And sometimes you take three days off of bicycling because your dear sister is in town, and she’s a runner, so you happily walk and take the bus and hope N. will pick you both up and drive you around town. Today, though, what I really needed was to get back on the bike. I didn’t get a chance to ride around until the evening, when I hopped on the bike and headed down to Mount Vernon for a meeting. In a shocking turn of events, especially for a Monday, the meeting ran short, so I had plenty of time to ride around town. I headed down to the main post office because I’ve never been inside that behemoth of Brutalist architecture, plus also I wanted to put a letter in the mail. Continue reading
bikes
View of Baltimore Looking East From Druid Hill Park Reservoir
And then sometimes you just want to put some music in your ears and ride around in circles feeling happy to be alive, so that’s what I did on Thursday, heading to Druid Hill Park for a ride around the reservoir. I slowed way down once I got to the park, partly because I’m the slowest hill-rider in town, but also to watch the kid on the diving board in the pool. He was standing on the springboard facing away from the water, bouncing every once in awhile as other kids and an instructor looked on. There’s no way out but to jump off that board, but oh, that’s a scary jump. Continue reading
Preparing to Pour Cement at Bethel & Fleet
It was another gray day in Baltimore, and as soon as I got on the bike I felt raindrops. They weren’t the kind of raindrops that stayed–those would come later–and it felt good to just be flying down the hill in less than full summer heat. I rode down, took my left and my right, dodged some mail trucks, took another left and a right, and I was retracing familiar steps. I thought about why these familiar steps are never in the west–I blame MLK (the street, not the man)–and then I parked my bike and ate the kind of breakfast that you know you’re supposed to think is amazing, but really you shouldn’t have to ask that many times for a biscuit that’s more like a very, very plain crumbly muffin with jam that just doesn’t hold up. On my way I stopped to snap this picture of construction in Fells Point. It’s almost time to pour the cement, I think, the ground traced with steel bars. There are cranes in the sky down here. Every time I see cranes in the sky, I remember that’s what they said about New Orleans–there would be cranes in the sky, but that didn’t happen. Something else is happening there now. I walked down to the pier, sat and watched the water taxi come and go, and then it was back on the bike to the Inner Harbor and around to Locust Point for a couple of errands before a speedy trip home. Those last few miles were my favorite of the day, up and down, up and down, hitting my stride, waving my hellos.
Looking Up at the Side of Baltimore Central Booking and Intake Center at Fallsway & Madison
Monday’s ride took me down the hill–big surprise–and around the Inner Harbor, where I got to use the best of my outside voice to remind pedestrians and Segway drivers (riders?) to Share the Path. I complain a lot about the lack of easy bicycling around the harbor, but I recently tried walking it. The pedestrians are right–the shared path is the only good way around the construction in front of the World Trade Center, and once on a path, hardly anybody gets off it to follow a different one, even once the obstacles are gone. An easy pedal up to Federal Hill for some work with the co-workers, and then I headed home, same outside-voice around the harbor, a left on President to enjoy the worst bike lane in the city on my way to the best one–the Fallsway cycletrack. Continue reading
Patient Goats at the Maryland Zoo in Druid Hill Park
I’m writing this blog the day after this particular ride. Here’s what I remember: I got on my bike earlier than I thought I would, but N. takes L. & J. out to play early, before naptime, and she invited me to join them all at the zoo. I hopped on and pedaled quickly, enjoying that flying turn onto Remington Avenue, pedaling hard up the hill and flying back down, a left into the park where kids were pouring into the pool. I continued on to the reservoir path, going the wrong way, saying my how-you-doin’s to speedwalkers, bicyclists, and that guy with his dog. Continue reading
Crowds Gathered for Bike Party at Pearlstone Park at Preston & Cathedral
Friday’s evening ride took me down the hill and to the right to Pearlstone Park, a place I’d been a bunch of times but didn’t know it had a name, to meet up with 1,000 other bicyclists for another edition of Bike Party. I hadn’t been planning to go, but when R. asked if I wanted to go, I couldn’t think of a reason not to–always an excellent situation for saying YES. This Bike Party was going to be a little different–the police wanted to be more involved. I guess there are some concerns about 1,000+ cyclists taking a good 30 minutes to get through intersections, holding up traffic and, well, I can’t think of any other reason the police would want to be involved, right? Continue reading
Trayvon Martin Protesters Gathered at City Hall To Demand Justice
The clock clicked to 5:00pm and it was time to slather on the sunscreen and get on the bike for another ride down to McKeldin Square for another rally demanding justice in the Trayvon Martin case. That’s not a demand that’s going to be met following this particular rally, of course, but the rally brings like-minded folks together to feel community in anger, mourning, frustration, but also to revel in the pleasure of the crowd itself. My favorite moment from Sunday’s protest, for example, came when I was locking my bike up to the racks in the Inner Harbor (there’s a rack! As N. would say, wowwwwwwwwwwww!). Continue reading
The Star Spangled Banner in the Distance at Fort McHenry
I left my car in Federal Hill on Friday, so today I had to ride my bike over there to fetch it. First, though, an early ride to Waverly to meet J. and C. to tend our young beehive. Bees are amazing. Their wings are lace-thin and always moving, and the whole hive vibrates, hums, and gives off a waxy heat. Today we tried to redirect some of their combing and in the process, had to remove some comb (and got to taste the honey), delicious.
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Clouds Rolling In and Out at the Druid Hill Park Reservoir
Today I just wanted to ride my bike without negotiating traffic or pedestrians or anything, just to feel the warm air on my skin, skirt flapping in the breeze, music in my ears, so rather than explore, I headed to Druid Hill Park for some easy laps around the reservoir. The sky was gray and promised rain, but oh my goodness, I needed a bike ride, so off I went. The promised storm meant the pool was cleared out as kids waited impatiently for the all-clear and I everybody could have the chance to swim in the rain, a terrific pleasure. And then I did my laps as the gray sky gave way to this one, just three laps in, and everyone was back in the pool. A couple more and it was time to head home to meet N. and R. for a walk down to see a movie. The walk back was under that same gray sky from earlier, like the weather can’t make up its mind about what to give us. What I do know, though, is that summer is for bicycling, and it was good to get out for a short ride tonight. More tomorrow, please.
Peeking Over the Wall at Belt Street & I95
The end of summer school means the beginning of Summer for this cat, and Monday was the kick off. I spent the morning finishing a book and starting another before using my car (gasp) for a quick appointment. Then it was all bicycle, first to the park to play on the swings and eat carrot sticks with N. and her tiny charges, then to lunch and home for more reading and a nap before spinning down the hill to meet J. for coffee and some interview strategy talk–give that boy a job, please! Continue reading
What I Saw Riding My Bike Around Today 