CarLESS Week: Thursday.

This morning was the same as the other days so far nothing new to report. this evening however i had to get to 121 studios from Millsaps college. the college is completely closed to West St. by a gate that goes all the way down. otherwise i could just cut right through. I think that I understand why it's closed in an empathetic sort of way but not in a logical let's shut out the community sort of way. anyway, more on that another day. so i went down state and then got to experience something i didn't expect. I took a left on Woodrow Wilson and decided not to go on the street so i stayed on the southern side sidewalk. It was smooth and paved all the way down. very walkable, wheelchairable, bikable, skateboardable even. it was very nice. also the pavement on the newly paved street felt so good under my tires when i crossed the street and took the mill st. exit. Serendipitously i saw another cyclist passing by me as i got to thie stop sign and recognized it immediately as being none other than fellow carless week participant Emily Baker and her trusty Phoenix. (which reminds me i should name my bike!) Em and i chatted as we rode and arrived to the Hanukkah Party! I was a little stressed when i got there i'll admit. but after seeing my lovely lovelies play in the Hanukettes i felt good and so glad that i went. I called it an early evening and my friend Ward and i cycled down mill st. to Mitchell then cut through the neighborhood to get to my house. he rode in circles around me while we talked a little while in the street then he discontinued his circle and headed home in a relatively linear manner. i would say a one hundred degree angle actually. It was so nice to have a buddy i rode at a very leisurely pace and we talked the whole way. i generally ride really quickly i realized. as quickly as my legs will go if i'm alone.

An observation!:

last night and tonight the students i've been studying with at millsaps have felt so sorry for me that i was riding home and have offered me rides. They say it's too cold and that they'll drive me home! so maybe the earmuffs haven't scared them off (or they haven't seen them yet) and also i think it's interesting how they can't possibly imagine me riding my bike for 15 minutes in 40 degree weather. especially cause most of them are athletes that have to train for hours in this weather. hmm. anyhow they're sweet and i appreciate it and have been tired and wouldn't mind a ride but then how would i get to school the next day. and then i get on my bike and start to ride home and i quite enjoy it and think, "i can't imagine why i considered taking that ride offer. this is just very nice."

CarLESS week '09: Journal from Sunday-Wed.

11/29/09

Rode my bike all day and with friends! yay! rode home with friends too. which was nice cause i felt safe.

11/30/09

road my bike to school in the mist and rain. It's finals week so i haven't been cooking at home recently. i really felt like eating some sort of veggie and tofu but the closest place was Wok to Go. I didn't feel quite safe riding over there at night alone. and i didn't feel like going to rainbow to get food to cook (it was still early enough but dark) so i had to start thinking of local options close to the coffee shop where i wanted to study and that also had a protein for vegetarians. I settled on Jerusalem cafe and was delighted to enjoy a falafel sandwich with hummus and a salad.

So, in conclusion because of boundaries of where i felt safe and my limited amount of time, the cold and the desire to study at CUPS, i decided i didn't want to ride far. So, i was forced to think of a local business that serves vegetarian food! how about that for thinking locally!

12/1/09

i rode to my grandmother's to drop off a key to my mom's house this morning. She made me a hope breakfast when i got there. It usually takes about 2 minutes to get to my grandmother's in a car but it took me about 5 to get there and 10 to get back to Fondren. I have a new appreciation for that ride from Crane and Old Canton to Old Canton to Lakeland. It's uphill the whole way and with a 30 lb backpack and a full stomach it was a bitch! but i did it and will never look at going to grandma's the same! I lost my fleece headband recently so my grandmother equipped me with some awesome fake fur blue earmuffs. i fit them over my ears and then put on my helmet that straps them in perfectly!

I noticed today that when i ride my bike i seem to arrive early to school as opposed to late. hmm? also i brought my gym clothes so i could go to the gym. I forgot my running shoes so for cardio i got on a bike with my vans on ha! kind of ironic. that that was my workout along with some weights and some yoga.

I'm also starting to think a lot more when i ride as i did in my car. i would ponder ideas for new songs and ideas about love, today i studied in my head as i made the 4 minute trek up from riverside and pinehurst to riverside and state. I was out of breath and sweaty at the top but didn't think about it so much.

Also, tonight i stayed at school till about 11pm studying. I rode home in the cold and mist but was able to take state st. from millsaps to fondren instead of cut through the campus because it was late and i was one of the only ones on the road. i felt strangely safe on state st. it was cold and miserable but i was awake and ready to study a little more when i got home with all the oxygen to the head. That's one thing about state st. the incline from around Woodrow Wilson all the way to the tanning place is a bitch! and in the cold it makes me cough a little to get my heartrate up and breath heavily.

that is all.

12/2/09

rode my bike to cups at 6:30 this morning through the rainy mist and cold. I was so tired and cold when i woke up that i wanted to get to school by any means other than biking (when you pick up speed there's a certain windchill factor) but i couldn't think of a better way to get there. so i sucked it up and went out. but it really wasn't that bad! once i rode like 1 block i was more awake and warm especially with the help of my earmuffs!

one of my classes was canceled today so i cycled to High Noon for lunch. I think i cycle fastest around lunch time cause i got there super quick and got back to school quickly too. i would say less than ten minutes! i'm a little slower in the morning and/or at night. again i rode my bike home after 11 tonight and took state st. the cold air brings up some stuff in my lungs and i spend the next 30 minutes coughing it up or clearing my throat. i know that's not info you want to know. but i don't know if it's good or bad.

now i'm off to bed. don't know what i'll do tomorrow. I think though right now, biking is the most logical because i'm staying at school so late and the bus stops running at 7pm and i don't feel safe walking back to fondren so late at night.

ooo. one more thing. tomorrow Amanda and Annie are performing at 121 and i need most of their instruments so i can record this weekend. We've been trying to devise a way for me to get the instruments. but i think we worked it out that amanda will take them and hopefully come to my house to drop them off. she's my neighbor so that works nicely.

oh! and finally, i've been checking the weather a lot more!!