Strange Bird

As I bounded out the door for my commute yesterday, I grabbed the camera. I then noticed Lise has some work photos on it, so I left it. My ride was very cold and dark. I was chilled all the way to the river. I took the road toward Fort Snelling again. I've developed something of an aversion to the Ford Bridge and Mississippi Boulevard. I think it is the back tracking that I don't like. I'd rather shoulder my bike down and up the steps to the Seventh Street Bridge. I also like the odd desolation of the pre-dawn fort area. Much of the buildings are abandoned and badly neglected. Strangely there are often several cars parked in a parking lot that is near no buildings at all- mystery parkers. As I rode along the crest of the bluff toward the visitor's center, downtown Minneapolis was bathed in a reddish pre-dawn sunlight. The buildings were tall enough to catch the sun that had yet to rise. I really regretted not having my camera.

After I crossed the river and headed toward the tunnel under 35E, I noticed the most amazing white bird sitting on the fence. This was certainly someone's exotic pet- there was no way this creature was indigenous to Minnesota. Again, I regretted not having my camera. This little stretch along 35E is also where hundreds of goldfinches hang out. As I blast through there in the morning, they scatter. These amazing finches can actually fly through the links in the chainlink fence. I'm guessing there is a special plant that grows in the area.

Work was the busiest Friday ever. I was almost running out the door by 3 pm. A few miles from work I heard what sounded like a gun shot as my front tire blew out. Just the other day I was thinking how long it had been since I'd flatted on a commute- probably jinxing myself. I was quickly up and running again. To mix up my route home, I took Randolf to Lexington to Summit. I was home in short order.

We needed to run some errands, and I noticed Lise's new shoes had arrived in the mail. I had ordered some mountain/touring shoes- shoes that looked relatively normal and were walkable so she could commute, run errands, etc. We needed some groceries, beer, and I needed some blue Loctite. I quickly installed her cleats- well, it still took a while. Eventually we were off and running. Lise commented on what a production it was to do errands by bike. I reminded her that she probably works more than 20 hours per month just to own a car- and that doesn't included the time spent driving it. She reminded me the absurdity of my point, since she still had her car anyway. By the time we were home, neither of us had any regrets. It is interesting to consider: how convenient and quick is using a car if you speed twenty hours per month just to pay for it? How many of us would choose to work five hours less each week? Besides, nothing depreciates like a vehicle.