Uptown

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White Herons Building Nests in Audubon Park

As I was riding my bike up to campus today for the first day back from spring break, I kept thinking about the gazillion people who don’t commute by bike. You are really missing out, people. It feels so good to get some energy out and pedal to work first thing in the morning. Continue reading →

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Magnolia Blossoms Behind Tulane’s Gibson Hall

I am just plain tired out from my weekend of biking and walking and shouting for beads, and the weird reaction I’m having to the antibiotic my dentist gave me that is making my joints swell is not helping. In other words, today’s ride was a commute, a quick ride around Audubon Park to loosen things up a bit, and then home to ibuprofen and ice. Continue reading →

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(Seemingly) Drunk King Arthur at 6th & St. Charles

*REVISED*

I woke up early this morning and remembered that there were more parades. More parades! If you can’t tell, I love this time of year. I made myself sit down and do some work before it was parading time, so I walked over to the coffee shop, graded some papers, and bounced up and down in my seat until it was time to head home, grab the bike, and get to C. and P.’s for the first parade of the day–Krewe of Carrollton. Continue reading →

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Krewe of Pontchartrain Riders at 6th & St. Charles

Oh, my legs are heavy today! Two days of long rides and a sunburn (antibiotics+sun=no good) have left me exhausted, but that certainly doesn’t mean I’m going to miss a daytime parade on the first weekend of Mardi Gras. Please. I considered walking, but a bike is faster, so I put the bike in a low gear and headed over to find C. and P.’s corner where I always know I’ll find healthy bead competition. Continue reading →

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St. Mary’s Academy Maryites Marching Band at 6th & St. Charles

I woke up this morning with parading on my mind. Which meant I couldn’t really concentrate on anything, so after trying and failing to get some work done, I took the bike out to work out some nervous pre-Mardi Gras jitters. The sun was shining bright, the skies were clear, and I was flying through neighborhoods, feeling incredibly happy. Continue reading →

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Row of Blighted Houses at Caton & St. Bernard Avenue

I tried to sit in my office and do work today, I swear. I wrote about three sentences, met with a student, wrote a recommendation letter, and had lunch with R. and chocolate with R. But then I gave in to my senioritis and the 80 degree weather and took the bike out for a ride. It was seriously windy and I couldn’t seem to find a tailwind, so my ride was a heavy pedal in low gear all afternoon. I wasn’t in any kind of hurry, so that worked for me–hill training! Continue reading →

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Parade at Magazine & Nashville

I felt inexplicably exhausted after teaching today, so my ride today was nothing but the commute. After a long afternoon working in the office, I put my heavy legs on the bike and headed to the grocery store for a couple things. As I came up on Magazine from Nashville, I saw a parade coming down the street. A parade! Oh, that’s right–it’s Mardi Gras! Continue reading →

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Egrets and Herons at the Carrollton Water Treatment Plant

Is there any season better than springtime? Seriously, no matter what your climate, spring rocks. We don’t have crocuses here, but we’ve got marching bands and sunshine and the way it smelled today. I rode up to campus and did a quick loop around the park before a couple of quick meetings with students. Continue reading →

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Barge on the Mississippi From the Fly

When I left home on Friday afternoon for a weekend retreat in beautiful Raymond, Mississippi, it was literally freezing. Imagine my surprise returning to bright sunshine and warm temps–it feels like springtime up in here! I was exhausted from the long weekend, but it was a most excellent exhaustion from time spent with a truly remarkable group of students, faculty, and staff. Continue reading →

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Pothole Filled With Gravel on St. Charles & Nashville

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I ride my bike up and down St. Charles at least four times a week on my commute. I know that ride like I know how to make spicy black beans or how to catch beads at a Mardi Gras parade. I’m always happy to pass that one school on the right because that’s when the asphalt turns smooth. Until you cross Nashville (or is it Jefferson? I know the road surfaces, not their names.), where that pothole turns up. You’ve got to decide: are you going to roll over it? Pedal through? Jog out into the traffic lane a bit to stay on asphalt? But that has gotten harder since the left edge has been falling away. Some weeks ago somebody dumped some loose rocks in the deeper part of the hole to bring it up more even to the rest of the surface, but that just makes it more hazardous to cyclists. I stopped today on my zillionth ride over it to take a picture, and I noticed they’ve painted a square around it. Could that mean it will be fixed soon? I won’t hold my breath. When you ride a bike every day, this is the sort of stuff that lodges in your brain. Good thing I’ve got a thing for details.