October 30th was the last time I rode a bike, until this morning. That's the longest stretch I've gone without riding for many, many years. One reason is that I've been working a part time job on weekends. That's taken up much of my free time. I worked a 12 hour shift yesterday and was sound asleep by 8 PM last night. After having a nice breakfast with my wife this morning I had no choice but to get out and ride.
Beard Update: I think I've hit a plateau. I've been growing this thing for a few weeks now but it just doesn't seem to be filling in too well.
I decided to visit a portion of east Fort Worth on my ride today. The east side of Fort Worth is the rough part of town. I wouldn't suggest riding east of I-35 in Fort Worth unless you know where you are going. This is E. Vickery Blvd. heading up to I-35. There was very little traffic in this area other than a few crackheads and homeless people on foot.
The silver colored metal covering this portion of the building is interesting but is in need of some serious cleaning.
Mr. Redman started restoring and building pipe organs while a student at SMU in 1956. He started this business in1966. Apparently there is still a market out there for pipe organs.
Starbucks at the Omni Hotel. I stopped for a cup of coffee, but unfortunately there was no bike parking. I locked my bike to one of the chairs while I went inside to order.
About the beard.
ReplyDeleteHave Patience.
It looks better than you think.
Easier to take the bike into Starbucks than lock it, especially if it's not busy.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the urban photos. I used to do a fair amount of that kind of photography, it can be enjoyable, and I always look for the beauty even in things that appear ugly on the surface. Nicely done. Also, it's eerie how empty the roads are in your photos.
ReplyDeleteWell...you certainly LOOK like you are ready for the gravel roads. That fur might feel pretty good in a north wind.
ReplyDeleteMore beard advice: Just shave what's on your neck and the rest of the beard will look much more mature.
ReplyDeleteAs for riding on the east side: That certainly is the "frontier" when it comes to riding in Fort Worth. My son goes to Texas Wesleyan University and I've ridden out there on the bike- Granbury to Berry to Mitchell to Beach to Rosedale. I cut through the neighborhood to stay away from Rosedale for as long as possible and I wouldn't recommend cutting through neighborhood streets in that part of town. Better to stick to the main roads.
I have been riding much less lately as well. My wife has the flu (suspected H1N1, but she got on Tamiflu last weekend and by the time she saw the doctor it was too late to get a reading). She's recovering but there is a fitfull cough that won't go away. In light of that, it's been easy to talk myself out of riding; every little scratchy throat could be the flu!
I'm going to try to ride tomorrow though. To encourage myself, I changed the handlebar configuration on my commuter- from an Origin8 Space Bar back to the flat bar, and I added some bar ends. I gave it a new tape job too. The Space Bar was good, but I just wanted to change things up.
Also, it's eerie how empty the roads are in your photos.
ReplyDeleteIf he was riding during the Cowboys game, that's about what one would expect in Dallas and Fort Worth. Sundays are pretty quiet in general.
Nice going on the beard and very nice photos! Love that hat!!
ReplyDeletePeace :)
oh oh... a yehuda moon sighting in TX?!... ;-)
ReplyDeleteI bet you kicked it up a notch going by the crack heads. Wouldn't recommend stopping to have a chat with one either.
ReplyDeleteIf it's mentioned, it does have a day-after-doomsday vibe to the pictures of your bike tumped over and riderless in the middle of the street, or near the river, observed only by a congregation of starlings.
Oldfool-Thanks, I'll stick with it a while longer.
ReplyDeleteSteve A-I guess nobody has ever hassled you about taking your bike inside. Just about every Starbucks I visit seems to be constantly busy.
Apertome-Being on the closed bridge reminded me of the movie "28 Days Later". It was very quiet and felt kind of weird.
Chris-With the beard I'm ready for arctic conditions. I'm hoping to make some changes to my bike before the day of the ride.
Doohickie-I work in those neighborhoods quite a bit. You are one brave man!
I hope your wife feels better. I hate to say it but the cough I had from my most recent bout with the flu lingered for a very long time. Hopefully she'll fare better than I did.
Chandra-Thanks. I like that hat. I bought it a long time ago. It's made of a thicker material than the cycling caps sold these days. Everybody should have one Campagnolo cap.
Meligrosa-That's funny! What's even funnier is that I know what/ who Yahuda Moon is.
twister-It's surprising how fast you can ride in the hood.
I was going to lay in the road next to the bike but I couldn't figure how to use the timer on my pocket camera.
I love the birds on the bridge girder.
ReplyDelete