Monday was a beautiful sunny day that called for bare arms, bare legs, and a bicycle ride. I started with a quick flight down the hill to meet E. for lunch and a chat about public history. I tried to stay after to get a little work done, but it was just too tempting, the fresh air and warm breeze, so I packed up my things, hopped on the bike, and took a left on Biddle. It always astounds me how wildly the neighborhoods change in just a couple of miles, from Mt. Vernon to Madison Square, Collington Square to Butcher’s Hill to the south. Without my bike, I’d probably miss all these neighborhoods, but this ride took me all over town and through places at all levels of development and redevelopment. The streets were full, everybody was out enjoying the weather, and I gave my how-you-doin’s and pedaled happily along, feeling my old self come back into my skin. I took a right on Edison Highway and walked my bike to peek through the fence at the trucks full of municipal wood chips and the falling-in roof of the train car storage building. On the downslope I looked out onto this empty field, a single red storage container in the middle. I’m going to assume there are toys and games and football uniforms and cotton candy in there, but today it was just that, all alone. The weather makes promises for new play on this field, and oh my, spring fever has solidly settled in. The rest of my ride took me down through Canton for a brief stop to do some homework before spinning up to Federal Hill for a glass of wine and a pizza with friends before heading back up the hill to home. Even in the dark I didn’t need a jacket. Oh my goodness YES.