neighborhoods

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Do Not Sit On Steps at 41st & Edgehill

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Friday’s ride took me an easy couple miles up the hill and over to Hampden for my monthly book club discussion and snackfest, this time hosted by S. ans A., who dressed in colonial garb in keeping with the historical novel’s time period and theme. I felt underdressed in my uniform of skirt and tank top, and overtired from a really long week at work, but once I got on my bike and headed out, I caught my third of fourth wind of the day. I rode my usual Hampden route, stopped for a bottle of wine, and then rode with some traffic on 41st before locking up to a bus stop sign on a residential streets. This sign was affixed there too, reminding riders not to sit down in a residential neighborhood, because that’s private property. I wonder how many Hampden neighborhood petitions, phone trees, transit meetings and emails had to be exchanged for this sign to be put up there, and I wonder how many daily huffs-n-puffs still happen when people sit down somewhere other than the one bench to wait the legendary wait times that are part of most bus systems. Or maybe nobody around here takes the bus, and it’s not “a problem” yet. Private property, public needs~seems to me that’s the real problem. And then I went inside, ate, talked, laughed, and drank, and then I rode home. Fall weather’s barely teasing, and I was a sweaty mess after just 20 minutes out there. Soon, soon, but for now it’s still hot as blazes.

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A Band and Dancers at Stiles & Lloyd during the Feast of St. Gabriel Festival

I wasn’t in the mood for much yesterday, if I’m being completely honest (so tired!), but I had plans to meet A. and V. down in Little Italy for the San Gabriel festival, so there I was on my bike, rolling down the hill. And yep, that instantly lifted my mood. I stopped for a quick lunch to avoid the fried everything at the street fest and then rode over to the Flag House to lock up and meet A. for a wander. Continue reading →

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Brentwood Village Kid’s Zone at Chase & Forrest

Today’s ride took me down the hill to meet V. for a swim at the gym. I’m terrible at swimming, but I’m guessing that like most things, if I keep doing it, I’ll figure it out and get better at it, because my dad said that’s what practice does–it makes better. I meant to go to the grocery store and head home after, but then my bike just kept rolling east, through Fells Point, over past the new condo developments along the harbor near Canto (because gosh, we need more of those), and up through Canton on Fait Avenue. Continue reading →

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View Over the Fence at Webster’s Dead End in Federal Hill

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Today’s ride took me down the hill and back up another hill to my favorite new strip mall in Locust Point where I locked up to a rack before spending the day getting a massage, going out to lunch, talking to S. on the phone, and eating frozen yogurt as I tried to circle around an argument for this thing I’ve been writing all summer. It’s scary sometimes, the point where you have to stop making Interesting Observations and start making larger sense, and I have to take very good care of myself so I don’t scare myself away from that part of writing. I finally managed to figure some stuff out while waiting for the rain to stop, scribble, scribble, scribble, and then it was time for a celebratory beer, some grousing about the USA men’s basketball team~holding for the last shot of the half when you’re up by 33 is just tacky~and then I pedaled over to A. and J.’s for wine, good food, chatter, and more Olympics action. I stopped to take this picture before I got there, at the end of Webster. You call it Webster Court, but all you’ve got is this half fence to keep a distance between you and freeways and waste treatment plants. And then a groundhog scurried by and I was reminded that a lot of things are willing to make a life right at the edges. I rode home late at night, for me, and realized it has been awhile since a warm night ride alone, which meant the sense memory was all New Orleans. It didn’t make me miss that place, though; it made me happy that I can still access that feeling of being the only person on the streets, flying by with my skirt waving, my own breeze cooling me down. Oh yes, that is a nice way to spend a summer evening.

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Corner House at Mayfield & Kenly

Today’s ride took me over to Lake Montebello for an easy couple of laps around before heading to the frozen yogurt place. I was feeling rather out of sorts, and it took awhile for the ride to put me back in. Near the end of the first lap I got off the path and rode around the surrounding neighborhoods a bit. Continue reading →

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Hydrangeas on Remington Avenue & Ignatius

Today’s ride took me and the Surly over to Hampden and up Chestnut to 36th Avenue before I figured out that Falls Road is the other way, and then flew down the hill to lock up my bike and head into the studios for my breakout performance on Baltimore public radio’s Marc Steiner Show. WEAA 88.9 is in desperate need of bike racks, so I had to lock up to a gate before heading in and putting on the headphones for an hour-long conversation about gender. Continue reading →

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View of Union Memorial Sports Medicine at Stadium Place From 36th & Rexmore

After several long days of work and a long day of rain, I finally got to go for a ride today, albeit a short one. I hopped on the Surly and headed northeast through Waverly and up Old York Road to Ednor Gardens for some porch sitting with my old friend from high school, L., and her Baltimore friends. I’ve actually never been over to this neighborhood–usually I just keep riding up York–and though I didn’t do much tooling around, it’s nice to know it’s here for some exploring. Continue reading →

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View of Pier 40 From Christopher & Hudson River Parkway

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I woke up early this morning, packed a weekend’s worth of gear in the Brompton’s bag, and flew down the hill to Penn Station where I folded up the bike and shoved it onto the overhead luggage rack for our getaway weekend in New York City. This is precisely why I got the Brompton~so we could do short trips along the Eastern seaboard together. Yeah, I was pretty excited. After getting over my nerves about the whole thing (I’m the anxious type) I settled in and enjoyed the ease of travel. Literally three minutes after I got off the train at Penn Station I was u.folded and dodging traffic and other cyclists on Eighth Avenue and then over to Fifth to meet up with my sister for keys to the house. I goggleymapped directions and found myself rolling down Fifth with all the buses, taxis, and pedestrians, an unexpected danger. Oh, it was fun, so, so fun, even if a little scary. I finally got off the freeway and onto side streets over to the bike path along the river. I snapped this picture looking toward the pier, which is like Disneyland compared to what it looked like 15 years ago when I lived in NYC. Now it’s this beautiful bike path and a succession of parks-a playground, but for folks who used to call this home, it is a real loss. I mean, what are yachts doing there? Across the river just looks like every New York metro area skyline–a postcard. I took my left and followed the signs to the Brooklyn Bridge where I did a series of portraits of Brompty, and then I fumbled around Brooklyn before getting myself headed in the right direction, and then I was at my sister’s where I just folded the bike, lugged it up a few flights, and tucked it away behind the TV. Yep, I have everything I need to live in NYC, except for the patience you must need to live somewhere so crowded. I look forward to many more rides with Brompty, though. This place is fun to ride in, that’s for sure.

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Looking Up the Railroad Tracks on Bush, Just After Severn

Today’s ride took me over to campus for the program’s end-of-the-year picnic, this time with dogs. I took my regular route down the hill, but I decided to stay on Dolphin, just to see where it would take me. The city isn’t in the kind of grid I’m used to, so I’m not always sure which streets are running which directions, but I had a hunch that if I stayed where I was, I might end up on Harlem Ave., which seemed increasingly likely as I crossed Eutaw and Druid Hill and Pennsylvania. Continue reading →

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Tree Growing From a Building at Lafayette & Charles

Today’s ride took me up to Hampden for another bikram yoga class where I’m trying to stretch out my tight bicycling hips. Yeah, I’ve got a ways to go with that. After a quick stop at home for a shower and lunch, I took my writing project with me and flew down the hill to meet V. for a coffee and work date. These are just the kind of small errands that are done much more quickly on bike than in a car; the last thing I want to do is spend time and money parking my car in Hampden or Station North. Continue reading →