A Swamp Adventure

A cold, rainy Sunday afternoon is a rare treat in Houston.  After a day full of chores and other work -- like working on the final paper to come forth from my PhD dissertation -- Sabkha and I frolicked over to the Barker-Clodine parking lot.  It was in the upper 40s with intermittent light rain.  We set off from the deserted parking area north through a flooded stretch of woods.  Luckily I was wearing my waterproof hiking boots as we waded through about 3" of dark, spooky water.  After 100 feet the woods opened up into a large field dotted with clumps of trees here and there.  The field is occasionally mowed by the park service -- but lord only knows why.  Occasionally in the past I've seen equestrians riding their equines around this field, but it certainly isn't set up as a track or anything.  Regardless, it's a nice area to romp around.  Due to the recent rains (and snows), the field was dotted with puddly areas a few inches deep.  Sabkha ran around sniffing.  I like the open field as a Sabkha play area because I can keep an eye on her and give her a zap if needed to bring her back in line.  She tends to get into trouble when we're in thick woods where I can't see her.  If she spots something and runs after it, I often catch this too late to halt her chase.

 

Without this in mind, we entered the thin woods at the edge of the field and struck out roughly to the north, in the direction of Buffalo Bayou, which snakes across the reservoir.  The woods became increasingly thick as we weaved our way deeper among the branches.  Sabkha bounced around ahead of me, sniffing everything and generally excited.  This was her first time out and about since our trip last week to Arizona.  She needed to let off some steam.

We came upon a drainage ditch that was filled with water and clearly drained into the bayou, although there was no discernible flow.  As I examined the ditch and considered how to cross it, Sabkha saw something interesting in the woods on the other side.  In a single leap she bounded over the ditch and was off at full speed.  A few crucial seconds passed as I realized what was happening.  I grabbed for the shock remote but it was too little, too late.  Sabkha quickly passed out of audible range in pursuit of who-knows-what.  I was left standing in the woods, suddenly quiet, alongside the drainage ditch.  The dark, tannic waters magnified the submerged, rotting leaves and suddenly looked sinister.  I was all alone in these woods -- this swamp -- where I've seen hoards of wild boars, coyotes, a huge bobcat and countless snakes.  The rain began to fall harder and then came in cold sheets, and every breeze stirred the almost-bare trees, causing them to send a tinkling cascade of droplets to splash onto the wet ground.  This sounded very much like an approaching dog pushing through the brush, but I waited in vain.  Suddenly it seemed to be growing dark as I stood in place, calling over and over for Sabkha.  "Sab!"  "Sabkha!"  "Sabber, come!".  There was no sound apart from the wind and the falling rain.  I checked my watch and decided to give her another quarter-hour: until 5 PM.  Then I would start the trudge back to the field and back to the car.  Maybe she would follow my trail back; maybe she would be waiting at the car; maybe she would be found the next day by a bicyclist along the path through the park.  I continued to call, and just as the minute hand of my watch moved to point straight up and indicate 5:00, I heard the far-off but unmistakable sound of the jingling of dog tags.  I caught the sound then lost it, doubting myself.  Then I heard it again and was sure this time.  Sabkha emerged from the brush, slinking, head down, pretending to be ashamed of herself for disregarding my commands.  I scolded her but found my anger alloyed with relief at having her back alive and well.

With a close eye on Sabkha, we marched back through the woods to the open field.  Now my jeans were drenched and sticking to my legs, making it difficult to walk.  The rain continued and one got a sense that the water was rising, all around -- after all, this is a reservoir, it's designed to flood, I thought.  We explored the perimeter of the giant tree-dotted field, then struck off at a diagonal back to the path and followed it back to the parking lot, where a single silver Subaru sat parked, still looking like brand-new from a few hundred feet away.

Travel Advice

Planning is key.  Sounds backwards but isn't.  If you don't plan ahead you don't know how to get around, when things are open, or how much things will cost.  Once in Egypt we missed the "last bus of the day" by 10 minutes and had to wait 24 hours by the side of the road for the next bus.  Dumb!  A little planning and we could have saved 24 hours of sightseeing time.  Don't need minute-by-min plan but a general idea, especially of how to get around (train? car? bicycle? when is the next train, and the one after that?) and where you are going to stay.  My #1 rule of travel is: always figure out where you're going to stay in advance or at least by morning.  If you don't have a place to stay that night you tend to have it on your mind all day, can't enjoy what you're doing.  After having spent a few nights on the streets I always have sleeping plans nailed down ASAP for the following night.

The best way to travel cheap is probably to go by bicycle.  Actually walking is probably cheaper but it is much, much slower.  In Europe you can bike around and stay in campgrounds.  Probably overall cost half or one third the cost of typical train and hotel/hostel travel.  Plus you might tend to meet more people in campground vs. cooped up in hotel.

I've never done extreme cheap travelling.. except in Egypt.  In fact, the top rule of cheap traveling to avoid developed countries.  You can live and eat well in Egypt or Thailand or Vietnam for a few dollars a day, room and board.  If you really want to see a lot of the world, and new things, I would stick to places like that.  Get your vaccines!

Skills for traveling.  Rick Steves has a lot of good stuff, but his audience is frugal Lutheran middle-aged types.  Also his focus is almost entirely on Europe, an expensive destination no matter what.  So you have to take the advice that applies to you and ignore the other stuff.  He is not a "shoestring" travel expert, and not an expert on the third world.

Other "rules": always get the best map you can, as soon as you can (Tourist office, usually at train stations); if you're lost, immediately ask for help (in friendly countries, at least); don't be afraid to ask a million questions about anything (like the food you're ordering) -- get good at acting things out, like chicken or fish; use a money belt; carry as little as possible (Rick Steves has a good list).

Travel can be pretty stressful sometimes.  I don't know how you do it, but it's nice to have "break" days were you don't have pressure to go, go, go and see, see, see.  Also it's best to stay at hotels for at least two nights at a time.  Otherwise you only set your backpack down for 8 or 10 hours, which gets to be a drag.

Hmm, I think that's plenty for now.  Stick to 3rd world and your money will last.  Europe or Japan will cost you at least $50 a day, probably more like $75+ if you use trains and go for the sights. 

Asia... I'd get a guidebook for each place you want to go.  I guess Lonely Planet has the best coverage.  It's worth the $20 or so per country - best purchase you'll ever make.  Get the newest copies you can find.

Mostly if you stay "on the beaten track" you shouldn't have too much trouble.  For example: If you fly into some main city, and you want to go to some temple, it will probably be in your guide.  It will say "buses for the Umbagawa Temple leave from the east side of the city square, about once per hour.  Most have a large blue sign.".  Mostly if you show up in approximately the correct area, the locals will recognize you as a foreigner and guide you in the right direction, assuming you must be there because you want to get to Umbagawa Temple.  Also, this is where it's very useful to know a few words of the local language.  Even if you are nowhere near conversant, knowing "please", "thank you", etc, is very useful and pays dividends.  So the night before your trek to Umbagawa Temple, learn the local word for Umbagawa, how to pronounce it, and maybe learn the local word for bus.  Put the two words together and you will eventually get on the right bus.  When you do, if you have even the slightest doubt as to whether it's the correct bus, be sure to ask the driver "Umbagawa Temple?" and open your guidebook and show him a picture of the temple. 

Everywhere you go, you will find some English speakers.  In places where not much English is spoken, they will often approach you, either to practice their English, because they like foreigners, or just for the novelty of speaking to you.  Many people the world over know a few words of English.  Once you know a few words of their language you won't have much trouble getting around. 

If you're really worried about not being able to communicate some key piece of information, like "I cannot eat chicken", or "I'm allergic to peanuts", then take the time on the plane or in the evening in the hotel/hostel to write it out in local language, by referring to the language section in the back of your guidebook.  Even better, most hotel front desk people in touristy hotels will speak some English.  Have them write your question/concern in the local language, and you can flash the paper the next day when you need to find the bus or when you're ordering and want to avoid the fried monkey brain.

Finally, a relaxed attitude helps.  If you can't find the bus to Umbagawa, don't get too worked up -- maybe explore the town instead, or head into the hills, or whatever.  Backup plans are nice, even if just a vague idea.  When my plans to rent a car in Fussen, Germany fell through, I was annoyed for about 15 minutes, but then I adjusted by attitude and wandered the lovely little riverside town, following a walking tour outlined in my guidebook.  I ended up at a hilltop castle overlooking the city and listened to bells toll as the sun set.  It was one of the highlights of my trip.

Lastly, wherever you go you will likely meet a lot of other travelers, especially Germans (they're everywhere) and Americans, Aussies, etc.  Hostels are great places to share info in the evening.  Whatever they did today can be what you do tomorrow -- except now you're armed with all their tips, how to get there, how much it cost, watch out for the monkeys they will pull your beard and steal all your food.

San Francisco - September 2009

As part of Andy's Weekend Travel Series, I decided to visit the San Francisco area. I've visited the Bay area more than any other place in the US. My first big trip away from home was out to visit my aunt and uncle in Santa Rosa, about 45 minutes north of SF. On that trip I remember paying "only" $300 for a flight from Grand Rapids, Michigan to SFO -- and that was after a special voucher from a local grocery store. Fast-forward about 15 years and I paid a post-deregulation price of only $220 direct from Houston on Continental. Friday afternoon I left work and drove straight to the airport. The flight was uneventful (and completely packed). Picked up my $10-a-day rental car at SFO and -- wouldn't you know it -- they gave me a sea-foam-green New Beetle. Despite completely ignoring his directions, I eventually arrived at my cousin's house. He lives in the residential neighborhood of Ingleside, just a few miles southwest of what you'd think of as San Francisco. Chris' apartment is cute, spacious (but full of plants), and commands an impressive over-the-rooftops view of houses marching up a large hill to the south. To the west, on clear days, you can "just see the ocean". The entire back of the apartment is a dine-in kitchen add-on with essentially a wall of windows. Not a bad setup.

After a night on El Coucho motel, Chris and I hit the streets in his sporting late-model dark-blue Toyota Corolla (but it needs an oil change). I realize I tested the neighborhood by leaving my wallet and cell phone in plain view on the front seat of the Beetle. We headed toward Cliff House, on the Pacific Coast, and I marvel at the row of houses facing the boulevard along the beach. South of the Presidio on the Pacific coast, there is a narrow, sandy beach backed up by an area of low, wind-swept, bonzai-like, dark green shrubs. Beyond these shrubs is a nearly-always-deserted boulevard (I guess it's highway 1?). Just on the landward side of this boulevard is an endless row of 3-story houses, standing side-by-side and facing out to the ocean, many with gigantic windows for eyes. Inside these windows are the rich people who can afford a view out over 10,000 miles of ocean. Talk about the edge of the world. Here, we live our lives in our condo on the beach. Over there is nothing until you hit China.
We parked by Cliff House and strolled along a jogging trail that apparently connects to the Presidio. There were seals a-barking and plenty of dogs off-leash. I learn that San Franciscans aren't really the eye-contact, hello-how-are-you and smile type of people. There was plenty of fog, and the associated groves of gnarly, wind-swept trees for the fog to dwell amongst.
Eventually it starting raining a little (Chris referred to this as a "torrential downpour", but he clearly has not visited Houston), so we glanced in the direction of the Golden Gate and the eponymous bridge and trotted back to the car. The Golden Gate Bridge lost none of its splendor by having its top half shrouded by the fog.Back on the road, Chris showed me around various parts of the city. Eventually I complained about hunger so we stopped and got some gigantic hamburgers. Then we stopped at the elusive, trendy and back-alleyish Blue Bottle coffee shop. Just the fact that I've visited the place will probably cause them to go out of business. The shop is run by a particular type of person referred to as "hipsters". More on that later. The brown Beetle was outside the Blue Bottle.
We drove around SF more and finally found Coit Tower (yah!).San Francisco-ey neighborhood:
Back to Chris' then we headed north on The 101, bound for Santa Rosa.The fog lifted a bit - only very slightly - and it was possible to see more of the Golden Gate Bridge. And some pointy rocks adjacent to the bridge. The drive to Santa Rosa was uneventful. California used to seem so different than everywhere else when it was the only place I'd been outside of Michigan. Now that I've been all over the US it doesn't seem quite as foreign. Santa Rosa is still a beautiful town, but it seemed like some of the shine had worn off since my first visit about 12 years ago. The same cannot be said for my aunt and uncle's house. They've done a huge remodel and revamp, with a new open-format kitchen and a huge sunroom addition. I've always loved their simple and functional house, and it's even better post-remodel.

On Sunday morning we drove a windy hilly road over to Napa valley and indulged in a castle tour topped off with some wine tasting. I'm sure if you are a wine fanatic you will know this place.
The weather was cool, lovely and foggy. The whole crew came out for the Napa Valley trek -- cousins JP and Chris in addition to aunt D and uncle J.

Sunday evening I drove down to Napa to visit my friend Cari, who was preparing to move out of her apartment, which happened to be the same place she was living during my previous visit, some five years before. It was a brief visit since she had work the next day. On Monday, I attempted a local Napa hike but got sketched out by lots of undergrowth blocking the trail and the fact the first mile of the trail passed some type of prison facility. Jumped back in the car and cut across the scenic and marshy northern reaches of the San Pablo Bay. In Houston, a marsh is a swamp and it's a stinky, steamy place. The marshes of San Pablo Bay had a fresh, open feel to them, with the golden hills of Marin rising in the distance. I turned south on the 101, aiming vaguely to hit some of the parklands I knew existed in the Marin headlands area, just north of the Golden Gate. When I saw a sign for the Marin County Civic Center, I hopped off the freeway to see this well-known Frank Lloyd Wright-designed building. After exploring this quirky and interesting structure, I set off to find some redwoods before I had to bid California goodbye. I wound up at Muir Woods, which, in typical California style, didn't have enough parking and was crowded even on a Monday midday. The trees were spectacular, but I do like some solitude with my nature, so I must recommend coast redwood groves farther to the north.
Back to the airport on 101, which brings travelers right through the center of stop-light-choked downtown San Fran. Back to Houston.

Globetrots

It's been a long time. And I've been around. Since I last posted a little over a year ago, much has happened. Mostly work, but also the Sister and her BF moved to Houston. Then a hurricane arrived (Ike). Sister and BF got jobs. I went on a field trip to SE New Mexico and W Texas to look at ancient carbonates and eat wonderful enchiladas and hot sauce in Carlsbad. Over Thanksgiving Sab and I drove out to New Mexico and camped and hiked our way up through the state. It was cold and it got dark early. Over Christmas I flew back to Michigan to visit the fam. Debi drove up and stayed at her time-share at Boyne Mountain, where I also spent a few days. We both hit the slopes and went to a fancy Christmas dinner at the lodge, which I quite enjoyed. Returning to Houston I was bumped from my flight and received a $500 voucher (not enough). At the end of January I met up in Salt Lake City with my friend Erik from Tucson. We stayed at a nice cozy suite hotel and hit the slopes for few days. It was Erik's first time snow skiing.

My $500 Continental voucher was burning a hole in my pocket so I began to shop for cheap flights. Eventually I chose to go to Munich at the end of March. I'd never been to mainland Europe (just the UK and Ireland). I spent about 11 days in southern Germany and Austria. It was a bit cold and rainy at times, but the sun set late enough to allow me full days. I started in Munich after a long annoying flight with three connections. A few days in Munich and I went south on the train to Fussen, gateway to the Konigschlossen. I stayed at a quaint and tidy lodge in Pinswang, Austria and, the next day, hiked over the mountains, through the snow and mist, to see Ludwig's castles. The most romantic of approaches -- thanks Rick Steves! After being unable to find a car for rent in Fussen I moved on the next day by bus and train to Garmisch-Partenkirchen and rode the cog railway and cable cars to the top of the (German) Alps: the Zugspitze. A sprawling complex complete with email and restaurants sits on top. This took nothing away from the stunning, breath-taking, awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping scenery. I literally gasped with amazement when I stepped off the cog railway. After a day in uninspiring G-P I again trained to Salzburg, via Munich. Salzburg was a delight! Situated on a fast-moved, channelized mountain river, the city offers flat riverbank strolling and some craggy highlands right in the city. It's completely walkable and a joy to explore, with Mozart landmarks and wurst stands at every corner. In Salzburg I met up with my friend Erin from U of A and we enjoyed an evening at a beer hall, a bike ride out into the countryside (to see Sound of Music sights), and a trip to a salt mine on the outskirts of town. Finally I spent a day in Nurnburg, which was charming, but also housed a number of disquieting architectural relicts from the Nazi era.

Just before the Germany trip I'd been reassigned to a new group at ConocoPhillips. In April, the entire group had the chance to go on a trip to Minneapolis and Utah. Minneapolis / St. Paul is a lovely metropolis -- and is a city of bridges across the sizable upper Mississippi River. After a few days at a swank hotel in Minneapolis we flew to Salt Lake and spent some pleasant days examining the geology of the Book Cliffs. Our trip ended in Grand Junction, a place I want to live. Four geologists from my group rented a car and drove across the state of Colorado to Denver, straight through the heart of the Rocky Mountains. Twas a lovely week at work.

A week after this trip was Memorial day which I spent in Southern California. I flew to LA, picked up a car and headed out to Joshua Tree National Park. Spent a couple days there soaking up the desert beauty and snapping hundreds of pictures. Getting up at first light each morning I was able to pack in a number of hikes each day. Leaving JT I went north across vast expanses of the Mojave desert and over the color-striped mountains to Death Valley. The temperature reached a breath-robbing 110 F, but still I set out on a number of hikes through my beloved desert, reveling in the colors are bareness of the rocks. Picture-taking was good. Camped at the still-free campground just off the main highway out of the park. Following day, after an early-early morning hike up Mosaic Canyon, west again out of the park through some more remarkable scenery -- great expanses of craggy volcanic rocks jutting out high above wide salty desert basins. Over the next hill came a big surprise -- the scenery improved to a heaven-like level as I entered Owens Valley and the east front of the Sierra Nevada rose up before me. Like on the Zugspitze, my jaw hung open for some minutes. I've been to Owens Valley before, on what seems like a magic field trip about 100 years ago. I camped at the same place as we had then -- among the granite domes on BLM land just outside Whitney Portal. Hiked up to the portal in the fresh cold piney air with humongous white walls of glacier-polished granite blocking the sky on either side. Finally trekked back to LA, stopping off first at the Pinnacles near Trona, the only low point of a trip full of big highs.

Not long after, I got the travel bug again and began cruising the Continental website. I planned to take off the week of Independence Day, and I found a temptingly cheap ticket to Tokyo. After a few days of hemming and hawing I decided to go. I flew into Tokyo and took the shinkansen (bullet train) down to Kyushu. This trip was shorter and not as well planned as my earlier European excursion. Still, I had a nice time visiting Hakata, Nagasaki, Kumamoto and Hiroshima (again). Everywhere I found surprises but I also found a lot of uninspiring 3-story concrete architecture. However, what stands out are the endless miles of nearly cultivated rice fields; the green jungle hills of Nagasaki; the fog, rain and stinking mists of Onsen; the hot, milky waters of the public bath; the beauty of the sea off Kumamoto; the park/castle at said town; and the rivers of Hiroshima. Unfortunately it was the rainy season, which wasn't too bad, but on this trip I remembered a rule of travel: trains bring you to cities. If you want to get out into nature and hike and see the mountains, the US is a great place to do it, because you really need a car.

The end of Summer 2009 has been a bit slower for travel. My carefully sheparded vacation days (4 remaining) are waiting so I can take off Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks. Still, we get one flex day per month, and I used mine last weekend to visit friends and family in the San Francisco area, which I haven't visiting in about five years. More on that later.

G35 versus 328i

Cars. Which one? It's a battle between the Infiniti G35 sedan and the BMW 328i coupe. A weird battle in some ways because they are quite different cars. I've driven incarnations of both; see previous post for comments about an extended test drive of the G. But let's start at the beginning.

Let's consider only cars, because I don't want an SUV. I want a compact or midsize sedan, powerful, quiet and pleasant (= luxury). How doth one judge a car? Looks nearly always come first. Reliability a near second (for me). Power, efficiency, handling. Value figures in prominently.

Of all new cars, which is the most beautiful? I think that honor currently goes to the Lexus ES350, which is a strikingly gorgeous car, only spoiled ever-so-slightly but its little bit of Camry-ness.

Lexus gets the sheet metal right, and they really get the paint right. All the colors are great, but the white is particularly pearly and by far the nicest paint I've seen on a car. Problems: even Consumer Reports calls this car boring to drive. Also, it lists for around $32k but is only available as a $39k incarnation. On top of that I found the dashboard to be downright old-person-ish. A polished slab of wood with controls sticking through holes drilled by someone in shop class.

Where to from here? Who else has offerings in the $35 car entry-level lux sedan market? Almost everyone, so here goes. Audi? Nice interiors (I hear) but they're refined VWs, with the coarse engines to match. Acura? No way with the new chrome fronts, and they just never appealed to me.. fancy Hondas. Lexus IS? The 250 is underpowered, the 350 is expensive and both also rank as not-too-fun-to-drive and also have very small back seats.

I'm left with the Infiniti G and the BMW 3-series. I can't stand the rear end on bimmer's 3-series sedan, so it'd have to be the 328i coupe. First, the looks. The bimmer is a gorgeous car, simply astounding. Especially on the screen or the page. In person they can be a bit baffling, lovely one moment and funny and squashed-looking in another or from a different angle. Up close they have some details marring the perfection, such as the cutouts for the headlight sprayers. Putting those things aside, though, the 328i coupe is a car I drool over.
I stopped writing right there, because it's so obvious the 328i coupe is the car for me. Right? The problem is that the G35 has a bunch of little advantages that start to add up. First off, it looks good as a 4-door, and it's even a mid-size, with acceptable rear seat room. Four doors are handy, especially when there's usually a kid and a dog around. Second, it's got lots more power and is nearly 1.5 seconds faster to 60 mph (5.4 vs. 6.8 seconds, automatic transmissions). Third in the big-deal department, it's 6 or 8 thousand dollars cheaper when similarly equipped. Another way to say that is you get lots more for $33k in the G versus the BMW. To stay below $35k in the BMW coupe you get basically just leather as an option. Not even an automatic transmission. In the G for around $33k you get fun stuff like a 6-disc changer, XM radio, bluetooth, fancy auto-dim mirrors with compass and garage door opener, a spare tire, power front seats and a proper ipod connector. There are scads of the Gs sitting around on the dealer lot, whereas good luck finding the BMW you want, and good luck getting a price much below sticker.
I don't think you can call the G an ugly car. It's nice. But what it lacks, I think, is refinement. Car and Driver said it first, and it's a good way to differentiate the 3 from the G. It's an Infiniti, sure, but it's a Nissan. The 328 is the latest iteration in a long chain of car evolution from a company very much focused on the driving experience. Supposedly. But I think there is a lot to say for that. BMWs aren't gussied-up Minis. They are their own car. I visited the BMW dealer recently and their cars are something to behold. Sit in a G35 for a while and your impression is that they tried but they didn't quite make it. Still the darn car tugs at me. As a complete package it seems to offer a lot of value. Look at the ultimate "value" sedan: the Honda Accord. The top-end model, EX-L, retails above $28k. The G35 Journey with Premium is less than $5k more. And that makes sense because the G35 sits right there between nice econo-cars and real intro lux.

1000 miles by bike, 2500 miles by car

Yah! I did it! Kind of...

Mileage: 1000.2
Days: 90+1
Remaining: 0
Average Daily Mileage: 11.1

I had planned to go to Colorado last week, or somewhere with Debi and Mary. But circumstances brought me to Arizona. Was it absolutely necessary? Not sure, but I got to see some old friends, hike some old trails, and take care of the old house for one last week. Got things (green yard things) whipped into shape for the closing this Saturday. As of the Friday before the trip, the 1000 miles riding was not complete. Sunday was the last day, and I'd be in Tucson. So I packed up the bike, drove to Tucson. Sunday the temp reached 106 F, followed immediately by an amazing monsoonal windstorm. No ride. So I took a mulligan and did it the next day. Rode out the old Rillito pathway to Craycroft then back the other way to wherever it goes west, then home and around the "block" five times to make it to 28 miles. I thought it a bit odd that I had driven my car 1000 miles in the previous one day, but ridden my bike 1000 miles in the previous 90 days!

It was good to be back in AZ, although I couldn't get over what a dump central Tucson is. Still, it has that special magic that tugs at the heart. The smell of palo verde or creosote or whatever that is in the air (*sneeze*)... the wonderful cool nights... the beautiful mountains. We (Sabkha and me and various friends) made the trip "up the mountain" four times for hiking. Sab was tired and got tenderpaw. But you could tell she was home again. Got to see Erik and Sara and their place -- very homey and tidy and nice. Russ and Sab rekindled their friendship.

What's the new challenge? I don't know. I'm taking a little time off. Probably something like another 1000 mile challenge. Right now I'm facing "clean and fix up the house" challenge. The downed pear tree (see previous post) still is not cleaned up. I'm unpacking from AZ. Also have various sell-house-related chores. Oh yes, and there is the small matter of getting a new bike or some reward for my mileage. This post is rambling a bit, but I need to wrap up a few things and get them down on paper / on screen.

I've been obsessing over two main things: 1) whether to buy a new car, and which one; and 2) whether to move out to Katy and to which house. I'm suspecting posts on these will follow, especially on the car, because I need to clear out my mind. It's full of car.

Chop chop

Mileage: 889
Days: 83
Remaining: 7
Average Daily Mileage: 10.7

Still behind, but the goal is easily within reach. I've got seven days left and 111 miles to go. I have the day off work tomorrow and I think it's time to beat my daily maximum, so far set at 23 miles. What is next? I think maybe the 1200 Mile Challenge. It helps pace the months as they go by. Hard to believe it's been three months since the start of this challenge... in some ways seems much longer and in some ways shorter. Anyhow, I'm going to add the Twice a Week Gym Challenge to my next mileage challenge.

We had some weird storms here on the west side of Houston last week. On Thursday one storm whipped up a bunch of scary wind and hail. Sabkha and I dove for the closet as I imagined my plate glass windows imploding. A few minutes later things seemed to calm down. I went to the slider door and saw this:

Uh-oh! My Bradford Pear was on the ground, and it took out my legume tree too. Sad day. A bit of cutting later (with help from Debi and Mary) and we had this:

Not sure what to do with it now. Bit by bit I'll put it out by the trash. In other news, Debi had a garage sale and brought in about $250. It's hot as heck in Houston and we had a mostly inside-weekend, watched a movie and bummed around the houses (east side -- west side). All in all a nice time.

Catching up is hard to do

Mileage: 725
Days: 70
Remaining: 20
Average Daily Mileage: 10.35

It's been hot lately, but it's still pleasant out on the bike with the wind in your face. Who knew? Houston weather has definitely taken a turn toward the hot and humid, but after 7 PM the harsh sunlight softens a bit and the temps begin to tumble. I've been riding regularly from my house to Fry Road in Katy, and back, for a 22.4 mile round trip. 20 more days to do. I'll need to average 14 miles per day from here on to make the 1,000 miles.

In some ways it's not that far. Only 11 miles per day. But in other ways it is: that's nearly from Houston to Tucson! Or from Houston to Michigan!

This weekend was fun. Debi and Mary were out my way, ostensibly to visit me but I think really for the neighborhood pool. On Friday I went to work only to find everyone gathered outside on the lawn. Some type of explosion had occurred near the building. An hour or so later we were all released for the day. D, M and I went car shopping, first to Honda where we looked at and drove a new V6 Accord. Nice, fine, ok interior (EX), ok power but not like the G35. The CR-V seemed more fun. Debi liked the Element, which I think is the car for her (but not enough power). Next we went to the rather stuffy Lexus dealership where I looked at the ES 350 and Debi at the RX. Lovely paint, huge rear seat, nice leather, nice details. But the most basic available package was $39k. We skipped the test drive.

Sunday we parked along Highway 6 in the Bear Creek Park area and followed the paved path through the swamplands to the west. The trail ends in Cullen Park, but we didn't make it that far. It was hot and humid, but not horrible. We saw an armadillo clan and lots of medium-sized banana spiders. Mary got an Astros hat at the game on Friday.

It was a long and satisfying weekend. We capped it off by driving around in Katy and looking at houses. That doesn't sound fun, but it is. Trust me. And remember, this is Houston, people.

Bayou of Pigs

Mileage: 556
Days: 58
Remaining: 32
Average Daily Mileage: 9.6

Uh-oh, I've fallen behind. Over my four-day Memorial Day weekend I went out to northwest Texas with some colleagues from work. Blog post to follow. Today was my first ride since last Wednesday -- by far my longest ride hiatus in the Thousand Mile Challenge. I now need to average about 15 miles per day to reach my mileage goal. No snakes sighted on my ride today, but I did see three deer, three armadillos and a number of spiders. When you can see spiders from your bike at 18 mph, that's a bad sign. Two weeks ago was pig day in the bayou -- I saw about twenty pigs on one ride, including two that lumbered across the path in front of me after paralleling me for about 500 feet -- a bit scary. A mile later I saw Mr. and Mrs. Pig with family -- a bunch of adolescent pigs. All the kid-pigs ran off into the woods while Mr. Pig held his ground and snort/oinked menacingly at me as I breezed past.

I've given up on a new bike at the end -- in part because my Tucson house is reverting to caretaker status. That means much less free cash to work with. Even if I had the extra money, I'd likely divert it to paying off my short-term debts. This is a new obsession of mine, and I long to be "short-term" debt-free which means nothing but a mortgage and student loan. No car payment, no credit card debt, no money owed to parents... and I'm very nearly there. If I could sell my pesky house in Tucson I'd instantly be there.

My second paper was accepted today in final form, and will be appearing sometime soonish in American Mineralogist, after I review the proofs and polish up the final figures. Then it's on to paper #3. I wonder if I can summon the gumption to write that one up. All things pyroxene are slipping from my mind.

On the West Texas trip I read most of Bill Bryson's The Lost Continent. Rediscovering this book was fun, and it had me laughing out loud at times. However after a while I got frustrated with the way Bryson dismisses huge chunks of America without ever leaving his car. Yeah, lots of places look dumpy from the road... to discover the real nature of a place you need to leave the car and the roads and hike at least a few miles. Jump around in a canyon, climb up on some rocks. Before TLC I tried The Pearl Diver on CD and couldn't get into it. Not recommended. A colleague on the West Texas trip recommended Worst Hard Time, which is next on my list.

Humidity Spectrum

Mileage: 446
Days: 44
Remaining: 46
Average Daily Mileage: 10.1

I've fallen behind. Today I rode out to the parking lot by the shooting range. No wildlife to be seen. The last two days I was in west Texas on a well site. Returned this morning, much too early for my taste. It was hot out there, around 95. Tuesday afternoon a bunch of desert thunderclouds began to whip up, dotting the sky. So different from Tucson but from the group up it was familiar -- and I mean both the sky and the run-down and dirty city. Midland-Odessa is not shining city on a hill (but I like the place). I got my Rosa's Cafe fix -- gotta have #55, the sour cream enchiladas, although if you're hungry you'll need a second helping.

I like to drive through oil country. Strong-smelling wafts of hydrogen sulfide. Pumping units dot the landscape, some nodding and some deep asleep or decrepit. The well we were on is about 6600' deep, over a mile. I had a map of the oilfield so I'd pick out a well a mile away -- that's pretty far away -- and imagine the hole in the ground at my feet going down that far, and then some. And 6600' is not a deep well nowadays -- it's quite average.

The light is different in the desert. It's brighter, yes, but it's whiter too. It brings out contrasts. The desert light seems clean and well-scrubbed.

Back in Houston, here are some office views outta my office windder:

Middle Ring Sandbag Contest

Mileage: 388
Days: 35
Remaining: 55
Average Daily Mileage: 11.1

This weekend I raced in GHORBA's "Big Ring Challenge" at Double Lake. I wasn't ever in my big ring. It was my first race in 11 years. Debi and Mary came along, lured by promises of paddling around the lake in a canoe. That didn't happen, but they hung out and did their best to become bike hippie-groupies. Here I am at the start line. I wore a normalish shirt (light blue) since I think bike jerseys look horrible.

The race was two laps of an 8-mile course. I raced men's beginner 30-39. It turned out that the most important part of the race was done on the computer. Those who pre-registered got to line up in the order in which they registered. Those poor slobs (like me) who registered same-day got to line up behind them. The first 700 feet were on pavement where you could in theory sprint for position. In reality there were 38 riders starting in my group so we mostly just tried to avoid hitting each other. Once on the trail it was like a giant paceline. I just ate the dust from the guy in front of me for 4-5 miles. It was a slowish pace, but I could see about 20 riders ahead of me so I wasn't in a hurry to pass. The trail was tight and there were few passing opportunities for the casual racer. After about 5 miles people began to spread out and faster riders began to come up from behind. Finally I finished my first lap, where I sprinted to pass two slower riders in the huge sand pit. They got bogged down but I shot right through (left).

The second lap was more fun. I followed some people, but it was much easier to pass and the course was less crowded. In the end I placed 19th out of 38. Not bad considering I've been riding for about 35 days!

Mary was convinced I had won the race. She told everyone I won, and I wasn't about to correct her. She was pretty heartbroken, though, when we didn't win a prize during the after-race raffle.

A very blustery day

Mileage: 314
Days: 28
Remaining: 62
Average Daily Mileage: 11.2

It's hard to ride in Terry Hershey Park.

Sunday morning a cold front blew through. I rode on Sunday afternoon out west almost to Fry Road. The wind from the NNW was so strong I could barely ride. It was a wild and gusty wind, whipping my handlebars back and forth. Running south along Barker-Clodine I was easily going 30 mph at times. I could see the gusts in the trees, and much like when sailing I could "catch" the gusts, when all became silent as my speed matched that of the wind and the endless noise became silent, swoooosh, flying along... I think the coolness and dryness explains the glut of people out in the park today. After my recent crash I'm consistent with my vocalizing as I approach pedestrians, but many don't listen. I'm really terrified. Sometimes it looks like they hear but then when I pass them they let out an exclamation of surprise. I'm really sorry, but I said "rider back!" at least three times as I came up. I prefer to ride the high road, the dirt roads north of the paved path, but there the peds are almost as bad, maybe worse. They're militant about holding their ground. Oncoming walkers stride side-by-side and they don't give an inch. It seems to be a battle sometimes, walkers vs. riders, and I've been on both sides, and I know many riders are very inconsiderate.

I'm planning to race this Sunday, for the first time in 11 years. The race is at Double Lake, north of Houston near Coldspring. D and M and I went there recently for some Burley trailer single track riding. It'll be just for fun, and miles. There is an upcoming geology field trip to the Amarillo area, they have a 50-mile trail run there. Perhaps I'll alternate running with riding. 20 miles ride, 7 mile run. I went and looked at a patch of land for sale a few miles from my house, $60k for 1/4 acre. In a subrural area, surrounded by cows. That's a big city lot but a small country one. I'm passing on that one.

I recently finished reading the book "A Thread Across the Ocean" -- highly recommended. Not a long book, but a compulsive read, and a true story. The thread in question is the first transatlantic telegraph cable.

So I've ridden 314 miles in 28 days. That's not any great feat. My brother once road about 250 miles in a single day.

Thousand Mile Update

Mileage: 244
Days: 22
Remaining: 68
Average Daily Mileage: 11.1

My new "standard ride" is from home out to Fry Road in Katy and return, for a total of 22.4 miles. It's much more open and straight, with two major straight-aways. Thus it's more annoying to ride in high winds, and a bit less interesting, but it does allow for steady effortful riding. Also, they are few or no pedestrians. The old standard ride was home out to the Beltway and back, which was just over 15 miles with a detour on the spur up towards I-10. That ride was no longer challenging, although it's fun especially when I take the "high road" dirt detours. On today's three armadillo, five snake ride I was thinking that this is the most constant riding I've done in a long time. The first year in Tucson I commuted by bike, about six miles each way. 12 miles a day, but I certainly didn't ride every day. Living on Weymouth St I commuted regularly to the U of A for about five years, but that was only a seven mile round trip. As a teen I rode a lot, and I probably beat my current averages, especially in the summertime. The conclusion is that the Thousand Mile Challenge is working for me although I didn't expect it to. Not this well. Riding is still fun -- this just gives me that boost I need to get out on the bike. It makes it feel urgent and not something I can put off until tomorrow. If I do that, I have to make up today's mileage. It works well. And it's not related to the "carrot" of a new bike. I rarely think about a new bike, and in fact I cannot find one I'd want to buy. New semi-custom steel bikes in bike shops sport price tags around $3000 and up. Mass market steel bikes are generally down-market and not to my liking. Plus they gotta stick a carbon fork or stays or something on every one. So it's not the carrot. Perhaps it's the "spiral upward". I ride each day and I can see the quite tangible improvement: the first few days I could barely ride six or eight miles, and I felt terrible after. Now I can ride 22 miles (in 1:25, tonight) and feel good. Before I started riding I was starting to run out of holes in my belts. Now that problem is well under control and I've started to lose whatever little bit of white-collar belly I was gaining. I don't know where I'll spiral up to. I've already considered the next challenge -- what will it be? 20 miles a day? That's tough to maintain seven days a week. It means that most days I'll need to log 25 or even 30 miles. At some point the riding starts to take up a significant part of my free time, at which point I'd need to decide: hobby or sport of choice? But that is a long way off! I'm only 22 days into the challenge!

2 out of 7

As I write this blog entry I'm sitting outside on my patio. It's nice to see the sky, and it's relaxing to be outside. I just returned from my longest bike ride of the 1,000 Mile Challenge -- out to Fry Road and back, somewhere around 20 miles. It's been a good and long-feeling weekend, partially due to the half-day on Friday. Friday night I met D and M at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park. Houston does have some great institutions. I'm starting to like the place again -- especially with this great 80-degree, 50% humidity weather. Ahhhh. Not so desert-dry as Tucson, and not so nasty humid as summertime here. The show on Friday was Peter Pan, and we were a bit far away to see much. I brought Sabkha, which was a mistake, especially after I went to the snack bar and tried to carry back nachos and a soda. She's gotta pull every which way and sniff every other dog. Returning home Friday night, I jacked up the front end of my Subaru and removed the front wheels in preparation for replacing the brake pads. Saturday morning I stated the job and it went really quickly. The Subaru has 53,000 miles on it, mostly desert miles, so most all the bits are clean and pristine. I didn't bother servicing the caliper slides, just popped off the anti-rattle clips and popped in the brake pads (after spraying them with silly-string like anti-squeal compound). By the time my helpers (D and M) arrived, I was done. Well, M did help me put the wheels back on and tighter to spec with a torque wrench. A few spins around the 'hood and the brakes felt good as new.

Today we had the typical Sunday Morning Breakfast of yummy toast, eggs and cereal. Then we hung about a bit indecisively and finally went off to a playground in Terry Hershey Park. After that we hit the Hobby and Garden superstore out by Katy. Hmm, Sunday is sounding boring but I assure you it hasn't been. It was just a nice relaxing day. D and M headed home but first we stopped at La Madeline's inside the Beltway for a late lunch. They have an excellent tomato basil soup, and all kinds of yummy morsels.

Since I didn't ride yesterday I decided to rack up some miles today, and headed west on TH Park and down Barker-Clodine. Pretty strong wind from the SSE. Kept going past the parking lot all the way out to Fry Road. Saw five snakes, two deer, two armadillos, a rabbit and a huge black wild hog which lumbered across the pathway! 700 feet down the trail I passed a couple with their dog off leash. Yikes!

Owies

Mileage: 184
Days: 18
Remaining: 72
Average Daily Mileage: 10.2

I crashed yesterday. It was the most spectacular and injurious crash of my riding career.
The scene of the accident was Terry Hershey Park. I was returning from the Beltway, heading west. I passed a family group with a mom, dad, kids, dog. I slowed wayyyy down. Then I sped up, and ahead I saw a girl on a pivot skateboard. As I approached her, she went to the left side of the path and seemed to be steady as I twice said "rider", as I typically do when overtaking pedestrians. At the last millisecond before I passed her, she suddenly initiated a 180-degree turn. The next split second is seared into my brain: as she turned in front of me, she saw that someone was passed her and she jumped off the skateboard (or she fortuitously fell off at just the right moment). At the same time, I jerked the bike to the right to avoid her. I think what happened next is that my front wheel hopped up on the skateboard and, since I was leaning into a right turn/veer, the front wheel just rolled sideways away from me, like it was on ice. I hit the ground on my right side like a ton of bricks. Most of the damage was to my right forearm and hip. My arm bled a lot. The family I had passed belonged to the skateboard girl, and they were nice and insisted I go back to their house (on TH Park). The dad gave me a ride back to my car. I wasn't sure I'd be riding anytime soon, but today I went out for a 15 mile ride. Any day now, barring accidents, etc., I should be up to my 11 miles per day goal. Finally.

In other news, my office move day arrived. Today I packed up my final boxes and bid farewell. to my office. Monday will bring me to the adjacent building and the 13th floor. We got let out early today and I had a productive afternoon mowing the lawn and fixing the Rivendell. Both my wheels are damaged but otherwise the bike damage is cosmetic.

Oh G

In 2004 I bought what I thought was my "dream car" -- a Subaru Forester 2.5XS. It has been a good car, and a good compromise, but its all-wheel drive and ground clearance don't do much for me in Houston. It is handy for hauling the dog, and for trips to Ikea. But lately I've gotten the performance car bug. I've grown particularly fond of the Infiniti G35. So much so that I've even thought about buying one, maybe even trading in (or selling) the trusty Forester. What holds me back from doing so it that I'm currently in debt-paydown maniac mode. Nearly ever cent I make goes to paying off debt -- and I'm making good progress. But bumping up from a $400 car payment (Forester) that is due to end in one year, to a $600 payment for five more years... Well, I'm quite looking forward to ending my car payment next year. The debts will fall that much faster, and the 401k groweth. Anyhow, Debi recently suggested I try renting a G35. Hertz has them in their "Prestige" collection. What a great idea! So earlier this week I signed up for 24 hours of Infiniti.
Here are a few impressions. Overall I liked the G35. It rides nicely and is quiet inside, even at high speeds -- at least on smooth pavement. It is a bit tricky to drive because it has too much power! The approx. 300 hp 3.5L V6 is just too powerful. Combined with a tricky throttle, it made the car hard to drive smoothly. Push the gas, and nothing happened. So you push it harder until suddenly VROOM!!, the rear tires screech and the car lurches forward. Not great if you're trying to merge into traffic and you need some speed. A car like this could really use (and is available with) AWD. I was really surprised that what I liked most about this car was its 1) nice, smooth ride, and 2) quiet interior. Since these things impressed me more than the power of the engine, I think I might consider a more sedate but quieter and perhaps more refined sedan such as a Lexus ES350, which is a lovely vehicle. I didn't do any aggressive cornering. The car felt very low (of course, compared to the Subaru) and wide and heavy. It made it a bit uncomfortable to drive at first.
The interior was so-so, and got better after dark when you couldn't see all the bits of various colors. It was assembled ok but had not held up well to 21,000 miles of rental car use -- lots of dirt, smudges, etc. The seats were nice, leather, supportive. The plastics were ok but I felt my $22,000 Subaru overall had nicer cabin materials. Or at least they were put together in a more pleasing way.

Again, though, the main problem (for me) with so much power is that you can't use it -- not legally on the road. You punch it for some passing power on the highway and suddenly you're going way too fast. Accelerate from a stop sign and you'll get wheelspin and suddenly you'll be at 60 mph... watch it in those 30 mph zones. We observed 0-60 times of just over 5 seconds.
Back in the Subaru, I was happy. You can gun it and there's no way the 178 hp 2.5-liter 4-cylinder is going to spin those wheels unless you're on glare ice. It could use a little more power, but all the power that is there is 100% usable all the time. (Yep, I probably should have opted for the 225 hp turbo version). You're higher up, and visibility is better. I like the cabin better and think it looks good -- simpler than the G35. However, the suspension in the Subaru is not as good, and after 52,000 miles (many on 4x4 roads) the poor Subie has plenty of squeaks and dashboard clicks. Driving, the Subaru has a light feeling, in a mostly good way. In normal cornering it feels planted, and, well... normal. That might be because I drive it everyday. But when you turn sharply, you get a little body lean... it seems natural to me, and it gives you some feedback.

Renting the G35 has changed my entire car outlook. I'm still thinking about sedans, but I'm more interested in less power. Despite not loving the new Accord, I know it's available with a manual transmission and a slightly peppy 4-cylinder: 190 hp-ish, if I recall? The V6 is now up near 270, pretty close to G35 land... Some reviewers somewhere even said (of the new V6 Accord) -- might this be too much power for a family sedan? The G35 seems to have that problem. Get the AWD version.

1,000 Mile Challenge Update:
Mileage: 126
Days: 13
Remaining: 77
Average Daily Mileage: 9.7

Busy Elves have wrought it

Mileage: 71
Days: 8
Remaining: 82
Average Daily Mileage: 8.9

My Schwinn road bike has a terminal squeak. The "carbon fiber" (plastic) fork is contacting the aluminum head tube and making a horrible, unending squeak. I tried pouring a bunch of oil onto the affected region. It helps for about five minutes, then the squeak is back. So after work today I put together the 'ole Rivendell for the daily ride. When I say put together, I mean: play musical pedals and saddle. I have a single pair of Speedplay mountain bike pedals, which I love (total free outward heel rotation = happy knees). Those get swapped around every time I ride. And whichever bike I want to ride, it's pretty much guaranteed to be lacking a saddle. I have four bikes and three Brooks B.52 saddles. Musical saddles, except there's an extra bike, so there goes the analogy.
On the bike and down the road, the stark differences between Rivendell and Schwinn were immediately obvious (Ironical aside here: this is a Waterford-build Rivendell, and Waterford is run by Richard Schwinn, and they used to build the high-end Schwinn Paramounts). The Schwinn is twitchy. The first thing I do after hopping on is nearly fall off. The thing must have angles for crit riding. Another sad/bad thing about biking: all this racing crap coming over into the recreational biking world where is has no place, and makes recreational riders miserable, and at worst hate their bikes and maybe stop riding. After some miles I get used to the crazy nature of the geometry of the bike, and it's not bad to ride. Of course, in Houston riding is mostly in a flat, straight line. On the Rivendell, I notice several things. Stability. I can immediately (and indefinitely) ride no-hands, whereas on the Schwinn I can't ride no-hands for more than a second or two. On the Riv, from the cockpit, I can see a big fat front wheel in front of my handlebars. At first it seems like that wheel is wayyy out there. No doubt part of the secret of the stability. The Riv felt a bit slow too, but then I realized it has real road gearing, with race-inspired 42/52 up front and a pretty small 8-spd Campy cassette. This adds up to spending more time in the bottom 3-4 gears. The Schwinn has mountain-bike inspired gearing, with a triple and probably a 36-ish middle ring. Tonight I turned right and rode TH Park to the beltway. This bike path has several tight turns and swoops. On the first one I noticed that the bottom bracket felt rather low (Rivs are known for this). Through corners I'd pedal on the Schwinn, I was coasting on the Riv with the inside crank up. But that is probably a matter of my comfort level, not anything wrong with the bike. Last year when I rode out at the velodrome in Cullen Park, the alarm bells were clanging inside my head the entire time, letting me know that my outside pedal was quite close to the cement. It's amazing to me how that becomes ingrained and automatic to the point of feeling like an instinct. One last comment about Riv: I shifted way less, as it has down-tube full-friction shifters.

A map of my area with my two main rides. Click on the image for a much larger view. The pinkish line = Terry Hershey Park ride. The blue line (which was orange in AI...) = the Barker-Clodine ride. I-10 is along the top of the image, Beltway 8 is along the right side, and the Westpark Tollway along the bottom. Any guess which ride is more fun?

Ride

...a giant nuclear furnace

Mileage: 55.5
Remaining: 944.5
Days: 7
Remaining: 83
Average Daily Mileage: 7.9

Today was a two-snake ride out on the normal "route". 15 miles. My mileage isn't going so well...

This weekend Debi and I parked out at the turn-around point on Barker-Clodine and road out toward Katy. A nice trail, and a nice day -- but the sun is getting hot. You can tell summer is approaching when it's only 75 F but the sun makes it feel like 90. We rode around some neighborhoods looking at houses and watching how the neighborhoods change.

That's all the riding I got in this weekend. Hopefully a few consecutive 15-mile evening rides will bring me back up to my daily average. I feel like a kid procrastinating on his reading homework, each day thinking "well, I can finish the book if I can read 300 pages each day...".

During the day at work I think of all these things to blog about, but then I sit down here at night and nothing comes to mind. Work is work, I don't want to blog too much about that, might get in trouble.

Sunday late afternoon Debi and Mary left and I went into super yard mode. I mowed, edged, blew the clippings into the street, fertilized the grass, watered, trimmed, and vacuumed. It felt good. The yard looks pretty good except under the magnolia tree (too much shade?) and in the places where I chopped down into the turf with the mower. Interesting how something that doesn't really matter, and doesn't last (a mowed lawn) is so satisfying to accomplish...

Nausicaa

King of the bike path

Mileage: 30
Remaining: 970
Days: 3
Remaining: 87
Average Daily Mileage: 10

On the second ride, it almost seemed routine. I did the "fifteen miler" out along the north side of Barker Reservoir. The wind was strong and from the south. The entire way, the headset on my bike squeaked horribly. It was soooo annoying. I put some oil on it after my last ride to try and fix the problem. Took me about an hour, but no where near as fun as the first time. Still, I feel like my world has expanded... a little more grey is filled in with roads and trails on that map in my mind. The map that all geologists (and adventurers, and probably map-makers) have in their heads.
This here first picture is looking due east, back the way I'd come. The buildings in the distance are those of West Lake, where I work. In a few weeks I'm moving from the building on the right (West Lake 3) to the short building in the middle with the pinkish windows (West Lake 2). I'll be on the 13th floor and have a view to the south, of WL3, the pond, and the various roads. Should be much better than my current view of the A/C units atop the parking garage.
Lookin' west out toward Katy. One could like in Katy and commute to work, but it's quite a haul, and it rains a lot in Houston.
Heading south on Barker-Clodine. Much more wooded than I had expected. No snakes tonight -- instead, hundreds of caterpiller worm things.

In other (and more important) news, Debi became a citizen yesterday! After hours of grueling interviews and force-feeding of cheeseburgers and fries, then more hours of waiting, she took her oath on Wednesday morning. Now she can vote! To celebrate we went to the 59 Diner (American) at our favorite little area in Montrose, then went over to Empire Cafe for coffee.

The Thousand-Mile Challenge

It's getting Houston-y out there. About 80 degrees and foggy-misty humid. It feels really beautiful -- reminiscent of a summer day in Michigan, early.. when it's not too warm but it's humid and dewing. Last week I began riding my bike after work, now that we have some light after work. The first day hurt. My knees and butt, it felt like I was falling apart. I felt all awkward and weird on the bike. I went about eight miles. The next day I rode ten miles and felt much better. The third day I went from my house all the way to the Beltway along Terry Hershey Park. That's about 12 miles. But while TH Park isn't boring, it's become a bit routine. So on Sunday Debi and I went on an adventure ride. We rode under I-10 and along the Katy Freeway frontage road, then past ConocoPhillips and along the levee. Then back atop the levee. It's fun to explore these unknown places so close to home. Today (Tuesday) I set off on a ride as it was getting dark. I didn't have a destination, but when I hit TH Park I turned left toward Katy. I rode along the north side of the reservoir, past Subaru and then down Barker Clopine Road. It was quite a surprise, very wooded and lovely alongside the path. A dilapidated bridge crosses over Buffalo Bayou. I turned around at a parking lot that is very close to the shooting range where I was on Friday and Saturday for the COP sporting clays contest. The weather was weird and wonderful, with big threatening clouds and the setting sun poking through moodily. At the turn-around point it was getting quite dark and I flipped on my flashy headlight. On B-C road I passed three snakes! I also saw a deer along the path. Suddenly the trail was deserted (previously I was seeing riders every few minutes) and the rain started. I high-tailed it home.

Too bad my bike is a piece of junk. It's a $500 Schwinn that I bought to replace my stolen Tirreno. It's familiar to me now: I go out on a ride and have a blast, and I want to buy a lovely new bike. Classic geometry, steel road bike... maybe one of Rivendell's new creations. But it's too easy to just go buy one. And there are too many things I want to go and buy. So I thought up the Thousand-Mile Challenge. Rules: ride 1,000 miles and I get to buy a new road bike. The 1,000 miles must be done in 90 days (so just over 11 miles per day average). The Challenge began today. I'm at 15 miles.