Oh, so sad about grandpa. We had to put him in a home.

Oh, so sad about grandpa. We had to put him in a home.: I sure have to go to the bathroom, these damn antibiotics and the flu are keeping me pretty often in the bathroom. Oh, look we have a copy of Bicycling’s Gear Guide. I’ll read that. Sure wonder what that gunpowder smell is, oh well. [Funny, funny. I’m the same way. Some days I find at the very end of the day that one thing I said I have to do today i still undone. Although David seems to have more “burn down the house” moments than I do.]
Source: Attention Deficit David

The long slide to gone

The long slide to gone: We spend a lot of time talking about the ends and the means, but it’s also worth considering whether the journey is worth the reward. If you have to compromise what you do just to keep doing it, what’s the point? [Sometimes the point is just surviving for a while, but I think Seth’s point is larger one, and a good one. We have so little time. Make it all count.]
Source: Seth’s Blog

Bike Network 2.0

Bike Network 2.0: Her team created a modified Google Map that enables cyclists to log on and trace the routes they ride every day. Watch the data pile up, and voila — sensible bike routes. “We found out where the actual desire lines are,” she said. “Using existing technology was great.” [Most excellent! Notes on how they did it here.]
Source: StreetsBlog

Where a Dollar Will Get You

Where a Dollar Will Get You: Ticket prices start at $1 (plus a 50-cent booking fee) and go up to market value, according to Dustin Clark, a Greyhound representative. Currently the market value is about $25. The earlier passengers book their tickets, the lower their fare will be. Passengers can book tickets up to six months in advance, and $1 tickets will remain available until the tickets sell out. Any extra seats can be filled by standby passengers on the day of travel, and walk-up tickets can be purchased for full price (market value). Ticket holders who purchase tickets online are guaranteed a seat, but BoltBus advises getting to the pickup point about 15 minutes before departure. [Nice idea. Where’s the bike rack?]
Source: Intelligent Travel

Guitarist Jeff Healey dies at 41

The Ampersand: Canadian guitarist Jeff Healey has died in Toronto Sunday after a battle with cancer. He was 41. The news was released on his website, jeffhealey.com. Here’s a statement from his site. “Following a lengthy struggle with cancer, Healey passes away on the eve of the release of a new blues rock album.” [His struggle is evident in his music. That’s the mark for which we all search. RIP.]
Source:

Mojo: Fruit Nut Dipped and Crunch

The Great Mojo bar Taste Test continues…

In our last episode our intrepid hero had delivered Mojo bars to fellow cyclists of taste, breeding, and class. Or maybe not. Hard for me to say. Anyway, they’re busy crunching their way through the bars and will be posting about them shortly. More were delivered Sunday, and the final batch are going out this week.

As for me, I’ve been enjoying the fruit/nut combos. There are two different bars, one of the new “dipped” flavors and and one of the original recipe. On comment I should make which is familiar to all who eat food in the outdoors during the winter. Be careful to warm the product as best you can (inside pocket, close to something warm etc.) because almost any food that doesn’t freeze solid still turns into a rock. Some flavors are better than others… but still. You gots to be careful or, well… you may lose a tooth.

That said, I’ve always loved dried fruit and nuts, so these flavors should kinda be a natural for me. Unfortunately, I find them a bit sweet and since the part of the Clif Mojo thing that I dig is that they are salty… at least saltier, this is not a good thing. I disclaim that I cook with very little salt, and eat almost no processed sugar and very few sugary sweets, candy bars, and the like. These bars are about as close as I come. No big philosophical thing here, simply what I need to do to stay healthy. YMMV. Anyway, I find dried fruit very sweet, and so these Mojo flavors are especially sweet tasting to me. I wish they were saltier. I do. But they’re not. Sigh.

So while I like them, they fall into the “everything” else category of sweetish tasting power bars. Fine for what they are, but missing the essence of Mojoness for me.

Persuade Google To Map Bike Routes

Persuade Google To Map Bike Routes:

We are asking Google Maps to incorporate a bike travel as an equal option  to automotive and bus transportation.
This would be very cool and useful, especially with the new tracing algorithms they have recently implemented.
Pass it around to all the cyclists you know.  Google responds quite well to these things.
http://www.petitiononline.com/bikether/petition.html

[Cool. Ya’ll go!]
Source: the Practical Pedal Blog

Bike rack instructional video brings the groove

Bike rack instructional video brings the groove: TARC raps on bike rack
Louisville’s TARC employees hope a new rap video will teach bus riders how to use the bike racks that have been installed on many city buses, according to an agency spokeswoman.

The video, which features TARC employees singing and dancing, has only been released online, and there are no plans to pay for television advertising spots, said Nina Walfoort, a TARC spokeswoman. [As a multimodal commuter myself… it’s really nice to the folks in the transit agencies getting involved. I’d love to see a video like this produced by New York’s Finest. I guess I should add that the video is awful form an intructional standpoint, never clearly showing you all the steps required, but then I’d guess that it’s not all that hard to figure out, even under the pressure of waiting bus.]
Source: Bike Commute Tips Blog