Tag: vancouver

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The moon is in a phase and I guess that I am too

Last night Graham and Thomas had their final orchestra concert of the year. In anticipation of the event, several months ago I invited my mother to visit us at this time so that she could attend. Graham’s fourth grade orchestra was the first to play and they did a very nice job of showing how much they had improved during the year. After they took their bow, they all started off stage to make room for the fifth grade orchestra. As Graham stood near the edge of the stage waiting for the rest of the kids to move, he chatted and laughed with his nearby friends. I looked away for a second to talk to Tina and then we heard a crash in front of the stage followed by a gasp from the audience. Somebody fell. Tina asked, “Who fell?” Scanning the group near the commotion, I realized Graham was no longer on stage. “It’s Graham!” I told her as she stood and then rushed down the stairs to the stage.

Continue reading “The moon is in a phase and I guess that I am too”

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Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2529
Van odometer: 155015
Aches & pains: lower back, muscles (moving)
Current reading: My Name Is Red by Orhan Pamuk, Cross-platform GUI Programming with wxWidgets, The Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
Recent listening: No Line on the Horizon by U2, Final Boss by MC Frontalot
Recent viewing: Lost (Seasons 2-5), Medium, Hardball, NBA Playoffs, Rachel Maddow Show
Recent playing: Galcon
Recently accomplished: working in Vancouver, cleaned cat boxes, cleaned van, cardboard recycling, showed Thomas how to mow lawn, showed Graham how to use the edger, equipment salvage in Vancouver office
Imperative To Do: Scouts accounting, turn compost, read Sam’s script, return cans

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Morning Bike Commute

Distance: 11.8 miles
Riding time: 82 minutes
Max speed: 21.5 mph
Average speed: 8.5 mph
Temperature: 46º
Soundtrack: Rage Against The Machine
Route:

  • Private drive to 156th
  • 156th to Fremont
  • Fremont to the subdivision
  • Subdivision streets to 158th
  • 158th to Airport Way
  • Airport Way to Interstate 205 bike path
  • Bike path to Old Evergreen Highway
  • Old Evergreen Highway to 164th Ave
  • 164th to 34th Street
  • 34th to 168th Ave
  • 168th/169th Ave to 26th Way
  • 26th Way to Fred Meyer parking lot
  • Fred Meyer parking lot to 167th Ave
  • 167th to work
This ride went smoother than last night because I knew the way and had plotted a course on Google Maps to avoid 164th which is heavy with traffic. Climbing the mile long hill on the bridge was exhausting and it took me about 20 minutes to cross the whole bridge. The rest of the way was a grind and I was shaking from exhaustion when I finally arrived. Hopefully, my stamina will be a bit better next week.
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Evening Bike Commute

Distance: 13.5 miles
Riding time: 90 minutes
Max speed: 20.4 mph
Average speed: 8.9 mph
Temperature: 45º
Soundtrack: none
Route:

  • 164th to Old Evergreen Highway
  • Old Evergreen Highway to Interstate 205
  • Interstate 205 bike path to Airport Way
  • Airport Way to 158th Ave
  • 158th through subdivision to Fremont
  • Fremont to 156th Ave
  • 156th to home via “the private drive”
This was my first ride since mid-December and, more notably, the first ride from my new job. Although the route seems straightforward, I did not note all the sidetracking and goose chasing I did because of my unfamiliarity with the route. At one point the bike route sign pointed to a road that was marked “Dead End” with another sign. Since there was a bike path only yards away, I took that instead. 10 minutes later, I’m on a freeway ramp getting onto Interstate 205. I had to turn around and ride the shoulder in the wrong direction in order to get back to the aforementioned “dead end.” It did, however, lead me to the Glenn Jackson Bridge which has a bike path that runs down the middle of the bridge between the 8 lanes of auto traffic. The bridge spans about 2 miles and over a mile of that is downhill. Still, when I reached Airport Way I was pretty exhausted and limped home the rest of the way.