Can't see/think straight? What else is new?!

July 28, 2013

What is this?  This thing?  We call.  Life?

As Mr. Shatner often heard from his long-suffering engineer Scotty, “I can’t hold ‘er together much longer, cap’n!”

Thing are actually great, thank you for asking.  I’ve been driving my mighty Metro out to Lincoln, parking, pedaling, learning, pedaling, driving, parking, studying.  That kinda deal.  And I’ve been told I’ve got a family around here somewhere…  Although coherence has never been my strong suit, it is becoming less so these days.  I have less thyme for my sophomoric ramblings and way more time for my junioric composing of academic hyperbola. 

But I felt like I needed to show you a bunch of photos relating to my new bicycling terrain.  Here they are.

Lincoln has apparently decided to plant some trees in the parkways.  The new 2 for trees project or some such.  Sounds good to me!  Omaha, please plant one on the corner so people stop running over my sidewalk and grass and instead just run over a small, helpless tree.  Is that better? 

It seems like there are way more bicyclers riding around the streets of Lincoln than there are here in Omaha.  But I didn't get any good shots of them because I suck. 

Also people riding those long skating boards.  Often with flip-flops on their feet.

I hear there was a gravelly fun time out at the Walnut Creek Lake area a while back.  The Gong Ride!  It sounds like a fun time and here is a classic video/T. Rex cover to honor all participants for their hard pedaling and lugie hawking.

I also hear that there is a bikey event coming up, such as the Corporate Cycling Challenge on August 18.  Probably lots of other stuff too.  I'm really not sure because I'm just trying to hold it together, cap'n!  I've got a gift card to some bike shops, though, so maybe I'll stop in and try to figure out what the f is going on these days!  See you there, chappo!  See you there.

Council B-ware!

July 6, 2013

As I may have half-heartedly/assedly tried to explain, I am no longer bicycle commuting in Omaha.  I am hardly even bicycle commuting at all.  That's right.  The name of this blog should be "Snot," but I'm  too apathetic/pathetic to actually do anything about that.  Whether or not you care, here is an explanation for my change in activities:   I am busy being self-appointed bike czar at UNL, taking History of Rock ‘n Roll-related classes, and spending thyme with Baby Snot.  That doesn’t mean I don’t often have a hankerin’ for some 2-wheelin’ hijinks, though!  Why just yesterday I met up with my old man for a tour of Council Bluffs streets and bicycle trails.  It was a good time.  There was one very steep hill, 

and a few other moderately steep ones.  We rode past Big Lake, 

which was next to the big house.  

We rode on some scenic roads.  

We saw a bicycle-based art piece (sorry, I apparently didn't get a photo, but it was awesome!).  We rode past the casinos and ate at the golf course club house next to Harrah’s.  

I think it's called the Dodge Park Club and they've got a great spinach artichoke dip.  We also saw a replica of Lewis and Clark’s boat, the Voyager, at that museum of western trails, or some such.  

It was fantastic (not the replica, really, just the whole expedition in general)! 

Now that it is awl over, I am back home and working on mending my brand new Jansport backpack 

which was sent to me after I trashed my other one over a 17-year period.  The Velcro seems to have been either weak or defective.  I suppose I could send it back for repairs, but I would feel kind of weird sending back a free replacement pack.  Yeah, I know you wouldn’t!  You’re probably a lousy tipper, too!  Aren’t you!?  I’m actually not too bad with a needle and a haystack/thread, so I figger it’s easier to mend it, dear Willie, you silly, mend it, than it would be to pack it all up and send it back.  Cheaper too. 

Whaat else is hanyakering?  Well upon our multi-generational meanderings, we stopped by the Wabash Trace trailhead where I noticed a local manifestation of the fairly recently-blossomed potentially unhealthy pastime of bicycle racing on gravel roads.  

I have ridden my bike on a few gravel roads, and my main concern has generally been – when do I get off this damn gravel!?  The best part of riding on gravel is finding a part of the road that is less gravelly!  But if this is your cup of whisky on the rocks, then please let me know how it goes.  At least it'll be dark, so you won't see the looming ridiculousness of it all before you biff it into a muddy ditch.  I’ll be at home, crying and whimpering in fear just thinking about it!  Gong appetit avec accentes bitches.

For of Jules

July 4, 2013

Hey hosses and hossettes.  I hear it’s July 4^th.  Baby Snot does not seem to mind the barrage.  So I will spend some time haranguing you about my life.  That’s right, I’ve beat you to the punch yet again!  Ha!  Haha! 

Yep, I am way less aware of what’s happening in the locally bikey scene since me and Baby Snot have been kicking it on weekends.  And some weekdays.  Here are some things we’ve been up to.

We went hiking at Fontenelle Forest and had a hoot!  

We saw a turtle. 

And a tree that was older than the Constitution of the United States! 

And here’s a cool solar-powered bicycle-mobile that we saw on the way to Z-Lake.  

It’s like Alexander Calder got heat stroke and powered up his creative bikey mojo.    

I also worked with compadre Bob and found a cool camping spot at the Hitchcock Nature Center in the vicinity of Honey Creek, Iowa.

And then tonight we saw a sweet big band called the Swingtones followed by a Nebraska Wind Symphony concert at Chalco Hills.  It was friggin’ great! 

I hear the Owl Ride is coming up in a week or so.  So get your funky lights all electrified and get ready to party down around town.

Me and Dad are planning on getting out for some bicycling manana con tilda, so I’ll be sure to give you an update on actual bicycling-related happenings in a day or dos.  Hasta rasta 4 July!