Simplicity in the City

There are many benefits of bicycling (click here for 40 examples…number 10 is my favorite), but one of the most overlooked, I think, is that when you bike (or walk…especially walk) you see things and notice things that would be imposable to see in a car. I had my camera with me today on my ride to the gym…so here’s a couple things I saw (keep in mind this is the inner city…not a big city, but still an urban environment). The most obvious example of beauty in a city like Buffalo is it’s Victorian architecture…the city is loaded with it…many visitors walk around in awe when they first visit here. But one of the things that I enjoy most are the little nooks and crannies of rural patches and glimpses of nature that you may find in any city. The first photo is of a little hidden path to a carriage house that I pass almost daily…and this is only a short distance from a major commercial intersection. Then, just a few doors away, as I was getting on my bike and attempting to pedal away, a rabbit hopped across the sidewalk in front of me. The second photo is it hiding amongst some plants. To see more on foliage in Buffalo (wild and manicured) see this link. The last photo is probably my favorite. I did not take it, and unfortunately I can’t remember where I downloaded it to give credit (I think it may have been from the website of Buffalo Rising…but I’m not entirely sure). Anyhow, it’s a picture of an abandoned housing project on Buffalo’s East Side. The really interesting thing is the deer grazing in the foreground…it sort of reminds me of a scene from the Terry Gilliam Film, 12 Monkeys. This scene is actually a common one in many rust belt cities impoverished neighborhoods…it’s as if the city itself regresses and becomes feral…there’s a name for it actually…urban prairie (for more urban prairie pictures of Buffalo, click here). Some people, I’m sure, may find this a little dismal…I don’t, I find it beautiful…though we, as a city, have inherited a few “rust belt issues,” we are a proud and thriving city (hey we’re an All America City…whatever the hell that means)….click here, here, here, here, and here if you’d like a few examples. Anyhow, I just love the little things that you see when walking or riding a bike that you’d probably miss while you were stuck in traffic in a car…click on a picture for a larger view.



>Simplicity in the City

>There are many benefits of bicycling (click here for 40 examples…number 10 is my favorite), but one of the most overlooked, I think, is that when you bike (or walk…especially walk) you see things and notice things that would be imposable to see in a car. I had my camera with me today on my ride to the gym…so here’s a couple things I saw (keep in mind this is the inner city…not a big city, but still an urban environment). The most obvious example of beauty in a city like Buffalo is it’s Victorian architecture…the city is loaded with it…many visitors walk around in awe when they first visit here. But one of the things that I enjoy most are the little nooks and crannies of rural patches and glimpses of nature that you may find in any city. The first photo is of a little hidden path to a carriage house that I pass almost daily…and this is only a short distance from a major commercial intersection. Then, just a few doors away, as I was getting on my bike and attempting to pedal away, a rabbit hopped across the sidewalk in front of me. The second photo is it hiding amongst some plants. To see more on foliage in Buffalo (wild and manicured) see this link. The last photo is probably my favorite. I did not take it, and unfortunately I can’t remember where I downloaded it to give credit (I think it may have been from the website of Buffalo Rising…but I’m not entirely sure). Anyhow, it’s a picture of an abandoned housing project on Buffalo’s East Side. The really interesting thing is the deer grazing in the foreground…it sort of reminds me of a scene from the Terry Gilliam Film, 12 Monkeys. This scene is actually a common one in many rust belt cities impoverished neighborhoods…it’s as if the city itself regresses and becomes feral…there’s a name for it actually…urban prairie (for more urban prairie pictures of Buffalo, click here). Some people, I’m sure, may find this a little dismal…I don’t, I find it beautiful…though we, as a city, have inherited a few “rust belt issues,” we are a proud and thriving city (hey we’re an All America City…whatever the hell that means)….click here, here, here, here, and here if you’d like a few examples. Anyhow, I just love the little things that you see when walking or riding a bike that you’d probably miss while you were stuck in traffic in a car…click on a picture for a larger view.



Things That Can Be Carried On A Bike (#28)


Six heavy logs (next winter’s firewood).

I came across these logs in the trash on my way home from the gym this evening (hence the gym bag)…while some may just see trash…I saw next year’s fuel. I only took half of them because that’s all I felt I could safely carry (believe-it-or-not I actually know my limits…sometimes). These logs were heavy…by far one of the heaviest loads I’ve carried (maybe the heaviest). They were recently cut down so they are still full of moisture, which of course translates to weight. I have to admit that this is the first time I felt any significant frame sway on the Mundo…it’s probably a good thing I only took six logs (I actually had eight loaded but removed two).

I’m not sure if my neighbors are getting used to seeing me carry stuff on a bike, or if they just think I’m a little crazy (most likely the latter)…riding down the street this evening I said hello to a neighbor as they were getting out of their car…they just looked at me, smiled, and shook their head.

>Things That Can Be Carried On A Bike (#28)

>
Six heavy logs (next winter’s firewood).

I came across these logs in the trash on my way home from the gym this evening (hence the gym bag)…while some may just see trash…I saw next year’s fuel. I only took half of them because that’s all I felt I could safely carry (believe-it-or-not I actually know my limits…sometimes). These logs were heavy…by far one of the heaviest loads I’ve carried (maybe the heaviest). They were recently cut down so they are still full of moisture, which of course translates to weight. I have to admit that this is the first time I felt any significant frame sway on the Mundo…it’s probably a good thing I only took six logs (I actually had eight loaded but removed two).

I’m not sure if my neighbors are getting used to seeing me carry stuff on a bike, or if they just think I’m a little crazy (most likely the latter)…riding down the street this evening I said hello to a neighbor as they were getting out of their car…they just looked at me, smiled, and shook their head.

Pedal Revolution

I first came across this video at Change Your Life, Ride A Bike. It’s an intriguing film on many levels…inspiring, too. There’s no audio accompanying it; at the You Tube web site there is a warning stating that the audio has been disabled because of unauthorized usage. I don’t know what the audio was that went with this short film, but in my opinion the silencing of it is not a bad thing…the silence is deafening…profound. It’s only a few minutes long…my recommendation is to turn off the radio or any other background noise and watch it in silence.

>Pedal Revolution

>I first came across this video at Change Your Life, Ride A Bike. It’s an intriguing film on many levels…inspiring, too. There’s no audio accompanying it; at the You Tube web site there is a warning stating that the audio has been disabled because of unauthorized usage. I don’t know what the audio was that went with this short film, but in my opinion the silencing of it is not a bad thing…the silence is deafening…profound. It’s only a few minutes long…my recommendation is to turn off the radio or any other background noise and watch it in silence.

An Observation

I have the habit of downloading images that I think are interesting and then sometimes forget about them, only to rediscover them sometime later…such is the case of this photo (click it for a better view). Firstly, I have to admit straight away that I do not know either of these guys, nor do I remember where I downloaded it (thus the lack of photo credit and blurred faces). Anyhow, I find the juxtaposition of these two cyclists both interesting and amusing…the practical and the impractical (just my opinion). The guy on the left, wearing ordinary clothes and riding a long-tail outfitted with an Xtracycle, looks comfortable and at ease with the world around him (again, my opinion, but mostly my interpretation). The guy on the right, however, is head-to-toe in spandex and has the stance of someone wearing the impractical shoes made specifically for cycling that fit into toe-clips which render the person unable walk normally when not on the bike. Is all that spandex really necessary? (Before you rebuke this question check out the clothes this women wore on her world tour.) The spandex guy’s bike probably weighs a fifth of the other guys, but with those teensie skinny tires avoiding potholes and cracks in the pavement would be paramount. And I don’t know about you, but If I were one of the two I would feel way more comfortable stopping at a local coffee shop dressed like the guy on the long-tail…and it would be much easier to carry stuff home on the long-tail, too…just my opinion (is that pizza he’s delivering on the front rack?). I’ll get off my little soapbox now.

>An Observation

>I have the habit of downloading images that I think are interesting and then sometimes forget about them, only to rediscover them sometime later…such is the case of this photo (click it for a better view). Firstly, I have to admit straight away that I do not know either of these guys, nor do I remember where I downloaded it (thus the lack of photo credit and blurred faces). Anyhow, I find the juxtaposition of these two cyclists both interesting and amusing…the practical and the impractical (just my opinion). The guy on the left, wearing ordinary clothes and riding a long-tail outfitted with an Xtracycle, looks comfortable and at ease with the world around him (again, my opinion, but mostly my interpretation). The guy on the right, however, is head-to-toe in spandex and has the stance of someone wearing the impractical shoes made specifically for cycling that fit into toe-clips which render the person unable walk normally when not on the bike. Is all that spandex really necessary? (Before you rebuke this question check out the clothes this women wore on her world tour.) The spandex guy’s bike probably weighs a fifth of the other guys, but with those teensie skinny tires avoiding potholes and cracks in the pavement would be paramount. And I don’t know about you, but If I were one of the two I would feel way more comfortable stopping at a local coffee shop dressed like the guy on the long-tail…and it would be much easier to carry stuff home on the long-tail, too…just my opinion (is that pizza he’s delivering on the front rack?). I’ll get off my little soapbox now.

Albert Einstein Rode A Bike

I’ve posted this picture before…I just love it, he looks so happy…as do many people when they are on a bike. Anyhow I came across these following quotes and thought I’d re-post the photo.

Life is like riding a bicycle – in order to keep your balance, you must keep moving.
~Albert Einstein

I thought of that while riding my bike.
~Albert Einstein, on the Theory of Relativity