Sunday, May 19, 2013
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Cilantro
I used to hate cilantro so much I thought it might be the genetic thing. It tasted like soap, I could not tolerate even the smallest amount.
Something changed a few years ago and I began to love it with the same gusto that I had hated it. I have no idea why or exactly when this happened.
In my yard, I planted some but it was over-plucked by me and then some small feral animal chewed down the rest... only sad little stalks remain.
I had to restock this weekend. Thank goodness for my enormous panniers!
Something changed a few years ago and I began to love it with the same gusto that I had hated it. I have no idea why or exactly when this happened.
In my yard, I planted some but it was over-plucked by me and then some small feral animal chewed down the rest... only sad little stalks remain.
I had to restock this weekend. Thank goodness for my enormous panniers!
Monday, April 22, 2013
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Bike valet
I'm volunteering as a bike valet again! The local bicycle organization, BiciCentro, sets up bike valet areas at events in Santa Barbara. I did a shift yesterday at the Earth Day event. The bike valet service was very popular (who drives to an earth day event???)- with lovely weather, nice people, lots of bicycles. I was too busy to take photos!
(I went back on Sunday and took a picture - below)
In the past, I did bike valet stuff in Brooklyn (Transportation Alternatives) before I moved to the Netherlands, so I was familiar with the routine. I had volunteered at Prospect Park for concerts... it could get very full or be quiet, but bike valeting is always fun and a great way to see and touch lots of cool bicycles! :)
Sometimes there would be weird requests (Brooklyn, not California), like parking a bbq or bottle of almond oil (no glass allowed into concert venue). Everyone was always grateful; bicycle parking can be difficult and fear of theft is a huge deterent to cycling to events.
Brooklyn photos 2009:
(I went back on Sunday and took a picture - below)
In the past, I did bike valet stuff in Brooklyn (Transportation Alternatives) before I moved to the Netherlands, so I was familiar with the routine. I had volunteered at Prospect Park for concerts... it could get very full or be quiet, but bike valeting is always fun and a great way to see and touch lots of cool bicycles! :)
Sometimes there would be weird requests (Brooklyn, not California), like parking a bbq or bottle of almond oil (no glass allowed into concert venue). Everyone was always grateful; bicycle parking can be difficult and fear of theft is a huge deterent to cycling to events.
Brooklyn photos 2009:
Friday, April 19, 2013
Going for a swim - Santa Barbara
I was inspired by Mark of Bicycle Dutch's latest post - "Going for a swim" and decided to document my own bicycle trip to the pool in Santa Barbara, California (About 215 miles / 344k north from the San Diego with the gym that has escalators... I could drive there in 3.5 hours).
My trip in town is about 3 miles (or 4.8 km) each way but this trip is a little less. For documentation, I started from the intersection of Bath and Mission, where the street painted bicycle lane ends and quickly becomes an "alternate route." This designation means it is recommended on a map but is unsigned and not painted.
Overall info idea stolen from Mark:
So you can see from above that the bike lane has disappeared, and bicycles must act like cars to make it through
the intersection. Street traffic speed limit is 30 mph / 48kmph.
Further up Bath street, past the hospital, there is one of the famous "dog legs" in the Santa Barbara street grid, where you must do a quick left, then right to get back onto Bath Street. This occurs because some guy named Salisbury Haley had crappy survey chains and basically sucked at surveying things.
I like to cycle up Bath to the end at Alamar Ave where I turn right and continue up to De La Vina. Again, it's a non-marked, non-painted route so I'm cycling like a car with the cars. The traffic speed here is also 30mph / 48kph - faster than a regular residential speed due to some seemingly random ordinance stuff I don't understand.
Luckily, someone must have protested and they put in some Bumps (see later photo)!
The intersection of Alamar Ave and De La Vina is below. I take a wide, wide left, into the painted and signed bicycle route on De La Vina. Yay.
De La Vina is a hill so it's a slow climb up to State Street. This is fine because it allows me to contemplate how much I hate the coming intersection and to steel up my resolve to run the red light. I hate breaking rules, I always stop for stop signs but this one particular light...
Yes, I regularly run the red light above.
I do this because the traffic sensors do not detect me. It's insulting, annoying, exasperating and inevitable. My trip is usually at 6:30am so there's no traffic in any direction. The first time I did it, I was stranded at this light for over 5 minutes, stubbornly waiting until I gave up being a good law abiding citizen. Fuck it. You know? How long would you wait with no traffic anywhere?
Anyways. Fix the traffic sensor, City of Santa Barbara.
After running the red, I'm on State Street with a painted, signed bike lane that runs in and out of the bumpy gutter to allow or not allow parking and make room for bus stops. The speed limit is 35mph / 56kmph.
Watch out for skateboards:
At Hitchcock Way, I can take a left but only as a car in the car lane. I carefully check behind me to cross the two lanes of 35 mph / 56kmph traffic to get into the left turn lane... and the sensor works perfectly! It sees me!! I love it!!!
Next challenge - cycling through a gigantic parking lot.
Okay, it's not a big deal. It's just big. Most people drive.
Bicycle parking area before my swim.
Bicycle parking area after my swim (the sun has come up).
The sun is fully up now and glaring. My ride home is usually easier. The turn from State Street to De La Vina is well marked although I always wonder at the size difference of the cyclist markings.
De La Vina can be tricky... now it's downhill and you can pick up speed. Be sure to watch for parked cars and jerks like the guy in the photo standing next to his car door in the bike lane. (He's probably not a jerk, I'm just grumpy.)
Careful, careful.
Turn to Alamar Ave and BUMP! Yay.
But be sure not to salmon on Bath (it's one-way after Mission), there's a perfectly good lane one block over.
Enjoy the palm trees.
I have tried other routes but they all include larger hills, faster traffic and worse traffic sensors. Yikes.
My trip in town is about 3 miles (or 4.8 km) each way but this trip is a little less. For documentation, I started from the intersection of Bath and Mission, where the street painted bicycle lane ends and quickly becomes an "alternate route." This designation means it is recommended on a map but is unsigned and not painted.
Overall info idea stolen from Mark:
With cycle provisions
Without cycle provisons
- On street cycle lane 1.4 miles / 2.24 km - 35mph / 56kmph speed limit
- 1 mile / 1.6 km (unsigned, unmarked) - 30 mph / 48kmph speed limit
Further up Bath street, past the hospital, there is one of the famous "dog legs" in the Santa Barbara street grid, where you must do a quick left, then right to get back onto Bath Street. This occurs because some guy named Salisbury Haley had crappy survey chains and basically sucked at surveying things.
I like to cycle up Bath to the end at Alamar Ave where I turn right and continue up to De La Vina. Again, it's a non-marked, non-painted route so I'm cycling like a car with the cars. The traffic speed here is also 30mph / 48kph - faster than a regular residential speed due to some seemingly random ordinance stuff I don't understand.
Luckily, someone must have protested and they put in some Bumps (see later photo)!
The intersection of Alamar Ave and De La Vina is below. I take a wide, wide left, into the painted and signed bicycle route on De La Vina. Yay.
De La Vina is a hill so it's a slow climb up to State Street. This is fine because it allows me to contemplate how much I hate the coming intersection and to steel up my resolve to run the red light. I hate breaking rules, I always stop for stop signs but this one particular light...
Yes, I regularly run the red light above.
I do this because the traffic sensors do not detect me. It's insulting, annoying, exasperating and inevitable. My trip is usually at 6:30am so there's no traffic in any direction. The first time I did it, I was stranded at this light for over 5 minutes, stubbornly waiting until I gave up being a good law abiding citizen. Fuck it. You know? How long would you wait with no traffic anywhere?
Anyways. Fix the traffic sensor, City of Santa Barbara.
After running the red, I'm on State Street with a painted, signed bike lane that runs in and out of the bumpy gutter to allow or not allow parking and make room for bus stops. The speed limit is 35mph / 56kmph.
At Hitchcock Way, I can take a left but only as a car in the car lane. I carefully check behind me to cross the two lanes of 35 mph / 56kmph traffic to get into the left turn lane... and the sensor works perfectly! It sees me!! I love it!!!
Next challenge - cycling through a gigantic parking lot.
Okay, it's not a big deal. It's just big. Most people drive.
Bicycle parking area before my swim.
Bicycle parking area after my swim (the sun has come up).
The sun is fully up now and glaring. My ride home is usually easier. The turn from State Street to De La Vina is well marked although I always wonder at the size difference of the cyclist markings.
De La Vina can be tricky... now it's downhill and you can pick up speed. Be sure to watch for parked cars and jerks like the guy in the photo standing next to his car door in the bike lane. (He's probably not a jerk, I'm just grumpy.)
Careful, careful.
Turn to Alamar Ave and BUMP! Yay.
 |
| Drempel! |
But be sure not to salmon on Bath (it's one-way after Mission), there's a perfectly good lane one block over.
Enjoy the palm trees.
I have tried other routes but they all include larger hills, faster traffic and worse traffic sensors. Yikes.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Fender repurposing
Why do I need fenders? It hardly rains in Southern California.
What if... it might...you never know...
Somehow it always seems better to always be prepared, like a Londoner with an umbrella. Forethought. Habit. Forgone conclusion.
But this is California! It barely rains! I've been rained upon exactly once, and it was barely a sprinkle, like a dutch sunny day.
So first step- I took the front mud guard fender off my touring bike because it kept getting in the way of locking up to the stupidly designed public parking "poles." I like to thread my U-lock through the wheel and frame and those little eyelet thingys are not very easy to use. It's a real challenge if there's already one bicycle locked up.
A fun puzzle every time I try to park.
My koga-miyata flew with me to Iowa over the holidays and has since been shipped here. When it was reassembled, I discovered that the front fender was cracked. It was removed and I thought about ordering a new set... but then it never seemed critical. It barely rains!
So what do I do with my fenders now? The ones I removed were put away, behind the couch, which turned out to be a stupidly insecure location.
Puppy!
He's was quite happy to discover them.
I had to take away the cracked Koga fender because the mud flap plastic is flimsy and could be torn and swallowed. Not good for puppies.
However, the MudX guard is a good kind of plastic for puppy chewing, it doesn't break into shards and it's very tough.
Repurposed!
And I if I ever need it again, it should still work, with a nicely textured edging.
What if... it might...you never know...
Somehow it always seems better to always be prepared, like a Londoner with an umbrella. Forethought. Habit. Forgone conclusion.
But this is California! It barely rains! I've been rained upon exactly once, and it was barely a sprinkle, like a dutch sunny day.
So first step- I took the front mud guard fender off my touring bike because it kept getting in the way of locking up to the stupidly designed public parking "poles." I like to thread my U-lock through the wheel and frame and those little eyelet thingys are not very easy to use. It's a real challenge if there's already one bicycle locked up.
A fun puzzle every time I try to park.
My koga-miyata flew with me to Iowa over the holidays and has since been shipped here. When it was reassembled, I discovered that the front fender was cracked. It was removed and I thought about ordering a new set... but then it never seemed critical. It barely rains!
So what do I do with my fenders now? The ones I removed were put away, behind the couch, which turned out to be a stupidly insecure location.
Puppy!
I had to take away the cracked Koga fender because the mud flap plastic is flimsy and could be torn and swallowed. Not good for puppies.
However, the MudX guard is a good kind of plastic for puppy chewing, it doesn't break into shards and it's very tough.
Repurposed!
And I if I ever need it again, it should still work, with a nicely textured edging.
Sunday, March 31, 2013
New cycling partner
I have a potential new cycling partner!
He's got a lot to learn and at least 9 months to build up strength but then I think he'll be able to keep up. :)
I'm hoping we'll be able to dutchify our dog (and pony) walking practice.
Or I'll get chopper bike for game playing:
Too bad there are no canals for swimming.
(Or is it?)
and if nothing else, he can carry lettuce for me. :)
(More lettuce dog here: http://cyclingwithoutahelmet.blogspot.com/2011/04/market-day-lettuce-dog-again.html)
 |
| Barnaby the puppy. Not scared of bicycles. |
I'm hoping we'll be able to dutchify our dog (and pony) walking practice.
 |
| Is it a pony or a newfoundland? |
Or I'll get chopper bike for game playing:
Too bad there are no canals for swimming.
(Or is it?)
and if nothing else, he can carry lettuce for me. :)
(More lettuce dog here: http://cyclingwithoutahelmet.blogspot.com/2011/04/market-day-lettuce-dog-again.html)
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Best shopping cart ever
All of the supermarkets in town (trader joe's, whole foods, ralph's) have huge wide aisles for people to push huge wide shopping carts, or massive double strollers through... so they can fill the backs of their gigantic vehicles parked outside in the enormous parking lot.
Things in California are big.
The nice side effect of this super-sizing is that I can roll-up, fold-up and shop without any problems at all. AND even if someone were to complain (not one yet! -usually I get questions and comments about how it is the coolest thing they've ever seen), I could just pop the bike into a freaking huge shopping cart provided by the store and still have room for shopping.
I'm really surprised that Bromptons are not more popular out here. They are perfect for around town. A few more knowledgeable people have asked me "is that the english bike?" and mentioned they've heard of, or own Fridays, but not the Brompton. Strange!
The best part is that most of the stores are uphill from our street.
A full basket is a breeze on the way home. :)
Things in California are big.
The nice side effect of this super-sizing is that I can roll-up, fold-up and shop without any problems at all. AND even if someone were to complain (not one yet! -usually I get questions and comments about how it is the coolest thing they've ever seen), I could just pop the bike into a freaking huge shopping cart provided by the store and still have room for shopping.
I'm really surprised that Bromptons are not more popular out here. They are perfect for around town. A few more knowledgeable people have asked me "is that the english bike?" and mentioned they've heard of, or own Fridays, but not the Brompton. Strange!
The best part is that most of the stores are uphill from our street.
A full basket is a breeze on the way home. :)
Friday, March 15, 2013
California Register of Big Trees
There's one in Santa Barbara!
For more information about this big ficus tree you can read about it on wikipedia.
 |
| Moreton Bay Fig Tree |
For more information about this big ficus tree you can read about it on wikipedia.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Used Bicycles - Leiden Map
Dear Leideners,
When I was living in Leiden, I made a public google map of the local used bicycle shops (+ Bikelane because they rock). I did it to keep the hours straight... Why are the hours so irregular?!
Unfortunately, I won't be able to keep it up-to-date remotely although I'll keep it open and public.
I had one collaborator and I'd like to offer full collaboration to anyone who is interested in updating it. It's had just over 50,000 views so far because I think it's been useful to a lot of the newcomers in Leiden.
Send me an email if you are interested or leave a comment.
Cheers,
Alicia
When I was living in Leiden, I made a public google map of the local used bicycle shops (+ Bikelane because they rock). I did it to keep the hours straight... Why are the hours so irregular?!
Unfortunately, I won't be able to keep it up-to-date remotely although I'll keep it open and public.
I had one collaborator and I'd like to offer full collaboration to anyone who is interested in updating it. It's had just over 50,000 views so far because I think it's been useful to a lot of the newcomers in Leiden.
Send me an email if you are interested or leave a comment.
Cheers,
Alicia
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Another nail another flat tire
The culprit this time:
Is it a nail? Or a pin? Either way, it's more than half an inch and was embedded in my tire tread, puncturing the tire.
The tip just grazed the tube and so the hole was hard to find. (I used the bowl of water method.)
Finding the nail was not hard- the size of it was quite shocking.
However, thanks to my Marathon plus tires, the flat was a slow leak that I discovered this morning and not an explosive "ffffffftttt" while out in the middle of some sand dunes...
I'm impressed at how the tire held it in place so that it didn't push all the way through. I guess that's why I bought these tires!
However, thanks to my Marathon plus tires, the flat was a slow leak that I discovered this morning and not an explosive "ffffffftttt" while out in the middle of some sand dunes...
I'm impressed at how the tire held it in place so that it didn't push all the way through. I guess that's why I bought these tires!
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Bicycle parking amenities - Columbus, Ohio
The city of Columbus, Ohio (with the help of other organisations) has installed official bicycle parking shelters with "amenities" and green roofs. The first one I noticed is in the Short North part of High Street.There are more being installed this coming year.
It is February, so a lone bicycle is not unexpected... although, I am surprised it is not full of abandoned frames missing their quick release wheels. Either the city weeds the rack, people do not cannibalize bicycles in Columbus, or it's simply too far from campus for such shenanigans.
The thing that impressed me the most is the "fixit" station by the curb.
How cool is this??
It's a bike stand, bike pump, tool kit combo. (The only thing missing is a lubricant dispensor but I guess that could be way too messy.)
Again, the lack of cut frayed cables and missing tools is surprising and very impressive. I'm sure these will get a lot of use!
The thing that impressed me the most is the "fixit" station by the curb.
How cool is this??
Again, the lack of cut frayed cables and missing tools is surprising and very impressive. I'm sure these will get a lot of use!
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Traffic signals
Santa Barbara is beautiful. The weather is fantastic... today was mild, warm, sunny... and the ladies in my morning yoga class were complaining. Does it get even nicer???
The only problem for me so far is too many cars and poor infrastructure for cycling (and this is considered a bicycle friendly area). I may appear as a yoga lady, complaining about what someone in the midwest would consider extreme bicycle friendliness, but it is relative. The infrastructure is absolute crap compared to the Netherlands.
My chief complaint (at the moment) is being unable to affect the traffic light signal cycle. I'm okay with cycling on the street with cars going 40-72kph, cycling right next to parked cars with the risk of dooring... but being forced to run red lights because the signal fails to detect me is incredibly annoying.
A local cyclist and some facebook friends have given me tips.
If the signal is tripped by a camera, you can wave your arms around like a lunatic.
If the signal is set by a metal detector in the road, place the bicycle upon it, not in it.
More of these, please.
(And bicycle lanes should be separated from car traffic when the cars are going over 30kph, and should NOT be placed anywhere near dooring risk areas, people should never be allowed to park cars in the bike lanes, curb cuts should be at the angle of the crosswalks, and most car parking lots could be halved and filled with avacado trees and gardens for hummingbirds.)
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Dutch rabbits
Santa Barbara police cars remind me of the distinctively colored dutch rabbit:
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| WikiCommons public domain bunny photo! |
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| Photo by Damian Gadal / Flickr |
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