Feeble sunrise this morning. The Universe must be disappointed in the results of the Democratic presidential primary.
Just wait till it hears about the results of the GOP presidential primary.
Still, things could be worse.
Morning sickness
Feeble sunrise this morning. The Universe must be disappointed in the results of the Democratic presidential primary.
Just wait till it hears about the results of the GOP presidential primary.
Still, things could be worse.
Mad Blog Media 
I’m going to put some investment money into clothespins.
And lo, a foul stench did waft across the land. …
GOP presidential primary results will result in a long feeble sunset.
Millions moan, “You’re telling me this is the best we can do?”
Was that ABBA going on tour an AP news scoop?
What’s next in 4 years? Another Bush? Chelsea? A marriage of convenience between the House of Saud and the House of Bush?
And in the “things could be worse category” we have a high pollen count combined with a layer of smoke from a 38,000 acre wildfire about 4 miles South of the border in Mexico. The sinuses are in toxic shock.
But we did manage a ride yesterday to the Brown Canyon Ranch. Sweet.
High pollen here, too, Pat. Also wind and heat, though nothing like what you folks deal with down there. And no fires … yet.
I need to shoehorn in a short ride somewhere. I have Adventure Cyclist and BRAIN deadlines, a bike to ship back to its owner, a cat who is not interested in food after some dental work, a wife prepping for a trip to Tennessee, and don’t ask me about Friday. I don’t even wanna think about it.
Fuckin’ A!
Kalamazoo cycling community grieving after hit-and-run driver kills five, injures four.
Why don’t we get as much press as the crazy guy with the AK-47? These cyclists are just as dead.
This one’s getting some traction, K. The NYT just picked it up. Ditto The Guardian. And the Chicago Tribune, which means The Los Angeles Times should have it directly.
Lots of talking on gun control. No talking on truck control. Can’t win an election talking about cell phone bans. Not sexy enough I guess. Almost an instant replay of the murder by truck in Tucson a few months ago. It’s not my fault officer. My boss called my cell phone just as I was snorting some coke.
“You can have my iPhone when you pry it from my cold, dead thumbs!”
Here in New Mexico The Fear® is a constant companion. Everybody texts, at least half of the texters are drunk, and a drunk driver can collect DUIs like a dead dog collects flies and it doesn’t seem to keep him or her from sliding behind the wheel with a tallboy and the old “smart” phone.
Plus even the sober drivers couldn’t give a runny shit about traffic laws. “Aggressively bad” is the only way to describe them. Worst drivers I’ve ever seen, and I’ve lived in two countries, 11 states and 19 towns. There should be a no-bag-limit hunting season on the sonsabitches.
Where’s Spike Bike when we need him?
I guess that means the Vespa hasn’t been on the road much in Duke City.
I seem to recall one Patrick O’Grady posting photos taken from behind the wheel of the truck he was driving at the time…
It’s a sickness, Stan. In my defense I will say only that I was on the interstate with plenty of buffer between me and other vehicles, not on crowded city streets, in traffic; I waited until I got home to edit and post the pix; and perhaps most important, I was not drunk.
Now then: Any bets as to whether this still-unnamed motorist claims some sort of medical emergency rather than being drunk as a lord? The Detroit News has him “being treated at a hospital,” and no charges had been filed as of this afternoon.
NSA vacuums up metadata like a god damn black hole. But can the police get a warrant for metadata, not content, to see if someone was texting or talking at the time of the crash? Not likely.
Now, what about the Vespa? Man, how I lust after the 150 Primavera, in red of course
Pat, I get around and about on the Vespa from time to time, but only for short hops.
In Bibleburg there was a ton of road suitable for the underpowered little beauty, and I could actually do quite a bit with it. But here, we’re surrounded by multilane, high-speed thoroughfares, and the top end of 45 or so doesn’t come close to what these yahoos are doing. In the Duke City, speed limits, turn signals, red lights are all strictly advisory.
I’ve seen a couple of the high-powered models on the road, and it almost — almost! — makes me think about getting the motorcycle endorsement. Almost.
MC fatalities are about an order of magnitude higher than bicycle. Sheesh. Why do I do it?
The road situation is similar here, Patrick. Except for residential areas, the speed limits are 40 or higher. And you need a motorcycle endorsement for any displacement scooter. That is why I was thinking of the 150cc Vespa. I wonder if Khal thinks a 150 is “high powered?” Our drivers are not as bad as yours, but we did lose a cyclist early last year, I think, to a distracted driver.
Anyway, time to take my low powered legs up the canyon to the Brown Canyon ranch again.
150 cc is probably fine for around town. I wouldn’t ride it from BombTown to Fanta Se (although I once rode a 160cc Honda from Rochester to Buffalo–a dead flat ride at sea level). I wonder how a 150cc would handle the mountains here.
Vespa does a 278cc that might be a little more like it. But then you’re getting into motorcycle money and might as well buy the real deal, hey? You can pick up a 250cc Yamaha for just over four large. A Suzuki TU250X is like $4,400.
Breaking news; 5 second degree murder counts for Mr. Pickett, Jr. the Michigan driver that killed 5 cyclists in Kalmazoo.