Lubbock Pets: An Apology, A Great Event, and two horrific incidents

This is Brian and Puddy. (Brian is the tall one)

First, the apology: My friend Brian is a guy who is passionate about improving conditions for unwanted pets. He volunteers for the Haven here in Lubbock, a no-kill animal shelter that does a great job of housing and re-homing unwanted pets. This weekend the Haven held its annual Strut for the Mutts event to raise funds for this valuable and noble cause. The apology is to you, to Brian, and to the Haven for not getting the word out earlier about the event. I want this blog to be a place that supports local people who are working for good, and I am very sorry for overlooking this event.

So, please know that the Haven is a great place that does a great job in the face of overwhelming odds. And they could use help. Volunteers, cash donations, food and pet supply donations, and adoptions - these are all gladly accepted.

Here is a page from their website that lets you know ways you can help: http://www.havenacs.org/main.asp?id=44   Please consider doing something to help the Haven and other no-kill shelters to accomplish great things for these unfortunate outcasts from our careless consumer society.

Changing gears, there is a really great young man in our neighborhood who likes to take our Sasha running a few times per week. They go for a two-mile run in the evening and both have a wonderful time. A few weeks ago, they were running near our house and had something horrible happen. As they were running past an alley, a pair of large strays came running out at them just as a pickup came driving by. The truck hit one of the dogs and killed it instantly. The other dog ran away. The young man driving the pickup stopped, but there was little to be done. Animal control was called and came by to pick the poor thing up.

Yesterday, I had almost the same thing happen. I was going for my daily bike ride. A chihuahua, a family pet, came running out into the road to bark at me just as a red Pontiac came flying by. The dog was killed almost instantly. The Pontiac came to a stop a few feet away, honked the horn, and then sped off. The family came out. We were all horrified.

It's easy to look the other way, but we have an epidemic of animals roaming our streets, Please spay or neuter your pets, please stop supporting dog and cat breeders who contribute to the overpopulation, and please make sure that you are equipped and committed to care for a pet before bringing one home.

May the pets around you have long and wonderful lives.

Lubbock: Don't forget the Farmers Market tomorrow (With dog photos!)

Condo loves the peanut butter treats from KDJ Barkery

My wife and I have been enjoying Saturday mornings lately. Breakfast at Aranda's or the Ranch House, and then a trip to the Downtown Farmers Market. One of the foster dogs will go with us. It's very encouraging and fun to see something like this happening in our town. Good stuff!

Mattie went to the FM a few weeks ago and had a great time.

Besides the local veggies and eggs, here is our shopping list this week

• Wolf Creek Farms - Laundry Soap
• Chocolate & Beyond - Blackberry Cobbler
• KDJ Barkery - Peanut Butter dog treats (Condo endorsed)
• Solar Chef - say hi to Janie (and talk her out of a free cookie)
• Apple Country - Local Honey!
• Yellowhouse - Ice coffee for my wife
• Yoga Bean - hot coffee for me

Kylie went with us on the rain-out day.

May you have a great Saturday morning too!

Avoiding the Fridge Clean-out Horror

The Ghost of Veggies Past

It usually coincides with shopping day - which is depressing enough - but one of the most depressing days around our house is fridge clean-out day. That's the day when we realize that our grand plans for cooking and eating healthier foods at home have gone horribly wrong.

And that is a failure on several fronts:

• we are trying to eat healthier
• we are trying to spend quality time at home together
• we are trying to save money
• wasting fresh and healthy food is a terrible thing
• and I haven't built a composter yet - so it's all waste

And I am the bad influence at home. My wife will suggest that we cook at home and I will suggest that we are both tired, that we hate doing dishes, that the house is too full of dogs, and that I have a coupon to this or that eatery.

So, I pay attention when I see an article that offers suggestions that help us to reduce our food waste in hopes of learning to do better. Green Living Ideas offered up one such article today: 5 Money-saving Sustainable Food Strategies

May you not know the horror from the fridge or pantry!

PS. We have two great and lovable young dogs up for adoption - please let me know if you interested in giving them a great home!

Kylie the Cuddler

Matilda - sweet and very smart

Good morning, Lubbock!

No foxes on the morning ride, but I did see this while driving to work.

May you be blessed with natural beauty today!

West Texas: Another Sight We Seldom See

I have family about two hours south of here. I spend a lot of time heading up and down Highway 84. South of Post, it is a really beautiful drive - at least for the first several hundred trips. Eventually, it all becomes background. I find myself driving by without noticing the beauty.

One place I do still notice is the Brazos River crossing at Justiceburg. I always glance as I drive over to see if there is a little bit of mud in the riverbed. On fantastic days, there is a little trickle of movement in the water. Over the years, I have seen actual running water three times, and one of those was last Saturday. And I wanted to share it with you. If you live somewhere that actually has naturally-occurring running water, you might not appreciate the red mud stream, but for those of us who are local, it is downright miraculous.

Brazos Running

May you see miracles in your version of the drought!

PS - The impatient white beast at the end is my Sasha, who really wanted us to take a swim. More about her here:
Sashadoption
And here:
Thoreau for your Brain, Sasha for your Smile

And here is the last MH post about the about Justiceburg and the Brazoz:
Save Lubbock's Rivers

Lubbock: Things We Don't Normally See

I learned a new word today: mycologist - one who studies mushrooms or fungus.

I know we are still in a drought, but I have to say that a straight week of gentle rains has turned Lubbock into a place I have never known it to be.

My wife and I went on a mushroom photo safari yesterday afternoon. All of these photos we took within a two blocks of our Central Lubbock home.

May your world be filled with unexpected wonders, and may your find time to see the beauty that surrounds you!

PS. Don't eat any wild mushrooms without consulting an expert first!

In Honor of National Drive Electric Week: Terry Hershner Earns an Iron Butt!

In electric vehicle circles, Terry Hershner is our Chuck Yeager. He and his Zero motorcycle continue to pioneer new ground and break records everywhere they go.

Strangely enough, Terry's biggest nemesis/arch rival/Achilles' heel is Texas, but that is a story for another day.

Same bike in an earlier state of evolution - aerodynamics count!

This week, Terry earned the Iron Butt Award for traveling 1000 miles in less than twenty-four hours, and he did it on an electric motorcycle. He's a regular guy who keeps proving that electric vehicles can compete in the real world. His most recent victory before this came with winning the Vetter Challenge.

Terry, thank you for pushing the envelope and breaking stereotypes everywhere you go! Click the links to learn more:

First 'Iron Butt' Award For Electric Motorcycle: Terry Hershner

Pushing Limits Of Electric Motorcycles: Terry Hershner Wins Vetter Challenge

Terry Hershner Completes First Cross-Country Trip On Electric Motorcycle

May we all push harder to make the world better for all!

Lubbock Urban Wildlife: A Little Bit of Gray

Okay, I won't blame this one on the rain, but I will blame it on the National Bike Challenge.

(Image from this great TPWD pdf)

This morning I woke up at 5:30 to find that it was not raining. I saw a window of opportunity to get in my daily bike ride. (Today makes 33 consistent days of riding - 11 days left in the challenge.) I was shooting for a quick one mile loop, but the weather was nice and my body felt more willing to pedal, so I decided to make it a quick two miles. I headed south on Hartford toward Monterey High School. At 46th St, I noticed a large and strangely elegant looking cat in he middle of the road. As I got closer, I realized that this beautiful "cat" was actually a gray fox, and that there was another not far behind the first.

I slowed way down. The first fox nonchalantly sauntered across the street to a yard. The second fox held its ground. I came to a complete stop about 15 feet away. The second fox looked me up and down. We stood there staring at each other, both motionless for a while - maybe 30-45 seconds. It seemed a lot longer. Then the fox turned and walked off unhurriedly into some shadows.

I pedaled away thankful and amazed. A block later it started to rain, and I rode home with a stupid grin on my face.

If you are intrigued by urban wildlife too, find yourself a copy of The Urban Bestiary by Lyanda Lynn Haupt. I can't recommend it enough.

May your neighbors offer you a stupid grin for your commute home, and may that grin last for days.

The IWB: The Mesquite Hugger Guide to Simple-Minded Self Help

I have met a few older guys in my life that I look up to. Most I have met somewhere near a coffee cup. They usually tell great stories from a life lived well and heartily. And when you ask their plans for the day, they usually involve helping a friend or pursuing some new interest. These guys tend to have silver hair, drive old pickups, and there's often a great dog in the vicinity of their lives. They are quick to offer help and occasional advice. These guys have helped me define the IWB.

The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.
Socrates

I write a lot. A few decades ago, a good friend handed me a blank journal and said, "Now it's your turn." I have been writing almost daily since then.

Unlike Mesquite Hugger, where I try to keep most everything encouraging and motivational, the journal I keep is a place to vent as much as it is a place for positivity. And once in a while - I admit it - I get caught up in the negativity. A little while back, I found the journal was growing pretty dark, so I looked for a way to reverse that.

I came up with the IWB.

If you don't know where you are going, how will you know when you get there?
Ellifino

The IWB is an abbreviation of the man I want to be, or I Wanna Be. It is a variation on who I want to be when I grow up, but I am forty-six now, so it needed a bit of modifying. I also decided it's important to look at the IDWB - I don't want to be.

I have been using the IWB system a lot lately, not as a measuring stick, but as a destination.

For instance, IDWB a man who goes home from work each day, pops open a beer, and sits in front of the TV until bed time. Knowing where I don't want to go lets me start looking at where I do want to go. IWB a man who spends that time being productive, building green projects, serving others, or improving my health.

Now, when I get home from work, I ask myself what the MIWB would do with the evening. And I have been making good progress. I am skinnier, I have been serving others, and there have been improvements around the house. And Snagit! - I even like myself a little better.

You rock, Stuart Smalley!

So, Dear Reader, I hope you create some time this week to define your IWB.

And I hope you find some time next week for taking a step closer.

May you find your way to being your IWB!

Lubbock Local Arts and Food: Jacob McCoy Burton Performance Friday Night

(Photo from Visit Lubbock)

The re-scheduled performance is Friday night at Yellowhouse Coffee (3017 34th St, Lubbock - September 19).

While you're in the 'hood, why not plan to try some local food 34th Street for dinner:

Chinese/Thai: Uncle Chein's 3004 34th St

Mexican: Aranda's 4001 34th St or Picante's 33814 34th St

Innovative Cuisine: The Vine 2623 34th St or the Crafthouse Gastropub 3131 34th St

Texican: The Caprock Cafe 3405 34th St

Indian: India Palace 3021 34th St # A

May your soul and your stomach be satisfied!

Lubbock (Street) on a (Rented) Bike: Fort Worth

Don't Blame it on the Rain, blame it on the National Bike Challenge. I found myself in Fort Worth again this weekend and did not want to break a twenty-eight day streak of daily biking. So I busted out the debit card and rented a bike from Fort Worth Bike Sharing for a two-mile ride. Be sure to check out the video on the link to see how it's done. As I usually do on a bike, I had a great time. I even found Lubbock Street and grabbed a quick snapshot to share with you.

It was a very heavy duty bike with a disk front brake and a 3-speed Shimano Nexus hub. I have wondered if a commuter could be happy with a 3-speed. For me, the answer is yes. It had built-in lights, a basket and a rear rack. It even had a built-in cable lock. It was easy to ride and the very broad range served me well both uphill and downhill - so strange to ride in a place with noticeable elevation changes.

what it costs

I must say, it's a very cool system and I hope to take advantage of it the next time I am there. There are a few bike-share stations near the Trinity River Bike Trail, and I can't think of a better way to see a beautiful part of Fort Worth - well, maybe in a canoe, but I have not yet spotted the canoe share rack in the area. So, I will stick with the plan for the weekend that Tech plays TCU. Maybe I can sneak away from the football fans and have a leisurely cruise in a peaceful place.

If Lubbock had a bike-share setup, I'd seriously consider an annual membership. Having a sturdy and comfortable bike at my disposal with multiple drop points would be great. If you are in Fort Worth - or any place with a bike share, give it a try!

“It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them.” Ernest Hemingway

May your pedal your way to health and prosperity!

Bonus Link: http://www.bikefriendlyfortworth.com/

Good morning, friends!

It is a rainy Friday morning in Lubbock, and it is glorious!

Readership has been way up on this blog lately, and I wanted to say thank you for taking the time to read these scribblings. I hope you find inspiration, mirth, and motivation in what you read here.

Lots of random stuff:

I saw two Inca dove this week. I haven't seen them here in several years. Beautiful smaller dove - easily recognized by the burnt red color visible under their wings when they fly.

And a tiny Mediterranean gecko was scarfing mosquitoes near the mailbox - too fast for photos.

I finished reading the Urban Bestiary (finally) and have been reeling from the ideas presented in the last chapter of what seemed a simple book. I am now reading Crow Planet by the same author and finding it equally inspirational.

The National Bike Challenge is going very well - very happy to have joined it - 18 days left!

I learned about another bike group that I am learning more about - I found them on the back of a beer bottle from our bike and beer loving friends in Ft. Collins, Colorado.
New Belgium and Bikes

I ordered some used battery packs for building a lithium-ion battery pack for my winter bike. (Next week is National Drive Electric Week - Keith, be ready!)

I learned about a very cool neighborhood revitalization project/movement. Check it out at betterblock.org.

The playa lakes are full again - if you are near the park at Quaker and the South Loop in the evening, check out the island in the middle - it has become a rookery for snowy egrets. Let's build islands in all the playa lakes in town - tiny bird sanctuaries in the middle of our lakes!

Thank you again for reading! May you have health, joy, and blessing!

Priorities, Projects, Composting, Instructables...

(Photo from the Instructables link below)

I keep waffling on project priorities around the house. (Mmm, waffles sound so much better than that protein shake I had for breakfast!) My garage looks like a tornado hit, but I keep working on various bicycle projects. I need to trim the elms - one of them dropped a 14' branch this week. And the foster dogs keep redecorating the backyard.

One project that I am happy to have completed is the rain barrel. It is a source of steady amazement around our house how little rain (or mist) it tales to fill up a 55 gallon barrel. A residential roof is a massive rain collector. What had been a problem mud puddle area in the backyard has turned into a lot of plants thriving in the front yard. Good job, self!

So, the project that keeps my waste senses tingling now is a compost barrel. We are cooking more at home. We are enjoying more fresh veggies from the farmers market. Sticks keep falling from the elm trees. The leaves will be falling soon. Regardless of how much we work to deter it, we still receive a lot of junk mail.We have a lot of compost potential that is going untapped.

And, I keep reading articles that outline the ecological value of composting. Composting is only one-sixth of the very good article I read today, but it is the sixth that stuck out most prominently for me.

Is Your Local Waste Responsible for Global Climate Change? (Yes, mine is, snagit!)

So, I have all of the parts except for the barrel to build this Instructable version:

Instructables Compost Bin by ic517

It is time to get to work!

May one (or more) of the six inspire you to action, and may you not dream of waffles all day like I will be.

May waste serve you well!

September 11

Today is the anniversary of the worst terrorist attack our country has yet known.
For most of us it was a huge wake-up call that forced us to remember who we are as a people and to examine our role in the bigger picture.

Please take a little time today to remember the fallen and those who were left behind. Please also take a little time to remember who we are, what our values are, and to examine whether or not our actions match our values.

I thank you for reading this, and I pray for your peace, health, and well-being.

Jacob McCoy Burton Update: No Performance Thursday Night

For those of you who are disappointed, here are three videos to tide you over.

Three JMB videos

I will let you know when the next one happens.

May your music be live and wonderful.

Two very important recent studies - it is time to wake up

There is an old joke that I first heard from a professor in the foreign language department at Texas Tech:

If you speak three languages, what are you called?

"Trilingual"

If you speak two languages, what are you called?

"Bilingual"

If you speak one language, what are you called?

"American"

It is not a very flattering view of us, but look around you and see if it holds truth in the circles you frequent.

The punchline in eco-circles has become disturbing as well.

If you deny the existence of man-made climate change, what are you called?

"American" once again fits the bill. And the inference from both punchlines is the same - we pridefully and lazily choose to be ignorant.

Concentrations of nearly all the major greenhouse gases reached historic highs in 2013, reflecting ever-rising emissions from automobiles and smokestacks but also, scientists believe, a diminishing ability of the world’s oceans and plant life to soak up the excess carbon put into the atmosphere by humans, according to data released early Tuesday by the United Nations’ meteorological advisory body. (From the U.N report below.)

In other words, people damage the air; trees and oceans fix the air, but the humans are overwhelming the trees and the oceans. And it is happening now.

CO2 levels in atmosphere rising at dramatically faster rate, U.N. report warns

July 2014 was the 353rd consecutive month in which global land and ocean average surface temperature exceeded the 20th-century monthly average. The last time the global average surface temperature fell below that 20th-century monthly average was in February 1985, as reported by the US-based National Climate Data Center.

This means that anyone born after February 1985 has not lived a single month where the global temperature was below the long-term average for that month. (Fom the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report article below)

It is indeed getting hot in here, and we need to find and follow through with ways to slow that warming.

99.999% certainty humans are driving global warming: new study

Please take the time to read these two articles. Please look for ways to lessen the destruction we all cause daily.

May we hear the alarm and not hit the snooze button.

Lubbock Fandom: Go Texas Tech [Professors!]

Okay, I have reached a new level of dorkdom. I admit it. I truthfully can not name a single athlete who plays any sport for our local state university, Texas Tech, but I get all excited when I see my favorite Tech professor in any form of media. I am a Katharine Hayhoe fan. I might even need a KH t-shirt to wear around Lubbock.

Today, I popped on over to Treehugger.com, and there she was! And there she was in cartoon form as part of the 97 Hours of Consensus Project! And when I went to the 97 Hours website, she was standing next to another of my favorite scientists - Dr. James Hansen! Click over there to find him for yourself. (One hint to help in your search - he has less hair than she does.)

Cartooning is the sincerest form of flattery!(?)

(Here she is in non-cartoon form.)

Here is an interview with Dr. Hayhoe where she discusses the drought in West Texas: Climate Change and the Drought: An Interview With Katharine Hayhoe

And here is an earlier MH post that features the good doctor:
Time Magazine Recognizes Texas Tech Climate Scientist

May your university be known for the brilliance and wisdom of its thinkers - not for the prettiness of its coach!

Another Modern Vintage Electric Scooter Is Born - Cezeta!!!

My favorite way to get around, bar none, is to ride a vintage scooter. For me, a scooter combines the joy of riding a motorcycle with the aesthetics of cruising in an old car. And there is a dash of humor that brings it all together.

My favorite album cover of all time!

The obsession: If you want the opportunity to hear me talk for hours with hardly a breath taken, ask me about some old scooter or other - consider yourself warned. I purchased my first Vespa about twenty-five years ago, and it has been an obsession since. One my first conversations with my wife happened when she asked about my Vespa t-shirt. Our wedding invitation featured us on a Vespa, and some of our best times together are still spent riding a scooter...

The conflict: I ran into an ethical problem a while back. I started realizing just how badly we fans of internal combustion engines have been damaging our chances (as a planet) of continuing to live and breathe. And most vintage scooters are surprisingly heavy polluters. Since most of them get great gas mileage, you would think they would have a light footprint, but the old two-stroke motor design creates vastly worse emissions than most modern vehicles. For example, my 1980 Vespa emits much more greenhouse gas per mile than a modern Cadillac Escalade or even the old Plymouth Road Runner I drove to high school. Old scooters are extremely bad for the environment.

A solution: Several years back, I came up with the (ahem) perfect solution. I put an electric motor into a vintage Vespa. And it came out great. Reliable, quick, reasonable range, and a blast to ride. But I did miscalculate a bit. It will run 28mph. And 28mph is not a realistic speed for getting around town where I live. It's too fast on a bicycle and way too slow for something that mixes with SUVs and such. (Also, my design work on the scooter left me without a place to park my size 12 feet while riding.)

So, I have two great Vespas in the garage, neither of which gets ridden much.

A dream solution: I mentioned Vespas, but I love most vintage scooters. For years I have kept my eye out for a good deal on a motorless Silver Pigeon or an Allstate Jetsweep/Cushman Road King because they both look like great electric conversion candidates - and so I could be cool like Bo Diddley. (See photo above.) Both of these scooters would provide more room for batteries and for access. And your second draft is usually a little better than your first, right?

A Silver Pigeon - so cool!

A Euro Turn-key Solution: Why am I telling you all of this? Because there was a thread on Endless-Sphere.com this morning that got me all excited. Yet another oddball Vintage Euro Scooter has been re-born as an electric. And, of course, I want one. I present to you the Cezeta 506 Electric! (Follow all of the links - cool stuff!)

Check out the Cezeta!

Another Euro Turn-key Solution: And, in case you want to see another modern electric vintage scooter that has been around a few years now, here is the e-Schwalbe: (You may want to translate this page.)

May the electric wind scooterize your hair!

Not Eating Crow, Snagit! Tesla to Build in Nevada

Learn more about Edgar here.

It's all over the news. Here is the story straight from the Tesla website:
NEVADA SELECTED AS OFFICIAL SITE FOR TESLA BATTERY GIGAFACTORY

Here are the earlier MH posts on the subject:
6 March 2014
26 March 2014

May we fare better next time!

Lubbock this Weekend:Quick Reminders with Links

 Jacob McCoy Burton at J&B Coffee (26th and Boston) tonight 9/5/14

Snapshots of Hunger: Lubbock - First Friday Art Trail  Tonight

Lubbock Downtown Farmers Market - Saturday starting at 9am

Walk to End Alzheimer's Register Saturday at 8am - Now an indoor event! (South Plains Mall)

Walk for 4 Health at Lubbock Lake Landmark - Saturday 9am-1pm (Come-n-Go)

May you find something to keep you busy this weekend!

Lubbock Local Artist: Jacob McCoy Burton Back Home

In case you are not yet overwhelmed with plans for the weekend, Jacob will be playing music in the back room at J&B Coffee (26th & Boston) on Friday night.

Jacob is back home from his Kickstarter-funded recording session on the East Coast where he was able to record six songs for his upcoming EP.

If you are unable to make it on Friday, he will also be playing at Yellowhouse Coffee next Thursday (September 11).

In case you can't make it to either of those, here is the first MH post about Jacob with a few links to his music:
Shameless Promotion of a Really Local Artist (He Lives Across the Street)

May your weekend be filled with great local music and art!

Snapshots of Hunger: Lubbock - First Friday Art Trail and the Texas Hunger Initiative

If you are looking for something to do in Lubbock this weekend and want a different view of life in Lubbock, be sure to swing by the Christine DeVitt Icehouse Gallery (511 Ave J) during the First Friday Art Trail.  The exhibit there is titled "Snapshots of Hunger: Lubbock."

[Lubbock, Texas]-The Texas Hunger Initiative Lubbock field office has partnered with The South Plains Food Bank and the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts to present an exhibit entitled “Snapshots of Hunger: Lubbock” which will be on display at September’s First Friday Art Trail. Six Lubbock residents, the exhibit’s artists, explore what food insecurity looks like in our community.

If you are like me, it is a little too easy to get caught up in the busy-ness of your own day-to-day life and to blind yourself to what is going on with your neighbors. Exhibits like this are very important for helping us to keep our eyes open to the struggles of those around us. If you would like to know more about the Lubbock branch of the Texas Hunger Initiative, be sure to visit texashunger.org. If you want to learn more about local efforts to battle hunger, please check out the Lubbock Edition of the Neighborhood Guide to Food & Assistance.

And, if you are fortunate enough to meet Grace Norman, the THI's Regional Director, please tell her thank you from the Mesquite Hugger.

May you and those around you never go hungry.

Lubbock on a Bike: National Bike Challenge in August

Okay, to be honest, this post is me bragging. If you can't stomach that sort of thing, just move along, and have a great day.

I saw this sign this morning while riding to work. It must be all the biking!

Each gold circle represents a day when I took a bike ride in August. 27 Days!!!

I am notoriously bad about exercising. I don't believe in paying for a gym because I know I would not go anyway, and it seems like a lot of wasted energy that could be used for something else - like making ice cream (Customers can pedal for a scoop at this bicycle-churned artisanal ice cream parlor) or mowing weeds with my trusty rusty old reel mower. The sad part is that instead of wasting energy at the gym, I just haven't expended that energy on anything.

So, when I joined the National Bike Challenge, I had pretty low expectations for myself.

And I have surprised myself. I have lost 13 pounds since the challenge began. More important, my heart and lungs don't hurt when I exert myself these days. I have more energy and more ambition. I have noticed that my mood is better on the days I bike to work - even while dealing with back-to-school traffic. And the dogs are in a better mood and sleeping better - I now have the energy and motivation to walk them every evening. Life is better. And life is good!

On a more Mesquite-Hugger note, Every trip I take on a bicycle is a trip where I do not burn any fossil fuels. And I feel  immensely better about that, especially after reading about the new U.N. Climate Report last week: Global warming is already here and could be irreversible, UN panel says.

On a more cheap b!@#$d note, The bike was cheaper than free when all was said and done. And it costs very little to maintain. I also figured out that I was using the bicycle in place of the electric motorcycle most of the time, so I sold the motorcycle last week and was able to cancel that insurance and put the money into the buy-my-lovely-bride-a-newer-and-more-efficient-vehicle fund. That has inspired me to clear out the garage of un/under-used objects for the reasons listed above. Score one more for the bike! 

(I pulled this pre-war beauty out of the garage and prepared it for sale on Labor Day.)

So, there is the long-winded August update on the National Bike Challenge. Life is better (for me) on a bike!

May you find the equivalent of a bike in your own life! 

Thank you for reading this!