Still treating new ankle scratches, and the Feed

My legs resemble a scratching post because baby kittens are going to scratch when they play, that’s the nature of the beast. I just get caught in the middle when they do, literally. One on one side and one on the other side of my leg, clawing and biting at each other and mostly getting what’s between them, which would be my leg. So I slather on the hand sanitizer to disinfect the scratches and wince, then carry on.

Among the other things I have going on besides this blog and kittens is getting a solar-powered light ready for camping. The light was originally equipped with a single 600 mAh ni-cad AA cell which was not cutting it for winter lighting with the circuit used to light a string of white LEDs, so I swapped out a 2000 mAh NiMH I have in my stash to see how well it works. I just did the install this afternoon so the test has only barely begun as I type this.

Also on my plate is building a handrail for the porch steps at church, which consumed a major portion of my afternoon and evening getting the raw stock for building them. As it turns out the tax number for the church was not registered at the store in spite of several purchases for the church being made there. So when we go back for the stuff tomorrow we have to have the paper tax form with the notary stamp. Bleah!

Up first is a wreck with a tree in NYC. [UPDATE] Cyclist In Critical Condition After Tree Falls On Him In Red Hook and Deliveryman Critically Hurt By Falling Tree In Brooklyn also Workers Cutting Down Tree Critically Injure Cyclist, Local Says “They Didn’t Block Nothing” Cyclist had virtually no warning of the hazard other than a person in street clothes waving at him, without the required flag or cones.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Writer claims Vision Zero is anti-driver plot, new CA bike friendly cities, and Gabe Klein at UCLA Um, yeah Vision Zero is anti-driver, drivers have the things that kill people.

Oregon gets a statewide bike plan. First look at ODOT’s draft of a new biking and walking plan There were lots of “weasel words” in the document that essentially make it not do what they claim it will do.

NYC safe-streets advocates ask for more accurate reporting on wrecks. “Crash, Not Accident”: Hundreds March To Remember Those Killed By Drivers This narrative has been used here repeatedly. I still sometimes make that mistake here, but I’m getting better at it.

Another KY cyclist is ticketed for not using the trash and glass strewn bike lanes, and running red lights. Biking advocate: ‘I am not a scofflaw’ Two things, since there are no sensors in the bike lanes because their bike lanes are just paint where they think there is room to paint a bike lane a cyclist could wait all day for a light to change (especially if their beg buttons are like the ones here in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell and just instruct the signal controller to activate the walk signal with the next signal cycle). The other thing is the bike lanes tend to get the trash and broken glass that cars push off to the sides, so I would tell cops that if they wouldn’t walk barefoot in the bike lane I wouldn’t ride a bike there.

Ghost Bike News from west Canuckistan. Daughter requests ghost-bike memorial for father

Cyclist hit from behind in Jolly Olde. ‘We are all devastated’: Tributes as young cyclist killed in crash with car

A little bit of justice for an injured cyclist. London cyclist severely injured in lorry crash wins compensation Quoting an Original Cast SNL skit now they “can buy some moss for her north side”. For those not old enough to remember that skit John Belushi played the cyclist in a coma for that one that doesn’t seem to be on YouTube.

They managed to find out who the unconscious cyclist in Oz was. Cyclist critically injured in Ballarat CBD

An Enn Zed competition cyclist falls off a mountain. Meggie Bichard’s injury prompts safety calls for Nelson mountainbike trails And cue all the bleching and moaning about tax-dodging cyclists in 5, 4, 3 HOONNNK! they jumped the gun.

And I think I’m out of links finally. I know it doesn’t look like many, but there was a long break in the middle to take care of that church project.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the tired

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Cold pizza for breakfast, and the Feed

I got to have one of my favorite breakfasts this morning, cold pizza. I had leftover frozen pizza last night, so Breakfast! Yum. Usually when Mrs. the Poet is home we wipe one of the cheap pizzas completely out between the two of us and I don’t get my favorite breakfast, but today I did. I’m looking for every upside on this I can find.

Up first because nothing really struck me as super important today is Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Map of closed Orange Line bike path, dangerous Rowena, and Stephany too high to be responsible There’s no such thing as being “too high” to be responsible, being high is what made you legally responsible for the wreck in the first place.

Still in L.A. Lowrider bikes as activist tools: General Dogon’s rolling art works are part of Skid Row history Not the first time bicycles have been used as adjuncts to political action, see the Suffragette Movement.

Still in CA. Bicyclist hit by vehicle in Huntington Beach “Suddenly veered into the bike lane” should be investigated as attempted murder first, then as a traffic wreck. But as the narrative is posted now it sounds like someone decided to murder a random cyclist.

Note done with CA yet. Murder by DUI Trial to Begin in Death of Bicyclist Unfortunately, that’s what it takes to get murder charges brought in the death of a cyclist, second DUI with the death.

Still not finished with CA yet. Bicyclist killed in collision with vehicle identified I hate when the only narrative was the wreck was at an intersection and the driver remained at the scene.

Closer to WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. Bicycles should top Austin transit priority list, group says Yes for less than the cost of 2 miles of urban freeway you can get a completely built-out urban bike network.

Near one of the places I used to live in UT a cyclist apparently runs a red light. Cyclist in critical condition after early morning crash There was a comment that the cyclist was hit in the crosswalk, which meant he was probably riding in the sidewalk before the intersection, and as I frequently say, sidewalks are not bicycle infrastructure.

Cyclist down in MA. Hudson man killed in hit-and-run Black Ford F-150 does a hit-and-run, why does that not surprise me? I think the only thing that would make me less surprised would be that it had dark tinted windows.

Another dead cyclist in DE. Bicyclist killed on Hazlettville Road This is about the wildest example of a SWSS I have ever had the displeasure of reading, a cyclist suddenly leaving a bike lane directly in front of a motor vehicle. The fact that the driver was facing the setting sun I’m sure had nothing to do with hitting the cyclist from behind./sarcasm I left the angle brackets off because WordPress still has not implemented the sarcasm HTML tags.

Moving on up to NYC we get another wreck with “no criminality suspected” by the NYPD. [UPDATE] Cyclist Killed By Truck Driver At Queens Intersection Check that, the updated report is the driver was arrested at the scene for violating the victim’s right of way. Color me flabbergasted, I never thought NYPD would actually apply that law when there was a cyclist as the victim. Look at the picture with the victim’s bike under the front bumper of the truck. The cyclist more than likely never knew the truck was turning until it hit her, because it was behind her until impact.

Cops who tasered a man riding a bicycle go to trial on federal charges. Federal trial lined up for police who Tasered Hillsboro man after bike infraction IMHO there’s no excuse for tasing a man on a bike.

A little physical infrastructure news from Portland. Why the new traffic signal at N Cook and Vancouver is such a big deal I think the really big deal from this is the signal was equipped from the outset with a sensor that can detect a bicycle without a bunch of crazy maneuvers to find the 1″ wide “sweet spot” that a bike will trigger the light.

More infrastructure news from the ATL. Streets Have Changed Before, and They Can Change Again People have such short memories. Things have not always been this way, and they will not stay this way in the future.

Unlike NYC right hooking a cyclist is not a crime in Canada, and may not even be an infraction. No charges to be laid after fatal cyclist/truck collision TANJ!

A wreck up in West Canuckistan injures a cyclist. Cyclist injured in crash Driver hit a cyclist and then hit a power pole, then ran away from the vehicle? No that’s not suspicious at all.

Cyclist down in far West Canuckistan. Injured cyclist in James Bay aided by passersby, emergency crews One minute you’re riding your bike, and a fraction of a second later you’re on the deck with your bell rung, missing one or more teeth and your helmet busted.

Cyclist in West Canuckistan gets doored on camera. Video of cyclist getting doored sparks debate Fortunately the cyclist was not seriously injured in this wreck, nothing beyond getting shaken by the suddenness of the situation. One second there is a clear way to the right of the vehicle to get to the beg button, the next it’s full of passenger side door.

More on a wreck in Enn Zed. Police name cyclist killed in crash Well now we know who was killed, but not if he was hit.

It’s a wreck, not an accident. Stop Calling My Daughter’s Death a Car Accident I remember this wreck, the little girl was holding her grandmother’s hand when the grandmother was brushed back and the little girl run over while crossing in the crosswalk with the light.

Getting there any way possible sometimes means taking a bike. Avoiding Risky Seas, Migrants Reach Europe With an Arctic Bike Ride Any way you can.

And I’m outta links today. Program note, I have a D&D game tomorrow so there may not be a post.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Trying to contain my displeasure, and the Feed

News outside the world of transportation has soured my mood today, requiring a trip to the living room to read actual printed on paper comics after I finished reading my web comics. I won’t elaborate on what set me off, I’ll just say that politics makes me want to set a bounty on certain people. But I was able to use the power of comics to reset my mood to “less homicidal”.

Up first for local readers is a notice from Dallas about repairs to a critical N/S bike route from Richardson to Downtown Dallas. Construction on Temporary Trail begins at White Rock Creek Trail And in a nutshell you know the main problem with bicycle infrastructure in N. Texas. See who is responsible for this main bike route? The Dallas Parks department, not the streets or transit departments, Parks.

Still pretty close to WoaB World HQ in the Beautiful Suburbs of Hell. CLOSE CALL! That picture shows a light armored vehicle being used to intimidate a cyclist riding legally on the road. I have experienced this behavior many, many times when I was riding intercity near here. Most drivers pass with care and courtesy, but there are always that 1% who are assholes. I just wish this picture had been clear enough to get the license plate of the weapon vehicle.

Another update on the murder of a cyclist in IA. Bicyclist in hit-and-run dies from injuries As I posted earlier in the week, there were 3 separate incidents involving hit-and-run on a cyclist, why is this waste of human skin not charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder? Why are they letting him skate on homicide (not even manslaughter) charges just because he was drunk?

This is rare, but it does happen. Cyclist killed after colliding with pedestrian Nothing on how this happened, but I will extend myself on a large tree branch (avoiding getting this dinged by the proofreader as a cliché) and say uncertainty over who went where as they passed and both going the same direction stands out as a high probability.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Bikeshare finally besmirches Santa Monica, and the disappearing American bike shop

A cyclist in MI is left crossed. Update: Injured bicycle rider remains critical after collision with pickup in Alma The usual MO, the cyclist was going straight and the driver turned left either in front of him or directly into him.

A MN driver is facing serious charges in the death of a cyclist. Driver accused of texting in Glencoe crash that killed cyclist Those are extremely serious charges for a death by motor vehicle, but considering the timing of the texts and the outgoing 911 call there is probable cause in this death. Now proving the charges is a whole ‘nother kettle of fish, but making them is required before prosecuting the charges.

That wreck in ME I called as a SWSS is getting further investigation. Lewiston police still investigating accident that critically injured 9-year-old cyclist There are undoubtedly other kids his age +/- in the other complexes along the street, he could have just been going to or coming from a visit with a school friend.

Another wreck in ME. Boy on bicycle hits moving car in Island Falls

A Ghost Bike is being installed for the cyclist killed in a right hook wreck in Boston. ‘Ghost bike’ tribute for surgeon set for Back Bay crash site

A memorial ride for a cyclist killed by a crazy homeless person while stopped for food. Kevin Adorno Memorial Ride: Cyclists to complete trip of bicycle rider killed on the Treasure Coast No insult meant to homeless people, or crazy people. The perp should have been in a hospital getting treatment, not wandering the streets. This death is Reagan’s fault for closing all the mental hospitals.

That West Canuckistan cyclist killer is formally charged after being released from hospital. Samuel Alec, charged in fatal Pemberton cyclist crash, appears at bail hearing I mean, wow. He killed two cyclists that he hit in a group of three, killed his passenger and injured himself, just how fast was he going at the point of impact?

One of the main reasons why UK media bike wreck articles suck so badly is they aren’t allowed to give details until after any court hearings have been held. This results in articles like this one. Cyclist Graham Cuthbert claims Stagecoach bus driver nearly ran over him and abused him Comments section was … interesting.

I think I have found another “statistical anomaly”. Doncaster cyclist ‘lucky to be alive’ after crash with 70mph car on A1 I see two strong similarities between our wrecks. The first was the cyclist went over the roof of the weapon vehicle instead of under the car. Second we both spent pretty much the same amount of time in hospital before discharge.

Just, ugh. Everton footballer Darron Gibson faces court date after ‘drunken hit-and-run that injured cyclist and left his £125,000 car with severe damage’ I wonder how much damage he left the cyclist with after his drunken hit-and-run.

Also from Jolly Olde, a reason to make sure your donor card is signed. Family speak of pride after cyclist killed in crash donates organs Unfortunately none of my organs will be transplanted because they will be dissected as part of the blood pressure study I’m a part of.

Almost done, here are two links about a wreck earlier in Oz. Cyclist’s family learned of death online and Two possibilities in cycling death of Danish student Rebekka Meyer, coronial inquest hears So, notification systems are inadequate in this case to prevent relatives from discovering the death from media rather than LEO, and they have no way of knowing if the cyclist or the truck that killed her was at the intersection first.

Last link, take the pledge. It’s a crash. Not an “accident”.

And I have to get up freaking early in the AM tomorrow to install an alarm system in the church after our second break-in and robbery in 3 weeks. So bye!

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Unkillable Badass Poet