It has felt like weeks since I last got to ride my bicycle. I was busy heeding the weather warnings and staying inside as Hurricane Sandy approached the east coast, and then I was busy catching up with work at work. I took the bike out for a very quick ride to see a show on Halloween, but that didn’t even count. Today I got to ride the bike all the way to Harbor East and back–hooray! Ok, still a rather short ride, but at least today I got get myself pedaling a bit. It took about three blocks for everything to feel sunnier, even if the skies are still gray, like they’ve been for over a week. Continue reading
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Cinnamon Pine Cones at the Whole Foods at Harbor East
And then all of a sudden it was cold and drizzling and I was underdressed on my bike, remembering that I need a hat, gloves and my eyes are going to water. I did a spin at the gym where I was too hot, stopped for coffee and an egg sandwich, and then to the grocery. The place smelled frankly too much like cinnamon, like the place was trying to beat me over the head with “fall.” I got my six items, checked out and loaded them into my pannier, and headed out. Ah, the culprits: bag after bag after bag of cinnamon pine cones with a small pile of cinnamon brooms (yes, I guess that’s a thing) bringing season’s greetings. Welcome, fall! And thanks for reminding me again that I might be cold heading down the hill, but I’ll be nice and toasty on the way back.
Blue Skies and Blight at Fallsway & Chase
Tuesday was another busy day for me, so I didn’t have time for a long bike ride. In fact, I didn’t feel like I had time for a bike ride at all. But I wanted to sneak in a trip to the gym, and I’m certainly not going to drive a car three piddly miles, so I hopped on the bike and sped down the hill for a quick turn and a ride back up the hill. I know I’ve been on about the weather shift for awhile, but the skies are really incredible. Continue reading
Blue Skies From the Ramparts of Fort McHenry
Yesterday’s storms brought cooler weather, and when I stepped out of the house to take the bike downtown for a quick stop at the gym it was actually a little chilly. I mean, just a little bit, but still–I haven’t felt air that cool in months and months of the hottest summer in my memory, including all those New Orleans ones. The sky was a brilliant blue spotted with puffy white clouds, the kind of sky I wanted this summer when it was too busy sweating. Continue reading
Clouds Rolling in Over Federal Hill From Montgomery & William
I woke up to a warm morning, 96% humidity, and gray skies that wore off to blue. Sure, maybe not the best for a long bike ride in the city, but it’s Defenders Day, and E. and I were on tap to lead a tour of historic sites related to the War of 1812. Then I looked at the weather report, and E. called, and we decided to postpone the ride due to expected thunderstorms and possible tornadoes. Continue reading
View Over the Fence at Webster’s Dead End in Federal Hill
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.
Pink and Blue Skies Over 36th & Roland Avenue
I spent the weekend in the car and on foot, camping with S. in Catoctin National Park, and aside from the rain and the Very Important Lesson I learned about using the rain fly even if the skies are blue, it was a most perfect weekend. Now that I’m back in Baltimore, though, I get to hop back on the bike. Continue reading
Smoggy and Cloudy Skies Over Downtown From the Druid Hill Park Reservoir
Today was the day I’ve been waiting for, the day when it’s supposed to cool off a little bit, but then it started to look like we’d have to wait until tomorrow for that, but when I looked at the weather report, it was only 95 degrees out there, so yeah, that’s a cool down. I grabbed the Surly and headed to Hampden for a fancy brunch and errands. Continue reading
Looking Up at Redwood & Light
I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the Mid-Atlantic’s having something of a heat wave. All these day at or near 100 degrees can wear on a girl, but I have decided that the best thing to do is hydrate and pedal slowly~it’s still better than getting in a car. Thursday’s ride took me flying down the hill (when they warned me about hills, they forgot to tell me how awesome that part is) to Federal Hill for a massage and then a trip to the wine bar with A. for a good ol’ 1% afternoon. the heat’s not really an issue on the downhills, so I had plenty of ire saved up for the FOUR vehicles parked on the bike/ped path around the Inner Harbor. I grr’ed my way around and then granny geared up the hill and over for a long cooling session in the Harris Teeter. After a positively lovely conversation it was time to head home, this time under ominous clouds with strong winds. The sweat was pouring by the time I stopped at the light at Redwood and Light. I looked up and snapped this picture; from this angle it almost looks like we live in a big city. Back on the bike, back up the hill, a quick stop to snag S. from the outdoor concert at Mt. Vernon, and on to home, another steamy day of cycling for transportation done. It really is a better way to go, even if it does mean more showering.
People Standing in the Sprinkler in Front of the Lincoln Memorial
Oh, man, it was hot today, and I was travelling by bike in a city I don’t know well. By the time I righted all my wrong turns from Columbia Heights to Georgetown to meet H. for brunch, I was a sweaty, frazzled mess. I folded down the Brompton and went into the air conditioning to wait. The bike tucks so neatly under a table, and I think I’m finally over my nerves that folks won’t let me bring her inside. After we parted ways I headed down to the alleged bike/ped path along the old C&O Canal, but I just wasn’t up to dodging rocks on the unpaved trail or hopping upended bricks on the other side. The heat was already geting to me, so rather than try to follow the googleymap, I just gon on Pennsylvania Avenue and pedaled until I got a nice breeze going. Eventually I saw a sign directing traffic to the Lincoln Memorial, so I took the soft right until I was in the well-signed tourist area. The place was summer-crowded with school tours in matching t-shirts, so I got off and walked until I found myself on the right side of the memorial~the side with the sprinkler. Oh, thank you, National Park Service! I snapped this picture before getting myself sprinkled, and then I was back on my way, past the Korean War Memorial, around the Washington Monument, and past museum after museum after museum until I reached the Capitol Building. Union Station’s right behind there, so I took a right, pedaled up the hill, dodged cars and pedestrians in the roundabout, and was finally back in air conditioning. I sucked down a couple bottles of water befoere boarding a delayed MARC train back to Halethorpe for a quick pedal to my car that I left on campus yesterday. And now I’m home, rehydrating, and looking at maps of DC for my next trip, hopefully after the heat wave has waned a bit.
What I Saw Riding My Bike Around Today 