I had real COFFEE today, and the Feed

Finally I had a cup of coffee that tasted like COFFEE instead of vaguely brown water. Pro tip, the reusable K-cup filters are only good for a small cup of coffee, there is just not room for enough grounds to make a 16 oz (473.176 ml) cup of coffee. Seriously, even going to 10 oz is seriously over what the little things can do without using an espresso ground coffee. If you have a coffee grinder that can go to espresso then you can get 10 oz easily, but drip grind won’t give you enough surface area to extract all the good flavors because of the limited amount of time the water stays in contact with the grounds. The Keurig is halfway between a drip brewer and an espresso machine as far as extraction is concerned. Higher temperature and more pressure than a drip brewer, lower than an espresso machine. If you have the reusable filters go with espresso grind. Now I need to find a good coffee grinder.

Up first is Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: Memorial ride for RPV cyclist, 11-year old advocate writes for Times & Mt. Hollywood stays car free

Still in CA. Meet the Ovarian Psycos: women of color building a movement on bikes These are the people who do the Clitoral Mass ride once a year, a Critical Mass just for kick-ass women (womyn?).

Lots of Portland infrastructure links today. State begins project on Broadway near Rose Quarter Monday If they get this right it will be an improvement for all modes, not just the modes with engines or motors.

Good transit and good cycling go together like hotdogs and mustard. Bus riders’ union launches new campaign: Discount fares for low-income people Sure they are great separately, but put them together and you have a killer app that gets you across town letting the bus protect you from the cagers, while extending your reach far beyond the bus deep into unserved territories. The technical term is “first mile, last mile”

And when you integrate infrastructure it synergizes your investments. New Portland Plan Addresses Walksheds and Watersheds Together When you install paved streets and drains and cover those drains with sidewalks all at the same time it works better and costs less money to do. Whodathunkit?

Update on the cyclist critically injured in a MN hit-and-run. Update: Cyclist Injured In Hit-And-Run Still In Critical Condition and $1,000 reward offered in hit-and-run crash that critically injured bicyclist in Dakota County Yeah, he’s not going to be riding again any time soon after that latest surgery. I hope something equally gruesome happens to the driver, or they could just recycle the vehicle with him still in it.

Something fishy in this OH wreck. Cyclist hurt in collision with highway-patrol cruiser Notice that they aren’t blaming the cyclist for this wreck even though there were intoxicants involved on the cyclist’s part. The wreck mode was hit-from-behind, so they probably have dash cam recordings of the cyclist’s lane position and track. My guess is this was a SWSS initially until someone took a look at the video, then backtracked.

A MA hit-and-run. Cyclist injured in Wellesley hit-and-run So all my Boston readers BOLO for a Toyota P/U with front end damage and report it to LEO.

This is slightly disturbing as WoaB heavily promoted these guys. Wounded Warrior fires execs over spending accusations If I’m reading the article correctly these clowns took money donated for rehabbing injured veterans and spent it on luxuries for themselves. Shame on them.

A Whiskey Tango Foxtrot moment from Jolly Olde. Serial drink-driver who killed cyclist in crash jailed for just seven years This idiot had EIGHT!(8) DUIs, and never passed a test to get a license, and somehow he was still free to drive. “Taylor, of West Molesey, was also banned from driving for nine years.” He never had a license, and you think a court order will stop him from driving in the future? I have this bridge…

Well if they survive they won’t Wiggins on London Bike Boom – cyclists aren’t going to go away I get what he’s saying, gas is cheap now, but it won’t stay that way and people will still have to get around. Riding a bike is way faster than the bus in London (and for short trips even I could get around faster than DART, especially if there was a detour to the transit center and a transfer to a different bus involved. Point to point a bike is faster than a bus unless both points are on the same bus route. Then it all comes to how many times the bus has to stop for passengers.

Woman accidentally locks herself in a van, cyclists hear her pounding on the door/side of the van and let her out. Charity cyclists free woman trapped in van for 4 hours

Cyclist is buried after a wreck in the Emerald Isle. TEENAGE CYCLIST KILLED IN ROAD TRAGEDY LAID TO REST

A UT grad is hit and killed in Singapore. Woman dies in bus accident; arrested driver suspended pending inquiry Ordinarily I don’t report Singapore wrecks because their laws are so, so different from ours, but the victim in this one made me link this one.

And this from Oz. Sydney cyclists reportedly fined £225 – for trackstanding Apparently the sight of cyclists maintaining balance without putting a foot down for an extended period of time just blew the LEO’s mind, they had never heard of such sorcery.

And this. Sydney cyclists say new laws don’t make them feel safer – MPs set to debate scrapping them The abuse cyclists have been receiving since the change in the laws has been skyrocketing, and drivers have been interpreting the passing law exactly backwards of the intention, instead of moving over the meter they are claiming cyclists have to get a meter off the roads when a car passes. I wonder if they are all idiots.

And I’m all outta links now.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

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Had my toes done again, and the Feed

One thing that enduring the swollen foot debacle uncovered was my toes were getting squished a bit because the nails needed trimming. I can tell this because I got bruising around the nail beds caused by the pressure on the beds from getting pushed against the inside of the shoe. One thing I can’t depend on any more is waiting until it hurts to let me know the nails are getting too long, because my toes were all black and blue but I didn’t feel anything aside from a bit of pressure at the ends. I guess my pain tolerance is getting greater, or I’m just not getting the pain signals through the nerve damage any more. Anywho, I got my toes done and now my shoes are much looser. I tell you, getting old ain’t for wusses.

Up first is a tragic tale of kittens gone bad. Slow down plea after hit and run cyclist kills kitten on London commuter route towpath and Cyclists urged to slow down on canal towpath after beloved kitten killed by bike in east London The cat ran across the path with only the kitten and the cyclist knowing how much reaction time was available, then the cat ran onto the boat. I would have thought the cat was OK myself, and I have been cat-owned most of my life. Still, common decency says at least stop and check to make sure the cat was OK.

Our Daily Ted. 20-year old OC driver faces 10 years for 2014 DUI death of Dana Point cyclist

And another link about the same thing. Man to Be Arraigned in Alleged Drunken Crash that Killed Cyclist on PCH I agree with Ted on this one, as a minor the driver was not allowed to have more then 0.01% BAC (it is possible to reach 0.01% BAC just by consuming a high carb meal for people with some strains of intestinal flora).

More on the CO cyclist killed by a buzz job from a dump truck. Ghost bike ceremony for cyclist killed by truck is Saturday There were two major components to this wreck, bad infrastructure that limited crossings for a man-made obstacle, and an impatient driver who chose to pass at the wrong place and time possibly because he had a certain number of runs he had to make every day to pay for his fixed costs before he started making any money.

AZ bike wreck victims are remembered. Cyclists killed in crash remembered at Mudshark The cyclist was the male rider of a mixed couple that were killed on a tandem bike.

Another case of windshield bias from LEO. Injured cyclist disputes account of BTV crash The fact remains that the truck still turned in front of the cyclist, not giving him time to react. Also not LEO deliberately misquoting the sign in the picture. It does not have the MUTCD BMUFL language or symbols, all it says is that vehicles turning right must yield to bikes. Which BTW the truck that hit the cyclist failed to do.

I’m having a WTF!?! moment with this link from the Great White North. Dog attack not the cause of Hamilton man’s death, autopsy reveals OK so there is a man laying in the middle of the road being attacked by a dog, and the man dies, but the dog didn’t do it? Did the dog bite him after he got hit and run by a car?

Lots of cyclists getting hit in Far West Canuckistan. Three Vernon cyclists hit by vehicles cause for concern One SWSS, one no details aside from someone getting hit, and a third vlind driver who didn’t know if the cyclist he hit was in the bike lane or on the sidewalk, because he didn’t look as he crossed either one.

Not sure how you could deal with this infrastructure meltdown. Young boy injured after cycling onto road surface which had melted in heatwave Something similar happened in the TdF a few years ago when Lance was riding, the lead rider in a breakaway hit a melting patch of road and went down while Lance showed his cyclocross skills.

Another “don’t ride there” article about some of the busiest intersections in the town. 16 cycling blackspots you really should avoid in Lincolnshire The roads head here said “We recognise through providing a separate space on the road, cycling lanes offer protection for cyclists, and measures for cyclists are incorporated in transport strategies.” but they were not going to pry one red cent from the roads budget to pay for them.

CCTV footage of the woman crushed by a delivery truck in London shows her pulling alongside the truck as it was signalling it was going to cross the bike lane. Woman cyclist killed by delivery lorry was ‘on top of the world’ after landing her dream job Apparently under UK law cyclists are not allowed to pass a vehicle in an adjacent lane signalling for a turn.

I think the comment at the end of this article is the best thing I have read all day. ICEguard: the new helmet attachment that logs accident details for cyclists The device is basically a combination black box and Road ID, and would be quite handy in a wreck. The comment: yuhuhbhb 13 hours ago
Car driver caught breaking the law: ‘vigilante cyclists!’. Car driver films cyclist chewing gum: ‘idiot cyclists, they’re their own worst enemy, they should get their house in order, roadtax, hi-viz, insurance, blah blah blah!!!’”

Presented without further comment from Yr Fthfl Srvnt. ‘If there aren’t as many women cycling as men … you need better infrastructure’

And a demonstration of the need for better infrastructure. Justice for an injured London cyclist

To illustrate that it’s only a small percentage of truck drivers that are anal sphincters. POLICE COMMEND TRUCK DRIVER FOR HELPING INJURED CYCLIST

And another article about missing infrastructure causing death and injury in Oz. Lack of funding, technology, leads to massive cyclist toll So who goes to jail for all the dead cyclists caused by a lack of infrastructure?

Since technology was mentioned in the previous paragraph, here’s some that is helping enforce passing laws in test communities. This Invention Could Boost Bicyclist Protection Laws Yep, a device that measures how far from the end of the handlebars a car passed a police cyclist. Perfect for writing tickets and even better for informing drivers about the law. TN has had a 3 foot passing law for years as a state-wide law, and still people don’t know about it

And I’m outta links, and TIRED.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Mrs. the Poet is on her way, and the Feed

Mrs. the Poet is on her way to help take care of grandnephews in NY as things get destabilized for our niece. The farm she has been living on got sold out from underneath her and she needs childcare while she works. Mrs. the Poet will be spending about 36 hours on the Dawgbus to get there, and another 18 hours to recover.

In other news around Casa de El Poeta, we got the Explanation of Benefits on my surgery from BCBS. The total costs were in the neighborhood of $28K, my costs after my cash co-pay I provided the day of surgery, $0. When you reach your max out-of-pocket for the year with this policy, that is it, except for office visits to your PCP to see if something else needs fixing. So it took more than a year of running around and significant transportation issues to get there and back, but the lump on the back of my neck is gone and I don’t owe any more money for the procedure.

Up first, condolences on this Daily Ted. Suspected DUI driver kills adult trike rider and her dog in Garden Grove And the weapon vehicle will be crushed …?

Another link to that lawsuit where a bike rider was tased while riding his bike. Cops Beat, Tase Man for Riding Bike With No Headlight, Failing to ID Themselves, Lawsuit Claims More information, this article makes the claim the LEO failed to tell the victim he was being stopped for not having a headlight before tasing him while he was riding. As I pointed out yesterday this makes as much sense as tasing the driver of a car while the car is still moving, which nobody in their right mind would ever do because of the danger.

And a cyclist gets right crossed because a driver didn’t look so they give the cyclist a ticket for riding on the sidewalk? Elmira teen seriously injured in bike-car crash Monday TANJ!

There are two huge stories in the UK today. This is the one that makes me slightly more angry. Gran died after reckless cyclist ploughed into her on BMX bike he pulled from skip and Cyclist, 21, who knocked down and killed grandmother, 73, while riding BMX bike he pulled out of a skip is jailed Why does this one make me angry? Because the cyclist is going to be spending a year in jail longer than most drivers get for killing pedestrians or cyclists.

This is the other story that makes me almost as angry. Pictured: Newly-married cyclist killed in London lorry crash and Cyclist, 26, killed in Bank tipper truck crash was newly married Oxford graduate also Cyclist killed at ‘hectic’ seven-way Bank junction in London also this Why are female cyclists more vulnerable to London’s lorries?

In a different but related story. Widow of cyclist killed by Crossrail lorry calls for road safety improvements Another cyclist killed because of HGV having restricted visibility out the front and to the passenger side, which is exactly where the “bike lanes” of the UK put them. This cyclist apparently could not see the light had changed because there were trucks pulled in front of them, and one of those trucks ran him over.

From Canuckistan pay attention to cyclists while driving, the life you save could be your neighbor or the kid down the block. Cyclists deserve attention

A proposed change in the legal infrastructure of Oz. Cyclists face on-the-spot fines for using their phones, VicRoads report recommends Besides the phone thing cyclists would be assumed to have right of way in all intersections.

OH considers changing the law for the worse. Should bike helmets be the law? Considering the rather limited energy window that helmets work in, I would say making them mandatory would be a crime.

Memorial ride for a cyclist killed on a bike trail when a motorcycle went off the parallel road at high speed. Memory of bicyclist killed on Seaford bike path inspires fundraising bike ride

And an update on the Marine riding a hand-cycle from CA to VA. Combat-injured vet bicycling through Chanute Needless to say WoaB would be sending $$ to this if we had the $$ to send.

And I’m out of links again. Good thing because I have to make dinner and then clean up after.

Billed @€0.02, Opus

With a sad heart, and the Feed

As posted yesterday WoaB lost a valued employee and part of the family. Brian didn’t just make sure the rodents and cockroaches were eliminated, he was also a fuzzy confidant, something warm to hug, and a source of love in a cold world. He will be missed greatly here at Casa de El Poeta. No longer will he sprawl at the end of the bed and complain when we move our feet at night…

You will be missed, friend. 😥

Up first, a drunk driver hit-and-runs a cyclist in VT, so the head of VTrans wants us to ride more responsibly? Did I miss something? Minter: Drive, ride more safely after tragedies Your laws are car-centric, your infrastructure would be a crime in the Netherlands, and the cyclist was run over from behind by a drunk driver, and this is somehow our fault? More on that wreck, and the victim of it can be found here. A bike ride before dinner. He never came home. and Wife Of Police Officer Killed Cyclist While Drunk Driving, Released And Given Citation

I deal with clowns like this driver every time I ride. WATCH: Frustrated Texas cop smashes car window after driver insists speed limit is only a suggestion and in this case “Failure to Identify” is a valid charge because the LEO was trying to issue a speeding ticket.

NJ teens mourn their fallen friend as a bike-on-semi wreck is investigated. Cresskill students pay tribute to classmate killed by tractor-trailer Looking at the scene I don’t see what there is to investigate. The semi was at a stop sign while the cyclist was riding down a through street, and then the semi pulled in front of the cyclist when he was too close to stop. The weapon vehicle did not even clear the stop sign, much less get all the way into the intersection, before the cyclist hit it. So, what are they trying to prove? That the cyclist somehow committed suicide the day before summer break? That makes sense how?

Our Daily Ted. Newport Beach bike rider dies after fall, apparently due to natural causes Just like cats, people do die, and some die riding their bikes.

Daily Ted Part 2. Weekend Links: Bikeshare finally coming to LA, and fighting among ourselves won’t make bicycling to grow

Another failure to enforce a 3-foot law in FL. Bicyclist Killed in Collision With Private School Bus If the cyclist falls down as you pass and goes under the back tires, you passed too damn close! And really when was the last time anyone on a school bus was injured by running over something as relatively small as an adult human being? So why mentiuon that the kids were unhurt?

Update on an OR cyclist injured in a wreck. Injured cyclist Maurice considers actions, consequences Just as an aside, you are never alone when you ride with a GoPro, always the perfect witness. Other manufacturer’s video products work well also.

A bit of lifestyle as an injured cyclist recovers from her assault by a drunk driver. Sisters ride in Tour de Cure for injured cyclist This was the cyclist injured when a drunk driver hit a car at a stop sign and pushed it into the cyclists riding on the main road.

More on the cyclist killed in the GTA last week. Adam Excell, cyclist killed in Toronto, mourned in Halifax RIP fellow cyclist…

And reaction to the death closer to the site. Toronto cyclists hold ‘die-in’ at Nathan Phillips Square This is another one of those “don’t read the comments” articles. The toxic bilge expressed there will corrupt your mind unless you’re like me and no longer have anything there to corrupt 😉 More Group holds silent mass protest at city hall after recent cyclist deaths

When one of the winners of the UK version of “Survivor” says London is “too dangerous”, you have a problem with your infrastructure. Ben Fogle: Riding a bicycle in London has become too dangerous Yep, London has definitely gotten to the point where heads will roll unless something substantive is done.

Case in point to accentuate the preceding paragraph. Calls for safety review after second accident at junction where unicyclist was trapped under bus Less than a month after a highly publicised wreck involving a circus performer commuting by unicycle, a more “normal” cyclist was also hit and injured in the same intersection. Naturally this is being blamed on the infrastructure this time as having two wrecks in a month is beyond “coincidence”. The victim in this wreck reported several near-misses previous to getting hit this time.

Another report on the cyclist injured by a garbage truck (At least I think it was a garbage truck). London cyclist seriously injured in skip lorry collision Seems to be the same company as one that killed a cyclist a few years back not too far from the location of this wreck. Comments with the article seem to suggest that this particular class of truck (skip lorry) has a significantly higher incident rate with cyclists. Also pointed out in the comments was the fact that of the 6 cyclist fatalities in London this year 5 were female and all 6 were HGV making left turns (UK version of the “right hook”) through the cyclists. Not stated was how many of those cyclists were in bike lanes or trying to reach the ASL at the head of the queue for the intersection… This is a problem with much of UK infrastructure.

And another report that vehicle deaths and injury are declining while cyclists and pedestrians are killed and injured unabated. Number of cyclists injured on Teesside roads up by almost a fifth Drivers and infrastructure are still as bad as ever.

And as the protester’s sign says, another death, another protest in London. Pledge over road deaths Well, lessee. The last 6 deaths, and more than 40% of the previous year’s deaths, were the result of HGV hitting cyclists during rush hours. So how about a requirement that all HGV have to be parked off the main roads during rush hours. Not banned from the roads, just, parked during morning and afternoon rushes?

I’m detecting a bit of bias from this “news” outlet, but really the subject of this video is rather stupid. Look, no brains! Incredible dashcam footage shows idiot cyclist riding with no hands along busy London streets – because she’s too busy TEXTING Yeah, don’t do that. Someone might mistake you for a car driver.

Good cyclist news from the Emerald Isle. Cyclist Orla searches for Samaritan Conor after fall Conor, she’s cute and she wants to talk, and it sounds like she wants to share the lunch she won because of what you did.

And this is how you do it right, even in a medium density suburb. A Case Study in Bike-Friendly Suburban Planning

And I’m out of links.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

I need a new writer for this story, and the Feed

The claim has been made that what we think of as the “real world” is merely the setting for a series of overlapping stories written by authors in another universe. Well I want a new writer because mine has jumped the shark. I mean seriously things have been goofy and barely believable since about 2 years after my wreck. I mean I don’t believe half of the stuff going down and it is happening to me. And if I’m having problems with the plot, why should anyone else believe it? Some of this stuff would not even make it in a bad sit-com because the pacing is so slow. I half expect to hear a laugh track at any second.

Up first, someone has more than 2 brain cells to rub together in the UK. London to ban HGVs without cyclist safety equipment as Safer Lorry Scheme comes into force this September When a very small segment of the traffic flow has a very large portion of the fatal wrecks, one has to start having a good long look at the wrecks. Both segments are allowed by law to be there, one as a right and the other as a privilege but that privilege is pretty well entrenched to the point that it is a “right” because of the essential nature of the service it performs. So since the victim can’t be banned, and the other can’t be banned, the only recourse is to make the one that kills less deadly than before in hopes that fewer people will get killed. More Lorries without cyclist safety equipment to be banned from London’s roads

Should America’s Amsterdam emulate crap UK infrastructure? Portland should be inspired by London’s ‘cycle superhighway’ Inspired, maybe. Do the same thing? Not on your or my life.

Our Daily Ted is a detailed look at a critical infrastructure question. Making the case for desperately needed bike lanes on embattled Westwood Blvd

More on the cyclist killed in Scotland by an unconscious elderly driver. Cycling wife’s death ‘not preventable’ after couple hit by OAP’s car Unless you are going to require annual medical certification for drivers over 60 there is nothing that LEO could do. More Judge rules out need for stricter medical checks on elderly drivers after Leicestershire woman’s death

This is a lot of money for getting run over by a horse. €50k for cyclist knocked off bike by horses The cyclist had some pretty nasty injuries, but nothing like he would have had if hit by, say a truck…

Followup on that man turning into a cyclist after getting a heart from one in a transplant. DJ Chris Evans considers joining Organ Donor Register – after reading about Bristol heart transplant patient How about that, a morning radio DJ thinks he still has a heart 😛 (j/k)

Lots of UK links for some reason or another, this one shows that good people will come to the aid of those in need, even when “need” is just a trip to the graveyard after getting killed. Londoners raise £6,000 funeral costs for Greek cyclist killed in Homerton This was the kind of wreck the cycle safety guards listed in the first links are supposed to mitigate.

Language is important. HOW SMART LANGUAGE HELPED END SEATTLE’S PARALYZING BIKELASH Non-confrontational language gets more bike lanes than otherwise.

A little bit of legal infrastructure in CA. Cycling Accidents in the San Fernando Valley

Last link, you have to be real careful around one of these, they are very quiet. So When Do We Get the Electric Victory Charger Cruiser? I like the e-motorcycles, but I am also leery because of how quiet they are, just like other EV without noisemaker add-ons.

And that’s all I got for today.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet

Practically an all-infrastructure Feed today after taking a long trip to pay 2/3 of my taxes

Yep, I spent most of the day on the road and on my feet today standing around in lines to pay 2 out of 3 tax bills. I managed to cover the City and County taxes in about 2 hours plus travel time including walking between the two offices. I still have to hit GISD to pay those taxes, which will be a slightly quicker trip as I have to drop by the bank first to transfer money from the savings account we use to accumulate the money for taxes and insurance to the checking account so the check won’t bounce first, then walking 4 blocks to the tax office, and probably standing around in line for at least an hour if the lines today were any indication.

Up first, this is one of the main reasons why nobody likes the NYPD. Bike Cop Tickets Bicyclist For Biking On Bike Path The cyclist was ticketed for ignoring a sign and riding on the path while 10 feet away from a sign (caught in the picture the cyclist took of the officer writing the ticket) telling people that they were on a bike path. And yet even with photographic proof that the cyclist was riding on the bike path and not a pedestrian path this case will go to trial. The only thing I can think of is the judge has a deal to split the overtime with the cop.

A drunk driver is on trial for killing a cyclist in the most deadliest state in the US to walk or ride a bike. Trial continues for man charged in fatal crash with cyclist There are many reasons why FL kills more cyclist per capita than any other state in the US, the high rate of DUI is just one of them.

And along those lines come these thoughts. Florida Cities: “Unsafe at Any Speed” for Cyclists, Pedestrians? and South Florida roadways not just dangerous for cars Physical infrastructure, legal infrastructure, education, all are deficient with FL. The legal infrastructure is being addressed on the law side of the equation, but where it really falls down is on the LEO side when wrecks that were recorded by the cyclist and prove the cyclist was not at fault end up with no enforcement against the driver. Some of that failure is a result of the long-term failure in the education side. People just don’t know the laws, and LEO are people at the end of the day.

More of the same in MO. Man arrested for fatally striking bicycle rider in St. Louis County Fortunately there was nothing on the mode of the wreck.

Our Daily Ted. Morning Links: LA considers hit-and-run alert, Pacoima Wash Bikeway meeting, Glendale surrenders to traffic

More on the London glorified bike lanes. London is building Europe’s longest bike superhighway As far as the longest actual “superhighway” for bikes, I think that would be the recent 27 km or so long highway opened in Denmark might have that title. And it is a real superhighway, basically a divided highway in bicycle scale. More Cycling in Central London set to get safer with new superhighways

Why this is needed is illustrated in this infographic. How London’s streets became a death trap for cyclists: Every bicycle accident mapped All that money and they are still decades behind the Dutch.

And I’m fresh out of links.

Billed @€0.02, Opus the Poet