This summer I spent most of my days at the bike shop sitting at the front desk. When a person came in and I said hi and they walked right past me–well, sometimes I got mad. But sometimes I was glad. Because the truth is there was always a fifty percent chance that I didn’t […]
Tag: cycling
Parents and guardians: keep your kids out of the bike lane
September evening, Manhattan dinner date. I put on a dress and took the bike route that led to the Williamsburg Bridge. It was a refreshing post-summer night and I was listening to music and having a GREAT TIME. The Williamsburg Bridge has completely separate paths for cyclists and pedestrians to cross. Pedestrians enter the bridge […]
The bike hug (for reference)
I thought I wrote a post about this a long long time ago, but actually I did not. The bike hug: a very slow bike crash that results in something more like a hug than an injury. Example: One day, in a far away land a long time ago. (Crown Heights! Last year!) I was […]
Follow me home
Last night I felt like someone was following me home. I know this sounds alarming but actually I was not at all alarmed at the time (I am only slightly alarmed at myself now as I write this). Bear with me as I explain: If you ride your bike in New York City you know […]
Climate change: the circular argument
Friday was the worldwide youth climate strike. I didn’t go. I went to work which was fixing bikes that are used for free programs that teach kids and adults how to ride. I told myself: my work really does help offset climate change. So it’s better for me to go to work than to the […]
More astonished
A few weeks ago I was alone, pushing my bike up a very, very steep gravel hill somewhere in southern Vermont on a lovely Wednesday afternoon. Sounds nice, yes, but I was not having a good time. I’ve been sad. (Sad?) Depressed. On and off for a while. Months? It’s not a big deal. It’s […]
Troubled
Let him who seeks continue seeking until he finds. When he finds, he will become troubled. When he becomes troubled, he will be astonished.-The Gospel of Thomas When I showed up for work on Friday afternoon my co-instructor, Caroline, asked me how I was and I said, it’s been a rough week. And she asked […]
Things I smell while riding my bike
Day: Saturday April 13Time: 5:30am-8amLocation: Ridgewood, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, NolitaWeather: Light rain, heavy rain, drizzle, mist, dry, mistSmells: wet, exhaust, bread, exhaust, shit, warm butter, bacon egg and cheese, sour garbage, weed, coffee, exhaust, sugary croissants, lakes, spring, Southern France, cigarettes, exhaust
Should I ride my bike to Maine?
There are obvious reasons to visit Maine by bike. They say it is beautiful. They say the water is cold. But there are reasons not to go to Maine: It is frivolous to ride around on my bike all day. I’m getting too old for this. It used to be cool that I rode my […]
On balance
These are how my summer days are going: in a nearby park in partial shade I teach kids how to ride bikes. Two, maybe three groups per day. I put sunscreen on everywhere but especially in the folds of my ears, the inside elbows, the backs of my hands. The kids on bikes: they’re pushing […]
