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The Star-Spangled Banner On Screen at Ft. McHenry National Monument and Shrine

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I had nothing to do on this lovely day in Baltimore, so I spent my morning checking out the Walters Art Museum–beautiful–and doing a quick tour of the Pratt Libraray main branch–I had to ask at the desk if it was really the public library, it was so nice (it is, and according to E., everybody loves that library). K. then picked me up, showed me the Peabody Library, which totally looks like Hogwarts, and then to lunch. And then it was time to take a bike ride. I tossed my National Parks passport in my bag and rode downhill to Fort McHenry, home of the star-spangled banner. That was a lot of downhill riding, and what goes down must go up. Pedal, pedal, pedal, would I be able to make it back up? But first, a tour of my first Mid-Atlantic NPS site for my first Mid-Atlantic NPS passport cancellation stamp. This site was crazy, which I should have guessed, what with it being called a national shrine. I have been to a lot of parks and museums that represent America to itself, but nothing quite as full-on patriotic. I swear, the flag threw up all over that place. I pushed through the crowds–so many people!–and read all about the War of 1812 with barely a mention of the Battle of Orleans; Chalmette National Battlefield is making a very different argument about the meaning of the war, but I digress. Then the movie started. You really just have to see it, watch the flashes from above signifying bombs bursting in air, the flags-in-light disco-balling at our feet, and closing with this giant flag and the swelling tones of our National Anthem. And then the screen slowly rose, revealing a bank of windows, and were gazing upon the Fort itself and Our Flag proudly waving, as it has done since that fated night. And then I remembered to stand up and headed out, did a tour of the Fort itself, and then it started raining. And it was time to ride home, in the rain, uphill. It was a slow slog, but it felt so, so good. God, I can’t wait to have my bike here.

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NOPD Shirts For Sale at the Station on Royal Street

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Today’s ride took me Uptown from my current digs in the Marigny for lunch with N. and then to the office where I took care of last minute things for my trip to Baltimore tomorrow. I had meant to also stop by the courthouse as the Danziger trial started again, but the skies opened up and kept me and my bicycle in the office for most of the afternoon. I rode home under crazy thundering skies, stopping for a treat and then coffee with S. I had a bee in my bonnet about how little I have been taught about Frederick Douglass–he was one of our premier statesman! Why don’t they teach us that in schools!–and she filled in some blanks for me–friends, man, they’re the best. After a quick stop at home to get the cat out of the rain, I was back on the bike to meet R. and her kid for dinner. I pedaled up Royal as fast as I could to beat the rain, just stopping to take a picture of this sign outside the 8th District police station. T-shirts for sale? Really? I wonder who buys such things, and if the market’s been hit by the fallout from Danziger or Henry Glover or the cops arrested during their own prostitution stings (I thought we had decided to decriminalize!) or the other cops giving instructions to keep a special eye on all the Black men in town for Essence Fest or any of the other scandals showing this to be one of the most corrupt forces in the nation. Nah, I’ll pass on the shirt. After dinner I did my loop around the Bywater, deftly avoiding collision with that driver taking a left turn in front of me at the intersection of Poland and St. Claude. Look alive, people. It’s dangerous out there, but that’s no reason to stay off your bicycle.

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Blue Sky and Clouds From the Intercontinental Hotel Pool at St. Charles & Poydras

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I had the day completely free and I’m on vacation, so I figured I’d fill it with reading and bicycling, my two favorite things. I spent the morning reading–check–and then hopped on the bike for the super-quick ride downtown to meet L. at her hotel. Rumor was, she had a belated birthday prezzie for me. I locked up to a stop sign and headed inside. I live in New Orleans, so I never stay in hotels. Turns out, there are giant hotels with pools on their roofs! I snapped this picture between swims and before the rain started pouring. Yep, rain again, and it totally thwarted my afternoon riding plans. I ate my Pinkberry under the Doubletree Inn and rode home under light sprinkles, figuring I’d made the best of unpleasant weather. Tomorrow, tomorrow.

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Birds Snacking at Tulane Next to the Newcomb College Institute

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Oh, it felt so good to ride my bike yesterday that I was most especially looking forward to today’s ride. I did a quick jaunt to lunch with K. before heading down to the river. I waited with all the tourists heading to the aquarium for the train to pass, and then bike to a bench, sat back, and enjoyed the view. It has finally been good and summer rainy the past few days, and the wind is stil blowing waves, clouds rolling in. I had to get back to the office, though, so back on the bike I went, pedaling fast. My fall commute’s going to be much, much longer; might be time to practice. I grabbed a ridiculously large iced tea from the cafeteria, and on my way over to Newcomb Hall, I noticed these birds poking around in the mud we’ve finally got with their needly beaks. Yeah, y’all are going to need a bath after that meal. A woman passed me, remarking the the birds are a long way from home. Yes, yes they are.

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Cloudy Skies Over Lake Pontchartrain

Yesterday’s attempt to get a bike ride in to change the mood was foiled by rain, but today, after getting some writing done at home,  some grading done at the coffee shoppe, and a scoop of ice cream, I got on the bike and headed out for a ride. Continue reading →

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Rain at St. Charles & Something

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The day started out nicely–a little reading, a little writing–and then I graded some papers, and the mood started heading down. hill. It gets frustrating, how many students are just ill-prepared for college-level reading and writing. We are doing something seriously wrong. I moped around about it for a bit, and when the mood didn’t lift, I got on the bike, figuring that would help. But my plan was foiled by rain; I could see it before I could feel it, and that’s always a bad sign. I wear glasses–nothing fun–or safe–about riding in the rain. I snapped this picture while squished under an awning, and waited. It was the kind of rain that just sped up as the sun rolled in, and tap, tap, tap, I waited. Ok, fine, I’ll just get wet. I pedaled to the office, taught a class that left a terrible taste in my mouth, and rode home ahead of the next rain. Sometimes you just have days like this.

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Pelican Tricycle at 8th & St. Charles

I spent yesterday on foot and was hoping to have a day of riding around town, from the Uptown parades over to Endymion in Mid-City and a night or riding around the Marigny and the Bywater and the Treme looking for pockets of friends doing this or that. If the rains slow, that might still be my night, but I woke up to sprinkles that portended the rain they predicted yesterday. I thought it best to get in an early (for carnival season) bike ride, so I headed out to ride the parade route in front of Tucks. Continue reading →

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Rain

The weather was nice this morning–no wind, cool–and the commute to work was easy breezy. The weather report said it would rain today, and it did. All I saw on my ride home were puddles and raindrops through my wet, steamy glasses. Don’t start a ride in the rain, my father says, but sometimes you’ve got to, and this ride wasn’t bad. I made it safely home, jumped in the shower, put on some cozy pjs, and hopped into bed with my book. That’s the sort of thing that feels better after a few quick miles in a storm.

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Rain at Jones Hall on Tulane’s Campus

I had one of those days today when you leave for the office for 9:00am and don’t get home until after 10:00pm and you were pretty much working every second of that time and the only bike ride was the commute. The great thing about commuting by bike is that even on packed-full days like this one, you get to ride your bike. Continue reading →

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Dogs Wrestling at Wisner Park on Annunciation

When I left my house today it was sunny and warm, almost 70 degrees and humid. Tank top weather. In January! I headed to campus to write rec letters and meet an old, old friend for lunch. By the time we’d finished lunch and I’d walked her to the streetcar, dark clouds were rolling in. The sky was spitting just a little bit, but things were still dry when I got back to the office. I rode over to N.’s after work to accompany her and her dog to the park. Continue reading →