without weeds and grown in neat little rows…it’s basically a new experiment every year, and I learn a little from one year to the next.  Below is a current photo of the little patch of garden next to the walkway entering my house. It’s all of 24 inches by 48 inches but it contains two green bean plants, 4 cucumber plants, a tomato plant, six broccoli plants, a couple pepper plants, and a dozens corn plants. Keep in mind that this is in my front yard; it’s up against my hitching post where I lock up my bikes for short-term stays (click here if you want a better view of the post and if you want to remember what winter looks like)..

Each year I say I’ll weed better, but I don’t…it ends up being what I’ve come to lovingly refer to them as my savage gardens…you can barley see the Mundo through the foliage.

>Really Good Food From A Really Small Garden

>

If you’ve been to this blog before then you know that it is mostly about using a bike as a regular form of transportation, but it’s also about food (that I grow and cook), and about living simply (which is the most difficult thing, I think). At-any-rate, I am a proponent of getting rid of your lawns…yup tear ’em out and plant gardens. It’s way more fun, you don’t have to cut the grass, and you get food to eat. I have a teeny garden and I grow enough vegetables for myself and my teenage son to last the summer, plus I ferment and freeze some for the off season. It’s still pretty early in the season (no tomatoes yet!) but I have been eating out of the garden for a few days. Before I show you what I made I have to show you what I made it with (peppers and green beans above).

Crisp Romain lettuce.

Japanese eggplant

Cauliflower

Basil (amongst other herbs)

These are just a few of the things that are ripe right now. Yesterday I made a whole wheat pizza (and a loaf of bread) with eggplant, basil and cauliflower. For a recipe with pictures on how to make this see an earlier post by clicking here.We also ate it with a small Romain salad.

Tonight I was home alone and made myself a sauteed vegetable sandwich (on homemade bread, of course). For all of you carnivores out there don’t knock this until you try it. I eat meat, but not a great deal, and a sandwich like this does not need meat (trust me). I sauteed a bunch of vegetables in olive oil with garlic, fennel, basil, and sea salt. After layering it on bread with lettuce, cheese, tomato (store-bought), and mayo I drizzled it with Sriracha sauce…my mouth is watering just looking at the photo.

Alright now I have to get back up on my little soapbox about urban gardening, and I’ll get straight to the point: Just do it. It’s easier than you may think and the rewards are tremendous. I have a very small area to grow and the amount it yields is incredible. And trust me, my garden(s) is/are not pristine without weeds and grown in neat little rows…it’s basically a new experiment every year, and I learn a little from one year to the next.  Below is a current photo of the little patch of garden next to the walkway entering my house. It’s all of 24 inches by 48 inches but it contains two green bean plants, 4 cucumber plants, a tomato plant, six broccoli plants, a couple pepper plants, and a dozens corn plants. Keep in mind that this is in my front yard; it’s up against my hitching post where I lock up my bikes for short-term stays (click here if you want a better view of the post and if you want to remember what winter looks like)..

Each year I say I’ll weed better, but I don’t…it ends up being what I’ve come to lovingly refer to them as my savage gardens…you can barley see the Mundo through the foliage.

Things That Can Be Carried On (or pulled by) a Bike (#187)

$58.61 in groceries.

Yup, still have a flat on the Mundo so I took the Dahon out with it’s Bike Rev trailer…A completely different ride but still just as fun.

Graffiti Knitting

I came upon this bike rack on Haight Street last week. Initially I saw the nice Bridgstone bike attached to it, but then I noticed the post partially covered in knitting. I had seen a few other examples of guerrilla knitting in the city but none on a bike rack….how nice, I thought, you won’t scratch your bike while you lock it up…and it’s attractive, too. If you are not familiar with graffiti knitting and its history, or would like to see other examples, click here and here. 

>Graffiti Knitting

>

I came upon this bike rack on Haight Street last week. Initially I saw the nice Bridgstone bike attached to it, but then I noticed the post partially covered in knitting. I had seen a few other examples of guerrilla knitting in the city but none on a bike rack….how nice, I thought, you won’t scratch your bike while you lock it up…and it’s attractive, too. If you are not familiar with graffiti knitting and its history, or would like to see other examples, click here and here. 

Flat Tires Suck

No way around it, they do: flat tires suck. They’re really disappointing. Came home from vacation yesterday looking forward to taking a spin on the Mundo only to discover it had a flat on the front tire…hadn’t been on a bike in a week and was really looking forward to it. Maybe it went flat from non-use. Luckily I have a couple other bikes from which to choose…ended up scooting around on my Dahon. It was fun but I was really looking forward to the Mundo. Shops are closed today being Sunday and Independence day…tomorrow too, seeing businesses will honor the holiday then. Looks like I’ll have to wait ’till Tuesday for a new tube. I’m sure I’ll be able to manage…me with my petty little problems, right? Anyhow, pumped it with air…waiting to see if it holds.

>Flat Tires Suck

>

No way around it, they do: flat tires suck. They’re really disappointing. Came home from vacation yesterday looking forward to taking a spin on the Mundo only to discover it had a flat on the front tire…hadn’t been on a bike in a week and was really looking forward to it. Maybe it went flat from non-use. Luckily I have a couple other bikes from which to choose…ended up scooting around on my Dahon. It was fun but I was really looking forward to the Mundo. Shops are closed today being Sunday and Independence day…tomorrow too, seeing businesses will honor the holiday then. Looks like I’ll have to wait ’till Tuesday for a new tube. I’m sure I’ll be able to manage…me with my petty little problems, right? Anyhow, pumped it with air…waiting to see if it holds.

Je Suis Retourné

I’m back.

My apologies to regular readers, bloggers, bikers, and overall simplifiers out in there blogasphere. One week…the longest I’ve went without a post since I began this blog! I was on holiday with my son in the beautiful city of San Francisco…I’d been there a few other times but not in at least the past 10 years…I’d forgotten what a lovely and inspiring city it is. I actually have 10 days in a row off of work…the most consecutive days I’ve had off in 10 years as well (hmm…I just realized I’ve typed the number ten 3-times in this paragraph, all un-related…while I’m not into numerology, it must mean something). Anyhow, while I was on vacation I made the personal commitment not to spend too much time on a computer (like I do when I’m at home), hence the absence of posts. And besides I wasn’t about to shell out $10.00 for Internet access (another 10). Instead I had morning coffee in Union Square, where they had free wireless, to check emails, posts, comments, etc. At-any-rate, I also wanted to send out a quick thank you to all who kept visiting, and to those who left a few comments. Look for forthcoming pictures and commentary on San Francisco…and other things.

Peace.

>Je Suis Retourné

>

I’m back.

My apologies to regular readers, bloggers, bikers, and overall simplifiers out in there blogasphere. One week…the longest I’ve went without a post since I began this blog! I was on holiday with my son in the beautiful city of San Francisco…I’d been there a few other times but not in at least the past 10 years…I’d forgotten what a lovely and inspiring city it is. I actually have 10 days in a row off of work…the most consecutive days I’ve had off in 10 years as well (hmm…I just realized I’ve typed the number ten 3-times in this paragraph, all un-related…while I’m not into numerology, it must mean something). Anyhow, while I was on vacation I made the personal commitment not to spend too much time on a computer (like I do when I’m at home), hence the absence of posts. And besides I wasn’t about to shell out $10.00 for Internet access (another 10). Instead I had morning coffee in Union Square, where they had free wireless, to check emails, posts, comments, etc. At-any-rate, I also wanted to send out a quick thank you to all who kept visiting, and to those who left a few comments. Look for forthcoming pictures and commentary on San Francisco…and other things.

Peace.

Woody Guthrie (Quotes and a Song)

“Any fool can make something complicated. It takes a genius to make it simple.”

“Life has got a habit of not standing hitched. You got to ride it like you find it. You got to change with it. If a day goes by that don’t change some of your old notions for new ones, that is just about like trying to milk a dead cow.”

“The world is filled with people who are no longer needed — and who try to make slaves of all of us — and they have their music and we have ours.”

“Anyone who uses more than two chords is just showing off.”

>Woody Guthrie (Quotes and a Song)

>

“Any fool can make something complicated. It takes a genius to make it simple.”

“Life has got a habit of not standing hitched. You got to ride it like you find it. You got to change with it. If a day goes by that don’t change some of your old notions for new ones, that is just about like trying to milk a dead cow.”

“The world is filled with people who are no longer needed — and who try to make slaves of all of us — and they have their music and we have ours.”

“Anyone who uses more than two chords is just showing off.”

In Praise of Cargo Bikes

This post is really in response to this article I came across at the Grist website. The catchy title of the article is initially drew my attention: Tricked-out cargo bikes give SUVs a run for their money. It’s a good article and basically just another thing to stroke your ego as a cargo cyclist. If that isn’t enough and you need even more positive reinforcement I encourage you to watch the short slide-show of cargo bikes below (never mind the hokey music). I really feel cargo bikes are the answer to many of our current problems.And yes, I know I’m mostly preaching to the choir by posting these sentiments on a blog which largely centers on bike riding. None-the-less, it’s good to feel good about riding a 7ft bike now and again.