Finally got some money, and the Feed

The check came in this morning, so I’ll be out running around paying bills and making deposits and stuff tomorrow instead of going with Mrs. the Poet to shop for groceries. There won’t be a big difference for the blog, just for my selection of salty snacks. I think I might have to give up meditation to get my BP up high enough to make the grade for the new test med, because cutting my current meds in half doesn’t quite do it, and eating salty snacks doesn’t do it either. I’m barely at 110/80 now.

Up first, wait, what?!?

Another cow caught stealing a bicycle…… pic.twitter.com/7gtONxicdn

— classicretro (@classicretro) March 30, 2016

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And closer to home.

Crews Finally Add Last Block of 2-Way Protected Bike Lane in Downtown Houston pic.twitter.com/DyjHLsSstv

— StreetsblogTexas (@StreetsblogTex) March 30, 2016

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Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Downtown bike lanes draw new brewery, new bollards on Vineland and a new LA Bike Fest video

Unknown mode of wreck in MN. Bicycle rider killed by car in Sartell and Bicyclist Struck, Killed In Sartell As of this posting all I know is there was a cyclist hit by an unknown vehicle and possibly left for dead making this a possible probable hit-and-run.

Victim blaming in the Great White North. Cyclists share responsibility for accidents More blaming the victim for not wearing the GITDCS that drivers seem to think every cyclist should wear 24/7 when riding. Instead of you know, actually looking more than 20 feet in front of the vehicle.

Right hook in far West Canuckistan. Cyclist dies in collision with truck in Victoria’s Chinatown and Cyclist, 73, struck and killed in downtown Victoria I zoomed in on the picture of the crime scene and the only truck visible was a COE with good forward and side vision. So, aside from using the standard protocols posted in the links at the top of the page what could be done to prevent this wreck? They were already using the delivery vehicle with the best outward vision, the cyclist was wearing clothing that made her visible, what else could be done? EDIT: As I was getting ready to move from the first link to the next link the page updated with a much better picture of the crime scene showing the actual delivery vehicle having a conventional cab that is blind to a large area in front and to the right where the cyclist was hit. So going back to the question, replacing the delivery vehicle with a COE flat van and a glass door to the right would be a massive help.

Speaking of the devil, here’s an article from Jolly Olde on just that kind of vehicle, this one in a trash hauler. Pioneering lorries with panoramic view hit the streets in bid to save cyclists’ lives

Also from the UK is this factoid from the trial of a killer driver. Janina Gehlau: Lorry driver ‘should have seen cyclist for up to five seconds’ before fatal collision The cyclist was using the infrastructure as designed, the driver of the weapon vehicle should have been looking in the direction he was planning on driving before actually proceeding through that space, I believe the colloquial phrasing is “Looked where he was going”.

This is an aspect of UK jurisprudence that I would dearly love to see here in the US. Cyclist injured in fall from bike due to road ‘hazard’ awarded damages after suing council for ‘negligence’ Injured or incur property damage because of crappy infrastructure? Sue the government body responsible for it not being crappy.

Now this just sucks. Man pushes cyclist off BMX and rides off on it I try not to wish harm to another human being, really I do, but this guy needs to get hit by an HGV turning left at a stop light since this is over in Jolly Olde where they drive on the wrong side of the road.

Another rider in Oz hits a parked car? Qld rider killed after hitting parked car Seriously this is two this week.

More on the 73 YO driver that killed a cyclist in Oz. Hit-and-run driver charged over WA cyclist

Back in the US, SF infrastructure! TWIN PEAKS FOR EVERYONE OK let me get this out or I’m going to explode: “That’s one fine cuppa coffee” .

And how do you get bike parking? How Portland’s oldest Buddhist temple got better bike parking Sometimes you have to DIY.

And here it is not even midnight and I’m outta links, Gigi is going to be so happy.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

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“Chris Christie” is becoming a real pain in the neck, and the Feed

There, I said it. This lump of useless fat sitting on my neck has literally become a pain in the neck. I can’t wait until the surgeon cuts me open and peels that thing off my neck, because it has reached the point that the lump is restricting my range of motion to the point that I get a pain every time I try to turn my head in any direction. It feels like the bottom of my skull is hitting the lump but it is probably the muscles not being able to get out of the way because the lump is already there, although when I check with my finger the finger gets caught between the lump and my skull, so a little of both, maybe? Anyway, I want this useless lump of ugly fat gone from my neck and my life. In this picture I leaned as far forward as I could so “Chris” would be more visible.

Up first because this is THE major issue of riding a bike in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell, an observation from WoaB hero Bikeyface. FOR LACK OF A RACK That’s right bike parking. There are nearly no bike racks in Garland except for a few near the square, and a couple tucked behind buildings at our “mall” that isn’t a mall.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Injured SD cyclist needs your help, CA keeps dopers on the road, and Winnipeg ups the ante on ciclovías Good links in that one.

What is a sports icon to do when he can no longer play his sport? BARRY BONDS IS SHIFTING GEARS

I have long suspected that what is depicted here was exactly the case. Bicyclists Belong in the Traffic Lane

I feel like quoting “Patton” (the movie) when I read this. Jobst Brandt, cyclist, inventor, author and industry influencer, dies at 80 You know the quote I’m talking about, right?

Update on the cyclist killed by a driver on the wrong side of the road in GA. Funeral Scheduled For Thursday To Honor Cyclist Who Died Following Accident Yes, this is the cyclist killed by Smirking Man. Smirking Man still had not made bail last time I checked.

Kids watching too much TV and not getting enough exercise? No TV unless you exercise! My version used a car alternator and an inverter running off a battery charged by the alternator, but this will work for people who have TVs that won’t come back on after the power goes off until the remote turns it back on. The trick for mine was to use a very small battery and an inverter with an adjustable low-voltage cutoff, set between the alternator output and the resting voltage of the battery. That way you always had full voltage to make the alternator work, and the TV would only work as long as you pedaled. Keep the pedals turning and you could watch TV, stop pedalling and you had to get off the bike and find the remote, find someone to turn the TV on while you pedaled, and go through the startup sequence on the bike/inverter combination.

National infrastructure news from DC. Clock ticks down on highway funding The gas tax was last raised in 1993. Clinton was POTUS at the time. In the last 10 years we have had to bail out the Transportation Trust Fund 5 times that I remember… Because the gas tax does not pay enough for new construction, and don’t get me started on maintenance. This has a direct impact on the funds needed to pay for things like bicycle infrastructure that would not be needed if there were no cars or heavy trucks clogging the streets and roads.

A cyclist documents the hazards of a busy street to NYPD, NYPD responds by blocking the cyclist from being able to tell them about people parking in the bike lane or making illegal turns from it. Cyclists Demand A Safer Jay Street, NYPD Doesn’t Want To Hear It

A UK city begins a safety campaign that doesn’t automatically blame cyclists and demand styrofoam hats. Look Once, Look Twice … Think Cyclist and Think Bike Motorcycles are having a similar problem with blind drivers “not seeing” them, so they are part of the campaign as well.

The recent deaths in Thailand have gotten the attention of the media and government. How to make our roads safe for cyclists and Thai editorial: How to make our roads safe for cyclists also Cyclists need more support

Another Lifestyle article from FL. Tallahassee Officers to Bike Hundreds of Miles to Honor Those Killed in the Line of Duty

And I’m out of links again.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Good news and bad news, and the Feed

I was awakened this morning with a phone call about my MRI. I have a 7 cm across by 4 cm thick fatty mass on my neck that is “atypical”. I am being scheduled for surgery at the earliest opportunity. Some facts about the case from Wikipedia and WebMD: I have a very large lipoma (LIE-poh-ma) on my neck but not exceptionally large, they can get much larger. Lipomas are mostly benign in nature even when they get quite large, but mine is atypical of the breed. Even then the odds of this one being malignant are about the same as surviving getting hit squarely by a truck doing 60 MPH. Which I have done. Yo! scripts, I need a rewrite on this or I’m not acting in this movie, or appearing in this book, whatever. This lump is not going to be cancer, or invasive, or anything except a GOP candidate for President (useless fatty lump that just gets in the way). I’m getting really tired of you seeing how close you can get me to getting killed. It was funny when I was a kid (well popping up a war around me not so much, some of the stuff that we did was hysterical, particularly having a car and driving legally at 12YO), but now that I’m an adult (stop laughing, I mean I’m way over 21, not the other thing) I just want a nice, calm, semi-sedate, low-stress, life. Not a good story, but a nice life.

Up first I find out that “lawyer lips” are the real cause of the Trek recall. Lessons from Trek’s recall of almost 1 million bikes The QR gets into the disk because the wheel doesn’t fall out when the QR lever is opened. This only happens because of the so-called “lawyer lips” that keep a wheel from falling out of the fork when the QR is open. Yay, lawyers 😛

Dashcam video of a cyclist getting shot 4 seconds after pulling over when he detected a vehicle tailgating him right through someone’s lawn. EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Dashcam video shows unarmed man being shot by PBSO deputy Interesting that the only audio on the stop is the sound of gunshots as the cyclist falls down. No siren, no commands from the LEO, just open the car door and start firing 4 seconds after coming to a stop.

And you can’t get there from here by bike if all you have is bicycle infrastructure. Why Is It So Hard to Get Across U.S. Cities Using Only Bike Lanes? All of those cities have it all over the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell, where we have less than 3 miles of bike lane, even if you count both directions.

Do you harass drivers for driving a surface street next to a freeway? Why not? Bicyclists in roads next to bike paths endure harassment “Get off the street, you got that great big freeway to drive on that took all my tax dollars to pay for!” Then shoot them. /s

Semi-local as a town a couple of counties west and north of WoaB World HQ declares they are partaking in Bike Month. BIKE MONTH PROCLAMATION AT DENTON CITY COUNCIL TUESDAY, MAY 5, 6:30-7:00 PM

Our Daily Ted is less than happy today. BOLO Alert: Bike rider seriously injured in East LA hit-and-run and part 2 Weekend Links: Super-secret discipline for Milt Olin deputy; SD’s Fiesta Island wreck caused by invisible boyfriend

The deputy who killed Milt Olin is punished in total secrecy. L.A. County Sheriff’s deputy disciplined in fatal collision with cyclist in Calabasas Is it really punishment when there is no public knowledge of the punishment?

Whadya gotta do to get a long prison term for a killer driver, when fleeing the scene all the way to Australia from Ireland won’t do it? Drink-driver who killed cyclist dad of four jailed for five years I mean seriously, the guy hit and ran all the way to Oz to escape prosecution, and the most they can give him is 5 years? More Widow ‘will never forget children’s cries’ after father killed

This is only a minor delay, he will get to spend a large amount of time as a guest of the state. Trial surrounding the death of a Hampshire cyclist William Logan set to resume today

I wonder if this mystery woman was the driver of the weapon vehicle in the wreck. Woman rushed to aid of hurt cyclist The thing that made me think this person was the driver was this quote,”She came and spoke to me for a while saying: ‘Do you need my details?’” That is the standard UK phrase for after a wreck.

Still getting political reverberations from a cyclist’s death in Jolly Olde. Cycling safety campaigners join colleagues of Moira Gemmill to mark death of ‘wonderful woman’

This was unexpected. Hit-run driver killed twice in one month Hmm, they don’t know how the second victim died, could he have gotten a taste for killing after “getting away” with killing the cyclist (until he got caught)?

A little Infrastructure from Portland OR. County’s bridges may get $33 million for biking and walking upgrades by 2020

Some good infrastructure news from that town a couple of counties over. RIDE YOUR BIKE TO ARTS & JAZZ FESTIVAL! 54 NEW BIKE RACKS ADDED TO CITY HALL AND CIVIC CENTER

And now I’m all out of links. I will be back Sunday.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the unkillable badass Poet

More Stupid stuff than you ever thought possible. and the Feed

Well you might think I would be all written out after the previous post, but I am an endless barrel of exposition . No, seriously, I can keep writing for days, weeks even. I just take Saturdays off so I can have some semblance of a social life. I have all the ideas I need to keep writing forever except for the bouts I have with aphasia, and needing to sleep once in a while.

Main reason why cyclists break traffic laws? Because the laws were written for 1+ ton vehicles with much higher power-to-weight ratios than bicycles, and following laws written for those vehicles can get cyclists killed. Let’s talk seriously about why cyclists break traffic laws

Remember what I keep saying about helmets never preventing a wreck? Study: What Puts Cyclists at Greatest Risk? It’s Not What You Wear Apparently they don’t do much to prevent injury, either.

Have problems finding bike parking near your favorite store or mall? There might be a reason for that. SHOP BLOCKED Unless I absolutely have to I no longer shop stores without bike parking.

More on the MD bike tragedy as it has affected infrastructure discussions and the bicycle Lifestyle in MD. On Palermo tragedy, ‘Agony in the Garden’ and the Next Baltimore The event has had a major impact on the Episcopalian community of MD if nothing else. And Boys Latin students were first to stop to help injured cyclist Palermo

One NV town is determined to make cycling work within the narrow proscriptions of state law. Taking ‘Bike-Friendly’ to a whole new level

Infrastructure news from America’s Amsterdam. New striping on Vancouver Ave is a ‘SAFE’ hotline success story

If you happen to be in KY in March… National American Handmade Bicycle Show 2015

What is it about cyclists that drives people to act as if we don’t count as human beings? Attack on cyclist: Staffordshire police witness appeal The cyclist was attacked by someone in a car but not driving, WTH?

I am so jelly on this. You’re about to get really jealous of these cool bike paths Yes, I used “jelly” in an unironic mode meaning “jealous”, so sue me.

Not so “jelly” about this steaming pile of UK infrastructure. Embassy response to Crystal Palace Parade junction improvement scheme Another plan to speed up drivers with a bit of crappy bike infrastructure thrown in to comply with laws and spend budget without actually giving anything useful to cyclists. There is something useful in this scheme, protected left turns for cyclists (which would be the same as protected rights for here in the US) so maybe “steaming pile” is a little harsh? On further review “steaming pile” is if anything too lenient.

And I’m all out of links today.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

I spent 3 hours paying the storage unit fee, and the Feed

I had to pay the rent on the storage unit today, which is a pain now that I can’t ride my bike there and back. The place is only just over a mile and a quarter away which is a bit too far for my bum leg to walk there and back. So I had to take the bus downtown then catch the bus to the storage unit which ended up taking twice as long as it would to just walk there. I was going to catch the bus back downtown and then the other bus from downtown back home, but the receipt for the payment took too long to print out and while it was printing the bus back downtown went by, so I walked home instead. My leg was complaining the last half mile, but I walked home 15 minutes faster than I would have left the station had I caught the bus. So I swapped pain for time today.

Up first, was this a loss or a gain for music? BONO SAYS HE MAY NEVER PLAY GUITAR AGAIN AFTER BICYCLE ACCIDENT Not impugning Bono’s guitar work, he’s just not the lead guitar player for U2. Bono is a great human being, and I loved “Sunday, Bloody Sunday”.

That video of the bike flipping end over end from last week now has some commentary from the rider that went ass over teakettle. ‘This is going to hurt’: Byron Bay cyclist talks through spectacular crash Like I said last week, I hope someone sends this in to the Mythbusters.

A Lifestyle story from MD. Hundreds of cyclists ride to honor Thomas Palermo and Popular cyclist mourned as donations arrive for children This was the cyclist killed by a hit-and-run driver with previous DUI convictions.

One major component of bicycle infrastructure is having a place to park your bike after you get to your destination. Grant will add bike racks in Springfield I wonder how many grants are required to install car parking?

How would you like this as a T-shirt? http://bicyclinghub.com/blog/new-tshirt-design-cycling-habbit/

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Finish the Ride gets bigger for 2015; support the revised Beverly Hills Greenway on Tuesday

If you have been contemplating a wearable video camera… NARRATIVE CLIP 2

Here’s one way of getting rid of an idiot. Australia’s PM Tony Abbott told to get off his bike – by his doctor Keep him from exercising, so he dies from heart disease or diabetes.

And those were all the links I could find today.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet